tengo dos hermanos
/tenɡo dos eɾmanos/from spelling rules
The English phrase "I have two brothers" is said in Spanish as tengo dos hermanos.
This phrase is used to state that a person has two male siblings or a mixed-gender group of two siblings.
What does it mean word for word?
The word tengo is the first-person singular present tense of the verb tener, meaning "I have".
Which one should you use?
In Spanish, the word hermanos is the masculine plural form and can refer to brothers or a mixed-gender group of brothers and sisters. In contrast, you should use the feminine form hermanas exclusively if you are referring only to sisters.
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb tengo is used to express "I have". When referring to siblings, if you have two sisters and no brothers, you must use the feminine form tengo dos hermanas.
How do you pronounce it?
/tenɡo dos eɾmanos/
When do people say it?
Including an honorific title like Señora before the phrase, such as Señora, yo tengo dos hermanos, makes the statement more polite and formal.
Did you know?
- While tengo means 'I have', Spanish speakers use the verb tener to express age, such as tengo veinte años, whereas English uses the verb 'to be'.
- In Spanish, the word hermano is often used to describe a very close friend or a fellow member of a community, even if there is no biological relation.
- The word dos shares a common ancestor with the English word 'two', both tracing back to the Proto-Indo-European root *dwóh₁. This makes the connection between the two numbers a distant linguistic relative.
Examples in context
- Tengo dos hermanos y una hermana.I have two brothers and one sister.This sentence is useful for adding that you also have one sister using tengo dos hermanos.Tatoeba #459185 by Shishir, translation #249763 by adjusting
- Tengo dos hermanos y tres hermanas.I have two brothers and three sisters.This sentence is useful for adding that you also have three sisters using tengo dos hermanos.Tatoeba #623480 by Leono, translation #781323 by Shishir
- Tengo dos hermanos.I have two brothers.This sentence is a simple way to state that you have two brothers using tengo dos hermanos.Tatoeba #574235 by Shishir, translation #249765 by CK
- Tengo dos hermanos en mi familia.I have two brothers in my family.
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Mateo and Lucía are talking about their families during a coffee break.
- MateoTengo dos hermanos.I have two brothers.
- Lucía¿De verdad? ¿Son mayores que tú?Really? Are they older than you?
- MateoNo, ellos son menores.No, they are younger.
- LucíaQué bien, Mateo.That's nice, Mateo.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries dos, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
