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Spanish grammar · Level A1

Spanish articles: el, la, un, una

Spanish has two genders, masculine and feminine, and every noun comes with an article: el libro, la casa. The definite article (el, la, los, las) is for something known; the indefinite (un, una, unos, unas) for something new or one of many. Gender usually shows in the ending: -o masculine, -a feminine.

QuizContents
Contents
  1. The forms of the articles
  2. How to tell a noun’s gender
  3. El agua, al and del
  4. Plural nouns
  5. When to use an article and when not
  6. Common mistakes
  7. Quiz
  8. FAQ

The forms of the articles

The article changes for the noun’s gender and number. The definite one is “the”; the indefinite is “a, an”. Unos, unas mean “some, about”: unos días — a few days.

Spanish articles
MasculineFeminine
Definite, singularel librola casa
Definite, plurallos libroslas casas
Indefinite, singularun librouna casa
Indefinite, pluralunos librosunas casas
  • El libro está en la mesa.The book is on the table.
  • Tengo un perro y una gata.I have a dog and a cat.
  • Vamos a estar unos días en Sevilla.We’ll spend a few days in Seville.

How to tell a noun’s gender

Spanish gender is often different from what you’d guess: el coche (car), la leche (milk). But there are clues. Masculine: -o (el libro), -or (el color), -aje (el viaje), plus days, months, languages and numbers. Feminine: -a (la casa), -ción / -sión (la canción), -dad / -tad (la ciudad), -umbre (la costumbre).

Learn the exceptions straight away: el día, el mapa, el problema, el idioma, el sistema (Greek words in -ma) are masculine, while la mano, la radio, la foto, la moto are feminine. Words ending in -e or a consonant simply need learning with their article.

Tip: Learn every new noun with its article — not “coche” but “el coche”. Gender then sticks without effort.

El agua, al and del

Before feminine nouns starting with a stressed a- / ha-, the singular uses el and un for the sound: el agua, un águila, el hambre. The noun stays feminine: el agua fría, las aguas.

The prepositions a and de merge with el: a + el = al, de + el = del. There’s no contraction with la, los, las: a la playa, de los niños.

  • Voy al cine.I’m going to the cinema.
  • Es la casa del profesor.It’s the teacher’s house.
  • El agua está muy fría.The water is very cold.

Plural nouns

After a vowel add -s: casa → casas, coche → coches. After a consonant add -es: ciudad → ciudades, color → colores. A final z becomes c: lápiz → lápices, vez → veces. The written accent may disappear or appear: canción → canciones, joven → jóvenes.

  • Los niños juegan en el parque.The children are playing in the park.
  • Me gustan las canciones españolas.I like Spanish songs.
  • Hay muchas ciudades bonitas.There are many beautiful cities.

When to use an article and when not

The definite article is used with general ideas and after gustar: Me gusta el café (coffee in general). No article for a profession after ser: Soy profesora. Days take el: el lunes — on Monday. After hay use the indefinite article or none: Hay un banco, hay leche.

  • Me encanta la música latina.I love Latin music.
  • Mi hermana es médica.My sister is a doctor.
  • ¿Hay un supermercado cerca?Is there a supermarket nearby?

Common mistakes

The mistakes people make most often — and the right way.

  • Wrong: la día

    Right: el día

    Día is masculine despite the -a.

  • Wrong: el mano

    Right: la mano

    Mano is feminine despite the -o.

  • Wrong: Voy a el cine.

    Right: Voy al cine.

    a + el contract to al.

  • Wrong: Soy una profesora.

    Right: Soy profesora.

    No article before a profession after ser.

  • Wrong: Me gusta café.

    Right: Me gusta el café.

    A general idea takes the definite article.

Articles, gender and plural

Quiz

10 questions: choose the right option — the explanation appears straight away.

  1. Question 1

    _____ problema es grave.

  2. Question 2

    Tengo _____ hermana.

  3. Question 3

    Vamos _____ parque.

  4. Question 4

    _____ agua está fría.

  5. Question 5

    Es el coche _____ vecino.

  6. Question 6

    Me lavo _____ manos.

  7. Question 7

    Hay _____ libros en la mesa.

  8. Question 8

    La _____ es muy bonita.

  9. Question 9

    Dos _____ al día.

  10. Question 10

    Mi madre es _____.

Correct: 0 of 10

Read next

FAQ

Didn’t find your answer? Send us a request — we’ll tell you everything.

How many articles does Spanish have?

Eight: the definite el, la, los, las and the indefinite un, una, unos, unas. There’s also the neuter lo for general ideas: lo bueno — “the good thing”, lo importante — “the main thing”.

Why el agua and not la agua?

To keep two stressed a sounds from merging: la agua would sound like “lagua”. So singular feminine nouns starting with a stressed a- take el. The adjective stays feminine: el agua fría.

How do I remember the gender of words in -e?

There’s no rule: el coche, el café, la leche, la noche. Learn these words only with their article and practise them in phrases — the gender will stick.

Other topics

All topicsSpanish verb conjugationSpanish irregular verbs

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