Learn Spanish (Spain): Una ciudad es grande y un pueblo es pequeño.

Una ciudad es grande y un pueblo es pequeño.

A city is big and a town is small.

Breakdown of Una ciudad es grande y un pueblo es pequeño.

Questions & Answers about Una ciudad es grande y un pueblo es pequeño.

Why do we use "una" for city but "un" for town?

Nouns in Spanish have a gender. Pueblo ends in -o, which usually means it is masculine, so we use the masculine indefinite article un (a). Ciudad is feminine, so we use the feminine article una (a). A handy trick: Spanish words ending in -d are almost always feminine!

Why doesn't the adjective "grande" change to match the feminine word "ciudad"?

Adjectives usually change their ending to match the gender of the noun. For example, pequeño ends in -o to match the masculine pueblo. But adjectives that end in -e, like grande, are gender-neutral. You use grande for both masculine and feminine nouns.

We learned two verbs for "to be". Why do we use "es" instead of "está" here?

We use es (from the verb ser) to talk about permanent facts or basic descriptions of what something is. Because being big or small is a core, defining characteristic of a city or town, we use es rather than está, which is used for temporary states or locations.

Could "una ciudad" also translate to "one city"?

Yes! The words un and una act as the indefinite articles (a or an), but they are also used for the number one. Depending on the context, this sentence could technically mean "One city is big and one town is small," but the general translation of "A city... a town..." is the most natural fit here.