1.1: Números y acentos
Numbers (los números)
Cardinal Numbers
Cardinal numbers are the numbers we use to count (i.e., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.).
-
The spelling of
uno
changes depending on the gender of the noun it modifies.
Uno
is spelled
un
before a
masculine
noun and
una
before a
feminine
noun.
- Ejemplo(s):
- -- un ejemplo (m.)
- an example
- -- una pregunta (f.)
- a question
-
-
Mil
(1,000) is not pluralized when it is part of a specific number.
Millón
is pluralized.
- Ejemplo(s):
- --veinte mil , cien mil …
- twenty thousand, one hundred thousand
- --dos mil dólares ($2,000)
- two thousand dollars
- --dos millones de dólares ($2,000,000)
- two million dollars
-
Mil
may be used in the plural in more general statements.
- Ejemplo(s):
- -- Miles de personas visitan 'El Parque de la Amistad' en Tijuana.
- Thousands of people visit 'El Parque de la Amistad' in Tijuana.
-
Mil
(1,000) is not pluralized when it is part of a specific number.
Millón
is pluralized.
-
Numbers 16 to 29 are commonly written as one word or as two words connected by "y" (and). An accent is added to the one-word spelling of 16, 22, 23 and 26.
- Ejemplo(s):
- 16 = dieciséis
- 17 = diecisiete
- 21 = veintiuno
- 22 = veintidós
- 23 = veintitrés
- 26 = veintiséis
-
- Cien is used for the number 100 and before all nouns.
-
To say 101, 102-199, the form ciento is used.
- Ejemplo(s):
- -- ciento uno, ciento dos, ciento noventa y nueve.
-
When plural (200-999) an -os or -as is added depending on the gender of the noun.
Spanish English Cien 100 or one hundred Cien dólares 100 dollars Cien páginas 100 pages Cient o un dólares 101 dollars Doscient os dólares 200 dollars Doscient as páginas 200 pages
-
Spanish uses “.” (points) and “,” (commas) differently than English does. Points are used where one would expect a comma in English and vice versa.
Spanish English 1.000 (mil) 1,000 (one thousand) 1.000.000 (un millón) 1,000,000 (one million) 86,5% 86.5% “ochenta y seis con 5 por ciento” “eighty six point five percent”
Numbers 0 - 2.000.000
| 0 | cero | 10 | diez | 20 | veinte | 30 | treinta |
| 1 | uno | 11 | once | 21 | veintiuno | 31 | treinta y uno |
| 2 | dos | 12 | doce | 22 | veintidós | 32 | treinta y dos |
| 3 | tres | 13 | trece | 23 | veintitrés | 33 | treinta y tres |
| 4 | cuatro | 14 | catorce | 24 | veinticuatro | 34 | treinta y cuatro |
| 5 | cinco | 15 | quince | 25 | veinticinco | 35 | treinta y cinco |
| 6 | seis | 16 | dieciséis | 26 | veintiséis | 36 | treinta y seis |
| 7 | siete | 17 | diecisiete | 27 | veintisiete | 37 | treinta y siete |
| 8 | ocho | 18 | dieciocho | 28 | veintiocho | 38 | treinta y ocho |
| 9 | nueve | 19 | diecinueve | 29 | veintinueve | 39 | treinta y nueve |
| 10 | diez | 100 | cien | 1.000 | mil | 10.000 | diez mil |
| 20 | veinte | 200 | doscientos | 2.000 | dos mil | 20.000 | veinte mil |
| 30 | treinta | 300 | trescientos | 3.000 | tres mil | 30.000 | treinta mil |
| 40 | cuarenta | 400 | cuatrocientos | 4.000 | cuatro mil | 40.000 | cuarenta mil |
| 50 | cincuenta | 500 | quinientos | 5.000 | cinco mil | 50.000 | cincuenta mil |
| 60 | sesenta | 600 | seiscientos | 6.000 | seis mil | 60.000 | sesenta mil |
| 70 | setenta | 700 | setecientos | 7.000 | siete mil | 70.000 | setenta mil |
| 80 | ochenta | 800 | ochocientos | 8.000 | ocho mil | 80.000 | ochenta mil |
| 90 | noventa | 900 | novecientos | 9.000 | nueve mil | 90.000 | noventa mil |
| 1.000.000 | un millón |
| 2.000.000 | dos millones |
Ordinal Numbers
Ordinal numbers are adjectives that we use to rank things, name streets, etc. (i.e. 1 st , 2 nd , 3 rd , 4 th , etc.). The last letter of ordinal numbers is variable so that it agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies (like all adjectives). However, the " o " is dropped before masculine nouns for 1 st and 3 rd ( primer párrafo, tercer párrafo). Ordinal numbers are rarely used beyond 10 in Spanish.
| Número | Ordinal | Spanish | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| 1 st | 1º | Primero |
|
|
| 2 nd | 2º | Segundo |
|
|
| 3 rd | 3º | Tercero |
|
|
| 4 th | 4º | Cuarto |
|
|
| 5 th | 5º | Quinto |
|
|
| 6 th | 6º | Sexto |
|
|
| 7 th | 7º | Séptimo |
|
|
| 8 th | 8º | Octavo |
|
|
| 9 th | 9º | Noveno |
|
|
| 10th | 10º | Décimo |
|
|
Accent Rules (las reglas de acentuación)
In this section we are going to learn about why words need written accent marks in Spanish. These are sometimes referred to as “tildes” in Spanish. It is important to note that there is big difference between written accents, which tell us where the stress should fall in a word, and natural stress patterns. Where and why written accents are used in Spanish is a source of confusion to learners of Spanish until they accept that they are indeed meaningful (accents aren’t just random marks over words that need to be memorized) and ...they learn the three rules that follow:
- For Spanish words that end in a vowel, the letter “n” or the letter “s” , the natural stress falls on the second-to-last (penultimate) syllable.
