Spanish words that start with A: Aprendemos con alegría!

When diving into the world of Spanish vocabulary, one of the best ways to expand our language skills is to focus on specific letters. Today, we’re taking a closer look at Spanish words that start with A, one of the most versatile and essential letters in the language.

This guide will help you grasp a variety of nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs, along with some additional Spanish A words that defy simple classifications.

Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced learner, we guarantee you that our lists of Spanish words that start with A will enhance your understanding and improve your Spanish fluency!

History of the letter A in Spanish

The letter A has a rich history that dates back to ancient civilizations. It’s believed that the letter originated from an Egyptian hieroglyph symbolizing an ox. This later evolved into the Phoenician letter “aleph,” which looked like a contemporary letter A flipped to the side.

The Greeks then adopted “aleph” and turned it into “alpha,” the first letter of their alphabet. The Romans then borrowed this symbol and adapted it into the modern-day letter A.

As the first letter of the alphabet, A plays a crucial role in Spanish and many other languages, serving as the building block for a vast number of words, including today’s list of Spanish words that start with A.

Pronunciation of A in Spanish

In Spanish, the letter A is pronounced as a pure vowel sound, similar to the “a” in the English word “father.” It has a consistent pronunciation regardless of its position in a word, making it one of the easier vowels for Spanish learners.

The Spanish A sound is always short and open, which contributes to the clarity and rhythm of the spoken language. Whether it appears at the beginning, middle, or end of a word, its pronunciation remains stable, helping with both pronunciation and listening comprehension.

Words in Spanish that start with A

Words in Spanish that start with A form a foundational part of the language and cover a wide range of categories, from nouns and verbs to adjectives and adverbs. These words are often some of the first that learners encounter due to their frequency and importance in everyday communication.

For the remainder of this post, we’ll present groups of words that start with A in Spanish, categorized into nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and a final group of other important Spanish A words. Since we have many detailed lessons on our blog that focus on specific words, we’ve linked to them directly from our vocab lists.

Nouns that start with A

Nouns in Spanish that start with A are plentiful and cover a wide range of concepts, from everyday objects to abstract ideas. As we begin our lists of words in Spanish that start with A, we’ll start with these important nouns.

Note that for phonetic reasons, we sometimes use a masculine article on feminine nouns that start with A. We’ve noted these exceptions with an (f). For a full explanation of this phenomenon, check out our other post on using masculine articles with feminine nouns.

Spanish A nouns	English translation
La abeja	Bee
El abogado, La abogada	Lawyer
El abuelo, La abuela	Grandfather, Grandmother
El aceite	Oil (plant-based)
El acento	Accent mark, Accent
El agua (f)	Water
El aire	Air
El ajedrez	Chess
La alegría	Joy
El alma (f)	Soul
La almohada	Pillow
El amigo, La amiga	Friend
El amor	Love
El anillo	Ring
El año	Year
El apóstrofo	Apostrophe
La araña	Spider
La arena	Sand
El árbol	Tree
El arcoíris	Rainbow
La ardilla	Squirrel
El arma (f)	Weapon
El arroz	Rice
El artista	Artist
El asiento	Seat
El astronauta	Astronaut
El aula (f)	Classroom
El auto	Car
El autobús	Bus
La ayuda	Help
El azúcar	Sugar

Verbs that start with A

Verbs are important words that allow us to express actions and states. Of these, here are some of the most common Spanish words that start with A.

Spanish A verbs	English translation
Abrazar	To hug
Abrir	To open
Acabar	To finish
Aceptar	To accept
Acordar	To agree
Acordarse	To remember
Acostumbrar, Acostumbrarse	To get used to
Adivinar	To guess
Agradecer	To thank
Agregar	To add
Ahondar	To delve, To deepen
Ahorrar	To save
Ahuyentar	To drive away, To shoo
Alcanzar	To reach
Alejar	To move away from
Alimentar	To feed
Alquilar	To rent
Amar	To love
Andar	To walk
Anhelar	To long for
Anunciar	To announce
Apagar	To turn off
Apoyar	To support
Apreciar	To appreciate
Aprender	To learn
Arreglar	To fix
Asentir	To nod
Asistir	To attend
Asombrar	To surprise
Asumir	To assume
Asustar	To scare
Avisar	To notify
Ayudar	To help

Adjectives that start with A

Adjectives help add details and descriptiveness to our sentences. Here are some useful adjectives that start with A in Spanish.

Spanish A adjectives	English translation
Abierto	Open
Abundante *	Plentiful, Abundant
Aburrido	Bored
Aceptable *	Acceptable
Afortunado	Lucky, Fortunate
Ágil *	Agile
Agitado	Agitated, Restless
Agradable *	Pleasant
Alegre *	Cheerful, Joyful
Alto	Tall, High
Amable *	Kind
Amargo	Bitter
Amarillo	Yellow
Ambos, Ambas	Both
Ancho	Wide, Broad
Antiguo	Old, Antique
Arriesgado	Risky, Bold
Asustado	Afraid, Scared
Astuto	Sly, Clever
Áspero	Rough (texture)
Atento	Attentive, Caring
Atractivo	Attractive
Atrevido	Daring, Bold
Automático	Automatic
Auténtico	Authentic
Avergonzado	Ashamed
Ajeno	Belonging to someone else
Azul *	Blue

* These adjectives are invariable. All the other adjectives change form to respect the gender and number of the nouns they modify.

