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190 Unit 17 Nouns and Articles Gender of Ne in Spanish: Endings of Nouns (los sustantivos) designate people, places, actions, things, events, concrete or abstract ideas, and so on. In Spanish, nouns are either feminine or masculine, grammatically speaking. Sometimes this classification will not make sense to the English-speaking learner of Spanish. La mesa (iable) is not viewed as an object with a “feminine” nature, but as an inanimate object that is feminine because the ending (la terminaci6n) in -a is an indicat matical gender: most nouns that end in -a are feminin In Spanish, there are some general rules, which are not absolute, about the gender of nouns. In the examples that follow, the mas- ine article el and the feminine article la are placed before the ns to indicate the gender. El and la are equivalent to the En- glish definite article the Maseulin Nouns and Their Endings in Spanish The general rule states that all nouns in Spanish are sustantives masculinos or sustantivos femeninos. The gender is associated with specific word endings. The following endings generally indicate the masculine gender ‘© Nouns that designate male beings generally (but not always) end eleartero mailman, mail carrier (m.) el general general (military) (m.) elhombre man el profesor (male) professor or teacher ‘© Most nouns ending in -o referring to animals, things, or ideas are masculine. el aio year elqueso cheese cleaballo horse cl zapato shoe eleatilogo catalogue CConyeigh © 2004 by Giga Nissenbera, Click here for terms of use Nouns and Articles 191 ‘+ However, some nouns that end in -a are masculine, Note that the following groups with the endings -ia, -ma, -ama, -ema, and -oma include many nouns that are cognates, that is, words that have similar spelling and meaning in English and Spanish. elanagrama anagram elidioma language el aroma aroma, fragrance el pentagrama pentagram el clima ‘weather, climate el poema poem elerucigrama crossword puzzle el problema problem el dia day el programa program el dilema dilemma el sistema system eldiploma diploma eltelegrama ——(clegram elemblema emblem eltema theme elfantasma ghost, phantom el tranvia trolley (car) Other groups of masculine nouns are * nouns with the endings -ambre and aje. clalambre wi paisaje landscape elealambre cramp el pasaje passage, (train, bus) fare clenjambre swarm of bees elpersonaje character elequipaje —_Iggage el salvaje savage elmontaje setting ‘© nouns that end in -or and -n clamor love eltemblor tremor elealor heat el valor courage, value el rencor hate el vapor por el sudor sweat Spanish has two contractions: al and del. They are both combinations of the prepositions a or de + the article el. El is the only form of the article that contracts with a or de. The contractions are not used if the article el is part of a proper noun. No vamos al cine los mes por la noche. We do not goto the movies on Monday nights. Este es el juguete del nino. This isthe child’ oy. Notice the absence of the contraction in the next example; the article is part of the noun, Le escribieron de El Pardo, una ‘They wrote to kim/to her from El Pardo, poblacién cerea de Madrid. ‘@.community near Maria. im «| Practica. Con una M, indica los nombres que tienen una terminacién (ending) masculina. Si no es masculina, indica una X, 1. dolor (pain) 5. cabeza (head) 9, mensaje (message) —— 2. avién (plane) 6. viaje (inip) 10. virtud (virtue) 3. maquillaje (makeup) 7. rumor (rumor) LL. sintoma (symptom) 4. suspiro (sigh) 8. visién (vision) 12. belleza (beauty) 192 Conmplete Spanish Grammar Feminine Nouns and Their E: ings in Spanish ‘The following endings generally identify feminine nouns: ‘+ Nouns that identify female beings generally end in -a laenfermera (female) nurse laprofesora (female) professor la daughter layegua mare (Iorse) ‘* Neasly all other nouns ending in -a are also feminine la cocina Kitcher lapelota ball Ia guitarra guitar Ia piscina pool la maleta suitease ‘¢ A few nouns ending in -o are feminine. With the exception of la mano, the other examples in this list are abbreviations of compound feminine nouns, fa foto (la fotografia) photo, photograph Jamano hand Ja moto (lamotocieleta) motorcycle ‘+ Nouns that end in -cién and -sién are feminine. These are often