Spanish Grammar/Printable version
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About
This book was written by Wikibook contributors, including Caitlin Schultz and Laura Calabrese (Laurp).
Introduction
This book is designed to give a thourough and complete overview of Spanish grammar. It can be used to give beginners and overview of the language's grammar, or to help experienced learners review grammar points. It is designed to help those learning Spanish as a foreign language. It is written in American English though it is not designed solely for use by native English speakers.
It is recommended that this book be used as a supplement to a traditional course book, such as the Wikibook, as well as exposure to authentic Spanish language material such as newspapers, books, and television programs.
Vowels and consonants
Spanish has five vowels: A, E, I, O, U.
Spanish also has some special consonant sounds: j, x, ll, z
C The letter C can be pronounced /k/ or /s/ based on the letter that follows it: Ca, co, and cu is pronouned as /k/.
Ce, and ci is pronounced as /s/
G The letter G can be pronounced as /x/ or /g/ based on the letter that follows it: Ga, go, and gu is pronounced as /g/ ge and gi is pronounced as /x/.
Common Masculine Noun Endings
As a general rule, most masculine nouns end in -o. But there are many other noun endings. There are some general rules you can memorize to help you recognize masculne nouns even if they don't end in -o.
Many masculine nouns end in -aje. These nouns are almost never feminine.
Many nouns ending in -ma, -pa, or -ta are also masculine.
LONERS nouns: nouns ending in -l, -o, -n, -e, -r, or -s are usually masculine.
Most of the time, a noun that ends in an accented vowel is masculine as well.
There are always exceptions, but remember these generalizations.
Nouns Ending in -o
Most Spanish nouns that end in -o are masculine in gender - for example:
el médico - doctor
el dedo - finger
There are many exceptions - for example:
la mano - hand
Nouns Ending in -aje
Spanish nouns ending in -aje are almost always masculine in gender. Here are some examples:
el aterrizaje - landing
el viaje - trip, journey
el porcentaje - percentage
el hospedaje - accommodations, lodging
el reportaje - report, article
el lenguaje - language, vocabulary
el reciclaje - recycling
el follaje - foliage
el paisaje - countryside
Nouns Ending in -ma, -pa, -ta
Many Spanish nouns ending in -ma, -pa, or -ta are masculine despite ending in -a. These nouns are generally Greek in origin. Some examples:
el clima - climate
el tema - theme
el programa - program
el cometa - comet
el planeta - planet
el mapa - map
el papa - pope
There are many exceptions - for example:
la dama - woman
la tapa - lid, top
la dieta - diet
Nouns Ending in -dad, -tad, -tud
-dad
la ciudad - the city
la sociedad - the society
la verdad - the truth
la comunidad - the community
la oportunidad - the opportunity
-tad
la libertad - the liberty
la dificultad - the difficulty
la facultad - the faculty
Definite and Indefinite Articles
Definite articles are words that translate to " the". Indefinite articles correlate to the English "a" or "an".
Spanish articles change form to agree with the noun they're modifying in number and gender. Therefore, there is more than one word for "the" and more than one word for "a/an":
| Masculine | Feminine | |||
| singular | plural | singular | plural | |
| Definite | el | los | la | las |
| Indefinite | un | unos | una | unas |
The three elements at play here are definite vs. indefinite, masculine vs. feminine, and singular vs. plural.
The difference between definite and indefinite articles is the same as in English: you are either talking about something individual and specific (definite, "the - el/la"), or generally referring to something in a slightly abstract way (indefinite, "a/an - un/una/unos/unas").
Whether you use the masculine or feminine article depends on the gender of the following noun: abeja (bee) is a feminine noun, so 'the bee' is 'la abeja'. Bolígrafo (pen) is a masculine noun, so 'the pen' is 'el bolígrafo'.
Plurality is simple: if you're talking about more than one (or zero, same as in English), you use the plural form:
dos abejas - two bees
cero bolígrafos - zero pens
Inequality adjectives
Comparisons of inequality: más/menos + adjective/adverb/noun + que
(1) Juan es más alto que Juanita. – Juan is taller than Juanita.
(2) Juanita camina más lentamente que Juan. – Juanita walks more slowly than Juan.
