hombre y mujer
/ombɾe i muxeɾ/from spelling rules
The English phrase "man and woman" is translated into Spanish as hombre y mujer.
This phrase is used to refer to an adult male and an adult female. While hombre can be used informally to mean "guy", the phrase as a whole describes the two distinct adult genders.
Is it said differently in some regions?
Regional variations for "man" and "woman" exist in informal speech. In Madrid, Spain, the word tío is often used for "man". In Buenos Aires, Argentina, you might hear tipo used for "man" and mina used for "woman".
How does it change in a sentence?
The conjunction y is used to mean "and" to join the two nouns hombre and mujer.
How do you pronounce it?
/ombɾe i muxeɾ/
Did you know?
- In Spain, tío literally means 'uncle', but it is used as a common slang term for 'guy' or 'man'.
- The word hombre is linguistically related to the word for 'earthling' through a very ancient root, meaning a man is essentially an 'earth-being'.
- In Spanish, if you refer to a mixed group of men and women, the masculine plural form is used for the whole group.
Examples in context
- Mi padre es un hombre fuerte y trabajador.My father is a strong and hardworking man.
- Ese hombre es mi amigo.That guy is my friend.
Example conversation
Daniel and María are discussing the casting for a play.
- DanielMaría, ¿quiénes son los actores principales?María, who are the lead actors?
- MaríaEs un hombre y mujer jóvenes, Daniel.It is a young man and woman, Daniel.
- Daniel¿Tienen mucha experiencia actuando?Do they have much acting experience?
- MaríaSí, ambos son profesionales.Yes, both are professionals.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hombre, mujer, y, CC BY-SA 4.0.
