del
/del/from spelling rules
'of the' in Spanish is expressed by the contraction del.
The phrase is a combination of the preposition 'of' and the definite article 'the'.
Which one should you use?
Unlike del, the phrase does not contract when the following noun is feminine, resulting in de la. Furthermore, the phrase does not contract when the noun is plural, using de los for masculine and de las for feminine.
How do you pronounce it?
/del/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using de el. When a masculine singular noun follows, you must use the mandatory contraction del.
Did you know?
- In Spanish, the word del is sometimes used to indicate the starting point of a journey, meaning 'from the'.
- While del is mandatory for common nouns, you must use de el if El is part of a proper name, such as la capital de El Salvador.
- The contraction del shares its DNA with the French word du. Both evolved from the same Latin roots to simplify the combination of a preposition and an article.
Examples in context
- El libro del profesorThe book of the teacher
- La casa de la señoraThe house of the lady
- Los zapatos de los niñosThe shoes of the children
- Las flores de las chicasThe flowers of the girls
- El perro del vecinoThe dog of the neighbor
- de los chicosOf the boys
- El color del coche es rojo.The color of the car is red.
- Estoy cansado del calor.I am tired of the heat.
- Es el fin del verano.It is the end of the summer.
Example conversation
Mateo and María are talking about a key.
- MateoMaría, ¿tienes la llave del coche?María, do you have the car key?
- MaríaNo, creo que está en la mesa.No, I think it is on the table.
- MateoNo la veo junto del teléfono.I don't see it next to the phone.
- MaríaBusca detrás del jarrón, Mateo.Look behind the vase, Mateo.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries del, CC BY-SA 4.0.
