Nouns – gender and number

What is a noun? A noun is a person, place, thing, or idea In Spanish, all nouns are either masculine or feminine.

Most nouns that end in -o are usually masculine el libro el escritorio el colegio Most nouns that end in -a are usually feminine. la puerta la ventana la tarea Exceptions: el dia = the day el problema = the problem

Other Spanish Nouns For example: el ajedrez - chess Other Spanish nouns end in -e or a consonant. For example: el ajedrez - chess el marcador - marker la clase - class la televisión = TV

Other Spanish Nouns Some can be both masculine and feminine: el/la estudiante - the student

English vs. Spanish The idea that nouns have gender seems perfectly natural when the noun stands for a living creature. This is because in English, living creatures often have different names depending on whether they are male or female. Masculine Feminine boy girl father mother lion lioness uncle aunt

English vs. Spanish Certain nouns that denote living things have both a masculine and feminine form in Spanish. Masculine Feminine el gato = male cat la gata = female cat el abuelo = grandfather la abuela = grandmother El chico = boy la chica = girl

REMEMBER! You can’t predict the gender of a noun, except in the case of living creatures. Do not try to analyze the nature of an object to look for masculine or feminine qualities! IT WON’T WORK! Dress is a masculine word in Spanish--- el vestido Necktie is a feminine word in Spanish--- la corbata

But how can I tell if a noun is masculine or feminine? When you learn a new noun, you MUST memorize its definite article (el or la).

What is “el” or “la”? that means “the” as in: the head – la cabeza El / la is a definite article that means “the” as in: the head – la cabeza the arm – el brazo

Singular and Plural Plural in English is simple: generally one add an “s” at the end ex: the cat the cats Exceptions: Irreg. plural child children, foot feet spy  spies , knife  knives

Plural in Spanish Singular Plural EL LOS LA LAS Masc. EL LOS Fem. LA LAS Example: el chico  los chicos the boy the boys la chica  las chicas the girl the girls

Making Nouns Plural To make nouns plural you usually add -s to words ending in a vowel and -es to words ending in a consonant. estudiante  estudiantes animal  animales

Saquen los diccionarios… Take out your dictionary. Look up a Spanish noun that you know for sure is masculine. Do you notice any symbols or abbreviations that tell you the noun’s gender? Now, look up a Spanish noun that you know is feminine. Are there any symbols or abbreviations that tell you the noun’s gender?

To remember You cannot predict the gender of most nouns. Not every noun that ends in an –o is masculine, and not every noun that ends in an –a is feminine. Many nouns end in letters other than –a and –o. The definite article is your CLUE as to whether a noun is masculine or feminine.