The spanish definite and indefinite articles are words to name the subject and the construction of sentences in the language.
Spanish definite and indefinite articles are subdivided according to gender (feminine, masculine and neutral) and qualitatively by singular or plural. Both in cursos de español and in the following guide you will learn how and when to use them.
How to determine the gender of Spanish definite and indefinite articles?
The gender of a word in Spanish is defined by the last vowel letter, although there are exceptions.
Masculine: Words ending in o, u y e.
- El hombre de la esquina me ayudó a cruzar.
- El perro del vecino ladró durante la noche.
- Los hombres construyeron el iglú.
Feminine: There are a wide variety of endings to define the feminine gender and exceptions, but words ending with a are commonly considered.
In our Spanish Schools you will learn to identify that words ending with the following syllables are considered feminine; -ción, -sión, -umbre, -dad, -tad and -cis.
- La situación actual en México es favorable para el turismo.
- El juez tomó la decisión
- Tenemos la incertidumbre de no llegar a la final de la competencia.
- La hermandad de la Universidad cerró admisiones ayer.
- La lealtad es uno de los valores más importantes para las empresas.
- La crisis económica ha afectado a toda la población.
Spanish definite and indefinite articles
Here is a basic guide to learning the definite and indefinite articles in Spanish. This topic is part of the first levels for learning Spanish in our Spanish Schools in Mexico.
Spanish definite articles
The definite articles precede the subject as part of the construction of grammatical sentences in the Spanish language.
| Spanish definite articles | Example | |
| Masculino singular | El | El hombre |
| Femenino singular | La | La mujer |
| Masculino plural | Los | Los hombres |
| Femenino plural | Las | Las mujeres |
In clases de español you will learn that when the masculine definite article precedes the proposition a or de, it will become al or del.
- Vienen del restaurante (las dos amigas).
- Va al cine con Julia.
Indefinite articles in Spanish
In Spanish, the indefinite plural article is determined by the gender of the noun.
| Spanish indefinite article | Example | |
| Masculino singular | Un | Un carro |
| Femenino singular | Una | Una manzana |
| Masculino plural | Unos | Unos carros |
| Femenino plural | Unas | Unas manzanas |
Spanish definite, indefinite and neutral articles
Learn Spanish in México City, Oaxaca or Cancun and you will understand the meaning of the Spanish neutral article lo, which always remains unchanged.
This article can acquire different meanings according to its position in a sentence and the rest of the components that accompany it.
Neutral article in front of an adjective
The article lo is placed before an adjective or a past participle to refer to something that is not a direct subject.
- Lo interesante es que deberemos competir por la beca escolar.
- Lo estresante es que el reporte es para mañana.
Neutral article in front of a possessive pronoun
When it is not placed in front of a possessive pronoun (mine, yours, his, hers or ours) it is used to replace a part of speech and the meaning is implied. It usually replaces object situations, adjectives etc.
- Para ejercitarte, lo tuyo es correr todas las mañanas.
- Lo nuestro continuará y deberíamos casarnos.
In our Spanish School Cancun for more information on how the neutral article works against a positive pronoun and the rest of the article forms in this language.
Spanish phrases with the neutral article
One advantage of taking Cursos de español en México is to learn local phrases and immediately apply the knowledge gained in class in a real-life environment.
Estudia español en Ciudad de México and learn more adverbial phrases or locutions in the language to practice with native speakers. If you prefer to learn Spanish in another Spanish speaking country, then you should ask for our Spanish School Bogota.
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Learn more about our language courses at IH Mexico including IELTS preparation.
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