Spanish Nouns: Masculine and Feminine

Nouns in Spanish

• A noun in Spanish is a person, place, or thing, and has a gender, which is either masculine or feminine.
• Masculine nouns are commonly recognized by ending in 'o', but can also end with the letters L, N, E, R, or S.
• Feminine nouns are commonly recognized by ending in 'a', but can also end with the letters D, íon, or Z.

Examples of Masculine and Feminine Nouns

• L: el hotel (masculine)
• O: el libro (masculine)
• N: el tiburón (masculine)
• E: el parque (masculine)
• R: el olor (masculine)
• S: el mes (masculine)
• D: la comunidad (feminine)
• íon: la comunicación (feminine)
• Z: la actriz (feminine)
• A: la amiga (feminine)

Forming Plural Nouns and Adjectives

• To make nouns or adjectives plural, add 's' to word endings with vowels, and add 'es' to words ending with consonants.
• Examples: el hombre → los hombres, la cuidad → las ciudades

Common Exceptions to Plural Formation

Masculine Exceptions

• el día → los días (days)
• el mapa → los mapas (maps)
• el problema → los problemas (problems)
• el sistema → los sistemas (systems)
• el tema → los temas (topics)
• el idioma → los idiomas (languages)
• el clima → los climas (weathers)
• el sofa → los sofas (couches)
• el lápiz → los lápices (pencils)
• el agua → las aguas (waters)

Feminine Exceptions

• la foto → las fotos (photos)
• la radio → las radios (radios)
• la moto → las motos (motorcycles)
• la disco → las discos (discos)
• la mano → las manos (hands)
• la flor → las flores (flowers)
• la sal → las sales (salts)

Masculine Exceptions in Spanish

• El día translates to "the day" in English.
• El mapa refers to "the map".
• El problema means "the problem".
• El sistema is equivalent to "the system".
• El tema is translated to "the topic".
• El idioma refers to "the language".
• El clima means "the weather".
• El sofa is equivalent to "the couch".
• El lápiz means "the pencil".
• El agua is translated to "the water".

Feminine Exceptions in Spanish

• La foto is equivalent to "the photo".
• La radio refers to "the radio".
• La moto means "the motorcycle".
• La disco is equivalent to "the disco".
• La mano refers to "the hand".
• La flor is translated to "the flower".
• La sal means "the salt".

Learn about the basics of Spanish nouns, including how to identify masculine and feminine nouns based on their endings.