A is the first letter of the alphabet and the first of the five vowels. It is a high-frequency letter in Spanish.
El azul es mi color favorito.
Blue is my favorite color.El avión despegará en horario.
The plane will departure on time.
The letter A may appear in initial, middle, or final position in the word:
- Words starting with A: azul (blue), amar (to love), anteojos (glasses).
- Words with A in them: lata (can), naranjo (orange tree), cambio (change).
- Words ending in A: rosa (pink), coma (comma), cuenta (sum).
The letter A in Spanish is an open vowel (the jaw is open to pronounce it), the lips are unrounded, and the tongue is back. Unlike its English counterpart, it is a clear sound, always pronounced in the same way regardless of adjacent sounds or position in the word:
Quick tip: Most Spanish words ending in -a are feminine in gender, taking the feminine article la (“the”) or una (meaning “a”): casa (house), hora (hour), tienda (store), película (movie), cara (face).
- See also: Spanish alphabet
Spanish nouns that start with A
| arena sand | año year | amanecer sunrise |
| aire air | almohada pillow | Ana Anna |
| arroz rice | aventura adventure | asiento seat |
| automóvil car | acera sidewalk | alfombra carpet |
| anteojos glasses | arroyo stream | alcalde mayor |
| aceite oil | actor actor | ajedrez chess |
| ayuda help | apellido last name | arte art |
| abecedario alphabet | atención attention | alivio relief |
| aguacate avocado | arco bow | acantilado cliff |
| aldea village | atardecer sunset | Alemania Germany |
Animals starting with A: ardilla (squirrel), asno (donkey), alce (moose), abeja (bee), araña (spider).
Fruits and vegetables starting with A: arándano (blueberry), ananá (pineapple), almendra (almond), acelga (swiss chard), ají (chili pepper), alcachofa (artichoke), ajo (garlic).
Jobs starting with A: abogado (lawyer), arquitecto (architect), artesano (artisan), azafata (flight attendant), autor (author).
Names starting with A: Ángela, Alba, Andrea, Amparo, Antonio, Alfredo, Alberto, Adrián.
Voy a comprar arroz.
I’m going to buy some rice.Amo el amanecer en la playa.
I love the sunrise at the beach.¿Necesitas ayuda?
Do you need help?¿Quién es el autor de este libro?
Who is the author of this book?
- See also: Spanish nouns
Spanish adjectives that start with A
| amarillo yellow | atractivo attractive | ágil agile |
| antiguo ancient, old | afilado sharp | aparente apparent |
| ácido sour | accesible, asequible affordable | ajustado tight |
| agradable nice | abundante abundant | aéreo aerial |
| artificial artificial | amplio spacious | apacible calm |
| amargo bitter | acogedor cozy | áspero harsh |
| aburrido boring | angosto narrow | armonioso harmonious |
| abierto open | ancho wide | anónimo anonymous |
| asombroso amazing | apropiado apropiado | arriesgado risky |
| actual current | aterrador terrifying | anticuado outdated |
El coche de Pedro es antiguo.
Pedro’s car is old.¿El supermercado está abierto?
Is the supermarket open?La historia que me contó es aterradora.
The story he told me is terrifying.La situación actual no es buena.
The current situation is not good.
Adjectives starting with A to describe a person
| alegre happy, cheerful | amigable friendly | aventurero adventurous |
| amable kind | afectuoso affectionate | anciano elderly |
| afortunado lucky | atrevido daring | ambicioso ambitious |
| astuto astute | audaz bold | arrogante arrogant |
| apasionado passionate | ansioso anxious | aburrido bored, boring |
Juana es una artista apasionada.
Juana is a passionate artist.Estoy ansioso por el examen de mañana.
I am anxious about tomorrow's exam.
- See also: Spanish adjectives
Spanish verbs that start with A
| amar to love | aceptar to accept | añadir to add |
| abrir to open | arreglar to fix, solve | alcanzar to reach |
| aprender to learn | asombrar to amaze | asistir to attend, assist |
| ayudar to help | avisar to let (someone) know | actuar to act |
| andar to ride (a horse, a bike) | abrazar to hug | aclarar to clarify |
| agradecer to thank | acelerar to speed up, accelerate | apoyar to support |
| almorzar to have lunch | adivinar to guess | acordar to agree |
| ahorrar to save | atar to tie | asegurar to assure |
| aplaudir to clap | aumentar to increase | acariciar to caress |
| aprobar to pass, approve | admirar to admire | alquilar to rent |
La admiro profundamente.
I admire her deeply.El fin de semana anduve en bicicleta.
I rode my bike over the weekend.Te aseguro que es verdad.
I assure you it’s true.Adivina qué edad tengo.
Guess how old I am.
- See also: Spanish verbs
Spanish adverbs that start with A
| ahora now | adentro inside | aleatoriamente randomly |
| ayer yesterday | apenas hardly | antiguamente in the past |
| antes before | así like this | aparentemente apparently |
| anoche last night | aún still, yet | automáticamente automatically |
| aquí here | alrededor around | artificialmente artificially |
| allá over there | adrede on purpose | alegremente happily, cheerfully |
| allí there | asimismo likewise, also | atentamente attentively |
| arriba above | aparte aside, apart | a veces sometimes |
| abajo below | afortunadamente fortunately | a menudo often |
| afuera outside | amablemente kindly | al instante right away |
Anoche vi una buena película.
I saw a good movie last night.La abuela siempre camina alrededor del parque.
Grandma always walks around the park.Afortunadamente, se dieron cuenta del error.
Fortunately, they noticed the mistake.Esta bebida está saborizada artificialmente.
This drink is artificially flavored.
- See also: Spanish adverbs
More everyday Spanish words that start with A
Some more everyday Spanish words that start with A include:
adiós
goodbye
aquel
that
algo
something, anything
alguien
somebody
alguno
some, somebody, something, any
aproximadamente
approximately
adelante
ahead
al
to
ah
ah
Nos vemos pronto, adiós.
See you soon, bye.
¿Quién pintó aquel cuadro?
Who painted that painting?
Es un viaje de aproximadamente 1 hora.
It's approximately a 1-hour trip.
¿Alguno sabe cuál es la capital de Singapur?
Does anybody know what the capital of Singapore is?
You may also like:
Practice: Spanish words with A
References
- Wordreference.com, “aparte,” accessed October 7, 2024, https://www.wordreference.com/
- Oxford Spanish Dictionary, 3rd edition on CD-ROM, Oxford University Press.
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary, accessed October 7, 2024, under “astute,” https://www.merriam-webster.com/
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