Palabra Lexi · common words in Spanish
How to say "city" in Spanish
"City" in Spanish is ciudad, pronounced thyoo-DAD (stress on the syllable in capitals). It is a feminine noun (la ciudad, plural las ciudades).
| Spanish | ciudad |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | thyoo-DAD |
| Meaning | city |
| Gender | feminine: la ciudad |
| Plural | las ciudades |
| Frequency | #10 in the Palabra list of common Spanish words |
Pronunciation is spelled out in English, one syllable at a time, with the stressed syllable in capitals. The speaker button uses your browser's built-in Spanish voice. Gender and plural: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.
How to pronounce ciudad
Ciudad is pronounced thyoo-DAD, in IPA /θjuˈdad/ in Spain and /sjuˈdad/ in Latin America. Ciudad has two syllables, thyoo-DAD, with the stress on the second. There is no written accent because the word follows the basic rule: words ending in a consonant other than -n or -s are stressed on the last syllable.
- Z, and c before e or i, is th (as in "think") in most of Spain and s in Latin America.
Listen: normal and slow speed, in your browser's Spanish voice. IPA: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.
Is ciudad masculine or feminine?
Ciudad is feminine, so it takes la (the) and una (a): la ciudad. The plural is las ciudades. That fits the pattern: nouns ending in -dad are feminine.
Example sentences
Una ciudad grande
a big city
Vivo en la ciudad.
I live in the city.
How to remember ciudad
ciudad [thyoo-DAD] sounds like the English “see you, dad”. Picture this:
«See you, dad!» you wave, and dad's tiny boat sails off between the skyscrapers of the city.
A sound-alike plus a vivid scene is the keyword method, a well-studied way to learn vocabulary. How it works.
Practice ciudad
Two quick games, right here: no sign-up, nothing is sent anywhere.