tengo años
/tenɡo aɲos/from spelling rules
The Spanish phrase tengo años is used to state a person's age.
This phrase is used to say how old you are. You can use it to provide an approximate or vague age by saying tengo cerca de X años (I am close to X years old) or tengo alrededor de X años (I am around X years old).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, it is common to say Tengo X años de edad.
How does it change in a sentence?
In a natural sentence, you insert the specific number between tengo and años, such as tengo veinte años (I am twenty years old).
How do you pronounce it?
/tenɡo aɲos/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use the verb soy instead of tengo when stating their age. Instead of saying soy … años, you should use tengo … años.
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, asking ¿Cuántos años tienes? is considered intrusive when speaking to a woman or an older person who may prefer not to disclose their age.
- To say it is your birthday today, you would switch from tengo to cumplo, as in cumplo años. This uses the verb for 'completing' or 'fulfilling' a cycle.
- If you say Tengo años without a number, you are not stating your age, but rather implying that you have lived for many years or have a lot of experience.
Examples in context
- Tengo 30 años de edadI am 30 years old.
- Cuento con 25 añosI am 25 years old.
- Tengo 20 añosI am 20 years old.
- Tengo 18 primaverasI am 18 years old.
- Ya he cumplido 35 añosI have already turned 35 years old.
- Tengo cerca de 30 añosI am close to 30 years old.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
