Spanish games · Grammar guide
El and la in Spanish
Both el and la mean “the.” Use el with most masculine singular nouns and la with most feminine singular nouns. Say el cerdo for “the pig” and la vaca for “the cow.”
Use the ending as a clue
Many nouns ending in -o use el, and many ending in -a use la. Learn each word with its article because there are exceptions. For example, la mano means “the hand,” and el día means “the day.”
Examples from the farm and village
- la gallina · Hen
- La gallina pone un huevo. The hen lays an egg.
- la vaca · Cow
- La vaca come pasto. The cow eats grass.
- la oveja · Sheep
- La oveja tiene lana. The sheep has wool.
- el cerdo · Pig
- El cerdo duerme. The pig is sleeping.
- el mercado · Market
- El mercado abre temprano. The market opens early.
- la mano · Hand
- Levanta la mano. Raise your hand.
- el día · Day
- El día empieza temprano. The day starts early.
Use los and las for more than one
Use los with masculine plural nouns, as in los cerdos. Use las with feminine plural nouns, as in las vacas. An exception worth learning as a pair is el agua and las aguas. Agua is feminine, but its stressed first a changes the singular article. You still say el agua fría.
Try it from memory
Which article goes before oveja, mercado, and mano?
Check your answers
La oveja, el mercado y la mano.