el mes pasado
/el mes pasado/from spelling rules
The English phrase "last month" is translated into Spanish as el mes pasado.
el mes pasado is the standard way to express the month immediately before the current one in a temporal sense. If you want to refer specifically to the very end of the previous month, you can use a finales del mes pasado or a fines del mes pasado.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the definite article el (the), the noun mes (month) and the adjective pasado (past/passed).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Andalusian Spanish, el mes pasao is often employed as an informal way to say "last month".
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective pasado must agree in gender with the masculine noun mes.
How do you pronounce it?
/el mes pasado/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers may mistakenly use el último mes to mean "last month" (the previous one), but el último mes often implies "the final month" of a specific period or duration.
Did you know?
- The word pasado comes from the Vulgar Latin passāre, which evolved from the Latin passus, meaning 'a step'.
- The phrase a finales del mes pasado uses the plural finales to describe the end of a month, rather than a single point in time.
- While pasado means 'past' in el mes pasado, the root verb pasar can also mean 'to happen' or 'to spend time'.
Examples in context
- Renuncié el mes pasado.I quit last month.This sentence is useful for expressing that you quit something during el mes pasado.Tatoeba #13046107 by ecorralest101, translation #10899826 by CK
- El mes pasado llovió mucho.We had a lot of rain last month.This sentence is useful for describing weather conditions that occurred during el mes pasado.Tatoeba #572210 by Shishir, translation #272688 by CK
- Fui a Boston el mes pasado.I went to Boston last month.This sentence is useful for stating a past travel destination involving el mes pasado.Tatoeba #3225122 by Shishir, translation #3024221 by CK
- El informe fue presentado el mes pasado durante la conferencia anual.The report was presented last month during the annual conference.
- La junta directiva tuvo una reunión muy productiva el mes anterior.The board had a very productive meeting last month.
- Fui de vacaciones a la playa el mes que pasó.I went on vacation to the beach last month.
- A fines del mes pasado, cerramos el proyecto exitosamente.At the end of last month, we successfully concluded the project.
- 93 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Javier are talking about a trip.
- Elena¿Viajaste a Madrid el mes pasado?Did you travel to Madrid last month?
- JavierNo, fui el mes anterior.No, I went the month before.
- ElenaQué lástima, yo estuve allí el mes pasado.That's a pity, I was there last month.
- JavierElena, cuéntame más sobre tu viaje.Elena, tell me more about your trip.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries el, mes, pasado, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
