Definite Articles
There are no definite pronouns, but definite articles are generally the first ones you learn, even if you aren't aware that's what they're called. The only definite article in English is "the." In Spanish, however, there are 5 definite articles (all of which mean "the") that correspond to the gender and number (single or plural) of the noun they modify.
- el - when the noun is masculine singular
- la - when the noun is feminine singular
- los - when the noun is masculine plural
- las - when the noun is feminine plural
- lo - when the noun is a masculine singular abstract substantive (eg: lo importante - the important thing, lo mejor -the best thing)
Indefinite Articles, Adjectives and Pronouns
Indefinite articles describe a noun that isn't specifically being referred to. In English indefinite articles are: a, an, some, several, much, many, little, few, any, all, no. In Spanish, the indefinite articles are those below which mean "a, an" or "some." The rest are considered indefinite adjectives but their function is the same. See further below for indefinite pronouns.
- un - a, an (when the noun is masculine singular)
- una - an, an (when the noun is feminine singular)
- unos - some (when the noun is masculine plural)
- unas - some (when the noun is feminine plural)
- mucho/a - much
- muchos/as - many
- algunos/as - some, any
- poco/a - little (amount)
- pocos/as - few
- ningún/ninguna - no (quanitity)
- ningunos/as - no (quantity - plural)
- todo/a - all
- todos/as - all (plural)
- cada - each (used for masculine and feminine)
- otro/a - another
- otros/as - other
- uno/a - one
- unos/unas - some
- mucho/a - much, a lot
- muchos/as - many
- algo - something
- alguien - someone
- poco/a - little
- pocos/as - few
- ningún/ninguna - no one, nobody (of a group)
- ningunos/as - none
- nadie=no one
- nada=nothing
- todo - everything
- todos/as - everyone
- otro/a - another (one)
- otros/as - others
Subject Pronouns
And now for a group of pronouns that have no corresponding set of articles. Subject pronouns are the most common, and, as the title would suggest, they replace the subject of a clause (the doer of the action), when the subject is a person. In English they are: I, you, he, she, it, we, they. In Spanish they are generally optional but are sometimes used for emphasis or clarification.
- yo - I
- tú - you (singular, friendly)
- él - he
- ella - she
- se - can be used to mean "you" in general or "one"
- Usted - you (singular, formal)
- nosotros - we (masculine or mixed)
- nosotras - we (all feminine)
- vosotros/as - you (plural, used ONLY in Spain in place of Ustedes)
- ellos - they (masculine or mixed)
- ellas - they (all feminine)
- Ustedes - you (plural)
Direct Object Pronouns
Just as subject pronouns replace the subject of a clause, object pronouns replace the direct object in a clause. Assuming there's a possibility you don't know what a direct object is, I'm going to explain that to you now. A direct object receives the action in a clause (which the subject does the action). If the object as a "to" in front of it in English, then it is probably an indirect object, so don't confuse these (see below for indirect object pronouns).
NB: Direct object pronouns in Spanish, unlike in English, go BEFORE the verb. An example: "Yo lo tengo" means "I have it."
- me - me (example: Marta me invitó=Marta invited me)
- te - you (example: Te entienden=They understand you)
- lo - him, it, you(Usted) (example: Juan lo miró=Juan watched him/it)
- la - her, it, you (Usted) (example: Cara la ve=Cara sees her)
- nos - us (example: Nos conoció=He/she met us)
- os - you (only used in Spain, plural familiar)
- los - them (masculine or mixed plural), you(Ustedes) (example: Yo los conozco=I know them)
- las - them (feminine plural), you(Ustedes) (example: Las amamos=We love them)
Indirect Object Pronouns
The concept of indirect object pronouns is a hard one to grasp, because in English they often look like direct object pronouns. Basically an indirect object receives the action, but there is a "to" (sometimes a "for") in front of it. A clause can have both a direct and indirect object. An example in English: I bought the gift for her (gift is the direct object, her is the indirect object). Indirect object pronouns replace indirect objects, as you might think, but in Spanish they are also used in the sentence even when the indirect object is specified. Why is this? Your guess is as good as mine, you just have to memorize this tidbit! Some of the words look identical to the direct object pronouns, but they have a different meaning.
NB: Indirect object pronouns in Spanish, unlike in English, go BEFORE the verb.
- me - to/for me (example: Alicia me dio un regalo=Alicia gave [to] me a gift)
- te - to/for you (example: Te diré=I will tell [to] you)
- le - to/for him/her/you(Usted) (example: Le hablamos=We talk to him/her)
- nos - to/for us (example: Nos dio la tarea=He/she gave [to] us the homework)
- os - to/for you (only used in Spain, familiar plural)
- les - to/for them/you(Usted) (example: Les compré un libro=I bought [for] them a book)
Prepositional Pronouns
Prepositional pronouns come after prepositions. Review the Prepositions page if you are unfamiliar with this term. Unlike direct object or indirect object pronouns, the prepositional pronouns go right after the preposition, just as in English. An example in English is "He came with me to the party," where "me" is a prepositional pronoun.
