Learn About Nouns in Spanish
This page provides a comprehensive guide to understanding and using nouns in Spanish. Includes examples and exercises.
músculo
muscle
The Spanish word 'músculo' translates as 'muscle' in English. It refers to a band or bundle of fibrous tissue in a human or animal body that has the ability to contract, producing movement in or maintaining the position of parts of the body. Muscles are the driving force behind physical activity, whether it be voluntary, such as walking or talking, or involuntary, such as breathing or heartbeat.
música
music
Vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion.
Example sentences with música →nacimiento
birth
The Spanish word for 'birth' is 'nacimiento.' It is primarily used in phrases to describe someone's birth, such as 'fecha de nacimiento' (date of birth). It can also be used in a broader sense to describe the birth or beginning of something, such as 'nacimiento de una idea' (the birth of an idea).
Example sentences with nacimiento →nación
nation
The word 'nación' in Spanish is used to refer to a community of people, who live in a specific territory, have a common culture and are politically organised. It can also refer to a country or state. Just as in English, 'nación' can be used in various contexts, including politics, geography, and culture.
Example sentences with nación →nada
nothing
The Spanish word 'nada' is often used in similar contexts as we use 'nothing' in English. It can represent the absence of something or a lack of response. It's also used in expressions such as 'de nada' meaning 'you're welcome'. Please note that in negative sentences in Spanish, double negation is grammatically correct, so 'nada' can be used in those instances as well.
Example sentences with nada →nadie
nobody
The Spanish word 'nadie' represents 'nobody' in English. It's used when referring to no person or no one in a certain context. For example, if you want to say 'Nobody is here', you can say 'Nadie está aquí' in Spanish.
Example sentences with nadie →naranja
orange
The orange is the fruit of the citrus species Citrus × sinensis in the family Rutaceae. It is a sweet-tasting fruit that can be used for making juice.
Example sentences with naranja →nariz
nose
The Spanish word 'nariz' translates to 'nose' in English. It's one of the fundamental body parts vocabulary in Spanish. The word 'nariz' is used in the same way we use 'nose' in English, for example, to identify the body part in the middle of the face that we use to smell and breathe.
natación
swimming
Swimming is a sport or activity of propelling oneself through water using the limbs. It can be done either competitively or leisurely for exercise.
Example sentences with natación →natural
natural
The Spanish word 'natural' aligns perfectly with its English counterpart and is used quite similarly. It can be applied to denote something of nature, not artificial or synthetic; not markedly strange or abnormal; spontaneous, easy, instinctive; and also like a natural object viewed as the impact of factors not covered by physical sciences. It can be used across various contexts just as it is in English. The usage is 'Es un comportamiento muy natural', which translates to 'It is very natural behavior'.
Example sentences with natural →naturaleza
nature
The Spanish word 'naturaleza' is used to refer to the natural world encompassing all the living and non-living things occurring naturally. It can also refer to the inherent or fundamental qualities or characteristics of something or someone. Just like in English, it can be used in different contexts including science, philosophy, and everyday conversations.
Example sentences with naturaleza →negocio
business
This noun is used to refer to an organization or economic system where goods and services are exchanged for one another or for money.
Example sentences with negocio →negro
black
The Spanish word 'negro' is most often used as an adjective to describe the color of an object. It can be used similarly to how 'black' is used in English, referring to the color of clothing, animals, text, and more. It can also be used metaphorically to refer to a dark or ominous situation or event. It is essential to remember pertaining its usage according to the gender and number of the noun it modifies, negra if the noun is feminine and negros or negras for plural masculine and feminine nouns respectively.
