Lesson 07 · 6 min read
Spanish Family and Relationships Vocabulary
Family (la familia) is one of the first topics in any conversation. This lesson covers immediate and extended family, and shows how Spanish uses possessive words to say whose family member you mean.
1. Immediate family
Spanish uses the masculine plural to cover a mixed group, which produces some usefully compact words: "los padres" means the parents (not the fathers), "los hermanos" can mean the brothers or the siblings, and "los hijos" covers sons and daughters together. Context settles the ambiguity.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| la madre | mother |
| el padre | father |
| los padres | parents |
| el hijo | son |
| la hija | daughter |
| el hermano | brother |
| la hermana | sister |
| el esposo / marido | husband |
| la esposa / mujer | wife |
2. Extended family
The same pairing logic continues outwards: los abuelos are the grandparents, los tíos the aunts and uncles, los primos the cousins. In-laws take their own set of words — suegro, suegra, cuñado, cuñada — rather than being built from "in-law" the way English does it.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| el abuelo | grandfather |
| la abuela | grandmother |
| el tío | uncle |
| la tía | aunt |
| el primo | cousin (male) |
| la prima | cousin (female) |
| el sobrino | nephew |
| la sobrina | niece |
| el nieto | grandson |
| la nieta | granddaughter |
3. Talking about your family
Possession is expressed with "de" rather than an apostrophe: "la hermana de María" is María's sister. Possessive adjectives agree with the thing owned, not the owner, so it is "mis hermanos" for my brothers however many people are speaking.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Tengo dos hermanos. | I have two siblings. |
| Mi madre se llama Ana. | My mother is called Ana. |
| ¿Tienes hermanos? | Do you have siblings? |
| Vivo con mis padres. | I live with my parents. |
| Somos una familia grande. | We are a big family. |
4. Describing your family to someone
Family is the topic every Spanish course reaches first, because it is what strangers actually ask about. The frame you need is small: tener for who exists, ser for who they are, and llamarse for their names. Tengo dos hermanos, mi hermana se llama Ana, mi padre es médico. Spanish-speaking countries commonly use two surnames — the father's first, then the mother's — so María López García is Ms. López, not Ms. García. Getting this right matters when addressing someone formally, and it explains why forms often ask for apellido paterno and apellido materno separately.
| Spanish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ¿Tienes hermanos? | Do you have siblings? | ¿Tienes hermanos o eres hijo único? — Do you have siblings or are you an only child? |
| hijo único / hija única | only child | Soy hija única. — I'm an only child. |
| el apellido | surname | ¿Cuál es su apellido? — What's your surname? |
| mayor / menor | older / younger | Mi hermano mayor vive en Lima. — My older brother lives in Lima. |
| estar casado / soltero | to be married / single | Mi hermana está casada. — My sister is married. |
Use it in context
Family comes up in the first five minutes of most conversations, so it pays to have a few sentences ready.
- Somos una familia grande: tengo tres hermanos.
We're a big family: I have three siblings. - Mi hermana mayor está casada y vive en Sevilla.
My older sister is married and lives in Seville. - Mi abuela se llama Carmen y tiene ochenta años.
My grandmother is called Carmen and she's eighty. - —¿Tienes hermanos? —No, soy hija única.
'Do you have any siblings?' 'No, I'm an only child.' - Los domingos comemos en casa de mis tíos.
On Sundays we eat at my aunt and uncle's. - Mi sobrino tiene el mismo apellido que yo.
My nephew has the same surname as me.
Common mistakes
la hermana de María's → la hermana de María
Spanish has no apostrophe-s. To translate one, build the phrase with de, running the opposite way round from English: la hermana de María.
Mi padres son profesores → Mis padres son profesores
The possessive agrees with the thing owned, not the owner. Two parents means mis, however many people are speaking.
Tengo dos hermanas y un hermano, entonces tengo tres hermanas → …tengo tres hermanos
The masculine plural covers a mixed group. Hermanos here means siblings, not brothers — and los padres means the parents, not the fathers.
Quick check
___ padres son profesores. — Mis / Mi
Show the answer
Mis — The possessive agrees with what is owned: two parents means mis.
Tengo dos hermanas y un hermano. Somos tres ___. — hermanos / hermanas
Show the answer
hermanos — The masculine plural covers a mixed group.
Which means 'an only child' (female)? — hija única / hija sola
Show the answer
hija única — Hija sola would mean a daughter who is on her own.