Learn Spanish Lesson 5
Lesson 5: Family, Professions, and Describing People
Section titled “Lesson 5: Family, Professions, and Describing People”Welcome to Lesson 5!
Now that you can introduce yourself and talk about everyday activities, it’s time to learn how to describe people, talk about your family, and discuss occupations.
By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to:
- Talk about your family.
- Describe people.
- Say what someone does for a living.
- Use possessive adjectives like “my” and “your.”
Learning objectives
Section titled “Learning objectives”After completing this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name family members.
- Describe appearance and personality.
- Talk about professions.
- Use possessive adjectives correctly.
Family members
Section titled “Family members”| English | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Family | Familia |
| Father | Padre |
| Mother | Madre |
| Parents | Padres |
| Brother | Hermano |
| Sister | Hermana |
| Son | Hijo |
| Daughter | Hija |
| Grandfather | Abuelo |
| Grandmother | Abuela |
| Uncle | Tío |
| Aunt | Tía |
| Cousin | Primo / Prima |
Examples:
Tengo una hermana.
I have a sister.
Mi padre trabaja.
My father works.
Possessive adjectives
Section titled “Possessive adjectives”| English | Spanish |
|---|---|
| My | Mi / Mis |
| Your | Tu / Tus |
| His | Su / Sus |
| Her | Su / Sus |
| Our | Nuestro / Nuestra |
| Their | Su / Sus |
Examples:
Mi casa.
My house.
Tus amigos.
Your friends.
Nuestra familia.
Our family.
Occupations
Section titled “Occupations”| English | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Teacher | Profesor / Profesora |
| Doctor | Médico / Médica |
| Engineer | Ingeniero / Ingeniera |
| Student | Estudiante |
| Lawyer | Abogado / Abogada |
| Nurse | Enfermero / Enfermera |
| Chef | Cocinero / Cocinera |
| Police officer | Policía |
| Pilot | Piloto |
| Accountant | Contador / Contadora |
Examples:
Soy ingeniero.
I am an engineer.
Ella es médica.
She is a doctor.
Mi hermano es piloto.
My brother is a pilot.
Physical appearance
Section titled “Physical appearance”| English | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Tall | Alto / Alta |
| Short | Bajo / Baja |
| Young | Joven |
| Old | Viejo / Vieja |
| Handsome | Guapo |
| Beautiful | Bonita |
| Strong | Fuerte |
| Thin | Delgado / Delgada |
| Fat | Gordo / Gorda |
| Blonde | Rubio / Rubia |
| Dark-haired | Moreno / Morena |
Personality
Section titled “Personality”| English | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Friendly | Amable |
| Intelligent | Inteligente |
| Funny | Divertido / Divertida |
| Quiet | Tranquilo / Tranquila |
| Hardworking | Trabajador / Trabajadora |
| Honest | Honesto / Honesta |
| Kind | Bueno / Buena |
| Patient | Paciente |
Using adjectives
Section titled “Using adjectives”Remember that many adjectives agree with gender and number.
Examples:
Mi hermano es alto.
My brother is tall.
Mi hermana es alta.
My sister is tall.
Mis amigos son inteligentes.
My friends are intelligent.
Describing someone
Section titled “Describing someone”Examples:
Mi madre es profesora.
My mother is a teacher.
Mi padre es muy trabajador.
My father is very hardworking.
Mi hermana es amable.
My sister is kind.
Mini dialogue
Section titled “Mini dialogue”English
Section titled “English”A: Do you have brothers?
B: Yes, I have one brother.
A: What does he do?
B: He is an engineer.
A: Is he friendly?
B: Yes, he is very friendly.
Spanish
Section titled “Spanish”A: ¿Tienes hermanos?
B: Sí, tengo un hermano.
A: ¿A qué se dedica?
B: Es ingeniero.
A: ¿Es amable?
B: Sí, es muy amable.
Grammar tip
Section titled “Grammar tip”The verb tener (to have)
Section titled “The verb tener (to have)”| Subject | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Yo | Tengo |
| Tú | Tienes |
| Él / Ella / Usted | Tiene |
| Nosotros | Tenemos |
| Vosotros | Tenéis |
| Ellos / Ustedes | Tienen |
Examples:
Tengo una familia grande.
I have a big family.
Tenemos dos hijos.
We have two children.
Practice exercise
Section titled “Practice exercise”Translate into Spanish.
- My father is a doctor.
- My sister is very intelligent.
- I have two brothers.
- Our family is big.
- Your mother is friendly.
- They have three children.
- She is an engineer.
Answers
Section titled “Answers”- Mi padre es médico.
- Mi hermana es muy inteligente.
- Tengo dos hermanos.
- Nuestra familia es grande.
- Tu madre es amable.
- Ellos tienen tres hijos.
- Ella es ingeniera.
Speaking challenge
Section titled “Speaking challenge”Read these aloud three times:
- Mi familia es grande.
- Tengo dos hermanos.
- Mi padre es ingeniero.
- Mi madre es profesora.
- Somos una familia feliz.
- Ella es muy amable.
- Él tiene un hermano.
Key takeaways
Section titled “Key takeaways”In this lesson, you learned:
- Family vocabulary.
- Possessive adjectives.
- Common professions.
- Physical and personality adjectives.
- The verb tener.
- How to describe yourself and other people.
Continue to Lesson 6, where you’ll learn telling the time, daily routines, frequency expressions, and common reflexive verbs used in everyday life.