(3) Juan vende más galletas que Juanita. – Juan sells more cookies that Juanita.
Equality adjectives
Comparisons of inequality: más/menos + adjective/adverb/noun + que
(1) Juan es más alto que Juanita. – Juan is taller than Juanita.
(2) Juanita camina más lentamente que Juan. – Juanita walks more slowly than Juan.
(3) Juan vende más galletas que Juanita. – Juan sells more cookies that Juanita.
Subject Pronouns
Subject Pronouns
singular plural
1st person yo (I) nosotros/nosotras (we (m)/(f))
2nd person tú (you) vosotros/vosotras (you (plural informal) (m)/(f))
3rd person el/ella/usted (he/she/you (formal)) ellos/ellas/ustedes (they (m)/(f)/you (plural formal))
Direct Object Pronouns
| direct object pronouns | |
| me | nos |
| te | os |
| lo, la | los, las |
Remember: the direct object of a sentence is the noun or noun phrase that is the recipient of the action of a transitive verb. Like "a book" in sentence (1) and "the food" in sentence (2):
(1) I read the book. (Yo leí el libro.)
(2) She brings the food. (Ella trae la comida.)
Direct objects are nouns and so can be replaced by pronouns. The example sentences with pronouns in place of the direct objects are:
(1) I read it. (Yo lo leí.)
(2) She brings it. (Ella la trae.)
Indirect Object Pronouns
| indirect object pronouns | |
| me | nos |
| te | os |
| le | les |
The indirect object of a sentence is a noun or noun phrase that is secondarily affected by the action of a transitive verb, like "me" in sentence (1):
(1) She brings me the food.*
*In English, sentence (2) can also be phrased as:
(1a) She brings the food to me.
*In Spanish, this is expressed through either "Ella me trae la comida." or "Ella me trae la comida a mí."
The direct object and the indirect object are always nouns, noun phrases, or pronouns. Nouns and noun phrases can be replaced by pronouns:
(1) She brings it.
(2) She brings me the food.
(3) She brings me it.
(4) She brings it to me.
In Spanish, these sentences would look like this:
(1) Ella la trae.
(2) Ella me trae la comida.
(3) Ella la me trae.
(4) Ella me la trae.
When both direct and indirect object pronouns are being used in a sentence, the indirect object pronoun comes first:
(4) Ella me la trae.
Let's look at another example.
(1) Yo leí el libro.
(2) Yo le leí el libro (a la niña).
When
(3) Yo se lo leí.
Reflexive pronouns
Reflexive Pronouns and Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive pronouns are pronouns that are attached to reflexive verbs. Some examples of reflexive verbs are:
lavarse – to wash onesrself
ducharse – to shower (onesrself)
peinarse – to brush one's hair
hablarse – to talk to oneself
All these examples end in –se because they're reflexive. Se is the reflexive pronoun. It translates to "oneself," "himself," "herself," or "yourself".
Reflexive Pronouns.
singular plural
1st person me (me) nos (us)
2nd person te (you) os (you (plural informal))
3rd person se (him/her/you (formal) se (them/you (plural formal))
Examples:
(1) Ye me lavo las manos. – I wash my hands.
(2) Ella se peina. – She brushes her hair.
(3) El se habla. – He talks to himself.
Compare the above reflexive sentences with non-reflexive sentences:
(1) Yo lavo el perro. – I wash the dog.
(2) Ella peina el caballo. – She brushes the horse.
(3) El habla con sus padres. – He speaks with his parents.
Possessive pronouns
Possessive Pronouns
singular plural
1st person mi (my) nuestro/nuestra (our (m)/(f))
2nd person tu (your) vuestro/vuestra (your (plural informal) (m)/(f))
3rd person su (his/her/your (formal)) su (their (m)/(f)/your (plural formal))
Note: Both singular and plural possessive pronouns can modify either singular or plural nouns and are declined to agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.
ex. mi maleta/mis maletas – my suitcase/my suitcases
nuestra maleta/nuestras maletas – our suitcase/our suitcases
Demonstrative Pronouns
When the noun is understood in the context, it can be omitted – but adjectives can't stand alone. In these cases, demonstrative pronouns are used. As shown below, demonstrative pronouns are almost exactly the same as demonstrative adjectives – but there's an accent on the stressed syllable. These accents are actually optional.
