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Dates in Spanish are expressed in a different way to English.
Learn about dates in Spanish
Read and listen to these examples:
To say the date in Spanish, you need to use this structure:
number + de + month + de + year
Don't forget de! In Spanish it is compulsory.
Article El
When the date is in a sentence that is telling you when something takes place you need the article "el" before the number.
Note that dates are always masculine, so it's never la.
Number
The main difference between dates in English and Spanish is the numbers:
- English dates use ordinal numbers (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th...)
- Spanish dates use cardinal numbers (dos, tres, cuatro, etc.) so, not segundo (2nd), tercero (3rd), cuarto (4th), etc.
- EXCEPTION For the first day of the month, you can use both cardinal (uno) and ordinal (primero) numbers. Both are correct.
Month
In Spanish, months are never capitalised:
| enero | mayo | septiembre |
| febrero | junio | octubre |
| marzo | julio | noviembre |
| abril | agosto | diciembre |
Year
In Spanish, years are always read as full numbers!
You never say: diecinueve sesenta y cuatro (1964) but mil novecientos sesenta y cuatro.
Have a look at List of numbers from 1 to 50 in SpanishWant to make sure your Spanish sounds confident? We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your gaps and mistakes. Start your Brainmap today »
