👉 Gender of nouns rules in Spanish
– Masculine and feminine nouns (with examples & exceptions) –
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Gender according to the ending
Endings in -o and -a
As a general rule, words ending in -o are masculine, those ending in -a are feminine:
- un proyecto, a project ;
- una prueba, a proof.
For many animate beings, a simple change in the ending -o or -a changes the gender:
- el hermano, el abuelo, el gato, el perro
the brother, the grandfather, the cat, the dog ; - la hermana, la abuela, la gata, la perra
the sister, the grandmother, the cat, the dog.
There are many exceptions to this simple rule. The following words end in -a, but are masculine:
- el clima, el sofá, el día, el problema, el mapa
the climate, the sofa, the day, the problem, the map.
Conversely, the following words end in -o, but are feminine:
- la mano, la foto, la radio
the hand, the photo, the radio.
Nouns in -ista are always masculine:
- el recepcionista, el comunista, el turista
the receptionist, the communist, the tourist.
Other terminations
As a general rule, the endings -n, -or, -ar, -er, -aje, -te, -y, -che, -l, -ambre are masculine:
- el origen, el motor, el malestar, el taller, el aprendizaje, el aguacate, el rey, el coche, el papel, el hambre, el calambre
the origin, the engine, the discomfort, the workshop, the learning, the lawyer, the king, the car, the paper, the hunger, the cramp.
There are many exceptions, for example:
- la orden, la imagen, la flor, la noche, la piel, la miel
the order, the image, the flower, the photo, the night, the skin, the honey.
As a general rule, the endings -ia, -ie, -d, -z, -eza, -is, -umbre, -ón are feminine:
- la paciencia, la serie, la seriedad, la escasez, la limpieza, la crisis, la certidumbre, la razón
patience, series, gravity, rarity, cleanliness, crisis, certainty, reason.
Here too there are exceptions, for example:
- el lápiz, el ataúd, el camión, el corazón
the pencil, the coffin, the truck, the heart.
Words that are both masculine and feminine
The following words may be used in either the masculine or feminine form while retaining their meaning:
- el análisis – la análisis, analysis ;
- el tizne – la tizne, the dirt ;
- el trípode – la trípode, the tripod ;
- el apóstrofe – la apóstrofe, the apostrophe ;
- el margen – la margen, the margin ;
- el mimbre – la mimbre, the wicker ;
- el sauna – la sauna, the sauna;
- el vodka – la vodka, the vodka.
The following words can be used in the masculine or feminine form, but their meaning changes with gender:
- el linde – la linde, the border – the edge;
- el corte – la corte, the cut – the court;
- el frente – la frente, the front (military) – the front (of the face);
- el capital – la capital, the capital (money) – the capital (city);
- el editorial – la editorial, the editorial – the publisher.
To conclude, some examples of nouns
Only an effort of memory coupled with practice can completely avoid gender errors.
- el origen, el método, el color, el hambre, el minuto, el segundo, el diente, el planeta, el error, el estudio, el video, el permiso, el olor, el peluche, el fin, el espárrago, el equipo
the origin, the method, the color, the hunger, the minute, the second, the tooth, the planet, the mistake, the video, the permission, the smell, the lint, the end, the asparagus, the team. - la orden, la miel, la leche, la sal, la mañana, la duda, la sangre, la cama, la serpiente
order, honey, milk, salt, morning, doubt, blood, bed, serpent.
👉 Practice online! Exercise about genders of nouns
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