1.4.- formation of the feminine in spanish nouns...-Ín / -ina el bailarín la bailarina un...

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1.4.- FORMATION OF THE FEMININE IN SPANISH NOUNS

When you have a masculine noun and you want to find the equivalent in the feminine form, there are some things that you can do, depending on the case.

In this section we talk about how the formation of the feminine nouns works in Spanish, both in the regular and in the irregular cases. We also talk about some particular cases that you might find interesting.

These are the items that we discuss in this section:

1.- Introduction: 1.1.- When can we have the feminine form of a noun?

2.- The regular cases: 2.1.- Nouns that end in the vowel -O. 2.2.- Nouns that end in a consonant.

3.- The irregular cases: 3.1.- Nouns with the same form for the masculine and the feminine (only the article changes). 3.2.- Invariable nouns (the article doesn’t change). 3.3.- Nouns with different forms for the masculine and the feminine.


I will also share with you:

4.- Some notes about the use of the masculine and the feminine in Spanish.

4.1.- Different meanings: Some nouns have a different meaning if used with the masculine or the feminine article.

4.2.- The size and the shape: Sometimes the masculine or feminine form marks differences with respect to the size or shape of an object.

4.3.- The trees and their fruits: Sometimes, the differentiation between male and female is also used to distinguish a type of tree from its fruits.

4.4.- Personal preferences: For certain words, the use of the masculine or the feminine form may be a matter of preference.

4.5.- The woman in the professional world: In some jobs or positions, we find that many people keep using the masculine form whilst other people prefer the new feminine form.

5.- My personal advice: 5.1.- Do not only learn the noun. 5.2.- Try to read, listen and speak in Spanish as much as you can.


1.- INTRODUCTION

1.1.- When can we have the feminine form of a noun?

Not all Spanish nouns have a masculine and a feminine form.

According to the ‘Diccionario Panhispánico de dudas’ (Pan-Hispanic Dictionary of Doubts) (RAE, 2005):

When the noun designates animated beings, there is usually a specific form for each of the two grammatical genders, in correspondence with the biological distinction of sexes (masculine and feminine).

This distinction is marked either by the use of distinctive gender suffixes added to the same root, as in:

profesor/profesora gato/gata nene/nena

conde/condesa zar/zarina

or by the use of words with different roots according to the sex of the referent, as in:

hombre/mujer caballo/yegua yerno/nuera

If the referent of the noun is an inanimate thing, it’s usually only masculine (cuadro, césped, día) or only feminine (mesa, pared, libido), although there is a group of nouns that has both genders, the traditionally called ‘ambiguous nouns in terms of gender’ (nous like ‘mar’ or ‘marathon’ can be used in both the masculine and the feminine form without changing their meaning).


So, we must keep in mind this general rule:

We can only have the masculine and the feminine form of nouns that designate animated things.

Inanimate objects are usually only masculine or only feminine.

Only a small number of nouns are ambiguous in terms of gender

(‘mar’, ‘maratón’).

2.- THE REGULAR CASES

2.1.- Nouns that end in the vowel -O

As we learned in previous sections, nouns that end with the letter -O are usually masculine (not all, but most of them). In that case, if the masculine noun ends in the vowel -O, you only have to substitute the last letter -O for an -A to form the feminine, like in the following examples:

MASCULINE (- O) FEMININE (- A)

El alumno La alumna El perro La perra

El propietario La propietaria

Un secretario Una secretaria Un bolso Una bolsa

Un diputado Una diputada

This is the easiest and the most regular way of forming the feminine, but not the only one.

Some nouns ending in -O, like ‘modelo’ or ‘testigo’, or nouns ending in other vowels, like ‘turista’ or ‘intérprete’ belong to one of the irregular cases that we will see next.


2.2.- Nouns that end in a consonant

If the masculine noun ends in a consonant, you only have to add a letter -A, like in the following examples:

MASCULINE FEMININE

El español La Española El señor La señora

El andaluz La andaluza

SPECIAL CASE: Nouns that suffer an orthographic transformation

Nouns of professions, of people in general, and names of some animals that end in:

are masculine and suffer an orthographic transformation

when creating the feminine form.

They add the letter -A to create the feminine form and drop the accent mark:

-ÉS -ÓN -ÍN -ÁN

-ESA -ONA -INA -ANA


Let’s see some examples of this:

MASCULINE FEMININE

-ÉS / -ESA El francés La francesa

Un japonés Una japonesa

-ÁN / -ANA El guardián La guardiana Un alemán Una alemana

-ÍN / -INA El bailarín La bailarina Un pequeñín Una pequeñina

-ÓN / -ONA El campeón La campeona Un león Una leona

3.- IRREGULAR CASES

3.1.- Nouns with the same form for the masculine and the feminine (only the article changes)

Some nouns have the same form and are spelled the same for both the masculine and the feminine form.

