Are you ready to test your Spanish accents skills? This comprehensive Spanish accents quiz will challenge your understanding of tildes (accent marks ´), pronunciation rules, and help you master one of the most crucial aspects of Spanish grammar. Whether you're studying palabras agudas, graves, or esdrújulas, this quiz covers the essential accent mark rules you need to know.
Before diving into our Spanish accents quiz, let's quickly review the fundamental rules that govern when and where to place accent marks (tildes) in Spanish.
Spanish words are classified into three main groups based on where the stress falls:
Palabras Agudas (Oxytone Words)
Stress on the last syllable
Add tilde when ending in vowel, n, or s
Examples: café (coffee), también (too)
Palabras Graves/Llanas (Paroxytone Words)
Stress on the second-to-last syllable
Add tilde when NOT ending in vowel, n, or s
Examples: árbol (tree), lápiz (pencil)
Palabras Esdrújulas (Proparoxytone Words)
Stress on the third-to-last syllable
ALWAYS carry a tilde
Examples: música (music), rápido (fast)
Diphthongs (two vowels in same syllable) follow the general accent rules, while hiatus (vowels in separate syllables) has special rules. When a weak vowel (i, u) is stressed next to a strong vowel (a, e, o), the weak vowel always gets a tilde to break the diphthong: día (day), río (river).
Some Spanish words are spelled identically but have completely different meanings depending on whether they carry a tilde. For example, más (more) vs. mas (but), tú (you) vs. tu (your), or sé (I know) vs. se (reflexive pronoun). These diacritical accents distinguish meaning and prevent confusion.
Now it's time to put your knowledge to the test! This Spanish accents practice quiz includes questions on all major topics. Choose the correct answer for each question.
a) dolor (pain)
b) papel (paper)
c) cancion (song)
d) animal (animal)
a) in the last syllable (co)
b) in the second-to-last syllable (ni)
c) in the third-to-last syllable (tro)
d) It doesn't need an accent
a) lápiz (pencil)
b) dificíl (difficult)
c) rápido (fast)
d) guía (guide)
a) True
b) False
a) Yo no sé si él esta tomando te
b) Yo no se sí él está tomando té
c) Yo no sé sí él esta tomando te
d) Yo no sé si él está tomando té
a) honor (honor)
b) feliz (happy)
c) compas (compass)
d) ciudad (city)
a) True
b) False
a) hipopotamo (hippopotamus)
b) delfin (dolphin)
c) ballena (whale)
d) tarantula (tarantula)
a) Mi tia es mas alta que mi mamá
b) Mí tia es más alta que mi mamá
c) Mi tía es más alta que mi mamá
d) Mi tía es más alta que mí mamá
a) Chile
b) Peru
c) Panama
d) Mexico
The correct answer is canción. Why? Because it is stressed on the last syllable (palabras aguda) and ends with -n, so the accent mark needs to be placed on the last vowel.
No me gusta esta canción.
I don't like this song.
Caption 28, Yago 2 El puma - Part 1
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The correct answer is c) because electrónico is stressed on the third-to-last syllable (palabra esdrújula), so the accent mark is needed.
Era un gran rancho electrónico
It was a great electronic ranch
Caption 15, Hecho en México Documentary - Part 1
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The word difícil is stressed on the second-to-last syllable (palabra grave) and doesn't end in -n, -s, or a vowel, so the accent goes on the second-to-last syllable: di-fí-cil.
Ay, eso va a estar como muy difícil, doctor,
Oh, that's going to be, like, very difficult, Doctor,
Caption 1, Confidencial: Broma pesada Capítulo 4 - Part 14
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In the word egoísta, there's a hiatus occurring between the vowels "o" and "í." Since the weak vowel "í" receives the stress, it forces a separation between "o" and "í," placing them in different syllables: e-go-ís-ta. This creates a four-syllable word.
¡Eres un egoísta, un egoísta, un egoísta!
You're a selfish person, a selfish person, a selfish person!