- mí - me
- conmigo - with me (an irregular form)
- tí - you
- contigo - with you (an irregular form)
- él - him
- ella - her
- Usted - you
- nosotros/as - us
- vosotros/as - you [all] (Spain)
- Ustedes - you (all)
Demonstrative Pronouns and Adjectives
Demonstrative indicate "this, that, these, those." Demonstrative pronouns stand alone ("I like this") and demonstrative adjective act as articles ("I like this book, etc."). There are more demonstrative pronouns and adjectives in Spanish than in English because Spanish is more precise than English in this sense. Here are the demonstrative adjectives (remember, they need a noun to follow them):
- este - this (m.s.)
- esta - this (f.s.)
- estes - these (m.pl.)
- estas - these (f.pl.)
- ese - that (m.s.)
- esa - that (f.s.)
- eses - those (m.pl.)
- esas - those (f.pl.)
- aquel - that (over there) (m.s.)
- aquella - that (over there) (f.s.)
- aquellos - those (over there) (m.pl.)
- aquellas - those (over there) (f.pl.)
- éste=this (m.s.)
- ésta=this (f.s.)
- éstos=these (m.pl.)
- éstas=these (f.pl.)
- ése=that (m.s.)
- ésa=that (f.s.)
- ésos=those (m.pl.)
- ésas=those (f.pl.)
- aquél=that (over there) (m.s.)
- aquélla=that (over there) (f.s.)
- aquéllos=those (over there) (m.s.)
- aquéllas=those (over there) (f.pl.)
- esto=this (concept/idea)
- eso=that (concept/idea)
- aquello=that (concept/idea far back)
- éste=this one (m.s.)
- ésta=this one (f.s.)
- éstes=these ones (m.pl.)
- éstas=these ones (f.pl.)
- ése=that one (m.s.)
- ésa=that one (f.s.)
- ésos=those ones (m.pl.)
- ésas=those ones (f.pl.)
Possessive Pronouns & Adjectives
Possessive pronouns and adjectives are used to indicate to whom or to what something belongs. Here are the possessive adjectives (which agree in gender and number with the noun they precede):
- mi=my (s.)
- mis=my (pl.)
- tu=your (s.)
- tus=your (pl.)
- su=his/her/their/your(Usted) (s.)
- sus=his/her/their/your(Usted) (pl.)
- nuestro/a=our (s.)
- nuestros/as=our (pl.)
- vuestro/a=your (Spain) (s.)
- vuestros/as=your (Spain) (pl.)
- el mío=mine (m.s.)
- la mía=mine (f.s.)
- los míos=mine (m.pl.)
- las mías=mine (f.pl.)
- el tuyo=yours (m.s.)
- la tuya=yours (f.s.)
- los tuyos=yours (m.pl.)
- las tuyas=yours (f.pl.)
- el suyo=his/hers/yours/theirs (m.s.)
- la suya=his/hers/yours/theirs (f.s.)
- los suyos=his/hers/yours/theirs (m.pl.)
- las suyas/his/hers/yours/theirs (f.pl.)
- el nuestro=ours (m.s.)
- la nuestra=ours (f.s.)
- los nuestros=ours (m.pl.)
- las nuestras=ours (f.pl.)
- el vuestro=yours (Spain) (m.s.)
- la vuestra=yours (Spain) (f.s.)
- los vuestros=yours (Spain) (m.pl.)
- las vuestras=yours (Spain) (f.pl.)
Reflexive Pronouns
Reflexive pronouns are used if the subject is doing something to itself. They are used in place of direct object or indirect object pronouns and go before the verb as well. An example: Me lavo=I wash myself.
- me=myself
- te=yourself
- se=himself/herself/yourself/themselves
- nos=ourselves
- os=yourselves (Spain)
Relative Pronouns
Relative pronouns only appear in subordinate clauses, clauses that cannot stand alone in a sentence (eg "which I like"). They mean "who, that, which, whom, etc." These are the most common relative pronouns:
- quien=who (subject) (example: El profe quien me aprendió el español=The teacher who taught me Spanish)
- quienes=who (plural subject) (example: Los clientes quienes vinieron al restaurante=The customers who came in the restaurant)
- que=who/whom/that (subject or object) (example: La comida que preparé=The meal that I prepared)
- donde=where (example: El lugar donde vivía=The place where I used to live)
- cuyo/a=whose (example: El estudiante cuya nota no era buena=The student whose grade was not good) - This actually functions as a relative "article"
Interrogative Pronouns and Adjectives
Interrogative pronouns and adjectives are very similar to relative pronouns except they ask a question, they can appear in any type of clause, and they have accents. Interrogative pronouns and adjectives are generally all lumped together in one category:
- quién/quiénes=who
- qué=what
- cuál/cuáles=which one(s)
- cuánto(s)/a(s)=how much/many
- dónde=when
- cómo=how
Order of Pronouns
Sometimes you'll have a sentence with many different pronouns and you'll wonder what order to put them in. Well, order does matter, moreso than in English in this case. Remember this order when combining any of these parts:
- Subject - indirect object - direct object - verb - prepositional phrase
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