| Demonstrative Pronouns | |||||||
| singular | plural | singular | |||||
| English | Masculine | Feminine | English | Masculine | Feminine | English | Neuter |
| this | éste | ésta | these | éstos | éstas | this | esto |
| that | ése | ésa | those | ésos | ésas | that | eso |
| that (over there) | aquél | aquélla | those (over there) | aquéllos | aquéllas | that (over there) | aquello |
Sometimes a demonstrative pronoun refers to something abstract, not referring to any specific noun. Thus it doesn't have a gender, so neither can the demonstrative pronoun: the neuter form is used. Notice that the neuter form does not have accent marks.
Relative pronouns
Relative pronouns are used to join a pronoun to an entire clause.
An example in English:
It was Lucy who sent the letter.
"Who sent the letter" is a relative clause and "who" is a relative pronoun. "Who" refers to the same thing as "it".
| Masculine Singular | Feminine Singular | Masculine Plural | Feminine Plural | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| cuyo | cuya | cuyos | cuyas | whose |
| el cual | la cual | los cuales | las cuales | the one(s) who, the one(s) that |
| lo que | that which, what, whatever | |||
| los que | las que | those who, those that | ||
| que | que | que | que | that, who, which |
Regular -ar verbs
conjugated verb = stem + ending
stem = infinitive – ar
| 1. -AR | ||
| singular | plural | |
| 1st person | -o | -amos |
| 2nd person | -as | -áis |
| 3rd person | -a | -an |
| ex. hablar (to speak) stem = hablar –ar = habl- | |||
| hablo | I speak | hablamos | we speak |
| hablas | you (informal) speak | habláis | you (informal plural) speak |
| habla | he/she/it/you (formal) speak(s) | hablan | they/you (formal plural) speak |
Regular -er verbs
conjugated verb = stem + ending
stem = infinitive – er
| 2. -ER | ||
| singular | plural | |
| 1st person | -o | -emos |
| 2nd person | -es | -éis |
| 3rd person | -e | -en |
| ex. comer (to eat) stem = comer - er = com- | |||
| como | I eat | comemos | we eat |
| comes | you (informal) eat | coméis | you (informal plural) eat |
| come | he/she/it/you (formal) eat(s) | comen | they/you (formal plural) eat |
Regular -ir verbs
conjugated verb = stem + ending
stem = infinitive - ir
| 3. -IR | ||
| singular | plural | |
| 1st person | -o | -imos |
| 2nd person | -es | -ís |
| 3rd person | -e | -en |
| ex. vivir (to live) stem = vivir - ir = viv- | |||
| vivo | I live | vivimos | we live |
| vives | you (informal) live | vivís | you (informal plural) live |
| vive | he/she/it/you (formal) live(s) | viven | they/you (formal plural) live |
Regular -ar verbs
conjugated verb = stem + ending
stem = infinitive – ar
| 1. -AR | ||
| singular | plural | |
| 1st person | -o | -amos |
| 2nd person | -as | -áis |
| 3rd person | -a | -an |
| ex. hablar (to speak) stem = hablar –ar = habl- | |||
| hablo | I speak | hablamos | we speak |
| hablas | you (informal) speak | habláis | you (informal plural) speak |
| habla | he/she/it/you (formal) speak(s) | hablan | they/you (formal plural) speak |
Regular -ar verbs
conjugated verb = stem + ending
stem = infinitive – ar
| 1. -AR | ||
| singular | plural | |
| 1st person | -o | -amos |
| 2nd person | -as | -áis |
| 3rd person | -a | -an |
| ex. hablar (to speak) stem = hablar –ar = habl- | |||
| hablo | I speak | hablamos | we speak |
| hablas | you (informal) speak | habláis | you (informal plural) speak |
| habla | he/she/it/you (formal) speak(s) | hablan | they/you (formal plural) speak |
Personal "a"
The direct object of a sentence is the noun or noun phrase that is the recipient of the action of a transitive verb.
In Spanish, when the direct object is a person it is preceded by the preposition "a". This is called the "personal a". When the direct object is not a person, there is no personal a:
1. María esta esperando el autobus. – María is waiting for the bus.
2. María esta esperando a John. – María is waiting for John.
The personal a is not used for animals:
3. Jorge mira la vaca.
The personal “a” is not used after tener, or the verb haber (even if the direct object is a person).
