Naming a profession: gender, the -ista ending and 'soy médico' with no article
A profession in Spanish is a noun with two forms, one masculine and one feminine. The main row ends in -o and -a: el panadero, la panadera; el veterinario, la veterinaria. For example: “Mi padre es albañil y mi madre es contable” — My father is a builder and my mother is an accountant. A rule from the Spanish course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
A profession in Spanish is a noun with two forms, one masculine and one feminine. The main row ends in -o and -a: el panadero, la panadera; el veterinario, la veterinaria.
Words in -or add -a rather than swapping it: el traductor, la traductora.
The second row does not change at all, and only the article shows the gender. That covers everything in -ista: el electricista, la electricista. And nearly everything in -e: el cantante, la cantante.
The main thing to learn: after ser a profession takes no article. Soy sastre, es contable. The article comes back as soon as a describing word joins: es un fontanero excelente.
Table
| row | masculine | feminine | what to remember |
|---|---|---|---|
| -o / -a | el panadero | la panadera | the most common |
| -or / -ora | el traductor | la traductora | add -a, do not swap |
| -ista | el electricista | la electricista | one word, different article |
| -e | el cantante | la cantante | the same |
| a trap | el músico | la música | also 'music' |
| a trap | el poeta | la poeta | ends in -a, yet masculine |
| after ser | soy sastre | es sastre | no article |
| with an appraisal | es un buen sastre | es una buena sastra | the article is back |
By example
- Mi padre es albañil y mi madre es contableMy father is a builder and my mother is an accountant
- Es una diseñadora muy buena, trabaja para toda EuropaShe is a very good designer, she works for all of Europe
- La electricista llega a las ocho, el fontanero despuésThe electrician comes at eight, the plumber after
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Soy médico or soy un médico?
A profession in Spanish is a noun with two forms, one masculine and one feminine. The main row ends in -o and -a: el panadero, la panadera; el veterinario, la veterinaria.
El electricista or la electricista?
Words in -or add -a rather than swapping it: el traductor, la traductora.
El músico vs la música?
The second row does not change at all, and only the article shows the gender. That covers everything in -ista: el electricista, la electricista. And nearly everything in -e: el cantante, la cantante.
Why there is no article after ser in Spanish?
The main thing to learn: after ser a profession takes no article. Soy sastre, es contable. The article comes back as soon as a describing word joins: es un fontanero excelente.
How to say your profession in Spanish?
The main thing to learn: after ser a profession takes no article. Soy sastre, es contable. The article comes back as soon as a describing word joins: es un fontanero excelente.
What does it look like in an example sentence Spanish?
“Mi padre es albañil y mi madre es contable” — My father is a builder and my mother is an accountant. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.