Caption 32, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 12 - Part 8
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Yo: Doesn't need an accent
no: Doesn't need an accent
sé: Accent needed because it's the first person conjugation of the verb saber (to know) in the present indicative
si: Doesn't need an accent when it means "if" in English
él: Accent needed. The pronoun él (he) always needs an accent
está: Needs an accent because it's a palabra aguda ending in a vowel
tomando: Doesn't need an accent because it's a palabra grave ending in a vowel
té: Accent needed when referring to "tea" in English
The correct answer is compás because it is stressed on the last syllable (palabra aguda) and ends with -s, so the accent mark needs to be placed on the last vowel.
"compás" o "colibrí".
"compás" [compass] or "colibrí" [hummingbird].
Caption 30, Carlos explica Acentuación Cap. 4: Clasificación de las palabras según el acento
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The plural of árbol is árboles. While árbol is a palabra grave that needs an accent mark because it doesn't end in -n, -s, or a vowel, when we form the plural árboles, it becomes a palabra esdrújula (stress on the third-to-last syllable: ár-bo-les). Since all palabras esdrújulas always need an accent mark, árboles must keep the accent.
donde hay árboles muy grandes
where there are very big trees
Caption 30, Silvia nos cuenta El bosque encantado y las emociones mágicas - Part 2
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The correct answer is ballena because it's a palabra grave ending in a vowel, so it doesn't need an accent mark. The other words need accent marks: hipopótamo is a palabra esdrújula (all esdrújulas need accents), delfín is a palabra aguda ending in -n (agudas ending in vowels, -n, or -s need accents), and tarántula is a palabra esdrújula (all esdrújulas need accents).
Tiene la forma y el tamaño de una ballena jorobada.
It has the shape and size of a humpback whale.
Caption 41, Pipo Un paseo por la playa de Atacames
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Mi: Doesn't need an accent when it's a possessive adjective meaning "my"
tía: Needs an accent because there's a hiatus between the weak vowel "í" and the strong vowel "a," creating two separate syllables: tí-a
es: Doesn't need an accent because it's a monosyllabic word
más: Accent needed because it means "more" (distinguishes from mas meaning "but")
alta: Doesn't need an accent because it's a palabra grave ending in a vowel
que: Doesn't need an accent when it means "than" in English
mi: Doesn't need an accent when it's a possessive adjective meaning "my"
mamá: Needs an accent because it's a palabra aguda ending in a vowel
The correct answer is Chile because it's a palabra grave ending in a vowel, so it doesn't need an accent mark. The other countries need accent marks: Perú is a palabra aguda ending in a vowel (agudas ending in vowels, -n, or -s need accents), Panamá is a palabra aguda ending in a vowel, and México is a palabra esdrújula (all esdrújulas need accents).
Seguro que se fue con esa secretaria a Chile.
Surely he went with that secretary to Chile.
Caption 11, Muñeca Brava 8 Trampas - Part 14
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9-10 correct: ¡Excelente! You have a solid grasp of Spanish accent rules.
7-8 correct: Great job! You're well on your way to mastering tildes.
5-6 correct: Good effort! Review the rules and keep practicing.
3-4 correct: Keep studying! Focus on the three main categories.
0-2 correct: Don't worry! Start with the basics and practice regularly.
This Spanish accents test covered the essential rules you need to know for proper Spanish pronunciation and spelling. Remember that mastering tildes takes time and practice, but understanding these patterns will significantly improve your Spanish writing and speaking skills.
Keep practicing with these Spanish accent rules, and you'll find that placing tildes becomes second nature. Remember, accent marks aren't just decorative—they're essential for proper pronunciation and can completely change the meaning of words.
We'd love to hear how you did on this quiz! Send us your results and any questions you might have about Spanish accents.
Are you familiar with gender in Spanish, which classifies Spanish nouns into masculine and feminine? If so, you might also know that Spanish grammatical agreement stipulates that nouns' definite and indefinite articles should agree with the nouns they accompany in terms of gender. That said, since the vast majority of Spanish nouns that end in -o are masculine and most that end in -a are feminine, why do we see the masculine singular indefinite article un next to a noun that ends in -a below?
¡Eres un egoísta!
You're a selfish person!
