públicas

Públicas is the feminine plural form of the adjective público in Spanish and Portuguese. It denotes something relating to the public or owned by the state, and it agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies.

In Spanish, público and its feminine form pública(a) appear in noun phrases such as entidades públicas (public entities) and administraciones públicas (public administrations). The term is primarily adjectival and is used to describe aspects of the public sector, public life, or publicly owned institutions. When referring to the public sphere in general, speakers may also use lo público, a neutral noun phrase.

In Portuguese, pública and suas variantes (públicas, público, públicas) function similarly as adjectives that describe things related to the public sector or the community. Common expressions include instituições públicas (public institutions) and serviços públicos (public services). Like Spanish, the form must agree with the noun it modifies, so feminine plural nouns require públicas.

Etymology: both languages derive pública(from Latin publicus), with shared roots in the meaning of belonging to the people or the state.

Uso y contexto: en contextos políticos, administrativos y legales, pública/públicas señala pertenencia o relación con el sector público. El término es frecuente en descripciones oficiales y en debates sobre servicios y organismos gubernamentales, con variaciones regionales en preferencia léxica entre países hispanohablantes y lusófonos.