Here you have: la mitad de los alumnos fueron al viaje.
Half the students went on the trip.But also you gave la mitad de los jóvenes salió de la ciudad
Be careful not to mix up fractions (to describe a part of a whole: half, third, fourth...) and ordinal numbers (to describe an order/rank: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th...).
For ordinal numbers, see Forming ordinal numbers (1st, 2nd, 10th...)
Look at these examples of fractions:
To express fractions in Spanish, you usually use both cardinal (un/dos/tres...) and ordinal numbers (cuarto/quinto...) the same way as in English (one fifth, two thirds...).
Note also that just like in English, the second number is plural if the first is. (dos quintos)
Half and Double
To say half and double we normally use the definite articles el and la.
Have a look at these examples to see fractions in context:
Notice how, as we generally talk about a fraction "of" a whole, you will usually find "de" after the fraction.
Bear in mind that to say "half" [of something] you can also use "medio/media".
Notice how we use medio when we refer to a masculine noun (e.g., melón) and media when we refer to a feminine noun (e.g., sandía). It is only possible to use medio/a with singular nouns, not plural nouns:
"Medio pueblo salió a la calle a celebrar la fiesta."
"La mitad del pueblo salió a la calle a celebrar la fiesta."
"La mitad de los jóvenes salió a la calle a celebrar la fiesta."
"Medio/Medios jóvenes salieron a la calle a celebrar la fiesta."
Also notice above how medio/a are not followed by "de".
Here is a list of fractions from half to a tenth:
1/2 la mitad [de] - medio/-a
1/3 un tercio [de]
1/4 un cuarto [de]
1/5 un quinto [de]
1/6 un sexto [de]
1/7 un séptimo [de]
1/8 un octavo [de]
1/9 un noveno [de]
1/10 un décimo [de]
Here are more examples of fractions:
Learn more about these related Spanish grammar topics
Examples and resources
Q&A Forum 4 questions, 4 answers
BaKwiziq community member
Singular / plural ?
But also you gave la mitad de los jóvenes salió de la ciudad
Asked 1 month ago
InmaKwiziq team member
Hola Ba,
I imagine you are referring to the use of the verb in singular or plural in this case.
With a quantifier + de + noun in plural, both the verb in the 3rd person singular and 3rd person plural are correct. Here are some examples:
La mitad de los habitantes se fue/se fueron a la ciudad.
Half the inhabitants left the city.
El 10 por ciento de las personas votó/votaron en contra del candidato.
10 per cent of the people/population voted against the candidate.
La mayoría de los niños fue/fueron a ese viaje.
The majority of the children went on that trip.
I hope it helped.
Saludos
Inma
Ba asked:View original
Singular / plural ?
Here you have: la mitad de los alumnos fueron al viaje.
Half the students went on the trip.But also you gave la mitad de los jóvenes salió de la ciudad
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LindaKwiziq Q&A regular contributor
Medio vs la mitad de
In the quiz asking for “half a sandwich”, I put “la mitad de un bocadillo” instead of “medio bocadillo” and was marked incorrect.
Is my answer in fact incorrect or just not what the answer was looking for? When we say “half a sandwich” in English, my understanding is that it is really shorthand for “half (of) a sandwich” and so I thought either “la mitad de” or “medio” would be correct - perhaps that is not true in Spanish?
Thanks in advance for your explanation.
Asked 3 months ago
InmaKwiziq team member
Hola Linda
Sorry, the English should say "He ate half THE sandwich" not "half a sandwich". The two possible correct answers for "half the sandwich" are "medio bocadillo" and "la mitad del bocadillo". This is why yours was marked wrong. I will change the English so there is no confusion.
Gracias y saludos.
Inma
Linda asked:View original
Medio vs la mitad de
In the quiz asking for “half a sandwich”, I put “la mitad de un bocadillo” instead of “medio bocadillo” and was marked incorrect.
Is my answer in fact incorrect or just not what the answer was looking for? When we say “half a sandwich” in English, my understanding is that it is really shorthand for “half (of) a sandwich” and so I thought either “la mitad de” or “medio” would be correct - perhaps that is not true in Spanish?
Thanks in advance for your explanation.
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EmanuelKwiziq Q&A regular contributor
a mistake in an example?
salío should not be salió or salía?
Asked 5 months ago
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EmanuelKwiziq Q&A regular contributor
Third example
I would like to point out that the third example does not contain any fraction.
Asked 5 months ago
Emanuel asked:View original
Third example
I would like to point out that the third example does not contain any fraction.
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