Adverbs and prepositions that start with A

Adverbs in Spanish modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, adding more detail to how actions are performed. Prepositions help us describe locations. We’re including both of these groups of words that start with A here.

Spanish A adverbs	English
Abajo	Down, Below
Abiertamente	Openly
Acertadamente	Accurately
Adelante	Forward
Además	Also
Adrede	Purposely, Deliberately
Afortunadamente	Fortunately
Ahí	There
Ahora	Now
Allá	There
Alrededor	Around
Amablemente	Kindly
A menudo	Often
Anteriormente	Previously
Anteayer, Antier	The day before yesterday
Antes	Before
Aparte	Besides
Apenas	Barely, As soon as
Aproximadamente	Approximately
Aquí	Here
Arriba	Up, Above
Así	Like this
Atrás	Back, Behind
Aún	Still, Yet
A veces	Sometimes
Ayer	Yesterday

Other important Spanish words that start with A

Now let’s focus on some assorted Spanish words that belong to different word categories.

Unlike those in the previous sections, most of these Spanish words that start with A don’t have a direct English translation. We’ll will explain each one with examples.

Spanish words that start with A

A

Al

Ante

Alguno

Alguien

Aunque

Ay

Archi-

A

In Spanish, A is a word on its own that has several uses. It’s an ever-present preposition used to indicate direction, place, time, or mode, usually translated as either to or at. It can also be used to form adverbial phrases, such as talking about the near future with ir + a.

• Vamos a la playa este fin de semana. – We are going to the beach this weekend.

• Llegué a las tres de la tarde. – I arrived at three in the afternoon.

• Le entregué el libro a mi hermana. – I handed the book to my sister.

Al

Al is the contraction of the preposition a we just saw, and the definite article el.

• a + el = al

The easiest translations of al are therefore to the or at the. It’s used to indicate direction or time, or to link a verb with a complement.

• Fuimos al cine anoche. – We went to the movies last night.

• Al llegar a casa, me di cuenta de que olvidé las llaves. – Upon returning home, I realized I forgot my keys.

• Me encanta ir al parque a correr. – I love going to the park for a run.

Ante

This Spanish preposition means in front of or in the presence of. It can also indicate precedence or preference.

• Se puso nervioso ante tanta gente. – He became nervous in front of so many people.

• Ante el juez, declaró su inocencia. – Before the judge, he declared his innocence.

• Ante la situación, decidimos actuar rápido. – In the face of the situation, we decided to act quickly.

Alguno

Depending on the context, alguno can function as either an indefinite adjective or an indefinite pronoun. It’s used to refer to an unspecified or indefinite number or amount of people or things and is usually translated as some or any.

It changes form to reflect the gender and number of whatever it describes, so the four standard forms are alguno, alguna, algunos, and algunas. In addition, when we use it as an adjective before a singular masculine noun, it gets shortened to algún.

• ¿Tienes algún consejo para mí? – Do you have any advice for me?

• Necesito alguna idea para mi proyecto. – I need some ideas for my project.

• Algunos amigos vendrán a la fiesta. – A few friends are coming to the party.

Alguien

The indefinite pronoun alguien refers to an unidentified or unspecified person, so our best translations are someone or somebody.

• ¿Has visto a alguien en la entrada? – Did you see someone at the entrance?

• Alguien dejó esta carta para ti. – Someone left this letter for you.

• Necesito a alguien que me ayude con esto. – I need someone who can help me with this.

Aunque

The conjunction aunque is used to indicate that despite the circumstances, an action or state continues. Common translations include even though, although, and despite the fact that.

• Aunque llueva, iré a correr. – Even if it rains, I’ll go for a run.

• Siguió trabajando aunque estaba cansado. – He kept working even though he was tired.

• No importa, aunque no me guste, lo haré. – It doesn’t matter, even if I don’t like it, I’ll do it.

Ay

Ay is a very common interjection, which is probably understandable simply by virtue of its sound. We usually use ay to express emotions such as pain, surprise, or worry, so English equivalents could be interjections like woah!, aww!, oh my!, gosh!, ouch!, or ow!.

• ¡Ay! Me golpeé el pie con la mesa. – Ow! I hit my foot on the table.

• Ay, no sabía que llegabas hoy. – Oh, I didn’t know you were coming today.

• Ay, qué lindo regalo me diste. – Aww, what a nice present you gave me.

Archi-

Archi- isn’t a word on its own; it’s a Spanish prefix that starts many Spanish A words. The prefix archi- is used to intensify or emphasize something, often meaning something very big or superior.

• Es archienemigo de mi equipo. – He is the archenemy of my team.

• Ese hotel es de archilujo, ¡muy exclusivo! – That hotel is super luxurious, very exclusive!

• El jefe es archiconocido en todo el país. – The boss is well-known throughout the country.

Conclusion

Today’s post provided a straightforward set of lists with Spanish words that start with A. We began with a short history of the letter A, followed by how it’s pronounced in Spanish. Then, we went through lists of common nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs that all start with A, helping you expand your vocabulary.

We wrapped up with some extra words that start with A in Spanish, giving you even more useful vocabulary to work with. Overall, we’ve covered over 100 practical Spanish words that start with A, making it a great resource for improving your language skills!