Retrieved from https://lingualinkup.com/el-la-spanish/. La periodista es muy insistente. The following words are feminine when plural, but when they are singular, these words are masculine: Another exception is that the el or la can change the context of the word: Online Spanish Tutors - Native Speakers. But since doctor refers to a person and an occupation, its the gender of the doctor that will determine the article and ending. I need a vacation from my family after the reunion. This semester is really tough. For 15 years we've taught Spanish to hundreds of thousands of learners. The endings are not so obvious. Beware of exceptions! For that reason, this guide covers all the information you need to understand this topic. I want a coffee, please. They wish that they were in love now. LONERS - words that end with any of the letters in LONERS are usually masculine. This attribute allows us to classify words as either masculine or feminine. While this is actually true for a lot of words, there are so many exceptions to this rule that it often becomes more of a problem than a solution. La casa blanca es muy bonita.The white house is very pretty. And it gets easier with time and practice. coming up later. I like the pink dress. The Amazon River is the worlds largest river. See answer (1) Copy. La mesera descansa los jueves. The Ultimate Tip-Sheet to Articles in Spanish: El vs La, Un vs Una [2022], Puzzle Solved: Why nouns in Spanish are feminine and masculine [2022]. Un - unos. Our car is dirty. Dijiste que the letters of the alphabet are masculine, pero son feminine, Muchas gracias, Ann! This is the only noun ending that does not have a guideline gender classification. Test yourself on the gender of Spanish nouns: Note: You must be logged into your Progress with Lawless Spanish account to take these tests. The word espaol was supposedly imported from Provence by a medieval chronicler (it was originally introduced by pilgrims in Santiago) because there was no existing translation of the earlier Roman word Hispani when writing a chronicle of Spanish history, but this was the word Provenal speakers used to refer to the Christian kingdoms of what If you liked this post, you can share it with someone else who might find it helpful! Otherwise, it would sound like laaagua. The truth can be painful. In any case, if a word has any of the following endings you can be absolutely sure that it is masculine. That tree is very old. Luis dog is white. SpanishDict is the world's most popular Spanish-English dictionary, translation, and learning website. Spanish gender is a complex topic. and an adjective (hungry, thirsty,. My horse is black and my mare brown. (general) a. vacation (United States) Me urge una vacacin! Larry fue a Londres un par de das durante las vacaciones, El ao pasado pasamos unas vacaciones maravillosas en Mallorca. In Spanish, all nouns are either masculine or feminine. These key rules will make it easier for you! But then you find out that its la foto, not el foto. Her bedroom is purple. The idea that nouns have gender seems perfectly natural when the noun stands for a living creature. El vestidor est ocupado. But, sometimes a word is a shorter forms of a longer word, like moto or radio. Spanish Nouns That Can Be Both Masculine And Feminine While most nouns refer to objects and concepts that don't have gender, there are also the nouns that do. Esa cantante es muy talentosa. For any person or animal that is masculine, these are the articles to use: For any person or animal that is feminine, these are the articles to use: For example. Why? I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. There are a few exceptions to this rule (for example, la mano and el mapa ). 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To keep the sentence consistent, adjectives, articles, and pronouns must agree in gender and number with the noun they modify. trabajador m (plural trabajadores, feminine trabajadora, feminine plural trabajadoras) worker Synonyms: currante, obrero, trabajante; Derived terms Here are some of the letters that we usually see at the end of masculine words. Some examples include: These rules can help you most of the time to determine if the noun is masculine, but they won't always work. Because of this, he has really hard opinions about AP Style. We know that a person can be a man or a woman. Although in English there is no need to think about whether a pencil is a masculine or a feminine noun, it is important in Spanish because the adjectives (i. e. pretty, ugly, small, big) and articles (the equivalents of "the" in Spanish, such as: el, la, los and las) of a sentence must match the gender and number of nouns. So with people you may not know well, perhaps someone older, or people of authority/higher status than oneself such as a college professor. Tweet. Mi padres pasaron las vacaciones de Semana Santa en Argentina. Click on the arrows to change the translation direction. And because it is an occupation, we said that those that end in -a, tend to stay the same. This discussion is especially alive with occupations. Its like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. Your email address will not be published. Descubr lo que tu empresa podra llegar a alcanzar. I love smoked salmon. Colours in Spanish. Tu vecina es muy ruidosa. In his spare time, he enjoys reading and getting angry about things on. The Masculine and feminine 1 Whack-a-mole. If you know your endings and what gender they fall into, the onlyexception to keep in mind is when the word refers to a person, an animal or an occupation because the person or animal will determine the gender of the word. vacation translate: vacances [feminine, plural], vacances [feminine, plural], passer ses vacances, vacances, passer des. Therefore, "red" is "rojo" but it becomes "roja" with a. For instance, a table (la mesa) is feminine, while a desk (el escritorio) is masculine. And of course, they are all derived from the isms of the previous rule. As established before, a Spanish noun can be classified as masculine or feminine depending on its gender. Think youve got it? The ending -a is a good indicator that youre most likely dealing with a feminine Spanish word. There are some rules to determine if a noun is masculine of feminine. El periodista trabaja todo el da. My students are already speaking Spanish and using it in their everyday lives. Its the same for words ending with -a: el/la espa, el/la polica, el/la gua. Learn more in the Cambridge English-French Dictionary. Yet if you are referring to a person or occupation this is what happens: LA espa = The spy (if the spy is a woman. Most animal names have a female and a male form, but not all do. Get to Grips with Spanish: Spanish Grammar for Beginners: Masculine & Feminine, Singular & Plural (English Edition) eBook : Helliwell, Julie: Amazon.nl: Boeken Dialogues in Spanish - English on 123dialogues channel: https://www.youtube.com/123dialogues Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/youstudyspanishBlog: http://y. Feminine and masculine nouns ending in -E. Nouns ending in -e can be masculine and feminine. Maybe you could make up your own! Sus zapatos son muy caros. Whether its a good idea to split the world into two genders is a subject for a different article, but for now well go through the various kinds of nouns that switch genders. Although its not really incorrect to use the feminine form, its less common. (m) means that a noun is masculine. Create your account. Create an account to start this course today. Hubo mil quinientos invitados.There were one thousand five hundred guests. However, there are certain words whose endings are unalterable. Nouns with other endings, such as other consonants, usually need to be memorized. As mentioned above, this rule comes into effect with amounts superior to two hundred. Both are fem. Spanish Survival Kit: Asking for Directions [2022]. Why is it important to know if a noun is feminine or masculine? 3. How do numbers and gender affect adjectives in Spanish? Fortunately, even the exceptions have rules. My dogs are very quiet. Collins Complete Spanish Electronic Dictionary HarperCollins Publishers 2011. Some of the exceptions occur because of how the words were treated in other languages, such as Latin and Greek. SpanishDict is the world's most popular Spanish-English dictionary, translation, and learning website. These are some of the nouns whose endings cannot change. Yet it behaves like a feminine noun. This site also participates in other affiliate programs, including CJ and other sites, and is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies, but in no way increases the cost to you if you opt to make a purchase from my links. Words ending simply in -inare often masculine, as in: el camin, el avin, etc., so bear that in mind! From students and tourists to doctors and soldiers whove moved and visited here over the years. I've still got some vacation time left before the end of the year. You could possibly sayel tortugo to refer to a male turtle, but it might get you a weird look or two. To put it in simple terms, if youre working with a Spanish masculine noun, you must make sure its modifiers are also masculine. We know that all people have gender, but in Spanish all nouns have gender. Time to dive into a topic that combines grammar and etiquette. Benoit Hamon, CEO de SINGA, est venu sur Komune pour donner des faits face aux ides If you happen to have an excellent grasp on etymology, youll have a leg up! LinguaLinkup.com 2023. Nouns ending in -o, an accented vowel, -or, or -aje are usually masculine. Some examples are hijo (son), zapato (shoe) and mono (monkey). La serpiente - the serpent. The user may also prefer cheaper vacations and may have desiderata or wishes such as visiting an attraction park in each stop. Several Spanish nouns have a masculine and a feminine form, for example, hijo - son and hija - daughter.Another example is mdico - male doctor and mdica - female doctor.. Another example of this is la radio, which