felicitaciones abuelo y abuela
/feliθitaθjones abwelo i abwela/from spelling rules
The English phrase "congratulations grandpa and grandma" is expressed in Spanish as felicitaciones abuelo y abuela.
This phrase is used to express praise or good wishes to one's grandparents for an achievement or a special event.
What does it mean word for word?
felicitaciones is the plural noun meaning "congratulations", and y is the conjunction for "and", which connects abuelo and abuela.
Which one should you use?
While felicitaciones abuelo y abuela explicitly names both grandparents, you can use the more concise ¡Felicidades, abuelos!, using the plural abuelos to refer to both grandparents at once.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Andalusia, one can say ¡Felicidades, yayo y yaya! to congratulate grandparents.
How does it change in a sentence?
The conjunction y is used to connect abuelo and abuela.
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the act of congratulating grandparents often involves dos besos, where the grandchild kisses both cheeks of each grandparent.
- The term abuela comes from the Latin aviola, which was originally a diminutive form of avia, effectively meaning 'little grandmother'.
- While felicitaciones is for achievements, Spanish speakers use felicidades for birthdays, meaning you would use the latter when congratulating grandparents on their age.
Example conversation
Lucía and Javier are visiting their grandparents at a party.
- Lucía¡Felicitaciones abuelo y abuela por su nueva casa!Congratulations grandpa and grandma on your new house!
- JavierMuchas gracias, Lucía, es muy amable.Thank you very much, Lucía, that is very kind.
- LucíaJavier también quiere decirles lo mismo.Javier also wants to tell you the same thing.
- JavierGracias a los dos, pasen adelante.Thank you both, come on in.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries abuela, abuelo, y, CC BY-SA 4.0.
