Family words in Spanish (with Indian family twists)

If you grew up in an Indian family, you know that "family" is never just four people. It's parents, grandparents, a small army of uncles and aunts, cousins you call brother and sister, and in-laws with a special name for every single relationship. So when Indian learners meet Spanish family words, the first reaction is usually: "Wait, that's it? Where's the word for mama?"

Spanish families are close too, and Sunday lunches with the grandparents are a big deal in Spain. But the vocabulary is much simpler than ours. In this post I'll give you all the family words in Spanish you need, show you how to explain our very specific Indian relationships, and give you the phrases to talk about your own family. There are flashcards at the end. ¡Vamos!Let's go!Used to cheer someone on or get moving.

The basic family words in Spanish

Let's start at the centre. The word for family is la familiathe familyAlmost the same as English., and it's feminine.

• la madremotherClose to Sanskrit मातृ.: mother. At home, people say mamámumThe everyday, affectionate form..
• el padrefatherAlso means priest.: father. At home, papádadThe everyday, affectionate form..
• el hermanobrotherHermana for sister.: brother, and la hermanasisterThe feminine form.: sister.
• el hijosonThe h is silent: EE-ho.: son, and la hijadaughterThe feminine form.: daughter.

Watch the accents on mamámumStress on the last syllable. and papádadStress on the last syllable.. The stress goes on the end: ma-MÁ, pa-PÁ. Without the accent, papapope, potatoA very different word! means the Pope, or a potato in Latin America. You don't want to call your father a potato.

The masculine plural trick: padresparentsAlso fathers., hermanossiblingsAlso brothers., hijoschildrenAlso sons.

This is the single most useful thing in this post. In Spanish, the masculine plural covers a mixed group of men and women. So:

• los padresparentsMother and father together. means parents, not just fathers.
• los hermanossiblingsBrothers and sisters together. means brothers and sisters.
• los hijoschildrenSons and daughters together. means children.
• los abuelosgrandparentsGrandfather and grandmother. means grandparents.
• los tíosuncles and auntsOr uncle and aunt as a couple. means uncles and aunts.

So if someone asks ¿Tienes hermanos?Do you have brothers or sisters?A very common first question., they're asking about all your siblings, not only your brothers. And if you say mis padresmy parentsMother and father., everyone understands mother and father.

Grandparents, grandchildren and great-grandparents

One generation up, one generation down:

• el abuelograndfatherAbuela for grandmother. and la abuelagrandmotherOften shortened to abu or yaya at home.: grandfather and grandmother.
• el nietograndsonNieta for granddaughter. and la nietagranddaughterThe feminine form.: grandson and granddaughter.
• el bisabuelogreat-grandfatherBis means twice. and la bisabuelagreat-grandmotherThe feminine form.: great-grandparents.

BistwiceA prefix meaning again. works like "great" in English. You might also hear little affectionate names at home, like abugrandma or grandpaA short, cute form of abuelo or abuela., or yayagrandmaAn affectionate word used in parts of Spain. and yayograndpaThe masculine form. in parts of Spain.

How to say dadi, nani, dada and nana in Spanish

Here's our first Indian twist. Hindi gives you four separate words for grandparents:

• दादा and दादी: your father's parents
• नाना and नानी: your mother's parents

Spanish has only abuelograndfatherEither side of the family. and abuelagrandmotherEither side of the family.. When you need to be specific, add which side:

• mi abuela paternamy paternal grandmotherYour dadi.: your dadi
• mi abuela maternamy maternal grandmotherYour nani.: your nani
• mi abuelo paternomy paternal grandfatherYour dada.: your dada
• mi abuelo maternomy maternal grandfatherYour nana.: your nana

In everyday chat, Spaniards also say por parte de padreon my father's sidePaternal side. and por parte de madreon my mother's sideMaternal side.. So mi abuela por parte de madremy grandmother on my mother's sideYour nani, in everyday style. is your nani. Easy to understand, even if it's longer than नानी!

