Spanish nouns

Spanish nouns are one of the fundamental bases of Spanish, so if you are willing to master it as a second language, it is crucial that you understand how they work. If there are words that are constantly used in a language, no doubt it is nouns, so it is vital that you understand how and when they are used.

In this article, the donQuijote school gives you the keys to exploring Spanish nouns in depth, the types that exist and the classification they have, as well as exercises for you to practice everything you have learned.

Venture with us into Spanish nouns and learn Spanish in Spain with donQuijote! You can also read this same text in Spanish, French or Italian here.

What is a Spanish noun?

Nouns in Spanish are words that refer to a person, animal, object, idea or feeling. These words are the core of the sentence and, as we have mentioned, they refer to many concepts.

Thus, a noun in Spanish can be anything:

• Person: María, doctor, niño
• Animal: gato, elefante, loro
• Things or objects: mesa, teléfono, coche
• Ideas or feelings: amor, libertad, tristeza

The gender and number of Spanish nouns

Generally, in Spanish nouns can be masculine or feminine, rarely they have no gender. For example, the word hambre is feminine, but in some contexts, it is used with the masculine gender “el hambre”.

Masculine nouns usually end in -o, although there are some exceptions. For example, some masculine nouns are gato (cat), libro (book), día (day) or mapa (map). Feminine nouns end in -a, but there are also exceptions. Some of them are casa (house), mesa (table), mano (hand), foto (photo).

Furthermore, some Spanish nouns can change their meaning according to their gender. Although this is not an absolute rule, it does happen with words such as:

• El cura (priest) and la cura (remedy)
• El capital (money) and la capital (main city)
• El cometa (star) and la cometa (toy)
• El orden (organization) and la orden (order)

On the other hand, the number of Spanish nouns can be singular or plural and must always coincide with the gender. If you need a little advice on how to form plural nouns in Spanish, just add -s or -es to the end of the words. As a rule, the Spanish plural is formed like this, for example: la mesa à las mesas; el papelà los papeles; el vaso à los vasos.

Of course, as with everything, there are exceptions in the formation of the plural, for example, luz would become luces. In addition, there are words that do not vary in singular and plural, such as tijeras (scissors) or vacaciones (vacation).

Types of Spanish nouns

There are several types of nouns in Spanish depending on what they designate.

Common and proper

Common nouns designate objects, beings or people in general. E.g. Gato (cat) or ciudad (city). Whereas proper nouns name specific people and entities, for example: Juan, Laura or Madrid.

Concrete and abstract

Concrete nouns refer to tangible things such as bolígrafo (pen), bolso (bag) or coche (car). On the other hand, abstract nouns express ideas or feelings such as amor (love) or felicidad (happiness).

Countable and uncountable

As the name suggests, countable nouns can be counted: una manzana (one apple), tres libros (three books), cuatro cafés (four coffees). And uncountable nouns have no plural form and are measured in units, such as agua (water) or azúcar (sugar).

Individual and collective

Individual nouns name a single being (pez (fish), mochila (backpack), soldado (soldier)) and collective nouns represent a group (rebaño (flock), bosque (forest), ejército (army)).

Common mistakes in the use of nouns in Spanish

Although they may seem simple, there are some common mistakes that all Spanish students tend to make. Therefore, here are the most common ones so that you can avoid them and learn from them:

1. Confusion with gender: many students confuse the gender of nouns in Spanish. It is not correct to say 'la problema', but the correct form would be 'el problema'.
2. Incorrect use of the plural: forming the plural of some nouns can be complicated. For example, the word 'crisis' is invariable in the plural, therefore, the correct thing to say is 'las crisis' or 'la crisis', while 'los crisis' is incorrect.

Exercises with Spanish nouns

To reinforce these concepts, here are some exercises with Spanish nouns for you to practice all the above:

• Identify the gender and number of the following nouns: camioneta, papeles, sol, flores.
• Complete with the correct article: ___ agua, ___ profesor, ___ idea, ___ mapas.
• Convert these Spanish words to the plural: luz, mes, avión, ordenador, bolsa, móvil.
• Classify the following Spanish nouns as common or proper: María, vaca, Luis, Valencia, profesora, cuaderno.
• Indicate if the following nouns in Spanish are countable or uncountable: harina, silla, aire, plátano, bolígrafo, amistad.

Mastering Spanish nouns is key to effective communication in the language, but if you still have questions after reading our article, don't hesitate to sign up for one of our intensive Spanish courses where our teachers will explain everything related to nouns.

Constant practice will make these concepts come naturally in the use of the language, so don't hesitate any longer and start learning Spanish with us!

Answers to the above exercises:

• Camioneta: feminine, singular. Papeles: masculine, plural. Sol: masculine, singular. Flores: feminine, plural.
• El agua. El profesor. La idea. Los mapas.
• Meses. Aviones. Ordenadores. Bolsas. Móviles.
• Proper nouns: María, Luis and Valencia. Common nouns: vaca, profesora, cuaderno.
• Countable nouns: silla, plátano, bolígrafo. Uncountable nouns: harina, aire, amistad.