un and una - singularsingularThe grammatical form used for exactly one person or thing.
A masculinemasculineA noun's gender that typically takes el or un in Spanish. singularsingularThe grammatical form used for exactly one person or thing. nounnounA word that names a person, thing, place, or idea, such as house or sun. takes un: un libro (a book), un coche (a car), un amigo (a friend). A femininefeminineA noun's gender that typically takes la or una in Spanish. singularsingularThe grammatical form used for exactly one person or thing. nounnounA word that names a person, thing, place, or idea, such as house or sun. takes una: una casa (a house), una familia (a family).
un and una match el and la, just indefinite: el libro (the book, one particular book) versus un libro (a book, any book).
unos and unas - pluralpluralThe grammatical form used for more than one person or thing.
In the pluralpluralThe grammatical form used for more than one person or thing., un becomes unos: unos libros (some books), unos coches (some cars). una becomes unas: unas casas (some houses), unas familias (some families).
unos/unas match los/las, also indefinite: los libros (the books) versus unos libros (some books).
un/una or el/la?
Use un/una when you mention something for the first time or don't specify which one: Tengo un coche. (I have a car - some car.) Use el/la once it's clear which thing you mean: El coche está aquí. (The car is here - a specific one.)
Examples
- un libro y una casa
- un coche y un amigo
- unos libros y unas casas
- Tengo un amigo en Madrid.