In this case we only have to change the article to form the feminine form.

The articles and adjectives, if expressed, normally agree in gender and number with the noun.

In English, the gender of this type of noun would be clarified by the context.

These are some examples:

MASCULINE FEMININE

EL / LA + Noun El joven La joven

El modelo rubio La modelo rubia

UN / UNA + Noun Un testigo Una testigo Un turista extranjero Una turista extranjera


Let’s see how it works in the next sentences:

El joven modelo fue testigo del robo a un turista.

La joven modelo fue testigo del robo a una turista.

In the first case, both persons are masculine, whereas in the second one, both persons are feminine.

THE MOST COMMON CASES:

Let’s see some examples:

MASCULINE FEMININE

-A El atleta La atleta

Un aristócrata español Una aristócrata española

-ANTE El cantante La cantante Un vigilante armado Una vigilante armada

-E El intérprete La intérprete Un jinete sueco Una jinete sueca

-ISTA El periodista La periodista Un deportista ganador Una deportista ganadora

The most common cases in this category are nouns designating professions and individuals that end with the letters:

In general, they may designate either a male or a female person:

The articles and adjectives, if expressed, normally agree in gender and number with the noun.

-A -ISTA -E -ANTE


3.2.- Invariable nouns (the article doesn’t change)

Some nouns only have one form but they designate both male and female individuals.

Some of them are in the masculine form and others are in the feminine form, but they never change, they remain the same. They can be used for talking about a masculine or a feminine noun.

The article doesn’t change in these invariable nouns.

Let’s see some examples:

ÁNGEL (m) Él / Ella es muy buena persona, es un ángel

PERSONAJE (m) Él / Ella interpreta al personaje más difícil SER (m) Él / Ella es un ser humano muy sensible

ESTRELLA (f) Él / Ella es una estrella del rock PERSONA (f) Él / Ella es una persona muy buena VÍCTIMA (f) Él / Ella ha sido la víctima del robo

Let’s analyze the following sentences:

Esa mujer era muy bondadosa, era un ángel.

Él era el mejor actor, la estrella de la película.

“Mujer” is a feminine noun, but “ángel” is always a masculine noun, it’s always used in the masculine form even though it’s referring to a woman.

On the other side, “Actor” is a masculine noun, but “estrella” is always a feminine noun, it’s always used in the feminine form, even though, in this case, it’s referring to a man.


3.3.- Nouns with different forms for the masculine and the feminine

Some nouns referring to people or animals may have different forms for the masculine and the feminine.

The articles, of course, change with the gender.

Note the similarities of some of the English equivalents:

SPANISH ENGLISH

El actor / La actriz The actor / The actress

El caballo / La yegua The horse / The mare El conde / La condesa The count / The countess

El emperador / La emperatriz The emperor / The empress El héroe / La heroína The hero / The heroine El hombre / La mujer The man / The woman

Here we have more examples:

SPANISH ENGLISH

El marido, El esposo / La esposa The husband / The wife

El padre / La madre The father / The mother El príncipe / La princesa The prince / The princess

El rey / La reina The king / The queen El varón / La hembra The male / The female El yerno / La nuera The son-in-law / The daughter-in-law


4.- SOME NOTES ABOUT THE USE OF THE MASCULINE AND THE FEMININE IN SPANISH

4.1.- Different meanings

Some nouns have a different meaning if used with the masculine or the feminine article.

The change in the gender involves a change in the meaning of that noun, even though the word is spelled the same.

Here are some examples:

SPANISH ENGLISH

El capital / La capital The capital (money) / The capital (city)

El cometa / La cometa The comet (astronomical object)/ The kite (toy) El corte / La corte The cut (knife) / The court (institution) El cura / La cura The priest (cleric) / The cure (healing)

El editorial / La editorial The newspaper editorial (article) / The publishing house (company)

Here we have more examples:

SPANISH ENGLISH

El frente / La frente The front (battle) / The forehead (body)

El guía / La guía The guide (person) / The guidebook (object) El orden / La orden The order (in a sequence) / The order (command) El Papa / La papa The Pope (head of the Church)/ The potato (food)

El policía / La policía The police officer (person) / The police force (institution)


4.2.- The size and the shape

Sometimes the masculine or the feminine form is not only used to mark gender differences but also to mark differences with respect to the size or shape of an object.

This is the case of:

EL CESTO LA CESTA

The translation in both cases is “basket”, but “cesto” is a larger basket, taller than wide, while “cesta” is a regular wicker basket.