Caption 31, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 12 - Part 8
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The reason for this apparent discrepancy is that, when used as a noun, the word egoísta (selfish person) falls into a Spanish noun category that is sometimes called "common gender nouns" that describe people and can take either masculine or feminine articles depending upon whether the described entity is male or female. With this in mind, let's learn a plethora of such nouns in Spanish as well as several categories that they often fall into.
Below are several Spanish nouns that end in -ista. While we have selected ten, there are countless more, many of which refer to professions in Spanish or people who adhere to particular beliefs.
el/la artista (the artist)
el/la centrista (the centrist)
el/la colonialista (the colonialist)
el/la dentista (the dentist)
el/la derechista (the right-winger)
el/la futbolista (the soccer player)
el/la izquierdista (the leftist)
el/la novelista (the novelista)
el/la periodista (the journalist)
el/la vocalista (the vocalist)
Now, let's see two of these in context, noting how their articles change when describing males vs. females.
¿No oyó la periodista Yasmín?
Didn't you hear Yasmín the [female] journalist?
Caption 28, Kikirikí Agua - Part 3
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el periodista y el entrevistado llegaron a las manos, ¿hm?,
the [male] journalist and the interviewee came to blows, hmm?
Caption 51, Aprendiendo con Silvia Frases hechas - Part 5
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El dentista, la dentista.
The male dentist, the female dentist.
Caption 32, Isabel El Género Gramatical - Masculino y Femenino
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The genders of the following Spanish words that end in -crata (the equivalent of -crat in English) also vary according to real life gender:
el/la autócrata (the autocrat)
el/la burócrata (the bureaucrat)
el/la demócrata (the democrat)
el/la aristócrata (the aristocrat)
Let's look at an example that describes a male aristocrat:
Desde luego, será un aristócrata,
Of course, he'd be an aristocrat,
Caption 56, Beatriz Expresiones con colores
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Note how this sentence could be modified to describe a female aristocrat with the simple substitution of a feminine article:
Desde luego, será una aristócrata,
Of course, she'd be an aristocrat,
In addition to the aforementioned categories, here are several more Spanish nouns ending in -a whose articles reveal their gender:
el/la guía (the guide)
el/la policía (the police officer)
el/la psicópata (the psychopath)
el/la sociópata (the sociopath)
el/la terapeuta (the therapist)
While it may seem counterintuitive to call a female fashion model una modelo, that is indeed the correct way to say it, while a male model would be un modelo. Here are a few more common gender nouns in Spanish that end in -o with examples of the latter.
el/la miembro (the member)
el/la modelo (the model)
el/la soldado (the soldier)
el/la testigo (the witness)
Sí, tengo un testigo.
Yes, I have a [male] witness.
Caption 2, Los casos de Yabla El perrito malcriado - Part 2
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quisiera invitar a este estrado a una testigo que va a demostrar
I'd like to invite to this stand a [female] witness who is going to prove
Captions 63-64, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 5 - Part 4
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Although most Spanish nouns that end in -e are specifically masculine (e.g. el coche/the car) or feminine (e.g. la llave/the key) and thus require a masculine or feminine article, some can refer to either men or women with articles that vary accordingly. Let's see a list of several plus two examples describing both a male and a female "lover."
el/la amante (the lover)
el/la ayudante (the helper)
el/la cantante (the singer)
el/la estudiante (the student)
el/la integrante (the member)
el/la interprete (the interpreter)
el/la paciente (the patient)
el/la recipiente (the recipient)
Descubrí que Marcela tiene un amante.
I found out that Marcela has a [male] lover.
Caption 2, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 2 - Part 3
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¿Tiene una amante? Eso es lo que quiero saber.
Does he have a [female] lover? That is what I want to know.
Caption 9, Muñeca Brava 3 Nueva Casa - Part 7
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That's all for today. We hope that this lesson has clarified one scenario in Spanish where you might see a masculine article with a word ending in -a, a feminine article with one that ends in -o or the very same noun with a masculine or feminine article. For more on Spanish nouns that are a bit nontraditional in terms of gender, be sure to read our lesson on epicene nouns in Spanish, and don't forget to write us with your questions and comments.
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