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Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Es un pariente cercano. - He is a close relative.

Hardcore Spanish (Spain)
/Having a karaoke night with friends
/Es un pariente cercano.

Es un pariente cercano.

Word

Es un pariente cercano.

Meaning

He is a close relative.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Hardcore Spanish (Spain)

Lesson

Having a karaoke night with friends

Breakdown of Es un pariente cercano.

Questions & Answers about Es un pariente cercano.

Why is es used instead of está?

Because es comes from ser, which is used for identity, classification, and what someone is.

Here, Es un pariente cercano means He/She/It is a close relative, so we are identifying the person’s relationship.

Está would suggest a temporary state or location, which does not fit here.

Why is there no subject pronoun like él or ella?

Spanish often leaves out subject pronouns because the verb already gives enough information.

Es = he/she/it is
So Es un pariente cercano can mean:
- He is a close relative
- She is a close relative
- sometimes It is a close relative, depending on context

You would only add él, ella, etc. for emphasis or clarity:

Él es un pariente cercano.

Why do we use un here?

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Un means a.

So:

un pariente cercano = a close relative

It is used because pariente is a singular countable noun. In English, we also normally say a close relative, not just close relative by itself.

What exactly does pariente mean?

Pariente means relative.

It is a general word for a family relation, without saying exactly which one:

cousin
aunt
uncle
nephew
etc.

In Spain, pariente is correct, but it can sound a bit neutral or slightly formal. In everyday speech, people may also say familiar or use the specific relationship if they know it.

What is the difference between pariente and familiar?

Both can refer to a family member, but there is a slight difference in feel.

pariente = relative
familiar = family member / relative

In many contexts they overlap, but familiar is often more common in everyday language, while pariente can sound a bit more formal or general.

So:

Es un pariente cercano = He/She is a close relative
Es un familiar cercano is also possible, though the nuance may feel slightly different depending on context.

Is pariente masculine or feminine?

Pariente can be either masculine or feminine depending on the person, but the form of the noun usually stays the same.

un pariente = a male relative
una pariente = a female relative

So the article tells you the gender here, not the noun ending.

Why is cercano after pariente?

In Spanish, adjectives often come after the noun.

So:

pariente cercano = close relative

That is the normal order here. English usually puts adjectives before the noun, but Spanish often places them after.

What does cercano mean here exactly?

Here, cercano means close in the sense of closely related by family.

So un pariente cercano means a relative with a close family connection, not just any distant relative.

Depending on context, cercano can also mean near or close by, but in this sentence it refers to family relationship, not physical distance.

Could cercano also mean emotional closeness?

Sometimes cercano can suggest emotional closeness, but in pariente cercano the usual meaning is close relative in the family-tree sense.

If you want to say someone is emotionally close, Spanish would usually make that clearer from context or use a different structure.

Can I say Es pariente cercano without un?

Normally, Es un pariente cercano is the standard sentence.

Leaving out un would sound unusual in ordinary speech. Spanish usually keeps the article with a noun like this when you mean a close relative.

So for learners, the safest version is:

Es un pariente cercano.

Does this sentence mean He is a close relative or She is a close relative?

It can mean either one.

Because Spanish often drops the subject pronoun, Es by itself does not tell you whether the subject is:

he
she
it
even you in formal speech, depending on context

You need the surrounding context to know exactly who is being referred to.

How would I make it plural?

You would say:

Son parientes cercanos. = They are close relatives.

Changes:

Es → Son
pariente → parientes
cercano → cercanos

If they were all female, you could also say:

Son parientes cercanas

But with mixed or unspecified gender, cercanos is the normal plural form.

Is pariente cercano a fixed expression?

It is a very natural and common combination, yes.

Spanish speakers often use pariente cercano to mean close relative, especially in more neutral, descriptive, or official-style language.

In casual speech, though, people may often prefer:

un familiar cercano
or the exact relationship, such as un primo, una tía, etc.

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