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El Agua or La Agua? Feminine Spanish Nouns That Take El

By Michael McGettrick and Sergio Linares-HernandesUpdated 11 October 2026

(water) is a feminine noun, yet Spanish says . A feminine noun that begins with a stressed a takes in the singular so the two a sounds do not run together. Only that one article changes; everything else stays feminine.

femininethe article that changesWhat do the colours mean?
SingularPluralWith an adjective
(rare)

Quick check

Now use it: three quick questions on the chart above. The full practice is further down.

Pick the right one

0/3

El or la? Check where the stress falls.

  1. agua (the water)

  2. amiga (the friend)

  3. hambre (the hunger)

Why el: two a sounds

Say aloud and the two vowels melt into one, lagua. Old Spanish had a feminine article ela, which shortened to before a vowel, and the habit survives before a stressed a.

la agua becomes el agua; the noun stays feminine
  • . - The water is cold.
  • . - I'm very hungry.

The trigger is stress, not spelling

The first syllable must carry the stress. If it does not, stays.

Stressed: elEnglishUnstressed: laEnglish
(A-gua)the water (a-MI-ga)the friend
(AL-ma)the soul (a-RE-na)the sand
(HAM-bre)the hunger (a-LAR-ma)the alarm

A silent h changes nothing, so behaves like . The letters of the alphabet are the exception: and hache keep .

Only the article right in front changes

and switch. Every other word keeps the feminine form, including this, that and much.

WordSpanishEnglish
the (sg.) the water
a a weapon
the (pl.) the waters
this this water
much great hunger
adjective the clear water

When another word comes between the article and the noun, the article goes back to : - the cold sea water.

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
stressed a takes
is still feminine
the plural goes back to
only and change
is feminine
the a in is not stressed

What to do next

  1. Learn and with a feminine adjective attached: .
  2. Do the spot-the-mistake drill below.
  3. Back to noun gender for the main rules, or on to articles.

Practise: test yourself

Pick the right one

0/6

El or la? Check where the stress falls.

  1. agua (the water)

  2. amiga (the friend)

  3. hambre (the hunger)

  4. arena (the sand)

  5. alma (the soul)

  6. aula (the classroom)

Sort into groups

0/6

Which of these words are feminine? Sort each phrase by the gender of its noun.

Tap a word, then the group it belongs in.

Spot the mistake

0/4

Tap the mistake. Each noun is feminine.

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Frequently asked questions

Is it or ?
. is a feminine noun, but because it starts with a stressed a, the singular article right in front of it is , not . Everything else treats it as feminine: (the cold water), (the waters), (this water).
Is masculine or feminine in Spanish?
Feminine. The in is a sound rule, not a gender change, so an adjective agrees as feminine: , not . The same goes for ( ), and .
Which Spanish nouns take even though they are feminine?
Feminine nouns whose first syllable is a stressed a or ha: , , , , , , . The stress decides it: , and keep because their first syllable is not stressed.
Is it or ?
is the usual form before a stressed a: , , . is also accepted, but is what you will hear and read most. The adjective is still feminine: .
Is it or ?
. Only and change; this, that, much and every other word keep the feminine form: , , . is a common slip, even among native speakers, but the standard is .