Days of the week in Spanish 👉 Días de la semana

This time we are going to learn the seven days of the week in Spanish, los días de la semana.

Días de la semana Days of the week
lunes
Monday
martes
Tuesday
miércoles
Wednesday
jueves
Thursday
viernes
Friday
sábado
Saturday
domingo
Sunday

Plurals in Spanish – El plural de los sustantivos en español

In Spanish there are singular nouns and plural nouns, like in other languages. This post is about plurals in Spanish and how to form them, seeing the general rule and also the different cases where there are changes in the spelling of plural nouns.

➡ The singular refers to one person, animal or object → hombre, silla, perro, casa, coche…

➡ The plural refers to more than one person, animal or object → hombres, sillas, perros, casas, coches…

But while English language has a single form in the definite and indefinite articles for both singular and plural (the, a, an), in Spanish we must change the articles to their plural forms:

Definite article:
la silla → las sillas
el coche → los coches

Indefinite article:
una casa → unas casas
un teléfono → unos teléfonos

How to form the plurals in Spanish

Generally, to form the plural of nouns in Spanish, we add -s or -es to word endings. We add -s if the ending of a word is a vowel and -es if the word ending is a consonant. See the following examples:

VOWEL ENDING → ADD -S
la casa → las casas
el oso → los osos

CONSONANT ENDING → ADD -ES
la ciudad → las ciudades
el ascensor → los ascensores

 

However, sometimes there are changes in the spelling of plural nouns in Spanish. We are going to learn the rules about how to form the plurals in Spanish depending on the ending or the noun: vowel or consonant.

Nouns ending in vowel

The writing of plurals in Spanish changes in the following cases:

➡ Nouns ending in unstressed vowel (vocal átona) form its plural adding -s: 
casa → casas
perro → perros
bolso → bolsos

➡ Nouns ending in the stressed vowels (vocales tónicas) -a, -e, -o form their plural adding -s: 
café → cafés 
sofá → sofás
chalé → chalés
The names of musical notes: fa → fas, re → res, do → dos…

🔴 Exceptions:
no → noes (when it acts as a noun)
yo → yoes 
Plurals of vowels a, e, o:    a → aes, e → es/ees, o → oes

➡ Nouns ending in the stressed vowels -í, -ú form their plural adding -es or -s. 
If they are nouns of nationalities, the ending -es is preferred, specially if it is written.
iraní → iraníes (nationality)

In most nouns ending in -í, -ú, specially colloquial nouns, you can use the -s or -es ending since both are correct, but in spoken Spanish the -e- is usually omitted, so the -s ending is more common.
esquí → esquís, esquíes
tabú → tabús, tabúes

🔴 The nouns menú and champú always form their plural with -s ending. The -es ending is not valid for these cases.
menú → menús
champú → champús

Nouns ending in consonant

➡ Nouns that end in consonants –d, -j, -l, -n, -r, -s, -z, -ch form the plural with -es. 

ciudad → ciudades
árbol → árboles
canción → canciones
quehacer → quehaceres
marqués → marqueses
altavoz → altavoces
reloj → relojes
sándwich → sándwiches

 

➡ Nouns that end in consonants -c, -g, -t form the plural adding a final -s. 

el cómic → los cómics
el airbag → los airbags
el mamut → los mamuts

➡ There are few words in Spanish that end in -b. The most common are club and web. The plural of club can be made ending with -s or -es: los clubs or los clubes. 
However, the plural of web is made with -s: las webs. But if say las páginas web or los sitios web we do not add the final -s in web, since it has already been added to the noun página / sitio.

➡ Note that nouns ending in -z change to a -ces ending in plural. 👉 el lápiz → los lápices. 
While in singular we say el lápiz (the pencil), ending in Z, in plural we say los lápices (the pencils). We have changed the Z to a C. The sound of both letters is the same, but the spelling changes.