near cognates with English note the similarities in spelling and meaning with the English equivalents Ia cancién song Inexposicién exposition, exhibit adireccién address; direction lainyeceién injection Ia division division Jamision mission Iaestacion station; season Ta pasion passion ‘* Nouns that have endings -dad and -tad are usually feminine. Many English equivalents are nouns ending in -fy Iaamistad iendship ladignidad dignity city lalibertad liberty, freedom diffi Tayoluntad will ‘+ Endings 4, -eza, sis, and -itis are generally feminine. lacrisis crisis laserie series Iadermatitis dermatitis Ia sinusitis nusitis Ia dosis dosage, dose latesis thesis la especie species latristeza sadness lariqueza richness, riches ‘+ Nouns that end in -tud and -umbre arc feminine. Many of these nouns designate abstract ideas. Most abstract nouns are feminine in Spanish, lacertidumbre cert Jaesclavitud slavery lacostumbre custom, tradition Taexactitud exactness, precision la cumbre summit, mountaintop Ta virtud virtue Nouns and Articles 193. | El articulo y el género apropiado. Escribe la forma el oa del articulo pava indicar sila palabra es del género Jfemenina o masculina, 1. enfermedad (ittnes) 5. holograma 8 temor (fear) : pureza (purity) 6 sociedad 10. tranvia 3 distraccid 4 leona 1 eternidad 4 perera (laziness) 8 explosion 12 decencia im: | El sustantivo apropiado. Usa la palabra apmpiada en cada oracién. labellera —laestacién. da salud el calor elreportaje Ia tristeza 1. Sila temperatura es de 99° F, es excesivo. 2. Elpetiodista eseribe 3 eso opuesto de la fealdad. 4. Los vegetales son buenos para 5, ________ eso opuesto a la felicidad 6. Blotofioes _ favorita de mi hermano. ther Endings to Consider for the G ‘Some nouns do not fit into any of the previous groups. Memorization and frequent practice will help you leam their gender: ‘* Nouns ending in -e or in consonants not inchided in previous lists of noun endings may be either feminine or masculine. clantifaz mask Taclase class elcine movies, movie house lacruz cross clexamen exam Tamente mind el lapiz pencil lamiel honey elmerengue meringue (hake ege white) lavejen old age merengue (dance) Javes turn; time el mes month lot Conmplete Spanish ‘+ Nouns designating professions and individuals may end in -a,-ante, -e, or -ista, and in general they may designate cither a male or a female person. The article and adjectives, if expressed, normally agree in gender and number with the noun el/laatleta athlete eV/lapediatra —_pediatician el/lacantante singer el/la periodista journalist el/lagerente manager el/la poeta poet el/laintérprete interpreter el/aturista tourist + Nouns of professions, of people in general, and names of some animals that end in -s,-f, -6n, and or are masculine. They add -a to create the feminine formand drop the accent mark {in the case of on) el campeén/lacampeona champion eldirector/ladirectora. principal, director el leén/la leona Ton el profesor/laprofesora professor, teacher ‘+ Some nouns are spelled the same for the masculine and feminine, and only the article changes. eljoven/la joven young man/young wor el juez/la juez (male) judge/(female) judge el modelo /la modelo male model/female model el testigo /a testi (male) wimess/ (female) el turista/la turista (male) tourist/(female) tou El juez interrog6 a la testigo. The judge intermgated the (female) witness. In English, the gender of this type of noun would be clarified by the context. icle in the masculine and 1g to people change both the ending and the a el muchacho /la muchacha boy/girl el nifio/la nitia boy/girl/child el novio/la novia fiancé /fiancée ‘+ Some nouns are invariable; that is, they designate both male and female individuals. Some of fe a variety of endings. The article does not change these end in -a, -ente, and with invariable nouns, “Inva will be noted in dictionary ents. el angel gel Taestrella el personaje character la vietima el ser being ‘Tu hermana es un angel Your sisters an angel Bob es la estrella de este especticulo, Bob isthe star of this shou: ‘+ Feminine nouns that begin with a stressed a or ha- are feminine but, for purposes of prom ciation, take a masculine definite article in the singular form. Because they are fern nouns, the feminine forms of the adjective are used to modify them. elagua (f) water elarpa(f) harp elaguila(f) eagle elaula (f) classroom elalma (/.) soul elhacha (.) ax elarma(/) weapon elhambre (f) hunger El agua fria es refrescante, Cold water is nfreshing Nouns and Articles 195, me Qué ee? Evcribe la palabra que comesponde para completar la frase elaguila el marqués la campeona elarpa el personaje la estrella elhacha el testigo la turista 1 Un to musical de cuerdas. 