Ñ is the fifteenth letter and the twelfth consonant of the Spanish alphabet. The letter Ñ is exclusive to Spanish and other languages derived from it, and is formed by writing a tilde or virgulilla over the letter n. It has a very low occurrence in Spanish, appearing before or in between vowels.
José es español pero vive en Portugal.
José is Spanish but lives in Portugal.El año que viene iré a la universidad.
Next year I’ll go to college.
The letter Ñ may only appear in initial or middle position in the word:
- Words starting with Ñ: ñu (wildebeest), ñame (yam), ñato (snub-nosed).
- Words with Ñ in them: niño (boy), pequeño (small), cariño (affection).
Pronunciation tip: The Spanish letter Ñ is pronounced ni (n + i), much like the sound in “canyon” or “onion”. It is a palatal nasal sound, meaning that to articulate it, the body of the tongue presses against the palate, blocking airflow, which is released through the nose:
- Unlike English, which has 26 letters, Spanish has 27, due to the existence of Ñ.
- Though the letter Ñ is unique to the Spanish language, the same phoneme or sound exists in other languages from Latin origin, mostly represented by the digraph gn, such as the Italian word lasagna, or the French word sauvignon.
- See also: Words with N
Spanish nouns starting with Ñ
| ñandú rhea (bird like the ostrich) | ñapindá (creeper subtropical plant) | ñoñez ungracefulness |
| ñame yam (edible root) | ñampí taro (edible tuber) | Ñeembukeño of/from Ñeembucú |
| ñandubay (South American tree) | ñacurutú desert great horned owl (nocturnal bird of prey) | ñinga a pinch of something |
| ñu wildebeest (large horned African mammal) | ñaque (collection of useless objects) | ñapa a bit extra |
| ñáñara disgust or fear | ñangazo bite | ñandutí white spider |
*Few of the above words are of widespread use.
Spanish nouns with Ñ in them
| niña girl | viñedo vineyard | otoño fall, autumn |
| muñeca doll | champiñón mushroom | corpiño bra |
| montaña mountain | compañero classmate | puño fist |
| araña spider | leña firewood | rebaño flock, herd |
| piña pineapple | cigüeña stork | reseña review |
| uña nail | daño damage | tamaño size |
| cumpleaños birthday | diseño design | cañón canyon |
| sueño sleep, dream | dueño owner | riñón kidney |
| señora Mrs. | engaño deceit | puñal dagger |
| cabaña cabin | pañuelo handkerchief | cuñado brother-in-law |
Tenemos una cabaña junto al lago en el Sur.
We have a cabin by the lake in the South.El tsunami provocó un daño incalculable.
The tsunami caused incalculable damage.¿Quién es el dueño de este automóvil?
Who is the owner of this car?Se cultivan uvas Sauvignon Blanc en los viñedos de esta región.
Sauvignon Blanc grapes are grown in the vineyards of this region.
- See also: Spanish nouns
Spanish adjectives with Ñ in them
| pequeño small | caribeño Caribbean | añoso old |
| extraño strange | otoñal autumnal, fall | preñada pregnant |
| español Spanish | dañino harmful | señalado indicated |
| montañoso mountainous | puertorriqueño Puerto Rican | hondureño Honduran |
| añejo mature, old | mañanero morning | panameño Panamanian |
| peñascoso rocky, craggy | carroñero carrion eating | acompañante accompanying |
| ceñido tight-fitting | reseñable worth reviewing | añadido added |
| dañado damaged | empañado misty | montañero pertaining to the mountain |
| engañoso deceitful | reñido hard-fought | enseñable easily taught |
| enmarañado tangled | entrañable close, dear | castaño brown, chestnut |
Amo la comida española, especialmente los mariscos.
I love Spanish food, especially seafood.Te traje un pequeño presente para tu cumpleaños.
I brought you a small gift for your birthday.No creas todo lo que ves; esta publicidad es engañosa.
Don’t believe everything you see; this advertisement is misleading.Saona es una isla caribeña frente a la costa de la República Dominicana.
