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Spanish (Spain)

In Spanish, nouns are either masculine or feminine. However, there is a special "neuter" article: **lo**.

You never use **lo** with a noun. Instead, pair it with a masculine singular adjective to turn that adjective into an abstract noun. This is equivalent to saying "the [adjective] thing" or "that which is [adjective]" in English.

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### Specifying the context

To talk about the good, bad, or interesting part *about* a specific thing, use **lo** + adjective + **de** (of/about). Remember that **de + el** combines to form **del**.

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### Pros and cons

Another common way to discuss the positives and negatives of a situation is by using the nouns **la ventaja** (the advantage) and **el inconveniente** (the disadvantage).

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You can easily mix these nouns and the neuter article **lo** to weigh the pros and cons of any situation!

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The neuter article (lo)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular subjects and 'ser' (yo soy, esto es)

Plural nouns and definite articles (los, las)

Plural pronouns and 'ser' (somos, sois, son)

Adjective agreement (-o, -a, -os, -as)

Indefinite articles (un, una, unos, unas)

Simple negation (no)

Yes/no questions

Regular '-ar' verbs (-o, -as, -a...)

Regular '-er' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Regular '-ir' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Locative adverbs (aquí, allí)

Question words (quién, cómo)

The verb estar (estoy, estás)

The preposition en (en)

Ser vs. estar

The verb tener (tengo, tienes)

Possessive determiners (mi, tu, su)

Origin and possession (de, del)

The verb ir (voy, vas)

Destination (a, al)

The personal 'a' (a)

Stem-changing verbs: e to ie

Stem-changing verbs: o to ue

Irregular first-person verbs

Reflexive verbs (me, te, se)

Numbers 1 to 10 (uno, dos, tres)

Numbers 11 to 20 (once, doce, trece)

Counting by tens to 100 (treinta, cuarenta, cien)

Compound numbers up to 99 (veintiuno, treinta y uno)

Days of the week (el lunes, el martes)

The family and the personal 'a' (a mi tío, a mi prima)

Months of the year

Telling time (es la, son las)

Verbs of liking (me gusta)

Plural agreement with verbs of liking (gustan)

Degree modifiers (muy, mucho)

Formal address (usted, ustedes)

Direct object pronouns (lo, la, los, las)

The near future (ir a)

Obligation (tener que)

Present continuous (-ando, -iendo)

Affirmative commands (tú, vosotros)

Basic Food and Drink

The Human Body: Head and Arms

The Human Body: Legs and Health

Wardrobe Essentials

Fresh Produce

Meals and Proteins

Public Transport

Hello and goodbye (hola, ¿qué tal?)

Thank you, sorry, OK (gracias, vale)

There is, there are (hay)

My building (la escalera, el ascensor)

Describing people (moreno, rubio, tímido)

Land and sea (el mar, el río, el norte)

Sightseeing (la plaza, la catedral)

Asking the way (cerca, a la derecha, todo recto)

In class (¿puedes repetir?)

Verb + infinitive (quiero comer, sé leer)

What's your name? (me llamo, encantado)

Phone, computer and email

Hundreds and thousands (doscientos, mil)

What do you do? (¿a qué te dedicas?)

Personal details (la edad, la fecha de nacimiento)

Me neither (también, tampoco, ni)

How much is it? (el precio, la vuelta)

What's the weather like? (hace sol, nieva)

Free time (el concierto, el tenis)

At the bar (¿qué vas a tomar?)

The Natural World

Demonstratives (este, ese, aquel)

Prepositions of place (encima de, debajo de)

Prepositional pronouns (para mí, contigo)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primero to décimo)

Adverbs of frequency (a veces, nunca)

Exclamations (¡qué...!)

Indefinite pronouns (algo, alguien)

Indefinite determiners (algún, ningún)

Indirect object pronouns (le, les)

Double object pronouns (me lo, te la)

Double object pronouns (se lo, se la)

Verbs of preference (encantar, interesar)

Impersonal obligation (hay que)

Starting and finishing actions (empezar a, terminar de)

Adjective comparatives (más que, menos que)

Comparatives of equality (tan como)

Noun comparatives (tanto como)

Question	Answer
the … thing (neuter article before an adjective)	lo
unique	único
The only thing is that we have no money.	Lo único es que no tenemos dinero.
main	principal
The main thing is that one must always study.	Lo principal es que hay que estudiar siempre.
strange	extraño
The strange thing is that there is someone here.	Lo extraño es que hay alguien aquí.
fun	divertido
The fun thing about the trip is the beach.	Lo divertido del viaje es la playa.
complicated	complicado
The complicated thing is that she never listens.	Lo complicado es que ella nunca escucha.
fascinating	fascinante
The fascinating thing is the history of the city.	Lo fascinante es la historia de la ciudad.
the advantage	la ventaja
The advantage is the price.	La ventaja es el precio.
the disadvantage; the problem, the objection (not to mind)	el inconveniente
The disadvantage is that it is complicated and nobody understands it.	El inconveniente es que es complicado y nadie lo entiende.
Another advantage is the tranquility of the village.	Otra ventaja es la tranquilidad del pueblo.
The main disadvantage is that one must wait a lot.	El inconveniente principal es que hay que esperar mucho.
The strange thing is that it is the only option.	Lo extraño es que es la única opción.
The bad thing is that it always rains.	Lo malo es que siempre llueve.
The good thing about the hotel is the breakfast.	Lo bueno del hotel es el desayuno.
The fun thing is the trip, but the bad thing is the traffic.	Lo divertido es el viaje, pero lo malo es el tráfico.
The fascinating thing is nature, but the complicated thing is the weather.	Lo fascinante es la naturaleza, pero lo complicado es el tiempo.
I have no objection.	No tengo ningún inconveniente.
My boss has no objection to changing the hours.	Mi jefa no tiene inconveniente en cambiar el horario.
This painting is unique.	Este cuadro es único.
Every person is unique.	Cada persona es única.

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