Family
Familia
- Introduce and tell about your family.
- Ask someone about their family. (size, structure,...)
- possessive adjectives
Learn essential Spanish family vocabulary and possessive adjectives in this A1 lesson. Practice words like 'mi hermano' (my brother), 'nuestra abuela' (our grandmother), and key phrases to describe family members and relationships.
Listening & reading materials
Practice vocabulary in context with real materials.
Vocabulary (18) Share Copied!
Exercises Share Copied!
These exercises can be done together during conversation lessons or as homework.
Exercise 1: Reorder sentences
Instruction: Make correct sentences and translate.
Exercise 2: Match a word
Instruction: Match the translations
Exercise 3: Cluster the words
Instruction: Classify the words into two groups depending on whether they refer to direct family members or to couple relationships.
Familiares directos
Relaciones de pareja
Exercise 4: Translate and use in a sentence
Instruction: Pick a word, translated and use the word in a sentence or dialogue.
1
La hermana
The sister
2
La prima
The cousin
3
El marido
The husband
4
La mujer
The woman
5
El tío
The uncle
Ejercicio 5: Conversation exercise
Instrucción:
- Describe the indicated relationships between the family members. (Describe the indicated relationships between the family members.)
Teaching guidelines +/- 10 minutes
Example phrases:
|
Juliette es la esposa de Mark. Juliette is the wife of Mark. |
|
Alexis y Louise son los abuelos de Anna. Alexis and Louise are the grandparents of Anna. |
|
Marco es el hijo de Birgit y Stephan. Marco is the son of Birgit and Stephan. |
|
El niño y la niña son hermanos. The boy and the girl are siblings. |
|
Caitlin es la madre de dos niñas. Caitlin is the mother of two girls. |
|
La chica tiene dos hermanos. The girl has two brothers. |
| ... |
Exercise 6: Dialogue Cards
Instruction: Select a situation and practice the conversation with your teacher or fellow students.
Exercise 7: Multiple Choice
Instruction: Choose the correct solution
1. Mi hermano ___ dos hijos y una hija.
(My brother ___ two sons and one daughter.)2. Nosotros ___ a nuestros abuelos cada domingo.
(We ___ our grandparents every Sunday.)3. ¿Tú ___ muchos amigos en España?
(Do you ___ many friends in Spain?)4. Ellos ___ a sus primos durante las vacaciones.
(They ___ their cousins during the holidays.)Exercise 8: A family gathering
Instruction:
Verb Tables
Tener - Have
Presente
- yo tengo
- tú tienes
- él/ella/usted tiene
- nosotros/nosotras tenemos
- vosotros/vosotras tenéis
- ellos/ellas/ustedes tienen
Visitar - Visit
Presente
- yo visito
- tú visitas
- él/ella/usted visita
- nosotros/nosotras visitamos
- vosotros/vosotras visitáis
- ellos/ellas/ustedes visitan
Exercise 9: Los adjetivos posesivos
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
Grammar: Possessive adjectives
Show translation Show answerstu, Nuestros, Mis, Mi, Nuestras, tus, vuestro, Vuestra
Grammar Share Copied!
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Verb conjugation tables for this lesson Share Copied!
Tener to have Share Copied!
Presente
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (yo) tengo | I have |
| (tú) tienes | You have |
| (él/ella) tiene | he has/she has |
| (nosotros/nosotras) tenemos | we have |
| (vosotros/vosotras) tenéis | you have |
| (ellos/ellas) tienen | they have |
Visitar to visit Share Copied!
Presente
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (yo) visito | I visit |
| (tú) visitas | You visit |
| (él/ella) visita | he/she visits |
| (nosotros/nosotras) visitamos | we visit |
| (vosotros/vosotras) visitáis | you visit |
| (ellos/ellas) visitan | they visit |
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Lesson Overview: Family and Possessive Adjectives in Spanish
This lesson focuses on describing family members and using possessive adjectives to talk about relationships and belongings. The topic is ideal for A1 learners beginning to build basic conversational skills about personal and family life.
Key Vocabulary: Family Members
- el abuelo (grandfather)
- la abuela (grandmother)
- el padre (father)
- la madre (mother)
- el hermano (brother)
- la hermana (sister)
- el marido (husband)
- el novio (boyfriend)
Using Possessive Adjectives
Possessive adjectives in Spanish (mi, tu, su, nuestro, etc.) indicate ownership or relation to family members, just like in English. For example:
- Mi madre prepara una comida familiar cada domingo. — My mother prepares a family meal every Sunday.
- Nuestros hermanos viven en la misma ciudad que nosotros. — Our siblings live in the same city as us.
- Tu primo es muy simpático y siempre ayuda en las reuniones familiares. — Your cousin is very nice and always helps at family gatherings.
Practice Dialogues
Sample dialogues guide you through:
- Introducing family members and asking about others' families.
- Describing family size and relationships using possessive adjectives.
- Discussing family living situations and common activities.
Verb Practice: Tener and Visitar
The verbs tener (to have) and visitar (to visit) are essential for discussing family. Conjugation in the present tense includes forms like:
- yo tengo / nosotros tenemos
- tú tienes / vosotros tenéis
- él/ella tiene / ellos tienen
- yo visito / nosotros visitamos
- tú visitas / vosotros visitáis
- él/ella visita / ellos visitan
Example: Mi hermano tiene dos hijos y una hija.
Cultural and Language Notes
In English, possessive adjectives correspond closely to Spanish ones; however, Spanish possessive adjectives agree in number (singular/plural) with the noun they modify, not with the possessor. For example, mi familia (my family - singular) versus mis padres (my parents - plural). Also, Spanish often uses definite articles with family members when the possessive adjective is in the third person: su hermano (his/her brother).
Some useful phrases include:
- ¿Cómo es tu familia? — What is your family like?
- Mi familia es grande/pequeña. — My family is big/small.
- Tenemos una comida familiar cada domingo. — We have a family meal every Sunday.
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