Leaving out the noun
When it is clear what you are talking about, Spanish drops the noun and keeps its article. English says the red one; Spanish just says el rojo. The article and any adjective agree with the noun you left out: el coche → el rojo, la camisa → la azul, los zapatos → los negros.
| Which car do you prefer? The red one. | ¿Qué coche prefieres? El rojo. |
| I don't want the black shoes; I want the brown ones. | No quiero los zapatos negros; quiero los marrones. |
| article + | example | English |
|---|---|---|
| adjective | el rojo, la azul | the red one, the blue one |
| de + noun | la de madera, el de mi hermano | the wooden one, my brother's |
| que + verb | el que compré, la que está aquí | the one I bought, the one that is here |
El de, la de
De + a noun says what it is made of, whose it is, or which one: English my brother's is el de mi hermano.
| Which table shall we buy? The wooden one? | ¿Qué mesa compramos? ¿La de madera? |
| This mobile phone is not mine, it is my brother's. | Este móvil no es mío, es el de mi hermano. |
El que, la que
With a whole verb, use el que, la que, los que, las que. For a particular one you know, the verb is in the indicative; when it can be any one, use the subjunctive: la que compraste but el que quieras.
| Who is your brother? The one who wears glasses. | ¿Quién es tu hermano? El que lleva gafas. |
| There are lots of cakes. Take whichever one you want. | Hay muchos pasteles. Coge el que quieras. |
Comparing
This is how you compare two things of the same kind without repeating the noun.
| My car is faster than my father's. | Mi coche es más rápido que el de mi padre. |
| This flat is nicer than the one we saw yesterday. | Este piso es más bonito que el que vimos ayer. |
Common mistakes
- el rojo uno → el rojo: Spanish has no word for one here.
- ¿La camisa? El blanco. → La blanca: keep the gender of the noun you dropped.
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