Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Entre mis amigas hay una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto. - Among my female friends there is a very strong friendship and a lot of respect.

Entre mis amigas hay… = Among my (female) friends there is / there are…
We are not saying what the friends do or have; we’re just stating what exists in that group.

If you say “Mis amigas tienen…”, that changes the structure and meaning:

Mis amigas tienen una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto.
= My friends have a very strong friendship and a lot of respect.

Both are possible sentences, but:

hay focuses on what exists in that group.
tienen focuses on what they possess.

What does “entre” mean here, and is it “between” or “among”?

Entre can mean both “between” and “among”, depending on context.

With two people or things, English usually says “between”:
- Entre Ana y Luis hay mucha confianza.
  → There is a lot of trust between Ana and Luis.
With more than two, English usually says “among”:
- Entre mis amigas hay una amistad muy fuerte.
  → Among my (female) friends there is a very strong friendship.

Spanish just uses entre for both cases; you don’t need a different word.

Why is it “mis amigas” and not “las amigas”?

Mis amigas = my (female) friends (possessive, belonging to the speaker).
Las amigas = the (female) friends (a specific group already known from context, but not clearly “mine”).

In this sentence, the idea is clearly “among my friends”, so mis (my) is the natural choice.
You could say “Entre las amigas…” in some contexts, but then it would refer to “the friends” in a more general or previously mentioned group, not necessarily the speaker’s friends.

Why is it “amigas” (feminine) and not “amigos”?

Spanish nouns have grammatical gender:

amiga = female friend
amigo = male friend

Plural forms:

amigas = a group of only women
amigos = a group of only men or a mixed group (men + women)

So:

Entre mis amigas… = Among my female friends (all women)
Entre mis amigos… = Among my (male or mixed) friends

The choice tells you the gender composition of the group.

Why is it “una amistad muy fuerte” and not “amistades muy fuertes”?

Both are grammatically possible but have slightly different nuances:

Hay una amistad muy fuerte…
Focuses on one strong bond, the overall friendship that unites the group.
Hay amistades muy fuertes…
Would suggest several distinct friendships within the group (for example, different pairs or sub-groups with strong bonds).

In the original sentence, the idea is that there is one strong sense of friendship shared in the group, so singular una amistad muy fuerte is preferred.

Why do we need the article “una” before “amistad”? Can I say “hay amistad muy fuerte”?

You normally use an article here:

Hay una amistad muy fuerte… = There is a very strong friendship…

Without the article:

Hay amistad muy fuerte…

is possible, but it sounds more abstract, a bit literary or formal, and less natural in everyday speech.

In regular conversation, Spanish typically uses the indefinite article (un/una) with countable singular nouns like amistad when you mean “a certain friendship” or “a particular bond”.

Why is it “mucho respeto” and not “muy respeto”?

Spanish makes a clear distinction:

muy = very → used before adjectives and adverbs
- muy fuerte = very strong
mucho / mucha / muchos / muchas = a lot of / much / many → used with nouns
- mucho respeto = a lot of respect

So:

una amistad muy fuerte → very strong friendship (muy
- adjective)
mucho respeto → a lot of respect (mucho
- noun)

You cannot say “muy respeto” because respeto is a noun, not an adjective.

Why is it “mucho respeto” (singular) and not “muchos respetos”?

In this meaning, respeto is an uncountable noun, like water or love in English:

mucho respeto = a lot of respect (uncountable mass)

Respetos in the plural is rare and usually appears in set phrases, like:

Dale mis saludos y respetos.
= Give him/her my greetings and respects.

But when you talk about the general quality or attitude of respect within a relationship, you normally use the singular:

Hay mucho respeto entre nosotros.
Entre mis amigas hay mucho respeto.

How does agreement work in “una amistad muy fuerte”?

Agreement rules:

amistad is feminine singular.
So the article and adjective must match:
- una (feminine singular article)
- fuerte (same form for masculine and feminine, but still singular)

Structure:

una (fem. sg.) + amistad (fem. sg.) + muy fuerte (adj. in singular)

If it were plural:

unas amistades muy fuertes
- unas (fem. plural)
- amistades (fem. plural)
- muy fuertes (adj. plural)

Can I change the order and say “Entre mis amigas hay mucho respeto y una amistad muy fuerte”?

Yes. Both orders are correct and natural:

Entre mis amigas hay una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto.
Entre mis amigas hay mucho respeto y una amistad muy fuerte.

The choice is mostly about emphasis or style.

Putting “una amistad muy fuerte” first may slightly emphasize the friendship.
Putting “mucho respeto” first may slightly emphasize the respect.

Grammatically, both are fine.

Could I say “Entre mis amigas existe una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto” instead of “hay”?

Yes, you can:

Entre mis amigas hay una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto.
Entre mis amigas existe una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto.

Both are correct. The difference is subtle:

hay is very common and neutral: there is / there are.
existe can sound a bit more formal or emphatic, highlighting the existence of that feeling or quality.

In everyday speech, hay is more frequent.

What’s the difference between “Entre mis amigas hay…” and “Mis amigas y yo tenemos…”?

Both could describe a similar situation, but the focus changes:

Entre mis amigas hay una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto.
- Focus: what exists within the group of my female friends.
- The speaker may or may not be part of that group; grammatically, they are talking about them, not “us”.
Mis amigas y yo tenemos una amistad muy fuerte y mucho respeto.
- Focus: what we (my friends and I) have.
- The speaker clearly includes themselves in the group.

So:

To describe the dynamic among them: use entre mis amigas hay…
To include yourself explicitly: mis amigas y yo tenemos…