2. Un instrumento para cortar arboles 3. Gana en las olimpiadas, — 4. Reconoce al criminal. Un simbolo de los Estados Unidos. 6. Un cuerpo celestial Un titulo de Ia aristocracia, — 8. Don Quijote de la Mancha, — 9. Viaja por Espaiia, Italia y Pormgal. ther Nouns and Their Gender Certain groups of nouns are masculine: ‘© days of the week and months of the yeaa; Note that they are not capitalized in Span Elmartes es mi cumpleaitos Tuesday is my birthday. Este ha sido un diciembre muy frio, This has been a very cold December. ‘© compound nouns. Note that these compounds usually consist of verb + a noun, They end with ans but are singular nouns elabrelatas can opener el paraguas umbrella ellavaplatos dishwasher el sacacorchos corkscrew el parabrisas windshield el salvavidas + nouns that name colors, clamarillo yellow el naranja orange elazul blue el negro black el blanco white el rojo red el lila lilac el rosado pi elmorado purple el verde green tives used as nouns. English equivalents are usually in the -ing for El comer y beber mucho no son Eating and drinking a lot is net advisable 196 Conmplete Spanish, ‘* names of rivers, seas, and oceans, Elrio Mississippi est en los Estados The Mississippi River isin the United States. Unidos. El mar Mediterraneo tiene playas The Mediterranean Sea has fabulous beaches. fabulosas, Note: The names of islands ave feminine. Las Malvinas estin en el Adintico y The Malvinas ane in the Ailantic and the as Galipagos en el Pacifico Galéipagos in the Pacific * the names of many trees. However, the names of the fruit of these trees may be femi los frboles de frutas (fruit tres) las frutas (fruits) eleerez cherry tree lacerera —_chenry ellimonero lemon tree el limon Jemon elmanzano apple tee Jamanzana apple elnaranjo orange tree Janaranja orange el peral pear tree lapera pear ‘* Ianguages. Note that the names for languages are not capitalized in Spanish, elaleman Ger elespaiol Spanish. el inglés English elitaliano —— Tahian | Werdadero 0 falso? Repasa el vocabutario de los grupas de sustantivns. 1. Ellimon es acid 2. El idioma oficial de Brasil es el espafiol 8. El parabrisas es u istrumento musical 4 Sillueve necesitas un paraguas 5. El lavaplatos es un aparato eléetrico, 6, Lanaranja se cultiva en California. Necesitas el sacacorchos para abrit la botella de vino. 8 Lamanzana es una fruta ©. El salvavidas trahaja en la cocina del hotel 10. El profesor enseita en el aula. Nouns and Articles 197 ‘One usefull strategy to learn the gender of Spanish nouns is to study them in two ways: fist, jouns with specific endings that indicate cither feminine or masculine, and second, whole ‘groups of nouns that are either masculine or feminine ‘Two more groups deserve attention, especially because they include some very common words, ‘These lists show a selected number of words from these categories. Use them as a reference tool. * Some nouns referring to people or animals may have different forms for the masculine and feminine. The articles, of course, change with the gender. Note the similarities of some of the English equivalents el actor /la actriz actor/actress el caballo /la yegua horse/mare el conde /la condesa count/countess elemperador/laemperatriz, _cmperor/empress el héroe /la heroina hero/heroine el hombre /la mujer man/Wwor el marido /la esposa husband /wife el padre /la madre father/ mother cl prineipe/la prine prince/ princess el rey/la reina king/queen elvarén/la hembra male/female el yerno/la nuera son-in-law/daughter-in-law + Some nouns have a different meaning if used with the masculine or the feminine article Grammatical gender changes the meaning even though the word is spelled the same. cl capital /la capital capital (money) /eapital (city) el cometa/la cometa comet/kite el corte /la corte cut/court el cura/la cura priest/cure el editorial /la editorial newspaper editorial/ publishing house el frente /la frente front/forehead el