Example sentences with negro →nervio
nerve
The Spanish word 'nervio' translates to 'nerve' in English. A 'nerve' is a bundle of fibers that transmits impulses of sensation to the brain or spinal cord and impulses from these to the muscles and organs. It's also utilized commonly in the English language to mean 'courage' or 'boldness.' For instance, 'He had the nerve to say that.' would translate to 'Tenía el nervio de decir eso.' in Spanish.
nieto
grandson
The word 'nieto' is a noun in Spanish, often used in familial contexts. It translates to 'grandson' in English. 'Nieto' refers to a child's male offspring, especially the son of one’s son or daughter. It is widely applicable in different scenarios in Spanish speaking cultures and families.
nieve
snow
The Spanish word 'nieve' translates to 'snow' in English. It's a feminine noun in Spanish and is commonly used to refer to the frozen precipitation that falls during the winter season. Besides its literal meaning, 'nieve' can figuratively be used in Spanish to depict a situation or landscape that is as pure or as white as snow.
Example sentences with nieve →niñez
childhood
The Spanish word 'niñez' translates to 'childhood' in English. This term is used to refer to the period of life that is experienced by individuals before they reach adolescence. It is a time often associated with playfulness, innocence, and learning. In different cultural contexts, it can carry different connotations and experiences but universally it refers to the early formative years of an individual's life.
nivel
level
The Spanish word 'nivel' is used just like the English word 'level'. It can refer to a position on a scale of amount, quantity, extent, or quality, express the height of something, or alternatively, it could mean a device used to ascertain whether a surface is horizontal. Typically, it is used in contexts of education, video games, construction, physics, and more.
Example sentences with nivel →noche
night
The Spanish word for 'night' is 'noche'. It is commonly used in the same way as in English, to refer to the period of darkness in each twenty-four hours. It can also be used within different phrases and expressions, such as ‘buenas noches’ which means ‘good night’.
Example sentences with noche →nombre
name
The Spanish word 'nombre' is used just like the English word 'name'. It can refer to the name of a person, a place, or an object. For example, in the sentence 'Mi nombre es Juan' means 'My name is Juan'. It's a very common word and one of the first words people learn in Spanish. It's also used commonly in phrases and questions, such as '¿Cómo se llama?' meaning 'What is your name?'.
Example sentences with nombre →nota
note
Nota represents the 'Note' in English. It's a sign which symbolizes the relative duration and pitch of a sound.
Example sentences with nota →notar
notice
The Spanish word 'notar' translates to 'notice' in English. It is used when someone observes, detects, or pays attention to something. Like in English, it can be used in various contexts. For example, in describing observing a change ('I noticed you changed your hair'), or expressing a need to pay attention to something ('You should notice the traffic signs.').
Example sentences with notar →noticia
news
The Spanish word 'noticia' translates to 'news' in English. It is a noun and it can refer to information or report about recent events. It is often used in the context of broadcasting, newspapers, and other forms of media where information is disseminated to the public. It can also refer to a piece of information about a recent event or development.
novela
novel
The word 'novela' in Spanish translates to 'novel' in English. It refers to a long written narrative, typically in prose format, which is usually fiction. It's used to describe any book-length narrative piece of work, including both genre fiction and more literary works. The novel is a significant literary genre that displays humanity and its complex emotions and thoughts, making it a major piece of culture in both the Spanish and English languages.
Example sentences with novela →novio
boyfriend
The Spanish word 'novio' translates to 'boyfriend' in English. It is used in a romantic context to refer to a person's male partner. In a broader and more traditional context, 'novio' can also refer to 'fiancé', a man that a person is engaged to be married to.
nube
cloud
The Spanish word 'nube' translates to 'cloud' in English. It is commonly used to refer to those white fluffy formations seen in the sky, which are condensed water vapor. The word 'nube' can also be metaphorically used in context to indicate a gloomy or depressing atmosphere or situation, for instance, 'Ella tiene una nube sobre su cabeza' would mean 'She has a cloud over her head'.
Example sentences with nube →número
number
The Spanish word 'número' is used to indicate the amount or rank of something, similar to how 'number' is used in English. It can refer to anything from a telephone number (número de teléfono) to specifying the rank of a person or thing in a particular sequence (for example, the number one runner in a race would be el corredor número uno).
Example sentences with número →Oceanografía
Oceanography
Oceanography is a branch of Earth science that studies the physical and biological aspects of the ocean. It covers a wide range of topics, from marine life and ecosystems, to currents and waves, to the movement of sediments and to seafloor geology.
Example sentences with Oceanografía →