Have you ever wondered whether you should say el mar or la mar (the sea) in Spanish? If you're confused about whether mar is masculine or feminine, you're not alone. The truth is, this word can be both! Let's clear up the confusion.
In modern Spanish, mar is masculine in most situations. You'll use el mar in everyday conversation and writing:
En el mar de la bahía desemboca un río.
A river flows into Bahía's sea.
Caption 23, Maoli Bahía de Cata
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However, this wasn't always the case. The word mar comes from Latin, where it was neuter (neither masculine nor feminine). As Spanish developed, the word took on both genders.
While el mar is standard, la mar is still used in specific contexts:
People who work at sea traditionally use the feminine form, especially when describing the sea's condition:
• la mar calma (calm sea)
• la mar picada (choppy sea)
• la mar gruesa (rough sea)
Certain seafaring phrases always use the feminine:
• altamar (high seas)
• hacerse a la mar (to set sail)
📌 Altamar (high seas) can be written as one word or two (alta mar). Both spellings are correct, though the single-word version is increasingly preferred.
Y un cubano Muere en altamar
And a Cuban Dies on the high seas
Captions 18-19, Hecho en México Documentary - Part 14
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Writers, poets, and songwriters often choose la mar for artistic or rhythmic reasons.
Caminante, no hay camino sino estelas en la mar.
Ambler, there's no road only wakes in the sea.
Captions 29-30, Chus recita poemas Antonio Machado
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ya no tiene regreso a la mar encontrará
it has no return, it will find the sea
Captions 31-32, Hecho en México Documentary - Part 18
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When mar comes before a geographic name, it's always masculine and lowercase:
• el mar Mediterráneo (Mediterranean Sea)
• el mar Caribe (Caribbean Sea)
• el mar Rojo (Red Sea)
definitivamente tienen que ir y desplazarse a las playas del mar Caribe.
you definitely have to go and travel to the beaches of the Caribbean Sea.
Caption 29, Ciudad de Panamá Denisse introduce la ciudad
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📌 The only exception is when it's part of a place name that isn't actually a sea, like Mar del Plata (a city in Argentina).
For everyday Spanish, use el mar (masculine). You'll be correct 90% of the time. Save la mar for maritime contexts, traditional expressions, poetry, or songs.
That wraps up our lesson on el mar vs. la mar! Now you know when to use each form. We'd love to hear from you—send us your questions and feedback!
While the letter Z might not be the most common starting point for Spanish words, there are still some important words to know. In this lesson, we’ll explore a few interesting facts about the Spanish letter Z and present a list of Spanish words that begin with this unique letter.
The Spanish letter Z is pronounced as /θ/ in Spain (similar to the English 'th' in 'think') and as /s/ in Latin American Spanish (similar to the English 's' in 'sun'). Let's hear how Carlos (from Colombia) and Xavi (from Spain) pronounce the word corazón in the following sentence:
Esa canción me llegó al corazón. Esta canción me llegó al corazón.
That song touched my heart. This song touched my heart.
Captions 17-18, Carlos y Xavi Diferencia de pronunciación entre España y Colombia - Part 2
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In addition to this difference in pronunciation, the letter Z appears in many commonly used Spanish words. Now, let's dive into our list!
Vamos a utilizar un pelador para la zanahoria
We're going to use a peeler for the carrot
Caption 24, La cocina de Fermín Espaguetis con verduras
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y yo me empecé a sentir como un zángano enamorado.
and I began to feel like a drone in love.
Caption 33, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 6 - Part 2
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Si es que el zapato no le entra,
If the case is that the shoe doesn't fit you,
Captions 64-65, Mónica La media rota
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el día a día del zar Nicolás Segundo y las zarinas.
the daily life of Czar Nicolas the Second and the czarinas.
Caption 21, Adriana La lectura - Part 2
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Me gustan las arias, las óperas, las zarzuelas.
I like arias, operas, zarzuelas.
Caption 10, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana César Lara Hernández
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sabréis que las colas tienen forma de zigzag.
you'll know that the lines have a zig-zag shape.
Caption 19, Soledad El mundo es un pañuelo
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El zinc es un metal muy utilizado en la construcción.
Zinc is a metal widely used in construction.
Mi signo del zodiaco es Leo.
My zodiac sign is Leo.
La bahía se ha convertido en una zona costera de gran concurrencia.
Bahía has become a very crowded coastal area.
Caption 22, Maoli Bahía de Cata
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Esta águila andina que se encuentra en el zoológico,
This Andean eagle that's at the zoo
Caption 91, Quito Zoológico de Guayllabamba - Part 1
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Un "zorro" es aquel muy astuto.
A "fox" is one who is very cunning.
Caption 72, Beatriz Palabras polisémicas - Part 2
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Los agricultores usaban zuecos para trabajar en el campo.
Farmers used wooden clogs to work in the field.
"Que el zumbido tiene que ver con el polvo de las flores", dijo Pigueldito.
"That the buzzing has to do with the dust from the flowers," said Piggeldy.
Caption 33, Pigueldito y Federico Las abejas
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Pregúntale si tiene zumo, pan y galletas para nosotros.
Ask her if she has juice, bread, and cookies for us.
Caption 38, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 8: La prima de la dueña - Part 2
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la "churdi" porque es zurda,
the "churdi" because she's left-handed,
Caption 56, Mari Carmen La amistad
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These are just a few of the most common words that start with the letter Z in Spanish. Can you think of any other words? Let us know and don't forget to send us your questions and comments.
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