Spanish: An Essential Grammar

Feminine endings other than -a

Nouns with the following endings are usually feminine: -ad, -tud, -ción,

-sión, -umbre and -ie. Many of them are abstract nouns relating to concepts

rather than persons or physical objects:

la caridad charity la solicitud application

la acusación accusation la decisión decision

la cumbre summit la especie species

Notes:

1 El pie‘foot’ is a common exception.

2 See also 2.2.1.4, and other words ending in -triz: la matriz‘uterus’, ‘master

copy’, la cicatriz‘scar’.

3 Words ending in -isneed to be checked. The majority are feminine: la crisis

‘crisis’, la tesis‘thesis’, but some common words are masculine: el énfasis

‘emphasis’, el análisis‘analysis’.

Masculine endings other than -o

Nouns with the following endings are usually masculine: -aje, -ambre, -án,

-én, -orand a stressed vowel:

el tatuaje tattoo(ing) el fiambre cold meat

el gabán overcoat el almacén warehouse/store

el interruptor switch el pirulí lollipop

Note: Common exceptions are la flor‘flower’, la labor‘labour’, ‘sewing’ and el

hambre‘hunger’ (for use of elwith feminine nouns, see 3.1.2).

Categories of nouns predictably masculine

In the case of many proper nouns (or names), the gender is taken from an

associated but unmentioned masculine noun.

Proper nouns designating a natural feature are typically masculine (due to

unmentioned río‘river’, monte ‘mount’, lago‘lake’, océano‘ocean’, etc.):

2.2.3.1

2.2.3

2.2.2.3

2.2.2.2^1111

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

1011

1

12111

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

20111

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

30111

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

40

41111

2

Nouns

22