Uncles, aunts and cousins in Spanish

Brace yourself, Indian learners. Hindi has चाचा, मामा, फूफा and मौसा for uncles, and चाची, मामी, बुआ and मौसी for aunts. Spanish has exactly two words:

• el tíouncleEvery uncle, from any side.: uncle
• la tíaauntEvery aunt, from any side.: aunt

That's it. Your chacha, mama, phupha and mausa are all tíosunclesMasculine plural.. Your chachi, mami, bua and mausi are all tíasauntsFeminine plural.. If you need the detail, use the same trick as with grandparents:

• Chacha: el hermano de mi padremy father's brotherClear and precise.
• Mama: el hermano de mi madremy mother's brotherClear and precise.
• Bua: la hermana de mi padremy father's sisterClear and precise.
• Mausi: la hermana de mi madremy mother's sisterClear and precise.

And cousins are el primomale cousinPrima for a female cousin. and la primafemale cousinThe feminine form.. In India we often say "cousin brother" and "cousin sister". In Spanish there's no need: primomale cousinAlready tells you it's a boy. already tells you it's a boy, and primafemale cousinAlready tells you it's a girl. a girl.

The next generation down: your brother's or sister's son is el sobrinonephewSobrina for niece., and their daughter is la sobrinanieceThe feminine form.. Hindi has भतीजा and भांजा depending on the side. Spanish? Just sobrinonephewEither side..

In-laws in Spanish: bhabhi, jija, saas and more

Indian in-laws come with a whole dictionary. Spanish keeps it short, and the key word is cuñadobrother-in-lawCuñada for sister-in-law..

• el suegrofather-in-lawYour sasur. and la suegramother-in-lawYour saas.: father-in-law and mother-in-law. Together, los suegrosparents-in-lawMasculine plural for both..
• el cuñadobrother-in-lawAny brother-in-law.: brother-in-law. That covers जीजा (your sister's husband), साला (your wife's brother) and देवर or जेठ (your husband's brothers).
• la cuñadasister-in-lawAny sister-in-law.: sister-in-law. That covers भाभी (your brother's wife), साली (your wife's sister) and ननद (your husband's sister).
• el yernoson-in-lawYour damaad.: son-in-law, our दामाद.
• la nueradaughter-in-lawYour bahu.: daughter-in-law, our बहू.

So your bhabhi, your saali and your nanad are all cuñadasister-in-lawOne word for many Hindi ones. in Spanish. If you need to be precise, say la mujer de mi hermanomy brother's wifeYour bhabhi, precisely. for bhabhi, or el marido de mi hermanamy sister's husbandYour jija, precisely. for jija.

The Spanish word Hindi speakers will love: consuegrosco-parents-in-lawOur samdhi and samdhan.

Here's a word that surprises a lot of people, even English speakers. English has no single word for the relationship between your parents and your spouse's parents. Hindi does: समधी and समधन. And so does Spanish!

• el consuegroco-father-in-lawOur samdhi.: your child's father-in-law, our समधी
• la consuegraco-mother-in-lawOur samdhan.: your child's mother-in-law, our समधन

When two families come together at a wedding, the parents become consuegrosco-parents-in-lawOur samdhi and samdhan.. Finally, a family word where Spanish and Hindi agree and English is left out.

Husband, wife, partner: careful with these

There are a few ways to say husband and wife in Spanish:

• el maridohusbandVery common in Spain. and la mujerwife, womanOne word, two meanings.: very common in everyday speech in Spain. MujerwomanAlso means wife. means both woman and wife, and context tells you which.
• el esposohusbandA bit more formal. and la esposawifeA bit more formal.: a little more formal, and common in Latin America.
• el novioboyfriend, groomTwo meanings. and la noviagirlfriend, brideTwo meanings.: boyfriend and girlfriend, and also groom and bride on the wedding day.
• la parejapartner, coupleFor any couple.: partner, or a couple.

And to say someone is married, Spanish uses estarTo be (right now)For how or where something is: feelings, states, location.: Estoy casada.I'm married.Casado if you're a man. If you want to know why, my post on ser vs estar explains it.

Step-family, only children and more

A few more words that come up in real conversations:

• el hijo únicoonly child (boy)Hija única for a girl. and la hija únicaonly child (girl)The feminine form.: an only child.
• los gemelostwinsGemelas for twin girls.: twins.
• el padrastrostepfatherMadrastra for stepmother. and la madrastrastepmotherThe feminine form.: stepfather and stepmother.
• el hermanastrostepbrotherHermanastra for stepsister.: stepbrother.
• el medio hermanohalf-brotherMedia hermana for half-sister.: half-brother.
• el ahijadogodsonAhijada for goddaughter. and el padrinogodfatherMadrina for godmother.: godson and godfather. At a Spanish wedding, el padrinobest manThe groom's companion at a wedding. and la madrinathe bride's or groom's sponsorOften the groom's mother in Spain. also play special roles.