guia/la guia guide /female guide, telephone guide, or guidebook elorden /la orden order (ina sequence)/order (command) el Papa/la papa the Pope/potato el policia/la policia police officer/the police force Note: The masculine or feminine article in Spanish may indicate a difference in size as in el cesto/la cesta, where the feminine indicates a larger basket. For certain words, albeit rare, the gender may be a matter of preference—as in el mar/la mar. Seamen tend to prefer la mar when they refer to the sea ‘Note: Political correctness penetrates and affects language usage. The changes in the use of the gender of nouns show social evolution and preference for certain terms, for example, changes in the names of professions that formerly excluded women, In some areas of the His. panic world a woman appointed to a president's cabinet is called la ministro and in others, la ministra, Similarly, we sec la presidente or la presidenta, as well as la médica, currently pre- ferred as the feminine form of el médico. You will learn these preferences as you read up-to- date newspapers and magazines and listen to native speakers from different regions. 198 Conmplete Spanish Grammar im | serie la forma femenina del sustantivo y el articulo, 1. el profesor 7. el padre Bi clneate eee eaeeenenene 8 elgerente 3. el periodista 9. el caballo, elie) Seeeeeeeeenenee 10. ef comandante felpingr ee 11. elartista 6. clactor 12, el bailarin im | aWerdadero 0 falso? 1. La médica probablemente trabaja en el hospital 2. Muchos turisias necesitan una guia, 3. El francés es la lengua oficial de Alemania __ 4. Elorden es lo opuesto al desorden. 6. La papa es un vegetal. im | En espaiiol. fi dhe female saudent see eases none 7. the female teacher tie lion (i) eee 8 the male manager 3) ihe iene lanyer een enenenes 9. the queen 4, the apple wee 10, the female tourist, 5. the pear 11. the victim. 6 the actress 12. the potato Plural of Nouns im «| Nouns and Articles 199 ‘The plural of nouns in Spanish is formed by adding the plural endings -s or -es. A definite arti- cle, los before masculine 1 Follow these guidelines: + Forno eleafé/los cafés café /catés el caso/los casos case /cases elvino/los vinos wine/wines uns and las before ferninine nouns, indicates the plural of now ns that end in a vowel, adds. © For nouns that end in a consonant, add -es. el papel/los papeles el reloj /los relojes paper/papers; clock/elocks ‘Some spelling changes need to be observed: ‘© Singular nouns ending in -2 change to -ces in the pha el Lapiz /los lipices Ja matriz/las matrices © Nouns ending i nouns in this group. el manati /los manaties el tabi /los tabties pencil/pencils, matrix /matrices manatee/manatees taboo /taboos Ja casa/las casas hou Ja fruta/las frutas —fruit/fruits lanifa/las niias —— girl/ginls ole /roles. and -ti add -es and keep the accent mark in the phual. There are only a few + Nouns with accent marks on the last syllable lose the accent mark in the plural el camién /los camiones el francés /los franceses el leén/los leones el marqués /los marqueses truck/trucks Frenchman/Frenchmen ion lions iquis/ marquis Excribe el plural de tos sustantivos y de los articules 1 6 el sefion | ssaaeeaeeeeaes lareina la leona | eeeseecainieeseeaaiie la flor a careel (frison) ® 10, u 12, 13. 4 el restaurante la carne elagua Ia guia el padre el temor el domingo 200 Conmplete Spanish «| Excribe el plural, Incluye la forma los o las del articulo en tu wspuesta, sopa 7. bebé Poelenca sonereneaenenane & mantel pasaje 9. rubs ingen ee eae eaees 10. cancion reloj 11. tu cspaiola 12, region More About the Plural of Nouns in Spanish Some groups of nouns and their corresponding plurals are exceptions to the rules we have just studied, Note the plural of the following nouns: ‘+ Nouns that end in +s do not change their spelling in the plural, if the final syllable is not stressed. el miéreoles/los miércoles Wednesday/Wednesdays el paraguas/los paraguas—_umbrella/umbrellas Ia tesis/las tesis thesis/theses All days of the week except sibado and domingo end in -s. The los form of the article identi fies the plural form of lunes, martes, miércoles, etc Los lunes son siempre largos. Mondays ave always long ending to the first element only. ‘+ For compound words formed with two nouns, add the ph el coche cama/los coches cama _—_ sleeping car/sleeping cars elhombre rana/los hombres rana__ (deep-sea) diver/divers (/ragmen) ‘* Some nouns are always plural in Spanish. las afueras the outskirts las vacaciones vacation Tas cosquillas tickling los binoculares binoculars las gafas eyeglasses los gemelos twvins; cuff links las tijeras scissors los lentes eyeglasses; lenses + Use the singular form of a noun when refe hygiene, and clothing in statements such as these: 1g to parts of the body, items of personal Se lavan la cara, They wash their faces. Se ponen el abrigo. They put on their coats. Nous and Articles 201 | En espaiiol. My vacation ends on Sunday. I'm going to see the panthers (panteras) at the zoo tomorrow. NowL T puton ¢ sunglasses, ‘This hotel is on the outskirts of Madrid. We avel at night and rest in a sleeping car Lina never brings her umbrella, Usa ta palabra apropiada de acuerdo al eontexto las gafas las tijeras los domingos lastesis los binoculares los gemelos Pablo compra te rubi para su camisa elegante. Muchas personas no trabajan Desde su casa, Berta puede espiar a sus vecinos con No me gustan __ que defienden mis enemigos. Necesito fa cor 1 Jos papeles. Donde estan ________? Novweo bien Definite Article: “The definite articles (articulos definidos) have appeared in most of the examples and exercises in this unit. You are already familiar with their gender and number forms. The definite article introduces the noun it precedes and it agrees with it in genderand number. In English, dhe is the ‘equivalent of four different forms in Spanish. English equivalents of Spanish nouns in context do not always include the, © feminine forms The moon is a satelite, [Las vacaciones son siempre agradables!__ Vacations ave alzoays pleasant! 202 Conmplete Spanish Grammar * masculine forms, el los El amor es maravilloso, Love is wonderful. Los tigres estan en Ia jaula, The tigers are in the cage. 4Qué hacen estas personas? Escribe la forma apmpiada det articuto definido el, Los, ta, Tas. 1, —____ iisicos prefieren mntisica pop. 2 nifios no piden esparragos 3, ____ orangutanes comen frutas, 1 senador enfrenta critica de sus opositores 5. __ meteordlogos estudian tormentas. 6 investigadoras escriben reportajes 7, bailarines interpretan ballet. Are Definite Articles Used in § ‘The definite article introduces a noun. The use of the definite article is different in English and in Spanish. Aswe have already noted, in many instances where the definite article is necessary in Spanish, itis omitted in English. Las mujeres estin presentes aqui Women are present her. Using Spanish articles will take practice, since quite a few situations require their use in Spanish, but not in English. Attimes, itmay appear that the use or omission of these articles is contrary to their use in the other language. Use the definite articles in Spanish: * with nouns used a general sense. La comida espaiola es deliciosa Spanish cuisine is delicious, ‘+ with days of the week. The English equivalent in this case is the preposition on. El martes tenemos un examen. On Tuesday, we have an exam. No trabajamos los domingos We do not work on Sundays. ‘+ with names of languages, except after hablar, Names of languages are not capitalized. El aleman y el inglés no son lenguas German and English are not Romance Languages. No hablo alemén. 1 do not speak German. Nouns and Articles 28 * with parts of the body, items of personal hygiene, and clothing. In English, the possessive adjective is used in these situations. Me ducle la muela. My tooth hurts + to tell time. Es launa Hisone o'clock. Son las diez y media. Iisten thirty Pin Usa el articulo si es necesario, Escribe el anticulo definido el, 1a, Los, las solamente si es necesario Si no-es necestrio, marca X. 1 esparragos son saludables. espaitol es facil de aprender 3 cena es en el restaurante “La almeja” 4 gjercicio diario es aburrido, 5. Noentienden frabe, 6. Elintérprete no habla polaco (Polish. les tenemos € 8. No hablamos | En espaiiol. alemsn en esta casa, 1. My tooth hurts. 2. The party is at seven o'clock Soifhe dict ain jal. eee eee 4, We do not understand Portuguese, 5. On Friday, they always drink beer: (Gee reseaurant heres se satseeane seas aaaneeanssaneeae 7. Do you (ti) speak French? 