Masculine and feminine
A more technical way to say 'The gender of words', used when explaining the grammar concept.
A practical way to refer to the concept, focusing on the definite articles 'the' (masculine 'el' and feminine 'la') that signal gender.
In Spanish, 'book' is masculine and 'table' is feminine.
We say 'the red car' because 'carro' is a masculine word.
The house is pretty. 'Casa' is feminine.
The boy is tall and the girl is tall.
The grammatical concept of masculine and feminine gender is a fundamental and universal rule across all Spanish-speaking countries. The rules themselves do not change.
While the rule is the same, the specific vocabulary can change, which affects the gender you use. For example, 'computer' in Spain is 'el ordenador' (masculine), while in most of Latin America it is 'la computadora' (feminine).
For 'computer', both 'el computador' (masculine) and 'la computadora' (feminine) are commonly used.
*la problema* — el problema — Assuming all words ending in '-a' are feminine. There are common exceptions, like 'el problema', 'el mapa', and 'el día', which are masculine. You just have to memorize them.
*La chica es alto.* — La chica es alta. — Forgetting to make the adjective match the gender of the noun. Since 'chica' (girl) is feminine, the adjective 'alto' (tall) must also be in its feminine form, 'alta'.
*la vestido* — el vestido — Thinking that the gender of an object should be logical. Grammatical gender is often arbitrary. A dress ('vestido') is masculine in Spanish ('el vestido'), while a tie ('corbata') is feminine ('la corbata').
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