salón

Etymology
From. .

Noun

 * 1) living room, front room, sitting room, parlor, lounge, drawing room room where guests are received
 * 2) salon room
 * 3) salon gathering
 * 4) hall meeting hall
 * 5) exhibition hall
 * 6)  classroom
 * 1) exhibition hall
 * 2)  classroom

Usage notes

 * Both salón and can be used to mean "living room", which sometimes confuses English speakers. Depending on the size of the house, sometimes both words can be used to describe the same exact room, and other times they are two disparate rooms that aren't interchangeable. The difference lies in the following. The salón is the room of a house where guests are received. If someone is hosting a party, this is where the guests will go after they enter the house to mingle and relax. In English, we have terms for this like sitting room, front room or parlor, but in the United States, those terms have somewhat become outdated, and "living room" is used to describe any room for lounging. But again, the emphasis is on the place where guests are received.

For /, on the other hand, the emphasis is on the principal or main room of the house. In your typical one-story house, the salón and sala are one and the same room. However, in bigger homes and mansions, the salón and sala are two distinct rooms. The salón is typically more public, and by inviting anyone into your home, you are giving them access to it, whereas your sala de estar is more private. Your guests would only go there if you as host invite them. This can vary from region to region, but is generally accurate.

As an analogy, one may compare the words ' and ' in English. Generally, for homes that have both, the living room is nearer the front door (or contains the front door), is larger, better-kept, and often has many of the home's impressive items on display, such as paintings, pictures, trophies, etc. Compare this to the family room which is arranged more towards the interests and activities of the owners of the house and generally, like bedrooms, has its own door to separate it from the rest of the house so that guests don't enter if the host wishes them not to. Hence, the living room is comparable to the salón, and the family room to the sala de estar.

Derived terms
(diminutive saloncillo or saloncito)