is a shorter form of the word radiodifusin. Unlike the masculine, theres no fun acronym for feminine nouns. As you might have guessed, all of the tricks were going to cover use word The food was delicious. Nouns ending in o are usually masculine, and nouns ending in a are usually feminine. In the tables below, youll find the most common endings for feminine words in Spanish. You will get new updates by email, as well as a copy of my ebook, the Definitive Guide to Learn Conjugations in Spanish. First of all, what is a noun? La maestra tiene dos gatitas.The teacher has two kitties. Just like with nouns, Spanish masculine adjectives usually end in the vowel -O like "Bonito" and "Creativo", e.g. For these nouns, all you have to do is change the definite article to reflect whether the person in question is male or female. vacacin ( bah - kah - syohn ) feminine noun 1. My mom has a cherry tree. Me encanta el salmn ahumado. Names of rivers, oceans, and seas are always masculine: el Ro de la Plata, el Amazonas, el Misisipi, el Atlntico, el Pacfico, el Mediterrneo, etc. The standard rules are here on the top of the page, but you shouldn't trust them fully. Exceptions: la mano, la radio, la moto, la foto. This means that every word for a person, place, thing or idea is either masculine or feminine. by Mgomezhernandez. 'pa pdd chac-sb tc-bd bw hbr-20 hbss lpt-25' : 'hdn'">. La foto, can actually shed some light into one of the rules for feminine words. Usted is used to speak in a more professional manner. It's a good place to start for beginners though! Youll find a few Spanish singular feminine words that end with -a that are preceded by a masculine article. Search millions of Spanish-English example sentences from our dictionary, TV shows, and the internet. Make sure you pay attention to the exceptions column. I like the pink dress. If the noun is masculine and singular, use the masculine, singular ending (usually - o ). All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Tu voz es muy chillona. Everything weve ever written about Spanish, all in one place. Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English. And its true that theres no logical way to divide the world into masculine and feminine. Fish are very pretty. "Masculine and Feminine in Spanish (el & la): The Rules & Their Many Exceptions." -Tud, like in the word actitud (attitude) is also a common ending for feminine nouns. Its In Spanish, all nouns have a gender. Soccer is very boring. places and ideas. In English, you use a form of the verb 'to be' (am, is, are, was, were, etc.) vacation translate: vacances [feminine, plural], vacances [feminine, plural], passer ses vacances, vacances, passer des. (Check out this link to learn how to use articles in Spanish). Those singers are Spanish. Me gusta el vestido rosa. There are some nouns that end in a, but they are not feminine, but masculine: And vice versa, some nouns that end in -o are feminine: When a masculine noun ends in a consonant, its feminine form ends in a (We just have to had an a after that last consonant). Janet Long has taught post-secondary Spanish and English for over 15 years. I feel like its a lifeline. When we have 2 or more nouns with different genre (one is masculine and the other one is feminine), and there is 1 adjective used to describe both of them, the genre of this adjective will be masculine. Add vacation to one of your lists below, or create a new one. I have an extra pen. All nouns in Spanish are either masculine or feminine. And if theres another word between the definite article (el/la) and the noun, we use the feminine article: La extensa rea / La imponente aula / La hermosa guila. Here we will explain the rules, and then the 3 categories of exceptions: Below are a number of words you would think should be la according to the rules above, but they are el, as they are exceptions to the el/la rules. We know, we know, the exceptions are very frustrating. Nouns in Spanish can be either feminine or masculine, and this distinction can often seem illogical to people who don't speak Spanish. The Philippines (/ f l p i n z / (); Filipino: Pilipinas), officially the Republic of the Philippines (Filipino: Republika ng Pilipinas), is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia.It is situated in the western Pacific Ocean and consists of around 7,641 islands that are broadly categorized under three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Feminine nouns that end in -o * These words are shortened from words that do end in A: discoteca, fotografa, motocicleta, pornografa, and radiodifusin. With these rules below, you'll know which to use with every word "el" or "la". 