{"id":808,"date":"2022-08-15T04:02:16","date_gmt":"2022-08-15T04:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.escuela-hablamos.com\/?p=808"},"modified":"2022-08-15T05:49:36","modified_gmt":"2022-08-15T05:49:36","slug":"a-guide-to-spanish-plurals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escuela-hablamos.com\/ko\/a-guide-to-spanish-plurals\/","title":{"rendered":"A guide to Spanish plurals"},"content":{"rendered":"

When learning Spanish, one of the very first things you\u2019ll need to know is how to form plural nouns<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>

After all, you can\u2019t go around always talking about everything in the singular<\/b> \u2013 that would be a bit weird! So what does the plural look like in Spanish and how do we form it?
\nFirstly, we need to look at the plural of el art\u00edculo definido <\/b>(<\/i>the definite article<\/i><\/b>)<\/i> which means \u201cthe\u201d and el art\u00edculo indefinido<\/b> (<\/i>the indefinite article<\/i><\/b>)<\/i> which means \u201ca\/an\u201d. In Spanish, there are both masculine<\/b> and feminine<\/b> nouns and so we have a few forms of these articles to have to learn.<\/p>\n<\/div>

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
El art\u00edculo definido (the)<\/b><\/td>\nEl art\u00edculo indefinido (a\/an)<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSingular<\/td>\nPlural<\/td>\n<\/td>\nSingular<\/td>\nPlural<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Masculine<\/td>\nel<\/td>\nlos<\/td>\nMasculine<\/td>\nun\/uno<\/td>\nunos<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Feminine<\/td>\nla<\/td>\nlas<\/td>\nMasculine<\/td>\nuna<\/td>\nunas<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\n<\/div>

It\u2019s really not that complicated, is it? So, once you\u2019ve decided what type of sustantivo <\/b>(<\/i>noun<\/i><\/b>)<\/i> you\u2019re dealing with, we can get on with making it into a plural form. There are a few spelling rules which you can follow that make this whole process much simpler. Let\u2019s take a look.<\/p>\n<\/div>

1. If a noun ends in a vowel (a,e,i,o,u) we simply add \u201cs\u201d<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/p>\n

Por ejemplo, <\/i><\/b>(For example,)<\/i><\/p>\n

el<\/b> ni\u00f1o > los<\/b> ni\u00f1os
\n<\/b>the boy > the boys<\/i><\/p>\n

la <\/b>fecha > las<\/b> fechas<\/b>
\nthe date > the dates<\/i><\/p>\n

un <\/b>coche > unos<\/b> coches
\n<\/b>a car > some cars<\/i><\/p>\n

una <\/b>mariposa > unas<\/b> mariposas<\/b>
\na butterfly > some butterflies<\/i><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

2. If a noun ends in most consonants, add \u201ces\u201d<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/p>\n

Por ejemplo, <\/i><\/b>(For example,)<\/i><\/p>\n

el <\/b>professor > los<\/b> profesores<\/b>
\nthe teacher > the teachers<\/i><\/p>\n

la<\/b> universidad > las <\/b>universidades
\n<\/b>the university > the universities<\/i><\/p>\n

un <\/b>\u00e1rbol > unos<\/b> \u00e1rboles<\/b>
\na tree > some tres<\/i><\/p>\n

una<\/b> mujer > unas<\/b> mujeres<\/b>
\na woman > some women<\/i><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

3. For nouns that end in \u201cz\u201d we add \u201ces\u201d and change the \u201cz\u201d to \u201cc\u201d<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/p>\n

Por ejemplo, <\/i><\/b>(For example,)<\/i><\/p>\n

la <\/b>actriz > las<\/b> actrices
\n<\/b>the actress > the actresses<\/i><\/p>\n

un <\/b>l\u00e1piz > unos<\/b> l\u00e1pices<\/b>
\na pencil > some pencils<\/i><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

4. If a noun ends in \u201ci\u00f3n\u201d, we remove the accent (\u00b4) from the \u201co\u201d and add \u201ces\u201d<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/p>\n

Sometimes, as you\u2019ve probably noticed, words have accent marks<\/b> above certain letters. There are some rules<\/b> to help you with this, but for now just remember that words ending in \u201ci\u00f3n\u201d drop the accent<\/b> when we make the plural.<\/p>\n

Por ejemplo, <\/i><\/b>(For example,)<\/i><\/p>\n

la <\/b>televisi\u00f3n > las<\/b> televisiones
\n<\/b>the televisi\u00f3n > the televisions<\/i><\/p>\n

el <\/b>avi\u00f3n > los <\/b>aviones
\n<\/b>the plane > the planes<\/i><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

5. Some words taken from other languages do not follow all the rules above and simply add \u201cs\u201d<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/p>\n

Spanish, like any other language, has a lot of loanwords<\/b> or words which have been borrowed<\/b> from other languages. These often have different spellings<\/b> than standard Spanish words would allow, and so the standard plural rules don\u2019t always work.<\/p>\n

Por ejemplo, <\/i><\/b>(For example,)<\/i><\/p>\n

el <\/b>parking > los<\/b> parkings
\n<\/b>the car park > the car parks<\/i><\/p>\n

un <\/b>camping > unos<\/b> campings
\n<\/b>a campsite > some campsites<\/i><\/p>\n

un<\/b> bistec > unos<\/b> bistecs
\n<\/b>a beef steak > some beef steaks<\/i><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

6. Some words don\u2019t change between singular and plural<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/p>\n

We\u2019re not going to go over all the reasons for this here, but just be aware that some words do not<\/b> change between singular and plural. Here are some examples.<\/p>\n

el <\/b>martes > los<\/b> martes
\nTuesday > Tuesdays<\/i><\/p>\n

(in fact, all days of the week end in \u201cs\u201d in singular and plural)<\/i><\/p>\n

una <\/b>crisis > unas<\/b> crisis
\na crisis > some crises<\/i><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

7. Mixed masculine and feminine groups become masculine in the plural form<\/span><\/h2><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/p>\n

This is nothing about gender or favouring males or females, rather it\u2019s a linguistic feature<\/b> of the language. If a group contains a male and a female, the plural form is always masculine<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Por ejemplo, <\/i><\/b>(For example,)<\/i><\/p>\n

un <\/b>gato + una<\/b> gata > unos<\/b> gatos
\n<\/span><\/b>a male cat + a female cat > some cats<\/i><\/p>\n

11 <\/b>ni\u00f1os + 13<\/b> ni\u00f1as > 25 <\/b>ni\u00f1os
\n<\/b>11 boys + 13 girls > 25 children<\/i><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

<\/p>\n

So, when learning Spanish<\/b>, always try to learn the article<\/b> and plural<\/b> of words when you see them. It\u2019ll save you a lot of time later when trying to use your vocabulary<\/b> quickly when speaking Spanish<\/b> with other people. You\u2019re bound to make mistakes, but that\u2019s the beauty of learning a language<\/b> and people will always try and help you to find the right form of the word you need.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>

Here at Hablamos<\/mark>, we can help you to get you head around these rules and be better able to use plurals accurately in your spoken and written Spanish. Sign up for one of our courses today!<\/span><\/h3><\/div>
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