➡ Nouns ending in -s and -x have an invariable plural if they are palabras llanas or palabras esdrújulas.
la crisis → las crisis

This rule does not apply to sustantivos agudos ending in -x:
el fax → los faxes

➡ The days of the week in Spanish ending in -s do not change in plural. 
el lunes → los lunes
el martes → los martes
el miércoles → los miércoles
el jueves → los jueves
el viernes → los viernes

➡ Nouns ending in -y form the plural with -es.
el buey → los bueyes

🔴 Exception to this: nouns that are of foreign origin but have been adapted to Spanish. These make the plural with -s.
el espray → los espráis
This is a noun with foreign origin (spray), that has been adapted to Spanish, so we only add a final -s, not -es.

➡ Nouns ending in a group of consonants make the plural with -s. 
el iceberg → los icebergs

🔴 There are a few exceptions to this. The most common is test, since it remains invariable: el test, los test.

 

More about Spanish plural nouns

There are some more aspects to consider in relation to the plural of nouns in Spanish. 

  • Some nouns only have a plural form. These are called pluralia tantum. An example of this is the noun víveres (which means supplies or provisions).

     

  • Some nouns only have a singular form. These are called singularia tantum. An example of this is the word sed (which means thirst).

     

  • Nouns referred to objects made of two symmetrical parts may be in singular or plural, this does not matter because both refer to a single object:
    la tijera = las tijeras (both refer to a single object).
    la tenaza = las tenazas (both refer to a single object).

     

  • Some nouns always use a plural form to refer to a single object; e.g. las gafas 

Online exercises about plurals in Spanish

Gender in Spanish – El género del sustantivo en español

This time we are going to cover the gender in Spanish. There are two genders (géneros) in Spanish language: masculine and feminine (masculino y femenino). There is no neutral gender in Spanish, so in this language nouns are either masculine or feminine.

How to find out gender in Spanish nouns

There are some general rules to determine the gender of Spanish nouns, but, as always, there are exceptions that make this topic a bit more challenging. But, in general, gender in Spanish may be a simple topic if you follow the general rules and keep in mind some of the most common exceptions.

Masculine nouns in Spanish (Sustantivos masculinos en español)

  • In general, nouns ending in -o are masculine: el libro, el cielo, el bolígrafo.
    There are some exceptions to this rule, these are the most common: la mano, la radio, la moto, la foto.
    Note that the two last examples, moto and foto, are abbreviated nouns of motocicleta and fotografía. As you see, their complete nouns end in -a; they are feminine. The abbreviated nouns are colloquial and more used than the complete ones, specially la moto, which is much more common than la motocicleta.
  • Nouns ending in -aje are masculine: el viaje, el maquillaje, el peaje.
  • Nouns ending in -ambre are generally masculine: el enjambre, el hambre, el calambre.
  • Some nouns ending in -or are masculine: el amor, el motor, el profesor.
  • Nouns ending in -án are masculine in general: el refrán, el albarán, el cancán.
  • Many nouns ending in -ma are also masculine: el problema, el tema, el pijama.
  • The compound names in Spanish that are formed by a verb and a noun are masculine: el sacacorchos (sacar + corchos), el paraguas (parar + aguas).
  • The days of the week in Spanish are also masculine: el lunes, el martes, el miércoles, el jueves, el viernes, el sábado, el domingo.
  • The colours in Spanish are masculine: el azul, el rojo, el verde, el amarillo...
  • The cardinal points in Spanish are masculine too: el norte, el sur, el este, el oeste.

Feminine nouns in Spanish (Sustantivos femeninos en español)

  • In general, nouns ending in -a are feminine: la casa, la vida, la taza.
  • Nouns ending in -dad are feminine: la ciudad, la soledad, la verdad.
  • Nouns ending in -tad are feminine: la libertad, la amistad, la pubertad.
  • Nouns ending in -tud are feminine: la virtud, la senectud.
  • Nouns ending in -ción and -sión are usually feminine: la estación, la revolución, la misión, la obsesión.
  • The nouns ending in -itis are also feminine, and these are usually names of illnesses: la gingivitis, la apendicitis.
  • Nouns ending in -umbre are feminine: la muchedumbre, la incertidumbre.
  • Nouns ending in -ie are also feminine: la superficie, la calvicie.

