tengo doce años
/tenɡo doθe aɲos/from spelling rules
In Spanish, the phrase for "I am twelve years old" is tengo doce años.
The phrase is used to communicate one's current age.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "I have twelve years." tengo is the first-person singular form of the verb tener (to have), doce means "twelve" and años is the plural of año (year).
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses tengo, which is the first-person singular present indicative of the verb tener (to have). The word años is the plural form of año (year). You may also occasionally see the word primaveras (springs) used as a metaphor for "years".
How do you pronounce it?
/tenɡo doθe aɲos/
What mistakes should you avoid?
You should use the verb tener (to have) instead.
Did you know?
- The word años contains a special character called a 'tilde' over the 'n', which is ñ. Without it, the word becomes anos, which means something entirely different and quite embarrassing.
- Because Spanish uses the verb tener (to have) for age, it is also the same verb used to express physical sensations like 'I am hungry' or 'I am thirsty'.
- The word doce is a linguistic relative of the English word 'dozen', as both trace back to the same concept of groups of twelve.
Examples in context
- Tengo doce años. Me gusta leer y jugar al fútbol.I am twelve years old. I like to read and play soccer.
- Todavía no tengo doce años.I am not twelve years old yet.
Example conversation
Two students are meeting for the first time at school.
- MateoHola, soy Mateo. ¿Cuántos años tienes?Hi, I am Mateo. How old are you?
- SofíaHola Mateo, yo tengo doce años.Hi Mateo, I am twelve years old.
- Mateo¡Qué bien! Yo también tengo doce años.That's great! I am twelve years old too.
- SofíaEntonces estamos en el mismo grado.Then we are in the same grade.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries doce, CC BY-SA 4.0.
