tres de
/tɾes de/from spelling rules
The Spanish phrase for "three of" is tres de.
This phrase is used to indicate a quantity of three items from a larger group.
How does it change in a sentence?
When 'three of' is used to mean 'three of the [noun]', it is often followed by the definite article los or las depending on the gender of the noun. When 'three of' is used to mean 'three of my [noun]', the definite article is omitted and replaced by the possessive adjective mis.
How do you pronounce it?
/tɾes de/
Did you know?
- The preposition de is a cognate with the version used in Ladino, a language spoken by the Sephardic Jewish diaspora.
- Spanish speakers sometimes use the phrase de tres en tres to describe things that happen in sets of three, similar to the English 'three by three'.
- In some Spanish dialects, when saying 'three of', the word de might blend into the next word in rapid speech, making the distinction between 'of' and 'the' sound almost like a single unit.
Examples in context
- Tres de éstos son míos.Three of these are mine.This example shows how to use tres de with a demonstrative pronoun.Tatoeba #6863563 by arh, translation #6863412 by CK
- Tres de mis hijos murieron.Three of my children died.This sentence demonstrates the use of tres de with a possessive adjective.Tatoeba #4784020 by alegarvid, translation #2482647 by freddy1
- Tres de ellos eran canadienses.Three of them were Canadian.This is useful for seeing how to use tres de with a personal pronoun.Tatoeba #5755672 by arh, translation #4494038 by CK
- Tres de mis amigosThree of my friends
- Tres de las nuevas empleadasThree of the new employees
- Tres de los chicosThree of the boys
- Tres de las chicasThree of the girls
- Necesito la firma de tres de los directoresI need the signature of three of the directors
- ¿Qué les parece si salimos con tres de mis amigos?What do you think if we go out with three of my friends?
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Javier and Lucía are looking at a collection of photos.
- Javier¿Cuántas fotos son tuyas?How many photos are yours?
- LucíaTres de ellas son de mi viaje.Three of them are from my trip.
- JavierSon muy bonitas, Lucía.They are very beautiful, Lucía.
- LucíaGracias, Javier.Thanks, Javier.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, tres, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