We have the opposite case in “El cubo / La cuba”:

EL CESTO / LA CESTA


EL CUBO LA CUBA

“Cubo” is a bucket, a cylindrical open container with a handle, made of metal or plastic and used to hold and carry liquids.

“Cuba” is a barrel, a cylindrical container bulging out in the middle, traditionally made of wooden staves with metal hoops round them, and it’s usually bigger than a bucket.

4.3.- The trees and their fruits

Differentiation between male and female is also used to distinguish a type of tree from its fruits.

For instance:

EL CUBO / LA CUBA

EL MANZANO is the tree, LA MANZANA is the fruit.

EL NARANJO is the tree, LA NARANJA is the fruit.

EL AVELLANO is the tree, LA AVELLANA is the fruit.


4.4.- Personal preferences

For certain words, the use of the masculine or the feminine form may be a matter of preference.

For example:

Most of the people use the masculine form, “el mar”, to talk about the sea, but seamen, sailors or fishermen usually prefer to use the feminine form “la mar” because it’s more emotional, more romantic.

4.5.- The woman in the professional world

Nowadays, watching a female doctor or a woman in a position like Congresswoman, Prime Minister or President is perfectly normal.

But in many Spanish-speaking countries these positions were exclusive for men in the not so distant past and we only had the masculine version of the word.

So now that we can see women in these jobs or positions, we find that many people keep using the masculine form whilst other people prefer the new feminine form.

For example:

LA MINISTRO / LA MINISTRA

LA PRESIDENTE / LA PRESIDENTA

LA MÉDICO / LA MÉDICA

EL MAR / LA MAR


In some areas of the Hispanic world, a woman appointed to a president’s cabinet is called “la ministro” and in others, “la ministra”.

Similarly, we see “la presidente” or “la presidenta”, as well as “la médico” or “la médica”.

You will learn these preferences as you read up-to-date newspapers and magazines and listen to native speakers from different regions.


5.- MY PERSONAL ADVICE

As you can see, in the formation of the feminine in Spanish nouns there are many rules and exceptions.

It is important to learn them as accurately as possible, but, please, don’t feel overwhelmed. Learning a new language is a process that takes time.

The moment you put these rules into practice, reading, listening or speaking in Spanish is when you will learn them best.

That's why I give you these two tips that I think will help you a lot in learning these concepts better and faster:

5.1.- Do not only learn the noun

When you learn a new noun, do not learn just the word alone (for instance 'conductor', 'vendedora' or 'pañuelo'). Try to learn it accompanied by the article that corresponds to it (in this case, ‘el conductor’, 'la vendedora' or 'el pañuelo').

Try also to ask yourself if there is an equivalent in the opposite gender: 'el conductor' is a masculine noun, whose feminine form is 'la conductora'. 'la vendedora' is a feminine noun, whose masculine form is 'el vendedor'. 'el pañuelo' is a masculine noun that does not have an equivalent in the feminine form because it is an inanimate object, it does not designate an animated being.


5.2.- Try to read, listen and speak in Spanish as much as you can

Whenever you can, try to read newspapers or books in Spanish, watch movies and talk to people who speak Spanish. Take any opportunity to practice, because continuous practice is the only way to learn a new language really well and to see how the lessons you study here are put into practice.


SUMMARY

In this fourth section, we have studied the formation of the feminine nouns in Spanish. These are the items that we have studied in this lesson:

1.- Introduction: 1.1.- When can we have the feminine form of a noun?

2.- The regular cases: 2.1.- Nouns that end in the vowel -O. 2.2.- Nouns that end in a consonant.

3.- The irregular cases: 3.1.- Nouns with the same form for the masculine and the feminine (only the article changes). 3.2.- Invariable nouns (the article doesn’t change). 3.3.- Nouns with different forms for the masculine and the feminine.

I have also shared with you:

4.- Some notes about the use of the masculine and the feminine in Spanish.

4.1.- Different meanings: Some nouns have a different meaning if used with the masculine or the feminine article. 4.2.- The size and the shape: Sometimes the masculine or feminine form marks differences with respect to the size or shape of an object. 4.3.- The trees and their fruits: Sometimes, the differentiation between male and female is also used to distinguish a type of tree from its fruits. 4.4.- Personal preferences: For certain words, the use of the masculine or the feminine form may be a matter of preference. 4.5.- The woman in the professional world: In some jobs or positions, we find that many people keep using the masculine form whilst other people prefer the new feminine form.

5.- My personal advice: 5.1.- Do not only learn the noun. 5.2.- Try to read, listen and speak in Spanish as much as you can.

And this is the end of this section. Thank you for watching! I’ll see you in the next video!

1.4.- formation of the feminine in spanish nouns...-Ín / -ina el bailarín la bailarina un...

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