Breakdown of La recepción abre a las ocho de la mañana.
la mañana
the morning
de
of
abrir
to open
las
the
a
at
la recepción
the reception
ocho
eight
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Spanish grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about La recepción abre a las ocho de la mañana.
Why is recepción feminine, and why do we say la recepción?
In Spanish, almost all nouns ending in -ción are feminine. That’s why you use the feminine article la instead of el.
Why do we use abre instead of abren?
Abre is the third-person singular present form of abrir, matching the singular noun la recepción. If we were talking about a plural subject (e.g. los hoteles abren), we’d use abren.
What does the preposition a mean in abre a las ocho?
Here, a means “at” when referring to a specific time. So abre a las ocho literally means “opens at eight.”
Why do we say a las ocho instead of a ocho?
When telling time in Spanish, you generally include the definite article before the hour: a las ocho. The only exception is one o’clock, which is a la una (singular).
Why add de la mañana? Can’t we say por la mañana or just en la mañana?
De la mañana specifies an exact time in the morning (AM).
• Por la mañana is more general, like “in the morning,” without pinpointing a clock hour.
• En la mañana is less common in Latin American Spanish when giving a precise time; you’d usually say de la mañana or abbreviate with a.m.
Is it okay to write 8:00 a.m. instead of ocho de la mañana?
Yes. In informal contexts (emails, schedules) you can write 8:00 a.m. or 8 a.m., but in formal or narrative text you often spell it out: a las ocho de la mañana.
How would I say “The reception opens at 1 PM”?
Use a la una de la tarde. For example: La recepción abre a la una de la tarde.
How do you pronounce recepción?
In Latin America, pronounce it [re-sep-SYON], with the stress on the last syllable. (In Spain you might hear [re-θep-ˈsjon], with a “th” sound for c before i.)