How to talk about your family in Spanish

Words are great, but you need sentences. These little patterns will carry you through any "tell me about your family" conversation, which is one of the first topics in every A1 class and exam.

Possessives. MimyBefore a singular noun. becomes mismyBefore a plural noun. in the plural: mi hermanomy brotherOne brother., mis hermanosmy siblingsMore than one.. The same goes for tuyourInformal, no accent. and tusyourPlural., and suhis, her, theirAlso formal your. and sushis, her, theirPlural..

Having family. Use tenerto haveAn irregular verb.:

• Tengo dos hermanos y una hermana.I have two brothers and a sister.Tener plus numbers.
• No tengo hermanos. Soy hija única.I don't have siblings. I'm an only child.Hijo único for a boy.
• ¿Cuántos primos tienes?How many cousins do you have?A fun question for Indians!

Describing family. Use serTo be (permanent)For what something is: identity, origin, profession. for who people are:

• Mi madre es profesora.My mother is a teacher.Jobs take ser.
• Mi abuelo es muy divertido.My grandfather is very funny.Personality takes ser.
• Mi familia es grande.My family is big.A description, so ser.

Living together. This one matters for Indian learners, because joint families are common here and less so in Spain: Vivo con mis padres y mis abuelos.I live with my parents and grandparents.Vivir con, to live with. It's a great conversation starter with Spanish speakers, who are often curious about how Indian families live.

Family questions you'll hear in Spanish

When you meet Spanish speakers, family comes up fast. These are the questions you're most likely to hear, so it's worth preparing your answers in advance:

• ¿Tienes hermanos?Do you have brothers or sisters?Hermanos covers all siblings.: answer with Sí, tengo una hermana.Yes, I have a sister.Tener plus the number. or No, soy hijo único.No, I'm an only child.Hija única for a girl.
• ¿Estás casado?Are you married?Casada if you're asking a woman.: answer with Sí, estoy casada.Yes, I'm married.Estar for marital status. or No, estoy soltero.No, I'm single.Soltera for a woman.
• ¿Tienes hijos?Do you have children?Hijos covers sons and daughters.: answer with Tengo dos hijos, un niño y una niña.I have two children, a boy and a girl.Niño and niña, boy and girl.
• ¿Cómo se llama tu madre?What's your mother's name?Llamarse, to be called.: answer with Mi madre se llama...My mother's name is...Literally my mother calls herself... then add her name.
• ¿Con quién vives?Who do you live with?Vivir con, to live with.: a perfect moment to explain a joint family!

Notice that most of these use tenerto haveAn irregular verb. and estarTo be (right now)For how or where something is: feelings, states, location., two verbs you'll lean on all through A1. If you can answer all five questions out loud without stopping, you're ready for the family topic in any beginner class or exam speaking test.

A quick note on Spanish surnames

Here's a cultural detail that confuses many visitors. In Spain, people usually have two surnames, one from each parent. And women don't change their surnames when they marry. So a whole family can have different combinations of surnames, and nobody finds it strange. If a Spanish form asks for primer apellidofirst surnameUsually from the father. and segundo apellidosecond surnameUsually from the mother., now you know why.

Flashcards: Spanish family words

Flip each card and try to say the meaning first. The notes give you the Indian link.

Keep going

Here's a little exercise: draw your family tree, Indian-style, with every chacha and mausi, and label it in Spanish. Then describe three people out loud: who they are, what they do, what they're like. You'll practise serTo be (permanent)For what something is: identity, origin, profession., tenerto haveAn irregular verb., possessives and a dozen new words in five minutes.

If you want to keep building, have a look at my 100 everyday Spanish words, and for the next family dinner, my post on Spanish food vocabulary. And if you'd like to talk about your family in real Spanish conversations, join one of my live A1 batches on Google Meet. Up to 5 students per group, so everyone gets to speak, and I promise to be patient with even the biggest family trees. Hasta prontoSee you soonA warm goodbye.!