/ˈunas/
Translation
some, a few (feminine plural)
Word origin
The feminine plural of un, from Latin unas, from unus ('one'). As a plural indefinite it carries the sense 'some, a few'.
- Origin
- Latin
- Root
- unus
- English cognates
- one, unit, union
Examples
preciosas vecina.
There are some lovely flowers in my neighbour's garden.
tarta .
I want to buy a few apples to make a cake this afternoon.
.
The film lasts about two hours or so.
.
I have a few friends who study at the same university.
.
I need a few weeks to finish this report.
Unas is the feminine plural indefinite article in Spanish, the feminine counterpart of unos and the plural of una. It marks an unspecified quantity of countable feminine nouns, translating as "some" or "a few": unas flores (some flowers), unas amigas (a few friends). English often drops the article in the plural, but Spanish keeps it whenever the meaning is "an indefinite few".
Like unos, unas has a second life as an approximator meaning "about" or "around" before a number: unas dos horas (about two hours), unas treinta personas (around thirty people). Unlike una (which becomes un before a stressed a-sound noun for phonetic reasons), unas stays unchanged in every plural context. See the Spanish articles guide for how the four forms fit together.
Used in
Grammar articles
(6)Spanish Articles: Definite vs Indefinite, Gender, Number, and When English Doesn't Use One
The Future and Conditional of Probability in Spanish (¿Qué hora será?, Serían las tres)
Spanish Noun Gender: The -o/-a Rule, the Ending Patterns, and the Exceptions Worth Memorising
Spanish Noun Plurals: Add -s, Add -es, Swap -z for -ces, and the Nouns That Never Change
Spanish Quantifiers: mucho, poco, demasiado, todo, cada (mucha gente vs trabaja mucho)
Spanish Superlatives: El Mejor, El Mas, and the -isimo Ending
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