Invariant nouns or common gender in Spanish (Sustantivos comunes en el género)

Some nouns in Spanish are invariable, that is, they are the same noun in both the masculine and feminine gender. These are known as invariant or invariable nouns, or common nouns regarding gender. This is the case of:

  • Nouns ending in -ista: el / la artista.
  • Nouns ending in -e like el / la paciente.
    There are exceptions to this rule, since there are nouns ending in -e that do have a specific ending in -a for the feminine gender, like these:
    el jefe - la jefa (but it is also valid la jefe) / el presidente - la presidenta (but is is also valid la presidente).
    Although both are valid, if a word ending in -e has a specific ending in -a for the feminine gender, this is generally more used than the noun ending in -e with the feminine article.
  • Nouns ending in -a that are referred to people (this usually happens with some job names): el / la pediatra, el / la aristócrata, el / la logopeda.
  • There are nouns that are always common in terms of gender, like the following:
    • el / la piloto
    • el / la testigo
    • el / la conserje

Traditionally, the names of jobs only had a common gender (mostly with an -o ending), el / la arquitecto, for instance.
But, as time went by, these names stopped being common in terms of gender and split into masculine (-o ending) and feminine (-a ending): el arquitecto / la arquitecta.

Spanish Animals Word Scramble: Interactive Spelling Game

Welcome to our interactive Spanish animals word scramble! When learning Spanish, memorizing animal vocabulary (los animales) is fun and practical, but mastering the exact spelling can be challenging for beginners due to silent letters and specific combinations like rr or j.

Instead of passively reading vocabulary lists, solving a word unscramble game transforms your study session into an active brain workout. By deciphering scrambled letters to form correct Spanish animal names, you reinforce spelling rules, improve visual word recognition and solidify vocabulary into your long-term memory.

Vocabulary Cheat Sheet: Essential Animal Names in Spanish

Review the Spanish animal vocabulary featured in our unscramble challenge, plus additional essential wildlife words to expand your lexicon. Pay close attention to spelling details and grammatical gender (el for masculine and la for feminine).

Spanish AnimalEnglish TranslationGrammatical GenderExample Sentence
El perroDogMasculineMi perro corre muy rápido en el parque.
El elefanteElephantMasculineEl elefante tiene una trompa muy larga.
La jirafaGiraffeFeminineLa jirafa come hojas de los árboles altos.
El patoDuckMasculineEl pato nada tranquilamente en el estanque.
La iguanaIguanaFeminineLa iguana verde toma el sol sobre la roca.
El erizoHedgehogMasculineEl erizo tiene muchas púas en su espalda.
El gatoCatMasculineEl gato duerme en el sofá todo el día.
El leónLionMasculineEl león es conocido como el rey de la selva.
El monoMonkeyMasculineEl mono juega felizmente entre las ramas.
El tiburónSharkMasculineEl tiburón nada rápidamente en el océano profundo.
El pájaroBirdMasculineEl pájaro azul canta alegremente por la mañana.
La tortugaTurtleFeminineLa tortuga camina despacio por la arena.

Spanish Tongue Twisters about Animals

Read this list of Spanish Tongue Twisters about animals to learn some of the most popular tongue twisters in Spanish related to animals. These will also help you practice your Spanish pronunciation and also the reading speed in this language.

1. Tres tristes tigres

Tres tristes tigres comen trigo en un trigal.

2. El cangrejo

El cangrejo se quedó perplejo al ver su reflejo en aquel espejo.

Spanish Spelling Bee Basic Level 2

Test your Spanish Spelling with this Spanish Spelling Bee Basic Level 2! While Spanish is a phonetic language (meaning words are generally spelled exactly as they sound) mastering the correct spelling is a crucial step for beginners.

Many English speakers and learners in general struggle with identifying which syllable carries the stress or when to use specific characters that don't exist in the English alphabet, such as the ñ or vowels with written accents (tildes). This interactive spelling bee challenges your listening comprehension and active recall. By listening to the native pronunciation and typing the exact letters, you will train your ear and lock the correct spelling into your long-term memory.

This spelling bee activity is a bit harder than the Spelling Bee 1 basic level, since this second one has time limit and more words to write.

