Observamos el águila en particular.

the eagle

Breakdown of Observamos el águila en particular.

• observar: to observe
• en particular: with a specific focus

Questions & Answers about Observamos el águila en particular.

Why is it el águila and not la águila if águila is a feminine noun?

Because águila is a feminine noun that begins with a stressed a- sound. In Spanish, singular feminine nouns like this often use el instead of la to avoid the awkward sound of la águila.

Important points:

• The noun is still feminine
• This change happens only with the singular article
• Adjectives still agree in the feminine

So you say:

• el águila
• un águila

But:

• las águilas
• unas águilas
• el águila blanca → not blanco, because águila is still feminine

Other examples:

• el agua fría
• el alma pura
• el hacha nueva

Why is there an accent mark on águila?

The accent mark shows which syllable is stressed: Á-gui-la.

Without the written accent, Spanish stress rules would make you stress it differently. The accent is there to show that the stress falls on the first syllable.

Pronunciation notes:

• águila has three syllables: á-gui-la
• In gui, the u is silent here
• So it sounds roughly like AH-gee-la

This written accent is part of the standard spelling of the word.

What tense is observamos here?