How to Say Life in Spanish
Say vida., Use the correct possessive pronoun., Recognize other Spanish words that also mean life.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Say vida.
In Spanish, the word vida means the same thing as the English word life.
It is a feminine word, so you would say la vida in most instances.
Vida is pronounced VEE-dah.For example, if you said "eso es la vida," (pronounced ESS-oh ess lah VEE-dah) you would be saying "this is the life." You may remember the song "Livin' La Vida Loca," by Ricky Martin.
The title of the song, fully translated into English, would be "Livin' the crazy life." If you need to pluralize vida, you would say las vidas, which means "the lives." -
Step 2: Use the correct possessive pronoun.
Sometimes you may want to refer to your life, or to someone else's life.
In those situations, instead of using la or las before the word vida, you would use the word that corresponds to the person whose life you're talking about.For example, if you wanted to say "my life is crazy," you would say "mi vida es loca." Mi is the Spanish possessive pronoun that means "my." If you wanted to say "her life is beautiful," you might say "su vida es bella." Note that since the word vida is feminine, the adjective is feminine as well ("bella" instead of "bello").
This is the case whether you're talking about a man or a woman with a beautiful life – the adjective describes the life, so the gender of the adjective matches that of the noun, not the person whose life you're describing.
The familiar possessive pronoun for "you" is "tu." If you're talking to a group of people, or if you're addressing someone with whom you're not on familiar terms, you would use "vuestra." This is the feminine form, since the word vida is feminine.
To speak about "our" life, you would use the possessive pronoun "nuestra" (nuestra vida).
Note that you use plurals if you are discussing multiple things.
In this context, a single life would take a singular possessive pronoun.
If you were talking about several lives, you would use the plural "tus" for the familiar you (tus vidas), "mis" for "my" multiple lives (mis vidas), "nuestras" for "our" multiple lives (nuestras vidas), or "vuestras" for "y'all's multiple lives (vuestras vidas). , In English, the word life is used in many phrases and contexts for which there is a different word in Spanish.
In those situations, the word vida would be incorrect.In Spanish, the word vital (pronounced VEE-tal) is used in many places where you would use the word life in English.
For example, "life cycle" is "ciclo vital," and "life force" is "fuerza vital." However, "life form" is "forma de vida." The word vida typically only refers to living things.
So, for example, if you're speaking about battery life, you would use the phrase la duración, as in "Las pilas tienan una duration de dos meses" ("The batteries have a life of two months").
If someone is sentenced to life in prison for committing a crime, the phrase you would use would be cadena perpetua. -
Step 3: Recognize other Spanish words that also mean life.
Detailed Guide
In Spanish, the word vida means the same thing as the English word life.
It is a feminine word, so you would say la vida in most instances.
Vida is pronounced VEE-dah.For example, if you said "eso es la vida," (pronounced ESS-oh ess lah VEE-dah) you would be saying "this is the life." You may remember the song "Livin' La Vida Loca," by Ricky Martin.
The title of the song, fully translated into English, would be "Livin' the crazy life." If you need to pluralize vida, you would say las vidas, which means "the lives."
Sometimes you may want to refer to your life, or to someone else's life.
In those situations, instead of using la or las before the word vida, you would use the word that corresponds to the person whose life you're talking about.For example, if you wanted to say "my life is crazy," you would say "mi vida es loca." Mi is the Spanish possessive pronoun that means "my." If you wanted to say "her life is beautiful," you might say "su vida es bella." Note that since the word vida is feminine, the adjective is feminine as well ("bella" instead of "bello").
This is the case whether you're talking about a man or a woman with a beautiful life – the adjective describes the life, so the gender of the adjective matches that of the noun, not the person whose life you're describing.
The familiar possessive pronoun for "you" is "tu." If you're talking to a group of people, or if you're addressing someone with whom you're not on familiar terms, you would use "vuestra." This is the feminine form, since the word vida is feminine.
To speak about "our" life, you would use the possessive pronoun "nuestra" (nuestra vida).
Note that you use plurals if you are discussing multiple things.
In this context, a single life would take a singular possessive pronoun.
If you were talking about several lives, you would use the plural "tus" for the familiar you (tus vidas), "mis" for "my" multiple lives (mis vidas), "nuestras" for "our" multiple lives (nuestras vidas), or "vuestras" for "y'all's multiple lives (vuestras vidas). , In English, the word life is used in many phrases and contexts for which there is a different word in Spanish.
In those situations, the word vida would be incorrect.In Spanish, the word vital (pronounced VEE-tal) is used in many places where you would use the word life in English.
For example, "life cycle" is "ciclo vital," and "life force" is "fuerza vital." However, "life form" is "forma de vida." The word vida typically only refers to living things.
So, for example, if you're speaking about battery life, you would use the phrase la duración, as in "Las pilas tienan una duration de dos meses" ("The batteries have a life of two months").
If someone is sentenced to life in prison for committing a crime, the phrase you would use would be cadena perpetua.
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Mary Hart
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