📖 Spanish Articles: el, la, los, las
Grammatical gender and how definite & indefinite articles work
Two Genders, Four Articles
Spanish nouns are either masculine or feminine. Each gender has a singular and plural definite article. Unlike English, which only has "the," Spanish requires you to match the article to both the gender and number of the noun.
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | el | los |
| Feminine | la | las |
Indefinite Articles
The indefinite articles ("a," "an," "some") also change by gender and number:
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | un | unos |
| Feminine | una | unas |
Gender Patterns
Most nouns follow predictable patterns based on their ending:
| Ending | Gender | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| -o | Masculine | el libro, el gato, el cielo |
| -a | Feminine | la casa, la mesa, la ventana |
| -ción / -sión | Feminine | la nación, la televisión |
| -dad / -tad | Feminine | la ciudad, la libertad |
| -ma (Greek origin) | Masculine | el problema, el sistema, el tema |
Contractions
Spanish has exactly two mandatory contractions with articles:
| Combination | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a + el | al | Voy al parque (I go to the park) |
| de + el | del | Vengo del trabajo (I come from work) |
When to Omit the Article
Unlike English, Spanish uses articles in many places English doesn't — but also drops them in some cases. Articles are used with general statements ("Me gusta el café" = I like coffee) and titles ("el señor García"). They're omitted after ser + profession ("Soy médico" = I'm a doctor) and with some prepositions ("en casa" = at home).
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