1. Nouns and articles; the preposition “de”
Capítulo 2 – Gramática 2
Nouns and articles; the preposition “de”

2. Nouns In Spanish, all nouns belong to one of two genders:
Masculine nouns usually end in an “-o”
Feminine nouns usually end in an “-a”
Nouns can also be plural or singular:
Singular nouns name 1 of something
Plural nouns name more than 1 of something
If a singular noun ends in a vowel, add “-s” to make it plural
Estudiante => Estudiantes
If a singular noun ends in a consonant, add “-es” to make it plural
Animal => Animales

3. Definite articles
The definite articles in Spanish can be used to say “the” with a specific noun
They have different forms that agree with their noun in gender and number
Masculine
Feminine
Singular El La
Plural
Los
Las

4. Definite articles (and indefinite articles)
Why do you think el, la, los, and las (which all mean “the”) are called definite articles?
What do you think an indefinite article is? Why?
The indefinite articles in Spanish all mean “a” or “an”. They are:
They define a specific (or definite) noun!
It is not specific (not definite)!
Masculine
Feminine
Singular Un
Una
Plural
Unos
Unas

5. Definite articles
Use definite articles to talk about a noun as a general category:
¿Cómo es la pizza?
What’s pizza (in general) like?
Also use definite articles when saying what you like with gustar:
Es deliciosa. Me gusta la pizza.
It’s delicious. I like pizza.

6. In Spanish, we do NOT use “apostrophe –s” to show ownership!
The preposition “de”
De is used to show possession or relationship:
Es el carro de Ernesto. It’s Ernesto’s car.
Son los amigos de la profesora. They’re the teacher’s friends.
De can also be used to indicate what type of thing you’re describing:
Los libros de aventuras Adventure books
Las películas de misterio Mystery movies
In Spanish, we do NOT use “apostrophe –s” to show ownership!

7. What are some contractions you can think of in English?
The preposition “de”
The word de is also used to say where someone is from:
Srta. Hansen es de Big Bear. Ms. Hansen is from Big Bear.
The preposition de followed by the definite article el makes the contraction del
El libro del profesor. The teacher’s book.
What are some contractions you can think of in English?

8. Practiquemos
In your notes, write sentences about these things, using words from each column. The articles and adjectives must agree!
Estudiantes
Español
Deportes
Helado
Música mexicana
fiestas
Serio
Interesante
Bueno
Malo
Romántico
Aburrido
Divertido
Fenomenal
Delicioso
Gracioso Es
Son
Somos El La
Los
Las

9. Practiquemos
In your notes, write a sentence saying what you think each item pictured is like: