deletrear el apellido
/deletɾeaɾ el apeʝido/from spelling rules
To spell last name in Spanish is deletrear el apellido.
The phrase is used to describe the act of naming the individual letters of a person's family name one by one. The verb deletrear is used specifically for this purpose, much like the English 'to spell'.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the masculine definite article el because apellido is a masculine noun.
How do you pronounce it?
/deletɾeaɾ el apeʝido/
When do people say it?
A common way to ask someone to spell their last name is ¿Cómo se deletrea su apellido?
Did you know?
- While English speakers have one 'last name', Spanish speakers typically have two apellidos, one from each parent, which means they may need to deletrear twice as many names.
- If you are spelling a name over the phone in Spanish, you might use the 'Alfabeto Fonético' where letters are represented by words, such as 'A de Álamo' instead of just saying the letter.
- The word apellido comes from the verb apellidar, which originally meant to call someone by a specific name or nickname to distinguish them from others.
Examples in context
- Voy a deletrear el apellido lentamente.I am going to spell the last name slowly.
Example conversation
At a hotel reception desk.
- DanielBuenos días, ¿cuál es su nombre completo?Good morning, what is your full name?
- SofíaSofía García Martínez.Sofía García Martínez.
- DanielPerdone, ¿podría deletrear el apellido?Excuse me, could you spell the last name?
- SofíaClaro, es G-A-R-C-Í-A.Of course, it is G-A-R-C-I-A.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries apellido, deletrear, el, CC BY-SA 4.0.