- For Spanish words that end in any other letter that is not a vowel, “n” or “s” , the natural stress falls on the last syllable.
- When a word contains the combination of “i” + another vowel or “u” + another vowel , these two vowel sounds blend to create one sound/syllable (known as a diphthong).
A Spanish word requires a written accent mark if it breaks any one of these three rules for natural stress. Note that a written accent mark over an “i” or a “u” breaks up a diphthong—it separates the two vowels into separate syllables.
Listen to the following words that require written accent marks and then decide why the accent mark is required. Which rule does the word break?
| Audio | Click to Guess | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| ma-má | ma-má | |
| sim-pá-ti-co | sim-pá-ti-co | |
| Ma-rí-a | Ma-rí-a | |
| ca-fé | ca-fé | |
| cés-ped | cés-ped | |
| ma-íz | ma-íz | |
| en-ten-dió | en-ten-dió | |
| di-fí-cil | di-fí-cil | |
| rí-e | rí-e | |
| Can-cún | Can-cún | |
| ál-bum | ál-bum | |
| tí-o | tí-o | |
| ac-ción | ac-ción | |
| a-zú-car | a-zú-car | |
| re-ú-ne | re-ú-ne | |
| in-te-rés | in-te-rés | |
| Gon-zá-lez | Gon-zá-lez | |
| dú-o | dú-o | |
| pa-pá | pa-pá | |
| co-mí-a-mos | co-mí-a-mos | |
| trái-ga-me-los | trái-ga-me-los | |
| ángel | ángel | |
| cabezón | cabezón |
Listen to these pair of words and try to decide why one needs a written accent while the other does not:
Written Accents—Single Syllable Words and Grammatical Distinctions
The following is a list of pairs of one-syllable words that require a written accent mark to let the reader know which word is being used. These words are always pronounced the same way regardless of the written accent mark.
-
dé -
Déme el examen
(usted command of the verb
dar
)
de - El hijo de mi amigo (preposition “de”) -
él -
¿Lo quiere él?
(3rd person singular pronoun, he)
el - El libro de español (definite article, the) -
más -
Yo soy más guapa que ella.
(more)
mas - No quiero, mas he de hacerlo. (mas without the accent means “pero”) -
mí -
el libro es para mí
(object of a preposition, me)
mi - éste es mi libro (possessive pronoun, my) -
sé -
Yo sé la respuesta.
(“yo” form of the verb
saber
)
se - Se come bien en este restaurante. (pronoun) -
sí -
La respuesta es Sí.
(yes)
si - Si no viene hoy, viene mañana. (if) -
té -
me gusta el té más que el café
(tea)
te - ¿A ti, te gusta el té? (2nd person object pronoun) -
tú -
Tú eres la luz de mi vida.
(2nd person subject pronoun, you)
tu - ¿Cuál es tu coche? (2nd person possessive pronoun, your) -
sólo -
El drogadicto sólo piensa en su adicción.
(only)
solo/a - Prefiero estar solo cuando estudio. (alone) -
aún -
Me han dicho que aún no se sabe si va a regresar o no.
(todavía)
aun - Continuaba trabajando aun cuando era viejo. (even)
Written Accents and Question Words
All interrogative words require written accents to distinguish them from the same words that function as conjunctions (without accents). This is true for direct and indirect questions.
Direct Questions
- ¿ Qué tienes en la mano?
- ¿ Cómo resuelves este tipo de problema?
- ¿ Dónde queda tu casa?
- ¿ Por qué no me quieres prestar diez dólares?
Indirect Questions
- No sé qué tienes en la mano.
- Parece que no me quieres explicar cómo resuelves este tipo de problema.
- Antes de que te busquemos, necesitamos saber dónde queda tu casa.
- No tengo idea de por qué no me quieres prestar diez dólares.
These words also require a written accent when they are used as exclamatives.
- ¡ Qué barbaridad!
- ¡ Cómo te quiero!
- ¡ Cuánto quisiera acompañarte al concierto!
In other uses of these words—when they are not interrogatives or exclamatives—there is not a written accent. Here are a few examples in bold:
- Ejemplo(s):
- --Yo sé que mis padres me quieren.
- I know that my parents love me.
- --Tengo un perro que nunca hace lo que le digo.
- I have a dog that never does what I tell him.
- --Mario trabaja sólo cuando y donde quiere porque es flojo.
- Mario works only when and where he wants because he is lazy