Learn Spanish (Spain): Mi abuelo tiene setenta años. - My grandfather is seventy years old.

Mi abuelo tiene setenta años.

My grandfather is seventy years old.

Breakdown of Mi abuelo tiene setenta años.

Questions & Answers about Mi abuelo tiene setenta años.

Why does the sentence use tiene (has) instead of a word for "is"?

In Spanish, you do not be an age; you have years. So instead of saying "My grandfather is seventy," you literally say "My grandfather has seventy years" (tiene setenta años). This is a very common difference between English and Spanish to get used to!

I always mix up setenta (70) and sesenta (60). Is there an easy way to remember which is which?

Yes, they sound very similar! A helpful trick is to look at the third letter. The 't' in setenta matches the 't' in siete (seven). The 's' in sesenta matches the 's' in seis (six).

Does the word setenta change its ending if we are talking about a grandmother instead?

No. Unlike some descriptive words that change their ending to match gender (like abuelo versus abuela), numbers ending in -enta like setenta always stay exactly the same regardless of who you are talking about.

Why is the little line over the 'n' in años important?

That line is called a tilde, and it makes the ñ a completely different letter in the Spanish alphabet with an "ny" sound (like in the English word "canyon"). It is crucial to include it when talking about age, because without it, the word anos translates to "anuses" instead of "years"!