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Questions & Answers about Ella tiene dieciocho años hoy.
Why do we use tiene instead of something like es to indicate “She is 18 years old”?
In Spanish, the verb tener (to have) is used to express age. Literally, the sentence translates as “She has 18 years.” In English, you use to be, but in Spanish, you always say tiene when talking about how old someone is.
Does the word hoy need to appear at the end of the sentence?
In Spanish, hoy (today) can be placed in different positions: at the beginning, middle, or end of the sentence. Putting it at the end, as in Ella tiene dieciocho años hoy, is common, but you could also say Hoy ella tiene dieciocho años or Ella hoy tiene dieciocho años without changing the meaning.
Why is años required after dieciocho?
When expressing age in Spanish, you name the number and then the word años (years). You cannot leave out años because the sentence structure always requires it.
Do I always have to use the pronoun Ella?
In Spanish, subject pronouns (like ella) are often optional because the verb form tiene already indicates a third-person singular subject. However, using ella can provide clarity or emphasis when the context requires it.
Is “cumple dieciocho años” interchangeable with “tiene dieciocho años”?
They are related but not exactly the same. Tiene dieciocho años tells you her current age, while cumple dieciocho años emphasizes the act of turning 18 (for example, on her birthday). Both are grammatically correct, but they focus on slightly different aspects of age.