Los miembros de la familia (the family members) is the name given to the group of people collectively known as la familia (the family). The family members in Spanish are:
| madre mother | padre father | hijo son |
| hija daughter | hermano brother | hermana sister |
| esposo, marido husband | esposa wife | abuelo grandfather |
| abuela grandmother | nieto grandson | nieta granddaughter |
| tío uncle | tía aunt | sobrino nephew |
| sobrina niece | primo male cousin | prima female cousin |
| suegro father-in-law | suegra mother-in-law | yerno son-in-law |
| nuera daughter-in-law | cuñado brother-in-law | cuñada sister-in-law |
| madrastra stepmother | padrastro stepfather | medio hermano half-brother |
| medio hermana half-sister | hijastro stepson | hijastra stepdaughter |
| bisabuelo great-grandfather | bisabuela great-grandmother | tatarabuelo great-great-grandfather |
| tatarabuela great-great-grandmother | bisnieto great grandson | bisnieta great granddaughter |
Quick tips:
- Male family members in Spanish end in o, while female members end in a. The only exceptions are the words madre (mother) and padre or papá (father).
- The Spanish words madre and padre are formal. The colloquial words mamá and papá are more usual in everyday contexts.
- The word for “parents” is padres or papás, not parientes, which is a false friend meaning “relatives”.
- To refer to family couples and groups within the family, masculine plural nouns are used regardless of the sex as generic names: hermanos (brothers and sisters), abuelos (grandfather and grandmother), nietos (grandson and granddaughter), tíos (uncle and aunt), primos (male and female cousins).
- Mami and ma are affectionate words equivalent to “mommy” and “mom”, while papi and pa mean “daddy” and “dad”. Abu is the colloquial word for “grandpa” or “grandma”, with the plural word abus including both genders.
Introducing family members in Spanish
When introducing family members in Spanish, personal pronouns are used (él, ella, meaning “he”, “she”) rather than demonstrative pronouns (this, that) like in English. To talk about family bond, possessive adjectives are used: mi, tu, su (meaning my, your, their).
Él es mi marido.
He’s my husband.Su nombre es José.
His name is José.
The verb ser (to be) is a high-frequency verb in these contexts, except for ages, where tener (have) is used:
Es maestro.
He’s a teacher.Tiene 30 (años).
He’s 30 (years old).
Unlike in English, in Spanish the article is not used to talk about a person’s job or profession: Es maestro (and not: Es un maestro).
Talking about family members
To describe family members and talk about family background in Spanish, the following sentences and questions may be used:
—¿Eres hijo único?
Are you an only child?
—No, tengo un hermano mayor y una hermana menor.
No, I have an elder sister and a younger brother.
—¿Cómo se llama tu mamá?
What’s your mother’s name?
—Se llama María.
Her name is María.
—¿Cuántos años tiene tu hermana?
How old is your sister?
—Tiene 20 años.
She’s 20 years old.
—¿Cómo luce tu hermano?
What does your brother look like?
—Es alto y tiene el cabello rizado.
He’s tall and has curly hair.
—¿A qué se dedica tu padre?
What does your father do?
—Es abogado.
He’s a lawyer.
—¿Cómo es tu madre?
What’s your mother like?
—Es alta y muy graciosa.
She’s tall and very funny.
—¿Tu tío tiene algún hobby?
Does your uncle have any hobbies?
—Sí, juega al tenis.
Yes, he plays tennis.
—¿Quién es el miembro más joven de tu familia?
What’s the youngest member in your family?
—El miembro más joven de mi familia es mi sobrina.
The youngest member in my family is my niece.
—¿Cuántos años tiene tu hija?
How old is your daughter?
—Acaba de cumplir cinco años.
She just turned five.
—¿Tienes novia?
Do you have a girlfriend?
—Sí, su nombre es Juana.
Yes, her name is Juana.
—¿Quién es tu prima preferida?
Who’s your favorite cousin?
—Mi prima preferida es Isabel.
My favorite cousin is Isabel.
—¿Dónde nació tu bisabuelo?
Where was your great grandfather born?
—Nació en Francia.
He was born in France.
Family-related words in Spanish
Other family relationships and family-related words include:
| pariente relative | abuela materna maternal grandmother | abuelo paterno paternal grandfather |
| hermano mayor elder brother | hermana menor younger sister | hijo único only child |
| madre adoptiva foster mother | padre adoptivo foster father | primo hermano first cousin |
| primo segundo second cousin | tío abuelo granduncle | tía abuela grandaunt |
| sobrino nieto grandnephew | sobrina nieta grandniece | pareja partner |
| novia girlfriend | novio boyfriend | prometido fiancé |
| prometida fiancée | cónyuge spouse | madrina godmother |
| padrino godfather | ahijado godson | ahijada goddaughter |
| familia directa immediate family | familia ampliada extended family | familia política in-laws |
| familia ensamblada blended family | familia postiza stepfamily | árbol genealógico family tree |
Was this information useful to you?
Yes NoGreat!, thank you for visiting us :)