Spanish Grammar

Ana Fairchild, Juan Mendez

• Publisher: Collins Reference
• Year: 2011
• ISBN:
  9780062115133
• Topic: Study Aids
• Subtopic: Advanced Placement

Unlike traditional textbooks, which leave students without a clear understanding of the different tenses and moods, the Collins College Outline for Spanish Grammar is organized conceptually, explaining in detail subjunctive and imperative moods, passive voice, negatives, idioms, and the rules of accentuation. With sections on articles, adjectives, nouns, and verbs, along with a comprehensive vocabulary appendix for quick and easy reference, this is the essential guide to understanding Spanish. Completely revised and updated by Professor Ana Fairchild, this book includes a test yourself section with answers and complete explanations at the end of each chapter. Also included are bibliographies for further reading, as well as numerous vocabulary lists, exercises, and examples.

The Collins College Outlines are a completely revised, in-depth series of study guides for all areas of study, including the Humanities, Social Sciences, Mathematics, Science, Language, History, and Business. Featuring the most up-to-date information, each book is written by a seasoned professor in the field and focuses on a simplified and general overview of the subject for college students and, where appropriate, Advanced Placement students. Each Collins College Outline is fully integrated with the major curriculum for its subject and is a perfect supplement for any standard textbook.

CHAPTER 1

Articles and Nouns

Gender and number are aspects that are sometimes difficult for English speakers to learn. In this chapter we will look at how these function and also the use of the articles the and a in regards to these nouns.

ARTICLES

There are two types of articles in Spanish: definite and indefinite. The definite article (the) indicates a specific person or thing while the indefinite article (a, an) refers to a person or thing not known to the speaker. In a lot of cases they are used the same as in English. For example: The woman walked into the store. Or in the case of the indefinite article: A woman walked into the store. These articles in Spanish agree with the noun in gender, (feminine, masculine) and number (singular, plural). One must keep in mind that the articles used in Spanish are often omitted in English.

Definite Articles

There are four definite articles in Spanish: el, la, los, las. The plural of the masculine el is los, and the plural of the feminine la is las.

el autobús	bus
los autobuses	buses
la blusa	blouse
las blusas	blouses
el caballo	horse
los caballos	horses
la mesa	table
las mesas	tables
el papel	paper
los papeles	papers
la yegua	mare
las yeguas	mares

For phonetic purposes, feminine nouns that begin with an a or ha take the article el only when the first a is stressed.

el agua	water
las aguas	waters
el águila	eagle
las águilas	eagles
ela alma	soul
las almas	souls
el arma	firearm
las armas	firearms
el hacha	ax
las hachas	axes
But,
la acción	action
la aceituna	olive
la almohada	pillow
la altura	height
la amiga	friend

Please note that the stressed syllable in this last group of words is not the first a. For more detail, see Chapter 12.

With Nouns

The definite article in used in Spanish much more than in English. It is used with all general or abstract nouns:

La vida es dura.

Life is hard.

Con el dinero no se puede comprar la felicidad.

You can’t buy happiness with money.

La paz es una idea valiosa.

Peace is a valuable idea.

When the Quantity is Vague

The article is omitted when the sentence implies some, any, each, or many.

Necesito dinero para comprar comida.

I need some money to buy some food.

However, if the noun is modified, the definite article is used:

Necesito el dinero que me dio mi abuelita para comprar libros.

I need the money my grandma gave me to buy books.

When Referring to a Person

The definite article is used with titles when referring to a person. It is omitted when addressing the individual or with the titles don, doña, Santo, San and Santa.

El rey Juan Carlos es un gran hombre.

King Juan Carlos is a great man.

El señor Ramírez es el dueño del apartamento.

Mr. Ramírez is the owner of the apartment.

La señorita María está estudiando la lección.

Miss María is studying ...