Saona is a Caribbean island off the coast of Dominican Republic.
Adjectives with Ñ to describe a person
| cariñoso loving, affectionate | gruñón grumpy | roñoso filthy |
| risueño cheerful | tacaño stingy | greñudo disheveled |
| soñador dreamy | huraño retiring, unsociable | ñoño dull |
| hogareño home-loving | desdeñoso disdainful | desaliñado slovenly |
| lampiño hairless | mañoso handy | ñato snub-nosed |
Debes tener los pies en la tierra y no ser tan soñador.
You must keep your feet on the ground and not be so dreamy.María es una niña risueña y de buen carácter.
Maria is a cheerful and easygoing girl.
- See also: Spanish adjectives
Spanish verbs with Ñ in them
| añadir to add | refunfuñar to grumble | aliñar to dress, season |
| bañar to bathe | reñir to quarrel | ceñir to cling to |
| dañar to damage | teñir to dye | señalizar to signpost |
| soñar to dream | arañar to scratch | amañar to fix, rig |
| enseñar to teach | empañar to mist | apiñar to cram |
| engañar to deceive | apañar to rig | encariñarse to get attached to |
| extrañar to miss | añejar to age | ordeñar to milk |
| acompañar to accompany | añorar to miss | rapiñar to snatch |
| guiñar to wink | acuñar to coin | preñar to impregnate |
| señalar to point at | desempeñar to perform | bruñir to polish, burnish |
La madre bañó al niño y luego lo acostó.
The mother bathed the child and then tucked him in bed.Mi hermana es profesora; enseña inglés.
My sister is a teacher; she teaches English.El auto se dañó por completo en el accidente.
The car was completely damaged in the accident.Es bastante fácil encariñarse con un cachorro bueno y juguetón.
It’s pretty easy to get attached to a good and playful puppy.
- See also: Spanish verbs
Spanish adverbs with Ñ in them
| cariñosamente lovingly | extrañamente strangely | pequeñamente trivially |
| entrañablemente dearly | desdeñosamente disdainfully | acompañadamente jointly |
| empeñosamente perseveringly | desaliñadamente slovenly | mañosamente skillfully |
| engañosamente deceitfully | añejamente for a long time | señaladamente distinctly |
| reñidamente hard fought | tacañamente stingily | enmarañadamente labyrinthically |
Papá me abrazó cariñosamente y me dijo que todo iba a estar bien.
Dad hugged me affectionately and told me everything was going to be alright.Quiero a mis amigos entrañablemente.
I love my friends dearly.Extrañamente, los niños están completamente callados.
Strangely, the children are completely silent.Ella trabaja empeñosamente para alcanzar sus objetivos.
She works hard to achieve her goals.
- See also: Spanish adverbs
More everyday Spanish words with Ñ in them
Some more everyday Spanish words with Ñ in them include:
pañal
diaper
piñata
piñata
niñera
nanny
añicos
smithereens
artimaña
ruse
hazaña
deed
muñón
stump
alimaña
vermin
antaño
formerly
albañil
bricklayer
ermitaño
hermit
¿Le puedes cambiar el pañal al bebé?
Can you change the baby's diaper?
Subir a la cumbre del Monte Everest es una verdadera hazaña.
Climbing to the summit of Mount Everest is a real feat.
El jarrón se cayó y se hizo añicos.
The vase fell and shattered into pieces.
Compraremos una gran piñata para tu cumpleaños.
We’ll buy a big piñata for your birthday.
You may also like:
References
- Wordreference.com, “castañuela,” accessed November 12, 2024, https://www.wordreference.com/
- Oxford Spanish Dictionary, 3rd edition on CD-ROM, Oxford University Press.
- Real Academia Española, Diccionario del estudiante, under “soñoliento,” accessed November 12, 2024, https://www.rae.es/
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary, accessed November 12, 2024, under “castanet,” https://www.merriam-webster.com/
- Enciclopedia del Lenguaje, “Palabras con Ñ,” by Carla Giani. Last updated October 25, 2024, https://lenguaje.com/
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