Tuesday, 25 March 2014
Indefinite Articles
Today, the indefinite article, translates in English to 'a' or 'an' but as with the definite article, in Spanish there are 4 different words, depending on the gender and the quantity of the noun which it describes.
The indefinite article is used to describe a non-specific object. A cat, as opposed to a specific object, THE cat, which we have seen before, is the definite article.
There are four words in Spanish for the English 'A' or 'AN' -
Un-
Masculine Singular
Una-
Feminine Singular
Unos-
Masculine Plural
Unas-
Feminine Plural
As we learnt in a previous lesson all nouns in the Spanish language are either masculine or feminine, and the indefinite article must always 'agree' with the noun. Let's again, use the word 'cat' as an example.
Un gato - A male cat / 1 male cat
Una gata - A female cat / 1 female cat
Unos gatos - Some (male) cats*
Unas gatas - Some (female) cats
*As stated in a previous lesson in mixed groups the male form of the verb is always used, regardless of number.
How about another example? Remember that masculine nouns use 'un' or 'unos' and feminine nouns use 'una' or 'unas' depending on whether they are singular or plural.
Un Libro - A book / 1 book
Una Manzana - An apple / 1 apple
Unos Libros - Some books
Unas Manzanas - Some apples
See, easy, isn't it?
All you have to remember is:
"For masculine verbs use UN if you are referring to just a single object or UNOS if you are referring to more than one."
"For feminine verbs use UNA if you are referring to just a single object or UNAS if you are referring to more than one"
Tuesday, 18 March 2014
Definite Articles
Today, we are going to look at the definite article in Spanish, which translates to 'the' in English. Spanish has 4 different words for 'the', but don't worry, it's easier than it sounds and by the end of this lesson you will be comfortable in using the correct one.
Just before we start, if you haven't read the post on gender in the Spanish language, I suggest you do so before continuing with this lesson.
The definite article is used to describe a specific object, translated as 'the' in English. THE cat refers to a specific cat.
There are 4 words which translate as 'the' :-
El -
Masculine Singular
La -
Feminine Singular
Los -
Masculine Plural
Las -
Feminine Plural
As we learnt in an earlier lesson all nouns in Spanish are either masculine or feminine, and the definite article must always 'agree' with the noun. Let's take Gato - Cat, for an example.
EL gato - The (male) cat
LA gata - The (female) cat
LOS gatos - The (male) cats*
LAS gatas - The (female) cats
*As stated in a previous lesson on gender in the Spanish language mixed groups ALWAYS use the masculine form, irrespective of number.
How about another example? Notice that Masculine nouns use El or los, and feminine nouns use La or Las, depending on whether or not they are singular or plural.
EL Cielo - The Sky
La Manzana - The Apple
Los Pies - The Feet
Las Plumas - The Pens
See? Easy, isn't it? All you have to remember is:
For masculine verbs use EL if you are referring to just a single object or LOS if you are referring to more than one.
For feminine verbs use LA if you are referring to just a single object or LAS if you are referring to more than one.
Now, lets see what you've learned.
Colors (Basic Vocabulary List)
Black -
Negro
White -
Blanco
Gray -
Gris
Red -
Rojo
Blue -
Azul
Yellow -
Amarillo
Green -
Verde
Orange -
Anaranjado
Pink -
Rosa
Brown -
Marron
Silver -
Plateado
Gold -
Dorado
Monday, 17 March 2014
Numbers (1-20)
1 Uno
2 Dos
3 Tres
4 Cuatro
5 Cinco
6 Seis
7 Seite
8 Ocho
9 Nuevo
10 Diez
11 Once
12 Doce
13 Trece
14 Catorce
15 Quince
16 Dieciseis
17 Diecisiete
18 Dieciocho
19 Diecinueve
20 Veinte
That's pretty much it as the numbers 1-20 go, but one little point of grammar:
With masculine nouns 'Uno' changes to 'un' - Un chico - a (1) boy
With femanine nouns 'Uno' changes to una - Una Chica - a (1) girl
2 Dos
3 Tres
4 Cuatro
5 Cinco
6 Seis
7 Seite
8 Ocho
9 Nuevo
10 Diez
11 Once
12 Doce
13 Trece
14 Catorce
15 Quince
16 Dieciseis
17 Diecisiete
18 Dieciocho
19 Diecinueve
20 Veinte
That's pretty much it as the numbers 1-20 go, but one little point of grammar:
With masculine nouns 'Uno' changes to 'un' - Un chico - a (1) boy
With femanine nouns 'Uno' changes to una - Una Chica - a (1) girl
The Human Body (Basic Vocabulary List)
The Body -
El Cuerpo
Arm -
El Brazo
Back -
La Espalda
Ear -
La Oreja
Elbow -
El Codo
Eye -
El Ojo
Finger -
El Dedo
Foot -
El Pie
Hair -
El Pelo
Head -
La Cabeza
Heart -
El Corazón
Knee -
La Rodilla
Leg -
La Pierna
Mouth -
La Boca
Neck -
El Cuello
Nose -
La Nariz
Shoulder -
El Hombro
Skin -
La Piel
Stomach -
El Estómago
Throat -
La Garganta
Toe / Finger -
El Dedo
Tongue -
La Lengua
Tooth -
El Diente
If you have any to add, or any questions, still use the comment form below.
