mi hermano mayor
/mi eɾmano maʝoɾ/from spelling rules
mi hermano mayor is the way to say 'my big brother' in Spanish.
This phrase is used to refer to a brother who is older than the speaker.
Which one should you use?
If you want to refer to a younger brother instead of an older one, use mi hermano menor.
How does it change in a sentence?
When referring to multiple big brothers, you must pluralize both the possessive pronoun and the noun and adjective: mis hermanos mayores.
How do you pronounce it?
/mi eɾmano maʝoɾ/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid saying mi hermano grande to mean an older brother. In Spanish, grande refers to physical size, whereas mayor specifically refers to age.
Did you know?
- The word hermano shares a common ancestor with the English word 'germane'. Both come from the Latin germānus, which originally described siblings born from the same parents.
- Spanish has a specific word for the eldest sibling in a family, el primogénito, which refers to the first-born. While hermano mayor is common, primogénito adds a layer of formal birth order.
- While mi hermano mayor describes the relationship, Spanish speakers often use the phrase el mayor as a noun to refer to the oldest child in a group, omitting the word 'brother' entirely.
Examples in context
- A mi hermano mayor le gusta la música.My big brother likes music.This sentence shows how to use mi hermano mayor as the subject of a sentence regarding likes.Tatoeba #5240838 by baudelaire, translation #5143947 by Airvian
- Mi hermano mayor es muy bueno conmigo.My big brother is really nice to me.This sentence uses mi hermano mayor to describe a person's character.Tatoeba #9931365 by Shishir, translation #9931843 by DJ_Saidez
- Mi hermano mayor terminó su tarea con gran rapidez.My big brother finished his homework very quickly.This sentence uses mi hermano mayor to describe how quickly someone completed a task.Tatoeba #859696 by migueltoledo86, translation #765910 by Dunbab
- Mi hermano mayor es muy inteligenteMy big brother is very smart
- Mi hermano mayor por parte de madre es muy cariñosoMy big brother from my mother's side is very affectionate
- Voy al parque con mi hermanoteI'm going to the park with my big bro
Example conversation
Elena is showing Mateo a photo of her family.
- ElenaMira, este es mi hermano mayor.Look, this is my big brother.
- Mateo¿Cuántos años tiene él?How old is he?
- ElenaMi hermano mayor tiene veinticinco años.My big brother is twenty-five years old.
- MateoSe ve muy amable.He looks very kind.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hermano, mayor, mi, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
