Beginner Level
Nouns in Spanish
Unlike English, Spanish has only 2 genders. All nouns are either masculine or feminine. Nouns like ‘book’ which are considered to have no gender in English (neuter gender) are either masculine or feminine in Spanish.
When you learn a new word in Spanish it is important to learn what gender it is as well. For example when you learn that ‘mesa’ means table, try to remember it as ‘la mesa’ so you also remember that it is a feminine noun. It is hard to memorize the gender of every single word you learn so here are some general rules that will help you.
GENERAL RULES FOR GENDER IN SPANISH
In general, nouns ending in –o are masculine and nouns ending in –a are feminine (although there are some exceptions).
| Masculine |
| El muchacho |
The boy |
| El chico |
The boy |
| El perro |
The dog |
| El gato |
The cat |
| El hermano |
The brother |
| El tío |
The uncle |
| El abuelo |
The grandfather |
| El libro |
The book |
| El plato |
The dish |
| El vaso |
The glass |
| El carro |
The car |
| El pollo |
The chicken |
| El toro |
The bull |
Now some examples of feminine nouns in Spanish:
| Feminine |
| La muchacha |
The girl |
| La chica |
The girl |
| La perra |
The dog |
| La gata |
The cat |
| La hermana |
The girl |
| La tía |
The aunt |
| La abuela |
The grandmother |
| La playa |
The beach |
| La plata |
The silver |
| La mesa |
The table |
| La puerta |
The door |
| La silla |
The chair |
| La casa |
The house |
‘El’ and
‘La’ are the Spanish definite articles. The Spanish indefinite articles are
‘un’ and
‘una’.
El libro – the book
Un libro – a book
La playa – the beach
Una playa – a beach
El toro – the bull
Un toro – a bull
La casa – the house
Una casa – a house
There are some
exceptions to the rule above. The following are some
exceptions to the previous rule:
| Masculine |
| El problema |
The problem |
| El sistema |
The system |
| El clima |
The climate |
| El tema |
The theme/subject |
| El día |
The day |
| El programa |
The program |
| El mapa |
The map |
| El agua |
The water |
| Feminine |
| La mano |
The hand |
| La radio |
The radio |
Some nouns change their ending depending on whether they are masculine or feminine:
| Masculine |
| El maestro |
The teacher |
| El profesor |
The teacher/professor |
| El bailador |
The dancer |
| El mesero |
The waiter |
| El camarero |
The waiter |
| El actor |
The actor |
| Feminine |
| La maestra |
The teacher |
| La profesora |
The teacher/professor |
| La bailadora |
The dancer |
| La mesera |
The waitress |
| La camarera |
The waitress |
| La actriz |
The actress |
Some nouns remain the same whether they are masculine or feminine:
| El periodista |
La periodista |
The journalist |
| El socialista |
La socialista |
The socialist |
| El pianista |
La pianista |
The pianist |
| El dentista |
La dentista |
The dentist |
| El piloto |
La piloto |
The pilot |
| El novelista |
La novelista |
The novelist/writer |
| El artista |
La artista |
The artist |
Spanish Words, Common Phrases, and Grammar
| English |
Spanish |
Pronunciation |
| Good morning. |
Buenos días. |
booEHN-os DEE-as |
| Good afternoon. |
Buenas tardes. |
booEHN-as TAR-dehs |
| Good evening. (greeting) |
Buenas noches. |
booEHN-as NO-chehs |
| Hello, my name is John. |
Hola, me llamo Juan. |
OH-la meh YA-mo Wahn |
| What is your name? |
¿Cómo se llama usted? |
KOH-moh seh YA-mah oos-TEHD |
| How are you? |
¿Cómo está usted? |
KOH-moh ehs-TA oos-TEHD |
| I am fine. |
Estoy bien. |
ehs-TOY bee-EHN |
| Nice to meet you. |
Mucho gusto. |
MOO-choh GOOS-toh |
| Goodbye. |
Adiós. |
ah-dee-OHS |
| See you later. |
Hasta luego. |
AHS-ta looEH-go |
| I am lost. Where is the restroom? |
Estoy perdido. ¿Dónde está el baño? |
ehs-TOY pehr-DEE-doh. DOHN-deh ehs-TA el BAH-neeo |
| Excuse me. |
Con permiso. OR Perdóname |
kohn pehr-MEE-soh OR pehr-DOH-nah-meh |
| Please. |
Por favor. |
pohr fah-VOR |
| Thank you. |
Gracías. |
gra-SEE-ahs |
| I’m sorry. |
Lo siento. |
low see-EHN-to |
| Bless you. |
Salud. |
sah-LOOD |
| You are welcome (it was nothing). |
De nada. |
deh NA-da |
| How much does it cost? |
¿Cuánto cuesta? |
kooAN-to KWEHS-ta |
| How many are there? |
¿Cuántos hay? |
kooAN-tohs eye |
| There are many. |
Hay muchos. |
eye MOO-chohs |
| Do you want to buy this? |
¿Quiere comprarlo usted? |
kee-EHR-eh kohm-PRAR-loh oos-TEHD |
| What time is it? |
¿Qué hora es? |
keh OR-ah ehs |
| How do you say maybe in Spanish? |
¿Cómo se dice maybe en Español? |
KOH-mo seh DEE-seh maybe ehn ehs-pahn-YOL |
| Yes. |
Sí. |
see |
| No. |
No. |
no |
| I do not understand. |
Yo no comprendo. |
yoh no kom-PREN-doh |
| Would you speak slower, please. |
Por favor, habla mas despacio. |
pohr fah-VOR, AH-blah mahs dehs-PAHS-ee-oh |
| Who? |
¿Quièn? |
kee-EHN |
| Why? |
¿Por què? |
pohr keh |
Spanish Resources]]>
