parientes
/paɾjentes/from spelling rules
The Spanish word for 'relatives' is parientes.
Parientes refers to people who are connected to you by blood or marriage. In casual conversation, you might use more specific informal terms for family members, such as hermanito or hermanita for a little brother or little sister or abuelito and abuelita for a grandpa or grandma.
Which one should you use?
It is important to distinguish between the word for relatives and the word for parents. While parientes means relatives, padres is the specific word for parents.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some parts of Latin America, the word mano may be used casually instead of hermano to mean brother.
How do you pronounce it?
/paɾjentes/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use parientes to mean 'parents'.
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the term primo for 'cousin' is often used as a slang term for a close friend, similar to how 'bro' is used in English.
- In some Latin American countries, adding the suffix -ito to relative terms like abuelito is not just for children, but is a common way for adults to show deep affection and respect.
- Because parientes and 'parents' look and sound similar, this is known as a 'false friend' or falso amigo in linguistics.
Examples in context
- Tengo parientes en Milán.I have relatives in Milan.This sentence shows how to state that you have relatives in a specific location using parientes.Tatoeba #1234869 by Shishir, translation #791264 by CN
- ¿Ellos son tus parientes?Are they your relatives?This sentence uses parientes to ask a question about whether people are someone's relatives.Tatoeba #1496952 by marcelostockle, translation #1495839 by CK
- Ahora sí somos parientes.Now we really are relatives.This sentence demonstrates the use of parientes to express a connection between people.Tatoeba #1698628 by marcelostockle, translation #3763354 by cromwellt
- Mi hermana mayor estudia medicinaMy older sister studies medicine
- Mi tío vive en MadridMy uncle lives in Madrid
- Mi papá siempre me apoyaMy dad always supports me
- Mi hermanito es muy traviesoMy little brother is very mischievous
- Voy a visitar a mis abuelitos este fin de semanaI'm going to visit my grandparents this weekend
- Mi tía es muy divertidaMy aunt is very funny
- La abuela de mi amiga vive en ArgentinaMy friend's grandmother lives in Argentina
- 15 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Lucía are talking about family at a cafe.
- Daniel¿Tienes muchos parientes en esta ciudad?Do you have many relatives in this city?
- LucíaNo, solo tengo unos pocos parientes.No, I only have a few relatives.
- DanielMi familia es muy grande.My family is very large.
- Lucía¡Qué bien, Daniel!That's great, Daniel!
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