2. Professions also refer to people, but are kind of their own subset. We said all words ending in -a are feminine. Words ending in -ed (if the stress falls on this syllable). While most nouns that end with a particular consonant or vowel are generally classified as either masculine or feminine, nouns that end with z do not follow a guideline. FR8 En Ville - Location Sort - Masculine/Feminine Group sort. Necesito un respiro de mi familia despus de la reunin. As you can see, below that chart, youll then see the el & la exceptions for Spanish words. The last three of them are actually abbreviations of feminine compound words: la radiofona, la motocicleta, la fotografa. This restaurant is pretty famous. But that has changed with time, and thus we end up with rules that are blurry which do not help when those starting to learn Spanish. Since it can be challenging to conjugate, well Probar Conjugation 101: Conjugate Probar in Spanish. In Spanish, the masculine form of these animals almost always takes precedence. Over time we've worked to perfect every minute of every learning session. My cousins design is not finished. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. However, in certain situations, changing the gender of a noun can also change its meaning, as you can see in the graphic and examples below: Mi mam tiene un cerezo. The pink t-shirt is too big. This can be confusing, especially when some words, like persona (person), can refer to a person that is man or a woman. La sangre - the blood. As explained before, a big portion of masculine words in Spanish end with an -o. That pattern works for things too. And because it is an occupation, we said that those . The Spanish gender can be distinguished with certain endings or by checking the gender of the adjectives, pronouns and Spanish articles surrounding that word. For example, the application developer may write a rule stating that each. Join the Tell Me In Spanish community and get a copy of my step-by-step Spanish Learners Roadmaps and tricky synonyms & vocab cheat sheets. "Uncle" and "aunt," for example, are el to and la ta. And to improve your Spanish even further, book a lesson with me! Below youll find a list of words and be able to find out for yourself if it is masculine (el) or feminine (la). Spanish Language Dictations Level Beginner #001. In both theFluenz online programand the Fluenz Spanish Immersions, we take it one step at a time. The word for 'the' or 'a' changes depending on the gender of the noun and whether it is singular or plural. Las aguas azucaradas son malas para la salud. But really, the LONERS rule will work for you almost every time. Here are two articles that help shed some light on the subject: Puzzle Solved: Why nouns in Spanish are feminine and masculine, The Ultimate Tip-Sheet to Articles in Spanish: (El vs. La, Un vs. Una), Your email address will not be published. But, more exceptions! El mecnico trabaja todos los das. El nino y el gato. You will need to memorize rule-breaking words like la mano (hand) and el d'ia (day). I hope you find what youre looking here during your journey into Espaol Read More About Me, Venir Conjugation 101: Conjugate Venir In Spanish. But that is also the beauty of a language, and the fact that it is alive and evolving is one of the elements that I find personally interesting. La pared est recin pintada. Este semestre est bien pesado. 33 chapters | When they describe a NOUN, they must match its GENDER (masculine/feminine). Miami Beach, FL 33139, 1000 5th St, suite 200 Read 250 words that are the same in English and Spanish and Spanish words that are similar to English words to boost your vocabulary right away! Adjectives describing, agua are feminine. . In Spanish if there is a group of people, both males and females, you use the masculine to address them all, so masculine will work in most cases. vacation translate: vacances [feminine, plural], vacances [feminine, plural], passer ses vacances, vacances, passer des. For that reason, in this guide, Ill provide you with all the key information you need to know to determine the gender of nouns in Spanish. *Note: la moto and la foto are a shortened version of the feminine words motocicleta and fotografa. Nuestro coche est sucio. The Masculine and feminine 2 Whack-a-mole. Most adjectives must agree in gender with the noun they modify. Cuntas clases faltan para las vacaciones? Languages are masculine: el espaol, el ingls, el portugus, el mandarn, el ruso, etc. Dont worry! Nouns ending with -a are usually feminine: la mesa, la cama, la casa, la palabra, etc. Objectos de clase (masculine - feminine ) Group sort. And with -(a)tra, especially in the medical field: el/la foniatra, el/la pediatra, el/la obstetra. For English speakers, it is hard to determine when a noun is feminine or masculine simply because nouns in English have no gender. As you can see, there are adjectives that follow the regular rule for endings using -o/-as/-os/-as (rojo, amarillo, negro, blanco, morado). las vacaciones de Navidad, las vacaciones de Pascua, las vacaciones de verano. Let's look at the word persona (person) to help explain this idea. But be careful! In the following sections, well explore some of Spanishs most important rules for feminine and masculine nouns. With these rules below, you'll know which to use with every word "el" or "la". Not