su esposa
/su esposa/from spelling rules
In Spanish, 'his wife' is translated as su esposa.
The phrase is used to refer to the woman married to a man. Note that the possessive adjective su is ambiguous. Depending on the context, it can mean 'his', 'her', 'its', 'your' (formal) or 'their'.
Which one should you use?
While su esposa specifically means 'his wife' when the subject is male, the same phrase is also used to mean 'her wife' or 'their wife' if the possessor is female or plural.
How does it change in a sentence?
To say 'his wives', you must use the plural form sus esposas.
How do you pronounce it?
/su esposa/
Did you know?
- The word esposa is a homonym in Spanish, as it also means 'handcuff'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the term esposa can sound more formal or legalistic than the more common, everyday term mujer, which literally means 'woman' but is frequently used to mean 'wife'.
- In some Spanish-speaking cultures, calling someone mi señora is a highly respectful way to refer to one's wife, literally meaning 'my lady'.
Examples in context
- Dejó a su esposa.He left his wife.This sentence shows how to use su esposa when a man leaves his spouse.Tatoeba #2274947 by Shishir, translation #2255631 by _undertoad
- Su esposa es japonesa.His wife is Japanese.This sentence uses su esposa to describe a person's nationality.Tatoeba #5027620 by don_ramon, translation #5027606 by Lindoula
- Su esposa es hispalia.His wife is from Seville.This sentence uses su esposa to describe where a person is from.Tatoeba #13704425 by Seael, translation #4657839 by mervert1
- ¿Quién es esa señora? Es su esposa.Who is that lady? She is his wife.
- 140 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Alejandro and Elena are talking about a colleague at a party.
- Alejandro¿Viste a su esposa?Did you see his wife?
- ElenaNo, no la vi.No, I didn't see her.
- AlejandroSu esposa es muy simpática.His wife is very nice.
- ElenaSí, ella parece muy amable.Yes, she seems very kind.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
