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Spanish (Spain)

### What is it made of? **ser de**

To say what a thing is made of, Spanish uses **ser de** and the material, with no article: **es de madera** — *it is made of wood*. To ask, the preposition goes first: **¿De qué es…?**

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### The material after the noun

English puts the material in front of the noun (*a wooden box*, *plastic plates*). Spanish puts it after, joined with **de**, and the material never agrees and never takes an article: **una caja de madera**, **los platos de plástico**. To avoid repeating the noun, keep only the article: **la de plástico** (the plastic one).

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| material | meaning | example |
|---|---|---|
| **la madera** | wood | una caja de madera |
| **el plástico** | plastic | un vaso de plástico |
| **el metal** | metal | una lámpara de metal |
| **la tela** | fabric, cloth | un bolso de tela |
| **el algodón** | cotton | una camiseta de algodón |
| **la piel** | leather | un cinturón de piel |

**La piel** is also the word for *skin*; for shoes, bags, belts and jackets it means *leather*.

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### Shapes: **redondo** and **cuadrado**

Shapes are ordinary **-o** adjectives: they go after the noun and agree with it.

| | masculine | feminine |
|---|---|---|
| singular | redondo, cuadrado | redonda, cuadrada |
| plural | redondos, cuadrados | redondas, cuadradas |

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### The color **naranja**

As a color, **naranja** does not change for gender: **un coche naranja**, **una camiseta naranja**. With the article, **la naranja** is the fruit.

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### Common mistakes

- *una madera mesa* ✗ → **una mesa de madera** ✓
- *una mesa de la madera* ✗ → **una mesa de madera** ✓ (no article before the material)
- *¿Qué es de?* ✗ → **¿De qué es?** ✓ (the preposition comes first)
- *una camiseta naranjo* ✗ → **una camiseta naranja** ✓

What is it made of? (de madera, redondo)

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 wood	la madera
What is this table made of? It is made of wood.	¿De qué es esta mesa? Es de madera.
My grandfather has a very old wooden box.	Mi abuelo tiene una caja de madera muy vieja.
the plastic	el plástico
The wooden table is more expensive than the plastic one.	La mesa de madera es más cara que la de plástico.
This glass is made of plastic.	Este vaso es de plástico.
There is a lot of plastic in the sea.	Hay mucho plástico en el mar.
I don't like plastic plates.	No me gustan los platos de plástico.
the fabric, the cloth	la tela
What is the bag made of? It is made of fabric.	¿De qué es el bolso? Es de tela.
This fabric is very pretty.	Esta tela es muy bonita.
I want to buy a red fabric for the sofa.	Quiero comprar una tela roja para el sofá.
the metal	el metal
The lamp is made of metal.	La lámpara es de metal.
Metal is colder than wood.	El metal es más frío que la madera.
The kitchen clock is made of metal.	El reloj de la cocina es de metal.
the cotton	el algodón
This T-shirt is made of cotton.	Esta camiseta es de algodón.
I prefer cotton shirts.	Prefiero las camisas de algodón.
the leather	la piel
Cotton is cheaper than leather.	El algodón es más barato que la piel.
The leather bag is very expensive.	El bolso de piel es muy caro.
These shoes are made of leather.	Estos zapatos son de piel.
My father wears a brown leather belt.	Mi padre lleva un cinturón de piel marrón.
round	redondo
We have a round plastic table on the terrace.	Tenemos una mesa redonda de plástico en la terraza.
The moon is round.	La luna es redonda.
I want a round rug for the living room.	Quiero una alfombra redonda para el salón.
square (in shape)	cuadrado
Is the table round or square?	¿La mesa es redonda o cuadrada?
The box is square and small.	La caja es cuadrada y pequeña.
My room has a square window.	Mi habitación tiene una ventana cuadrada.
The square cushion is prettier than the round one.	El cojín cuadrado es más bonito que el redondo.
orange (color)	naranja
I am wearing an orange T-shirt.	Llevo una camiseta naranja.
The orange car is faster than the white one.	El coche naranja es más rápido que el blanco.
I love the color orange.	Me encanta el color naranja.
the shape	la forma
What shape is the table?	¿Qué forma tiene la mesa?
This plate has a round shape.	Este plato tiene forma redonda.
heavy	pesado
This wooden table is very heavy.	Esta mesa de madera es muy pesada.
Metal is heavier than plastic.	El metal es más pesado que el plástico.

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