6: eres are hight eee eee ee 204 Conmplete Spanish Grammar More About the Uses of Definite Articles in Spanish ‘The definite articles in Spanish are also required: ‘* with names and titles. El doctor Perdomo va a presentar a Dr. Perdomo will introduce the guests Ios invitados. El director cerraré la sesién. The director will clase the session, ‘+ with nouns that refer to weights and measurements. Note that the English equivalent takes the indefinite article Los huevos cuestan a un délar Eggs cast one dollara dozen. Ta docena, Ya harina se vende a cineuenta And flouris sold at fifty cents a pound. centavos la libra. ‘+ with nouns designating specific people and things. Viel programa que me recomendaste. [saw the program you recommended. ‘* with Iast names referring to the members of a family in the plural, or referving to people who yossess qualities associated with the people who bear those last names. Note that the proper nn singular, while the articles are pluralized, nes in this construction re Los Martinez y los Lopez no vienen The Martineses and the Lopezes are not coming ala fiesta to the party Estos artistas son los Dali y Mir6 del These artists ar the Dalts and the Mirés of futuro, the future ‘+ with nouns that refer to geographic places like rivers, mountains, hays, some cities, regions, and others El Amazonas esta en Suramérica, The Amazon River isin South America Los Pirineos son k la The Pyrenees are mountains on the border frontera entre Francia y Espaia. between France and Spain. La Bahia de Cochinos esta en el sur The Bay of Pigs isin the south of Cube. ‘de Cuba. LaMancha es famosa por el personaje La Mancha is famous for the chavacter Don Quijote. Don Quisote. ‘+ with an infinitive functioning asa noun, The English equivalent is the present participle, with its -ng ending. The infinitive is usually used alone, but the definite article may be added for emphasis or style. Dormir (El dormir) mucho no es Sleeping « lot is not good. bueno. Divi En espaitol. Si necesitas o articulo definido, eserdbdlo 1. adime adozen Nouns and Articles 205 2. the Goyas of today 3. the Lopezes 4. the United States 5. twelve dollars a yard 6. working hard Secretary Ruben 8. President Roosevelt, 9. eating and drinking When Are Definite Articles Omitted in Spanish? Ina very few cases the Spanish definite article is not used. Omit the definite article © with titles when addressing the person, or with San, Santo, Santa, Don, and Dona. Sra, Almendro, pase por favor Mrs. Almendro, please come in Santo Domingo es una ciudad caribeita. Santo Domingo is a Cariblean city. Aqui viene Don Pedro, Hew comes Don Pedro. * swith nouns that refer to academic subjects, Esnudia matemsiticas y sicologia He/She studies mathematics and psychology. * ordinal numbers used in titles Felipe II (Segundo) Philip the Second 7 Elarticulo definido, zse usa o no? Escribe el articulo si es nocesavia, Eseribe una X si no necesitas ol articute. 1. Entrega estos documentos a directora de fi 2. jQué caras (expensive)! Rosas a diez délares docena 3. Necesitamos, hoja de papel. 4 Morales llegaron al aeropuerto. 5. Las uvas cuestan un délar libra. 6. ¢Estudian Uds. geomet 7. Marcos es enfermero. 206 Complete Spanish Grammar 8. alas galletas (cookies) cuestan tes délares Lo, the Neuter Article In addition (© the feminine and masculine gender forms, Spanish has a third “gender”: the neuter. This form of the article is invariable. It is used in the follosving specific situations + Use lo + an adjective to communicate a quality or an abstract idea. Siempre ves lo malo de las cosas. You always see the bad side of things: * Use lo + adjective or adverb + que to underscore the quality expressed by the adjective or adverb. Eo ves lo dificil que esta la vida? Don't you sev how difficult life is? Veo lo rpido que trabajas, Ise how quickly you work Coed Yen tu caso... gs verdadero 0 falso? 1. Leer es mi pasatiempo favorito. 2. Estudio aleman y espaitol 3. El presidente de mi pais es deméerata. 4. Lo bueno es lo répido que aprendo espanol. —— 5. Ahorrar no es mi actividad preferida. 6. Voy al cine todos los martes. Lo bueno es que no trabajo los fines de semana. 8. Ver los partidos de fiitbol en television es mi deporte favorito, i Preguntas personales. Gontesta las preguntas en espanol ‘fieres lo ror tico 0 Io emocionante?

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