4. Tengo una esposa hermosa. – I have a beautiful wife.
5. Hay una mujer en la puerta. – There's a woman at the door.
If the direct object is an indefinite person, the personal “a” is not used. The person is considered grammatically “depersonalized.”
6. Busco novia. – I'm looking for a girlfriend (any girl).
7. Necesito médico. – I need a doctor (any doctor).
Por
Por is used…
when expressing gratitude or apologizing
e.g. Lo siento por lo que dije. – I'm sorry for what I said.
e.g. Gracias por venir. – Thank you for coming.
for multiplication
e.g. Dos por cinco son diez. – Two times five is ten.
when talking about velocity, frequency, or proportion
e.g. Como tres veces por día. – I eat three times a day.
e.g. Conduzco 60 millas por hora. – I drive 60 miles per hour.
when saying "through," "along," "by," or "in the area of"
e.g. Caminamos por el parque. – We walk through/in the area of the park.
when discussing something exchanged or sold
e.g. Te doy tres dólares por el sándwich. – I'll give you three dollars for the sandwich.
to express "on behalf of" or "in favor of"
e.g. No voté por nadie.
to express a length of time
e.g. Hoy hice deporte por una hora y media hoy. – I exercised for an hour and a half today.
when referring to a nonspecific time, to mean "during"
e.g. Cocino mucho por el fin de semana.
e.g. Trabajo por la tarde.
to refer to means of communication or transportation
e.g. Hablo con mi madre por el teléfono. – I talk to my mom on the phone.
e.g. Normalmente viajo por coche pero esta vez yo voy por avión. – Normally I travel by car but this time I'm going by plane.
in cases of mistaken identity, or meaning "to be seen as"
e.g. Me tienen por loco. – They take me for crazy.
when explaining the purpose of an errand (with ir, venir, pasar, mandar, volver, and preguntar)
e.g. Paso por ti a las ocho. – I'll come by for you at eight o'clock.
expression: por + infinitive – expresses an incomplete action
e.g. La cena está por cocinar. – Dinner has yet to be cooked.
to express cause or reason
e.g. Murió por falta de agua. – He died due to a lack of water.
e.g. Hoy estoy resfriada, y por eso no fui a clase.- I have a cold today, so I didn't go to class.
expression: estar + por – to be in the mood, to be inclined to do something
e.g. Estoy por salir. – I feel like going out.
to indicate agent in passive constructions
e.g. El autobús está conducido por el conductor.
to denote authorship
e.g. Por Julio Iglesias- by Julio Iglesias
Por is used in many common expressions and phrases. Here are some good examples:
| por favor | please |
| por ejemplo | for example |
| por lo menos | at least |
| por qué | why |
| por fin | finally |
| por eso | therefore |
| por supuesto | of course |
| por ciento | percent |
| por aquí | this way |
| por cierto | certainly |
| palabra por palabra | word for word |
| día por día | day by day |
| por los pelos | barely |
| por ningún lado | nowhere |
Para
Para is used…
to signify destination
e.g. Mario va para la escuela. – Mario is going to the school.
to show the use or purpose of a thing
e.g. El libro es para estudiar. – The book is for studying.
meaning: "in order to," "for the purpose of"
e.g. Sal de la casa para conocer a amigos. – Leave the house (in order to) make friends.
to indicate a recipient
e.g. Este paquete es para usted. – This package is for you.
to specify a deadline or time
e.g. La tarea debe estar completa para el miércoles. – The homework should be done by Wednesday.
when expressings something contrary to what was expected
e.g. Para un niño es muy intelegente. – For a child, he is very intelligent.
expression: estar + para + infinitive – expresses an action that will soon be completed
e.g. La niña está para cumplir trece años. – The child is about to turn thirteen.
Both para is used in many common expressions and phrases. Here are some good examples:
| para siempre | forever |
| para dónde | where to |
| estar para | to be about to |
| para adelante | forward |
| para detrás | backward |
| para abajo | downward |
| para entonces | by that time |
| ser tal para cual | to be two of a kind |