Noun Gender

Kurz erklärt

Every Spanish noun has grammatical gender: it is masculine or feminine. Gender is part of the noun and usually does not describe real-world sex. Learn each new noun together with its gender. Endings can help, but they are clues rather than perfect rules.

Bildung

Nouns ending in -o are often masculine, and nouns ending in -a are often feminine. Endings such as -ción, -sión, and -dad are usually feminine. Important exceptions include la mano and el día; many nouns ending in -ma, such as el problema, are masculine.

Verwendung

• Use a noun’s gender to choose matching words elsewhere in the phrase or sentence.
• For nouns referring to people or animals, different endings sometimes mark a male or female person or animal: hermano / hermana.
• Do not guess only from meaning: objects and ideas also have grammatical gender.

Beispiele

• La casa tiene una cocina grande. — The house has a large kitchen.
• El problema es importante. — The problem is important.
• Mi hermano habla con mi hermana. — My brother talks with my sister.

Typischer Fehler

❌ la problema

✅ el problema

Do not rely on the final -a alone. Problema is masculine, so learn it as el problema.

Merke

Treat gender as part of each noun’s vocabulary entry. Endings are useful clues, but exceptions must be learned.