tengo ocho años
/tenɡo ot͡ʃo aɲos/from spelling rules
In Spanish, "I am eight years old" is expressed as tengo ocho años.
This phrase is used to state a person's current age.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "I have eight years".
How does it change in a sentence?
The construction requires the word años (years). You cannot simply say tengo ocho to mean "I am eight" in most contexts. Additionally, the phrase uses the verb tener (to have) rather than ser (to be) to express age.
How do you pronounce it?
/tenɡo otʃo aɲos/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid saying soy ocho años. English speakers often mistakenly use the verb ser (soy) instead of tener (tengo) when stating age.
Did you know?
- The Spanish verb tener is used for age, but it is also used for physical sensations like hunger (tengo hambre) and thirst (tengo sed), treating these states as possessions.
- The word ocho shares its ancient roots with the English word 'eight'. Both descend from the Proto-Indo-European root *oḱtṓw, making them distant linguistic cousins.
- Because age is expressed with tener (to have), Spanish speakers describe the process of getting older as 'having' more time, rather than 'being' a different age.
Examples in context
- No, yo tengo ocho años.No, I am eight years old.
Example conversation
Two children are talking at a birthday party.
- Sofía¿Cuántos años tienes, Daniel?How old are you, Daniel?
- DanielYo tengo ocho años.I am eight years old.
- Sofía¡Qué bien! Yo también tengo ocho años.That's great! I am eight years old too.
- DanielEntonces somos de la misma edad.Then we are the same age.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ocho, CC BY-SA 4.0.
