es inglés
/es inɡles/from spelling rules
To say that someone is English in Spanish, use es inglés.
This phrase is used to say that a person comes from England. It can refer to both the nationality and the English language.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective must agree in gender with the person being described: use es inglés for a man and es inglesa for a woman. To say 'they are English', use the plural form son ingleses (for men or mixed groups) or son inglesas (for women).
How do you pronounce it?
/es inɡles/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Unlike in English, nationalities and languages are not capitalized in Spanish. You should write es inglés rather than es Inglés.
Did you know?
- In Spanish, the word inglés can describe a specific style of garden or a type of collar used in fashion and design.
- The word inglés is a loanword from the Old French angleis, which was originally borrowed from the Old English Englisc.
- While es inglés describes nationality, Spanish speakers often use es británico to avoid confusion, as inglés specifically refers to England and not the whole UK.
Examples in context
- ¿Has conocido a Juan? Es inglés y súper amigable.Have you met Juan? He's English and really friendly.
- Él es inglés.He is English.
- Mi nuevo vecino es inglés.My new neighbor is English.
Example conversation
Daniel and Elena are talking about a new coworker.
- Daniel¿Sabes de dónde es el nuevo jefe?Do you know where the new boss is from?
- ElenaSí, él es inglés.Yes, he is English.
- Daniel¡Ah! Por eso tiene ese acento.Ah! That's why he has that accent.
- ElenaExacto, Daniel.Exactly, Daniel.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries es, inglés, CC BY-SA 4.0.