Instructions of this Spelling Bee in Spanish

  1. This spelling bee has 10 questions. You have to write the ten words you hear when you click the "Word" and/or "Spell" buttons. You have a "Clue" button for additional help. This clue may be a picture, a definition...
  2. You have 45 seconds to write each word. If you run out of time, that question will count as incorrect.
  3. In this spelling bee you can use both upper case and lower case letters. It does not mind. But it is important to use the accent marks when needed. You can use the special character buttons for this.
  4. If you make more than three mistakes, the spelling bee ends.
  5. If you complete and pass the spelling bee, you will get a completion certificate. You can save or print it if you want. ?

Pro Tips to Beat the Spelling Bee

To achieve a perfect score and type the words accurately, remember these interactive game tips:

  • Listen to the breakdown: if you are unsure of a word, click the "Spell" button. The audio will spell the word letter by letter in Spanish, which is fantastic for reviewing your alphabet pronunciation.

  • Use the on-screen keyboard: Spanish vowels with accents (á, é, í, ó, ú) and the dieresis (ü) are treated as entirely different key inputs than regular vowels. Use the special characters menu on the game screen to click the exact letter needed.

  • Check the clues: if you get stuck, use the "Clue" button.

Who Should Play This Spelling Bee?

This Level 2 spelling challenge is specifically designed for:

  • Advanced Beginners: students who have mastered the basic alphabet and are ready to tackle more complex words involving accents and special characters.

  • Auditory learners: if you learn best by hearing, this game forces you to connect spoken sounds directly to written letters without relying on visual cues first.

  • Self-study students: anyone looking for a fun, gamified way to test their active recall and break away from passive reading.

The Importance of Mastering Spanish Accents

In Spanish, a single accent mark can completely change the meaning of a word. For example, papa means potato, but papá means father.

Playing this interactive spelling bee helps you:

  1. Develop an ear for stress: you will learn to naturally identify which syllable is emphasized when a native speaker talks.

  2. Internalize spelling rules: repeatedly typing the correct characters builds muscle memory, reducing errors in your written Spanish.

  3. Boost conversational confidence: when you know exactly how a word is built, you can pronounce it with greater clarity and confidence.

More Spanish Spelling Bee Practice

Kitchen vocabulary in Spanish 🍴 La cocina en español

We are going to learn vocabulary about the kitchen in Spanish, la cocina, and also the names of the different appliances (called in Spanish electrodomésticos) and furniture you commonly find in this part of the house.
The first thing you need to know is how to say "the kitchen" in Spanish: la cocina.

Look at the following image and interact with it. Click on the different furniture and appliances of this kitchen: you will see their names and, in some cases, you will hear them too. After this image you can see an extended list of vocabulary that includes more useful words about the kitchen in Spanish with their translation into English.

Main parts of the kitchen in Spanish

el armario: cabinet
el cajón: drawer
el estante: shelf
la encimera: worktop
el frente de cocina / el salpicadero: splashback
el fregadero: sink
el grifo: tap

Kitchen appliances in Spanish

el frigorífico / la nevera: fridge
el congelador: freezer
el frigorífico congelador: fridge-freezer
la (placa) vitrocerámica: ceramic hob
el microondas: microwave oven
la tostadora / el tostador: toaster
el robot de cocina: food processor
el lavavajillas / el lavaplatos / el friegaplatos: dishwasher
el horno: oven
el extractor / la campana extractora: extractor
la batidora: blender
la batidora de mano: hand blender
la licuadora: juice extractor
el hervidor (de agua): kettle

Kitchen items in Spanish

el plato: plate
la cuchara: spoon
el tenedor: fork
la cucharilla (del café): teaspoon
el cuchillo: knife
el vaso: glass
la cristalería: glassware
la jarra: jug
la taza: mug
la taza de café: coffee cup
la taza de té: teacup
la tetera: teapot
el bol: bowl
la servilleta: napkin
el escurridor de platos: draining board
el escurridor: colander
el colador: sieve
la tabla para cortar: chopping board
el rallador: grater
el cucharón: ladle
la cuchara para servir: serving spoon
la espumadera: slotted spoon
el batidor de varillas: whisk
la espátula: spatula
la cuchara de madera: wooden spoon
el mortero: mortar
la sartén (ES), el sartén (AML): frying pan
el cazo: saucepan
la olla: cooking pot
la cazuela: casserole dish
el termo: thermos flask
la bandeja: tray
la bandeja de horno: baking tray
el molde para magdalenas: muffin tray
la manopla: oven glove
el agarrador: potholder
el delantal: apron
el rodillo (de cocina): rolling pin
la manga pastelera: piping bag

Spanish reading – Los sapeurs

Read the text and answer the questions below (soon).

