evolang.
Browse
About
Spanish · Vocabulary · A1 to B2

Spanish nature vocabulary: a landscape you can listen to

Short answer: tap a number in the scene to hear each word. Most nature words follow the usual gender rules, with two surprises: el agua and el águila take el but are feminine, and most wild animals have one fixed gender, so la jirafa can be male.

12345678910
Habitats

Animals by where they live

A noun is a naming word; every Spanish noun is masculine or feminine (its gender), shown by el or la. Red words take la. See gender and articles.

La granjathe farm
El bosquethe forest
El marthe sea
El cielothe sky
Animals and gender

One gender or two?

Two forms: pets and farm animals
One form: most wild animals
Add macho or hembra when it matters: la jirafa macho, “the male giraffe”.
Plants

Trees and their fruit

A neat pattern: the tree ends in -o and is masculine, its fruit ends in -a and is feminine.

Environment

The environment in the headlines

Spanish headlines often drop the verb and the article. Tap a headline to see it word by word, with pronunciation and the full meaning.

Describing a landscape

Hay un río; el río está en el valle

To describe a place you need two verbs. Hay (“there is, there are”) introduces something new, with un, una or no article. Estar says where something you already mentioned is, with el or la. A verb is an action or being word; see ser and estar.

Hay + un / una: something new
Haythere-isun ríoa riveren el valle.in the valley
ai oon RREE-oh en el BAH-yeh · “There’s a river in the valley.”
Haythere-aremontañasmountainsal fondo.in-the background
ai mon-TAH-nyahs al FON-doh · “There are mountains in the background.”
No haynot there-isaguawateren el pozo.in the well
noh ai AH-gwah en el POH-thoh · “There’s no water in the well.”
El / la + está: where it is
El ríothe riverestáisen el valle.in the valley
el RREE-oh es-TAH en el BAH-yeh · “The river is in the valley.”
Las montañasthe mountainsestánareal fondo.in-the background
lahs mon-TAH-nyahs es-TAN al FON-doh · “The mountains are in the background.”
La playathe beachestáiscerca delnear of-thepueblo.village
lah PLAH-yah es-TAH THEHR-kah del PWEH-bloh · “The beach is near the village.”

Place words that go with estar: cerca de (near), lejos de (far from), al lado de (next to), entre (between), al fondo (in the background), a la izquierda (on the left).

Spending time outdoors

Hacer senderismo, ir de camping, bañarse en el río

Spanish builds most outdoor activities from hacer (to do) or ir de (to go …-ing) + a noun. Read across: the activity, then a glossed sentence you can use.

  1. hacer senderismoah-THEHR sen-deh-REES-moh · to go hiking
    Los domingoson Sundayshacemoswe-dosenderismohikingen la sierra.in the mountains
    lohs doh-MEEN-gohs ah-THEH-mohs sen-deh-REES-moh en lah SYEH-rrah · “On Sundays we go hiking in the mountains.”
  2. ir de campingeer deh KAM-peen · to go camping
    Este veranothis summervamoswe-gode camping.camping
    ES-teh beh-RAH-noh BAH-mohs deh KAM-peen · “This summer we’re going camping.”
  3. ir de excursióneer deh eks-koor-SYON · to go on a day trip
    Mañanatomorrowvamoswe-gode excursiónon a-tripal lago.to-the lake
    mah-NYAH-nah BAH-mohs deh eks-koor-SYON al LAH-goh · “Tomorrow we’re going on a trip to the lake.”
  4. bañarsebah-NYAR-seh · to go for a swim
    Nosourselvesbañamoswe-batheen el río.in the river
    nohs bah-NYAH-mohs en el RREE-oh · “We swim in the river.”
  5. dar un paseodar oon pah-SEH-oh · to go for a walk
    Damoswe-giveun paseoa walkpor el bosque.through the forest
    DAH-mohs oon pah-SEH-oh por el BOS-keh · “We go for a walk in the forest.”
  6. tomar el soltoh-MAR el SOL · to sunbathe
    Ellashetomatakesel solthe sunen la playa.on the beach
    EH-yah TOH-mah el SOL en lah PLAH-yah · “She’s sunbathing on the beach.”
Keep going

Related guides

Weather vocabularyHace sol, llueve and the seasons.School vocabularyBiology and geography lessons.Gender and articlesWhy it is el agua but las aguas.Spanish hubThe full course map from A1 to C2.