Understanding Spanish On The Internet And In Email
How Does "This" Translate Into Spanish?
As an adjective
The translation este agrees in number and gender with the nouns it modifies; this is translated by este, esta, and these by estos, estas, depending on what follows:
- this book/magazine = este libro/esta revista
- these books/magazines = estos libros/estas revistas
As a pronoun
Again, the translation éste agrees in number and gender with the nouns it is standing for; this is translated by éste, ésta, and those by éstos, éstas, depending on what is being referred to:
- this (one) is mine = éste es el mío
- these are my best roses = éstas son mis mejores rosas
? When this as a pronoun is used to refer to something which is not specified for gender, it is translated by the neuter esto:
- what’s this? = ?qué es esto?
- this is very difficult = esto es muy difícil
Sometimes it is not translated at all:
- this is Mike (speaking) = habla Mike
For more examples and particular usages see the entries for this
See more from Grammar Notes
Learn More About The Spanish Language With These Tips