Spanish

 Nouns  
 
A  noun  is  a  part  of  speech  typically  denoting  
a   person,   place,   thing,   animal,   or   a   certain  
idea(s).  
 
10  Facts  About  Spanish  Nouns  
 
Here  are  10  facts  about  Spanish  nouns  that  
will  come  in  handy  as  you  learn  Spanish:  
 
1.   Spanish   nouns   have   gender,   and   nearly  
all   are   either   masculine   or   feminine.  
Although   male   creatures   are   usually   (not  
always)   represented   by   masculine   nouns  
and  female  creatures  by  feminine  nouns,  in  
most   cases   the   gender   of   a   noun   appears  
arbitrary.   The   basic   rule   is   that   masculine  
nouns   go   with   masculine   adjectives   and  
articles,   and   feminine   nouns   go   with  
feminine  adjectives  and  articles.  (In  English,  
the   articles   are   "a,"   "an"   and   "the."   Also  
note   that   in   Spanish   many   adjectives   don't  
have   separate   masculine   and   feminine  
forms.)  And  if  you  use  a  pronoun  to  refer  to  
a   masculine   noun,   you   use   a   masculine  
pronoun;   feminine   pronouns   refer   to  
feminine  nouns.  
 
Here   are   examples   that   show   some   of   the  
ways   a   noun's   gender   affects   the   usage   of  
other  words.  Some  of  the  examples  may  be  
more   understandable   once   you   study   the  
lessons   on   adjectives,   articles   and  
pronouns.  
 
• the   man:   el   hombre   (masculine   article,  
masculine  noun)  
• the   woman:   la   mujer   (feminine   article,  
feminine  noun)  
• a   man:   un   hombre   (masculine   article,  
masculine  noun)  
 • a   woman:   una   mujer   (feminine   article,  
feminine  noun)  
• the   men:   los   hombres   (masculine  
article,  masculine  noun)  
• the   women:   las   mujeres   (feminine  
article,  feminine  noun)  
• the   fat   man:   el   hombre   gordo  
(masculine  adjective,  masculine  noun)  
• the   fat   woman:   la   mujer   gorda  
(feminine  adjective,  feminine  noun)  
• some   men:   unos   hombres   (masculine  
determiner,  masculine  noun)  
• some   women:   unas   mujeres   (feminine  
determiner,  feminine  noun)  
• He   is   fat:   Él   es   gordo.   (masculine  
pronoun,  masculine  adjective)  
• She   is   fat:   Ella   es   gorda.   (feminine  
pronoun,  feminine  adjective)  
2.   The   only   neuter   (neither   masculine   nor  
feminine)   nouns   are   abstract   nouns,   which  
are   formed   by   preceding   a   descriptive  
adjective   with   the   definite   article   lo.   For  
example,   you   could   say   lo   importante   to  
form   a   neuter   noun   (or   an   adjective  
functioning   as   a   noun)   meaning   "the  
important  thing."  
 
3.  Adjectives  referring  to  nouns  must  agree  
with   the   noun   in   number   and   gender.   For  
example,   in   the   sentence   "Las   casas   son  
nuevas"   ("The   houses   are   new"),   casas   is  
plural   and   feminine,   and   so   are   las   and  
nuevas.  
 
4.   Nouns   that   end   in   o   are   usually  
masculine,  and  those  ending  in  a  are  usually  
feminine.   But   there   are   exceptions   to   this  
gender  rule.  
 
5.  Nouns  are  usually  made  plural  by  adding  
an   s   or   es.   The   rules   followed   are   very  
similar  to  those  of  English.  
 
6.   Spanish   nouns   are   capitalized   less   often  
in   Spanish   than   in   English.   Examples   of  
nouns  that  aren't  capitalized  are  days  of  the  
week,   months   of   the   year,   names   of  
nationalities,   names   of   languages   and  
names  of  religions.  
 
7.   Spanish   does   not   freely   use   nouns   as  
adjectives   as   can   be   done   in   English.   In  
English,   the   use   of   attributive   nouns   —  
placing   a   noun   before   another   noun   to   act  
like   an   adjective   —   is   extremely   common.  
For   example,   in   English   I   could   refer   to   a  
"paper   cup,"   where   "paper"   acts   like   an  
adjective   describing   the   type   of   cup.   In  
Spanish,  however,  it  is  usually  necessary  to  
tie   the   two   nouns   together   in   a   different  
way.   One   common   way   is   through   the   use  
of   the   preposition   de.   A   paper   cup,   for  
example,   is   una   taza   de   papel   (literally,   "a  
cup  of  paper").  
 
8.   Suffixes   can   be   used   to   change   the  
meanings   of   nouns.   Most   commonly,  
diminutive   suffixes   can   be   used   to   indicate  
that   something   is   small   or   dear,   and  
augmentative   suffixes   can   be   used   to  
indicate  that  something  is  large  or  disliked.  
 
9.   Other   suffixes   or   endings   are   used   to  
show  how  a  noun  is  used.  For  example,  the  
-­‐ería  ending  usually  refers  to  a  place  where  
something   is   made   or   sold,   and   an   -­‐ista  
ending  often  indicates  an  occupation.  
 
10.   A   collective   noun   is   a   singular   noun   that  
refers  to  a  group  of  things  or  beings.  Unlike  
in   English,   where   collective   nouns   usually  
take   a   singular   verb,   collective   nouns   in  
Spanish  can  be  used  with  either  singular  or  
plural  verbs,  depending  on  the  structure  of  
the  sentence.