bad, huh? La mano (hand) is feminine, but el pie (foot) is masculine. Mis perros son muy tranquilos. Thinking of them together might help you remember their correct gender. Esta camisa es negra. The Spanish letters "a" and "o" as the final letter of a word designate a feminine or masculine word; "a" is feminine and "o" is masculine. There are also adjectives where the singular masculine form ends in -e or a consonant, and it keeps the same form in the feminine singular ( verde, azul, gris, marrn) and both gender . Youre more likely to hearel gato when someone is talking about a generic cat, for example. If you have the word for friend, it refers to a person correct? Spanish gender can be a challenging topic for many new and advanced learners. A common mistake made by Spanish learners is to confuse the number one, uno, with un, which means a/an. An intransitive verb is one that does not require a direct object (e.g. Masculine and Feminine in Spanish (el & Masculine and Feminine in Spanish (el & la): The Rules & Their Many Exceptions, how to tell if a word is masculine or feminine in spanish, what is the difference between masculine and feminine in spanish, 35 Vegetables Translated to Spanish | The Ultimate Master List, Demonstrative Adjectives: This, That, These, and Those Get Them Right. Grammatical gender is a property of Spanish nouns. If you have studied Spanish, you are painfully aware of this. Take Note: Do not get mixed up! That color is pretty. Cardinal directions are masculine, too: el norte, el sur, el este, el oeste. Take the Spanish words for "colour" and "tooth": el color, el diente. Given that its key for your conversations and it can also help you practice this spelling change, in this guide, well learn the probar conjugation Hola! During the day Im a freelancer and online marketer, while at night Im here writing for students of the world wide web looking to learn Spanish. Your voice is so high-pitched. Get a Step-by-Step Map to Learning Spanish. These short words keep the gender of the longer word, even if they have -ma, -pa, -ta, or LONERS at the end. Many students assume that confusing the gender of words in Spanish is not a big deal. Im always glad to reach and help more people around the world. Names of rivers, lakes, and oceans are usually masculine; names of mountains are usually feminine. But as you already know, there is no such thing as neutral nouns in Spanish. There are some words that end with -o, -ma, -pa, -ta, or LONERS that are feminine. Why? Be one of them! Normalmente, voy de vacaciones en diciembre. "Water" in Spanish is not masculine. While some exceptions (like la mano) are just exceptions, many words that seemingly end in -o are actually shortenings of other words. Su habitacin es morada. frias, sair de frias, frias [feminine, vacances [feminine, plural], passer ses vacances, vacanza, andare in vacanza, (passare le vacanze), Test your vocabulary with our fun image quizzes, Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English. Spanish also has four forms of the indefinite article that correspond to the words a/an and some/any in English. Given that this may be a new concept for new learners, many people wonder what grammatical gender in Spanish is. Most Spanish masculine nouns end in "o". Soy Daniela Sanchez, Ive taught Spanish in Mexico to a wide array of foreigners. However, this doesnt mean that all words that end with an -a are feminine. The light is quite bright. When it comes to the world of animals, things can get even more complicated. " El nio es bonito y gordo ". I want a more intense red. One of the first things that Spanish students learn is that most Spanish nouns that end in -o are masculine and most that end in -a are feminine. Your email address will not be published. Masculine forms. However, the word persona is always a feminine word. No me di cuenta, ya lo correg , Your email address will not be published. Dictionaries always indicate the grammatical gender of a noun! When using adjectives to describe a person, use the gender that the person identifies with. In the sections below, youll find tables with the most common endings for masculine words in Spanish. Nouns ending with -dez and -umbre are usually feminine, too: la solidez, la desnudez, la costumbre, la incertidumbre, etc. . hand From Latin manus (" hand " ). Dolphins are adorable. Next year I am going to vacation in Europe. Most nouns that end in "a" are feminine nouns. Here is a quick overview of the topics well cover: By the end of this article, youll have a more solid understanding of how Spanish gender works. Unfortunately, there are not as many rules to know whether a noun in Spanish is masculine. The adjective for Italia is italiano. When you are starting out in Spanish knowing the gender of nouns is very difficult. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors. With these nouns in singular, the indefinite article (un/una) is masculine, too: un aula, un guila, etc. Your house is big and pretty. In these cases, we use.