Breakdown of Un contrato temporal puede ser una buena opción al comienzo de la carrera.
Questions & Answers about Un contrato temporal puede ser una buena opción al comienzo de la carrera.
Because contrato is a masculine noun in Spanish (el contrato), so it takes the masculine indefinite article un.
- Masculine singular: un contrato, el contrato
- Feminine singular: una opción, la opción
The article always agrees in gender and number with the noun, not with the English translation.
Because opción is feminine (la opción), so both the article and the adjective must be feminine:
- una buena opción (feminine)
- un buen contrato (masculine)
Buen is the shortened form of bueno used before masculine singular nouns:
- un buen contrato, un coche bueno / un buen coche
For feminine nouns, you keep the full form:
- una buena opción, una casa buena / una buena casa
Both word orders are grammatically correct, but the meaning and feel change slightly:
- una buena opción – the normal, most natural way; it simply means "a good choice/option."
- una opción buena – also correct, but it can sound a bit more neutral or contrastive, like "an option that is good (as opposed to others that aren’t)."
Many common adjectives (like bueno, malo, grande, pequeño, nuevo, viejo) typically go before the noun when giving a general, subjective judgment:
- una buena idea, un mal día, una gran oportunidad
In Spain, the normal and idiomatic expression is contrato temporal.
- temporal is the standard word in Spain for "temporary" in this context.
- temporario exists in Spanish, but it’s far more common in many Latin American countries and sounds unusual or overly formal in everyday Peninsular Spanish.
So in Spain, you should say:
- un contrato temporal – a temporary contract / fixed-term contract.
Puede ser (from poder + ser) expresses possibility or something that is true in some cases:
- Un contrato temporal puede ser una buena opción… → "A temporary contract can be / may be a good option…" (in some situations, depending on the case)
If you say:
Un contrato temporal es una buena opción… → "A temporary contract is a good option…"
this sounds more general and categorical, as if it were always or usually a good option.
Using puede ser softens the statement and makes it sound more balanced and less absolute, which is natural in advice or recommendations.
The subject is un contrato temporal.
Spanish word order is flexible, but in this sentence it is:
- Un contrato temporal (subject)
- puede ser (verb phrase: "can be")
- una buena opción (predicate/complement)
So literally: "A temporary contract can be a good option."
Both al comienzo de and en el comienzo de are grammatically possible, but:
- al comienzo de is the typical fixed expression in this meaning ("at the beginning of").
- al = contraction of a + el.
In practice, you will almost always hear:
- al comienzo de la carrera
- al principio de la reunión
- al inicio del curso
En el comienzo de is much less common and can sound more literary or marked in many contexts. For everyday speech, use al comienzo de.
In this sentence, al comienzo de la carrera and al principio de la carrera are practically interchangeable and both mean "at the beginning of the career".
Subtle points:
- comienzo and principio both mean "start/beginning."
- In many contexts, they can be swapped:
- al comienzo del año / al principio del año
- al comienzo de la película / al principio de la película
Some specific set phrases prefer one or the other, but for talking about the start of a career, both sound natural in Spain.
The noun carrera has several meanings, and context decides which one:
Race (running, car race, etc.)
- una carrera de coches – a car race
Career / professional path
- la carrera de un músico – a musician’s career
Degree / university studies (very common in Spain)
- estudiar la carrera de medicina – to study medicine (as a degree)
In al comienzo de la carrera, it most naturally means career or professional path. It could also be understood as "university degree" if you are talking specifically about studies, but without further context "career" is the safest reading.
Spanish normally uses the definite article (el, la, los, las) where English would use a bare noun or "your":
- al comienzo de la carrera
literally: "at the beginning of the career"
meaning: "at the beginning of your/their/a career" depending on context - al final del día – at the end of the day
- al principio de la reunión – at the start of the meeting
Saying de carrera without an article here is not natural in Spanish. The article is required with comienzo de + [noun] in this meaning.
Yes. Carrera is a feminine noun:
- singular: la carrera
- plural: las carreras
So you must use feminine articles and adjectives:
- la carrera profesional – the professional career
- una carrera larga – a long career / a long race
Yes. That would be completely natural and often clearer:
- Un contrato temporal puede ser una buena opción al comienzo de tu carrera. → "A temporary contract can be a good option at the beginning of your career."
Using la carrera without a possessive can be more general:
- al comienzo de la carrera – at the beginning of one’s career / of a career (in general)
- al comienzo de tu carrera – specifically your career
Both are correct; it depends on how personal or general you want to sound.
Al comienzo de focuses on time ("at the beginning of"):
- … al comienzo de la carrera
→ "… at the beginning of the career."
Para el comienzo de is grammatically possible, but it usually has a slightly different nuance: "for the beginning of", often with a sense of purpose or preparation:
- Necesitamos un plan para el comienzo del curso.
"We need a plan for the start of the course."
In the original sentence, we’re situating when the contract can be a good option, so al comienzo de la carrera is the most natural choice.