Imagina que vas caminando por uno de los barrios más viejos y pobres de Brazzaville, la capital del Congo, y que te encuentras con un grupo de hombres congoleños vestidos con elegantes trajes, presumiendo de su sofisticado aspecto ante la atenta mirada del resto de personas, como si se tratara de un desfile de modelos. ¿Qué pensarías?

Puede que esta situación te parezca extraña e irreal, pero la realidad es que sucede en Congo desde hace casi 100 años. Estos hombres tan elegantes, conocidos como sapeurs, forman parte de un movimiento llamado “La Sape” (que significa “Sociedad de Ambientadores y Personas Elegantes”) que existe desde los años 20 y que unas décadas después se hizo más famoso gracias al músico Papa Wemba.

Puede que te estés preguntando por qué los sapeurs se visten así. Para comenzar a entender este fenómeno, debemos recordar la época colonial en África, concretamente cuando los franceses y los belgas comenzaron a llegar a los territorios del Congo. En aquellos tiempos querían cambiar muchas de las costumbres de los habitantes, como por ejemplo su ropa. En realidad, en aquella época los congoleños solían ir con muy poca ropa e incluso sin ella, y esto no gustaba a los europeos que vivían allí. Por esa razón decidieron traer ropa de segunda mano de ciudades europeas como París, para que los congoleños se vistieran con ella. Y con el paso del tiempo, a algunos de los habitantes comenzó a gustarles cada vez más la idea de vestir aquellas ropas europeas.

Hoy en día ser sapeur es mucho más que vestir un traje. No se trata de aparentar riqueza o de olvidar las costumbres locales. Ser sapeur es una actitud. Los sapeurs son personas normales, con sus propios trabajos y familias, que deciden ir vestidos de forma elegante en su tiempo libre. Además, intentan ser creativos en la moda, por lo que siempre están buscando nuevas formas de cambiar su indumentaria y sus peinados. Ser sapeur también se trata de compartir, pues entre ellos se prestan la ropa y la modifican, porque como dicen los integrantes de este movimiento, ser sapeur no significa ser rico y tener dinero para comprar ropa, sino que tiene que ver con cómo la persona viste la ropa y presume de su estilo.

¿Cómo crean sus nuevos estilos? Muchos dicen que buscan ideas en las revistas de moda y en los documentales. Su objetivo es sorprender con su estilo a las personas que los miran cuando van por la calle, porque dicen que así contagian la alegría. Actualmente para muchos congoleños ser sapeur es una tradición que comenzaron sus abuelos, y que en el futuro también seguirán sus hijos. Hay muchos ancianos  dentro del movimiento de los sapeurs que son muy conocidos y que dicen sentirse muy  jóvenes gracias al hecho de ser sapeur.

En definitiva, en los últimos años la popularidad de los sapeurs ha crecido bastante, sobre todo gracias a colectivos profesionales como el de los fotógrafos, ya que muchos de ellos han decidido retratar mediante fotografías la curiosa  manera de vivir de estos hombres en las calles de Brazzaville. Algunos de estos fotógrafos son  Héctor Mediavilla y Daniele Tamagni. Además, en 2014 los sapeurs fueron protagonistas de un anuncio de una popular marca de cerveza. Sin duda, el movimiento de los sapeurs es interesante y curioso, y no pasa inadvertido para el resto del mundo.

Fill in the blanks with common Spanish verbs | Part 2

Fill in the blanks with the common verbs in Spanish  that are in the green squares. There are eight verbs for eight sentences. The use of upper or lower case does not matter when writing the answers.

Note that one of the verbs has an accent mark: reír (to laugh). If you don't place the accent mark, the answer will count as incorrect.
Copy and past the letter if needed → í.