Gender of Nouns
In Spanish, as in all Romance languages other than English all nouns have 'gender'. This often confuses first time language learners, but it really is very simple, with a little bit of practice.
All nouns in Spanish are either masculine or feminine.
| Masculine | Feminine |
|---|---|
| El Niño (Son) |
La Niña (Daughter) |
| El Teatro (The Theater) |
La Playa (The Beach) |
| El Dormitorio (The Bedroom) |
La Piscina (The Swimming Pool) |
| El Huevo (The Egg) |
La Pelota (The Ball) |
To English speakers this may seem a bit bizarre, especially if you didn't study Spanish or French in your schooldays.
People and animals are also differentiated based on gender in Spanish in a way unlike the English language.
| Masculine | Feminine |
|---|---|
| El Chico (The Boy) |
La Chica (The Girl) |
| El Gato (The Cat) |
La Gata (The Cat) |
| El Perro (The Dog) |
La Perra (The Dog) |
| El Abuelo (Grandfather) |
La Abuela (Grandmother) |
As you can see from the above table Spanish has 2 words for 'cat', one for a feminine cat, and one for masculine. Also note the word for 'the' also changes depending on the gender of the noun - LA Gata (female cat) EL Gato (male cat).
Grammar Point - In ALL mixed groups the masculine form is used regardless of number:
5 Female Cats and 5 Male Cats - Los Gatos (The cats, in the masculine form)
100 Girls and 1 Boy - Los Niños (The children, in the masculine form)
This is always the case - 100% of the time.
So, what do you notice about all the masculine nouns we have learnt so far?
Perro, Gato, Abuelo, Chico?
Yes, they all end in 'O', and the feminine nouns? They all end in 'A' this is USUALLY the case. Please notice the word usually, not always.
Let's have a quick look at some of the exceptions which prove the rule:
| Masculine | Feminine |
|---|---|
| El Dia (The Day) |
La Mano (The Hand) |
| El Mapa (The Map) |
La Radio (The Radio) |
| El Idioma (The Language) |
La Foto (The Photo) |
| El Planeta (The Planet) |
La Moto (The Motorbike) |
There are, unfortunately, no rules for learning whether a noun in Spanish is masculine or feminine other than learning and remembering, this may at first seem daunting, but trust me, once you get into the swing of things it becomes second nature.
The best, in fact only advice for learning nouns in Spanish is this - Always learn them with the definite article (el or la) and this will tell you the gender of the word.
Now, practice, practice, practice.
¡Hola! Introducing yourselves.
Hola, and welcome to my blog which will attempt to become a free resource to help you learn the Spanish language wherever you come from. So, without further to do lets start with the very basics. As we learn how to introduce ourselves, and learn a little about basic pronunciation and grammar.
Hola - Hello
Simple enough, right? I'm sure you all know this one. A quick note on pronunciation, the letter 'H' is ALWAYS silent in the Spanish language, so 'hola' is pronunced 'ola'.
¿Cómo estás? - How are you
¿Cómo está usted? - How are you (Formal)
Unlike in the English language there are 2 different ways to form a question the 'informal way' and the 'formal way'. Informality should be used wAith friends, family of the same age and children whereas the formal construction should be used with older people, in a work situation or whenever you would like to show a little bit more politeness.
Also note that in Spanish question marks, and indeed exclamation marks, are placed inverted at the beginning of the statement as well as at the end.
Me llamo Juan - My name is Juan
The Spanish for 'my name is' although literally it translates as 'they call me Juan', this leads to the very common error by Spanish learners of saying 'me llamo es Juan' with 'es' being translated as 'is'. This is WRONG. It would translate as 'they call me is Juan'. As far as pronunciation is concerned 'll' is pronounced closely to the English 'Y'.
Again, literally translated as 'what do you call yourself'? and constructed differently depending on whether you are in a formal or informal situation. Remember your pronunciation of the Spanish 'double L'.
Mucho Gusto - Nice to meet you
Encantado/Encantada - Nice to meet you
Two different ways to convey the same idea. 'Mucho gusto' literally translates as much pleasure but it is used in this context to mean nice to meet you.
Encantado or encantada? Well, it depends if you're male of female. Encantado is the mascaline form of the noun and encantada is feminine.
¡Buenas tardes! - Good Afternoon
¡Buenas noches! - Good Evening/Good Night
¡Hasta luego! - See You Later
¡Hasta mañana! - See you Tomorrow
Adiós - Goodbye
One little cultural note on the above vocabulary - Afternoon, and therefore evening starts a lot later in Spain than in the rest of Europe. 'Good Morning' is used well into the afternoon and 'Good Evening' isn't used until late at night, perhaps 9 or 10pm. I can't say if this is the same in Latin America, so please, let me know.
Now, take the quiz, and see how much you've learnt.