Spanish words that start with E: Estos Ejemplos te Encantarán

The letter E is one of the most important and frequently used letters in the Spanish language, forming the backbone of countless words and making the letter a vital component of everyday communication. Today we’ll do a deep dive into Spanish words that start with E, providing multiple vocab lists across several categories of Spanish grammar.

Let’s start with a quick primer on the history and pronunciation of the letter E in Spanish, and then dive straight into our vocab lists. We’ll group our Spanish words that start with E into categories by nouns, countries, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.

We’ll wrap up with a detailed section on some of the most fundamental words in the Spanish language that start with the letter E, including pronouns like él and ella, and demonstratives like este and ese.

Whether you’re a language enthusiast, a Spanish learner, or just looking for inspiration during a game of Spanish Scrabble, exploring these Spanish words that start with E will enrich your understanding of this beautiful language. Now let’s get started!

History of the letter E in Spanish

The letter E has a fascinating history that reflects the evolution of writing systems over centuries. Its origins trace back to the Semitic letter he, which represented a breathy sound and resembled a simple stick figure of a man with raised arms. The Phoenicians, one of the earliest users of a written alphabet, adapted this symbol into a more abstract form. The Greeks then borrowed it, transforming it into Ε (Epsilon), which was explicitly used to represent the /e/ vowel sound.

When the Romans adopted the Greek alphabet to create the Latin script, they retained E as the fifth letter, assigning it a similar phonetic value, which the Spanish alphabet still uses.

Pronunciation of E in Spanish

In Spanish, the letter E is pronounced as a mid-front unrounded vowel, similar to the E in the English word net. Its pronunciation is consistent across different words, which is one of the reasons Spanish is considered a phonetic language. However, regional accents can slightly influence the sound. For example, in some dialects, it may sound more open or closed depending on the surrounding phonetic context.

We should also mention that the accented form of the letter É doesn’t change the pronunciation of the letter itself, but only affects where the spoken emphasis is placed on the overall word.

Spanish words that start with E

The abundance of Spanish words beginning with E demonstrates the letter’s versatility. In the following sections, we’ll explore different categories of words starting with this vowel.

Nouns that start with E in Spanish

Nouns are essential building blocks of language, and many begin with E in Spanish.

Spanish	English
La edad	Age
El edificio	Building
El ejemplo	Example
El ejercicio	Exercise
La energía	Energy
La enfermedad	Disease, Illness
El equipo	Team, Equipment
La escalera	Stairs, Ladder
El escenario	Stage, Scenery
El escritorio	Desk
La escuela	School
La escultura	Sculpture
La esencia	Essence
El esfuerzo	Effort
El espacio	Space
Español	Spanish
Espanglish	Spanglish
El espejo	Mirror
La esperanza	Hope, Expectation
La esquina	Corner
La estación	Station, Season
El estado	State
El estilo	Stye
La estrategia	Strategy
La estrella	Star
La estructura	Structure
El estudio	Study
La etiqueta	Label, Tag, Etiquette
La excusa	Excuse
El éxito	Success
La experiencia	Experience
La extensión	Extension

Countries that start with E in Spanish

Since there are so many countries whose Spanish name begins with E, we’re presenting them here in their own list. Check our related post for a full list of all country names in Spanish.

Spanish	English
Ecuador	Ecuador
Egipto	Egypt
Eritrea	Eritrea
Escocia	Scotland
Eslovenia	Slovenia
España	Spain
Estados Unidos	United States
Estonia	Estonia
Esuatini	Eswatini
Etiopía	Ethiopia

Verbs that start with E in Spanish

Verbs starting with E play a crucial role in Spanish grammar and vocabulary. Let’s see almost 40 of the most important verbs that start with E in Spanish.

Spanish	English
Echar	To throw
Educar	To educate
Ejercer	To exercise
Elegir	To choose (a profession or function)
Eliminar	To eliminate
Emitir	To emit
Empalagar	To overwhelm with sweetness (figuratively or literally)
Empezar	To start
Empujar	To push
Enamorarse	To fall in love
Encantar	To love (something), To enchant
Encender	To turn on, To light up
Encontrar	To find
Enfadarse	To get angry
Enseñar	To teach
Entender	To understand
Entrar	To come in, To enter
Entregar	To deliver, To hand in
Envejecer	To age
Enviar	To send
Eres*	You are (ser: second-person singular conjugation)
Es*	He/She/It is, You are (ser: third-person singular conjugation)
Escapar	To escape
Esconder	To hide
Escribir	To write
Escuchar	To listen
Esperar	To wait
Estar	To be (states of being, location)
Establecer	To establish
Estimar	To estimate, To value
Estudiar	To study
Evitar	To avoid
Exagerar	To exaggerate
Examinar	To examine
Exigir	To demand
Existir	To exist
Explicar	To explain
Explorar	To explore
Extender	To extend

*These are conjugations of the fundamental verb ser, meaning to be in Spanish, but they’re so important that we’ve included these forms in our list here. For a full lesson on the differences between our two verbs for to be in Spanish, please see our post on ser vs estar.

Adjectives that start with E in Spanish

Adjectives help describe nouns and convey nuances in meaning. Here are some common adjectives starting with E.

Spanish	English
Ecológico	Ecological
Educado	Polite
Eficaz*	Effective
Eficiente*	Efficient
Elegante*	Elegant
Emocionante*	Exciting
Empático	Empathetic
Energético	Energetic
Enigmático	Enigmatic
Enorme*	Enormous
Equitativo	Equitable
Escaso	Scarce
Esdrújulo	Word that is stressed on the third-to-last syllable
Esencial*	Essential
Especial*	Special
Espectacular*	Spectacular
Espiritual*	Spiritual
Espléndido	Splendid
Estable*	Stable
Estético	Aesthetic
Estratégico	Strategic
Estupendo	Wonderful
Excéntrico	Eccentric
Excepcional*	Exceptional
Excepto	Except
Excitante*	Thrilling
Exclusivo	Exclusive
Exigente*	Demanding
Exótico	Exotic
Explosivo	Explosive
Extenso	Extensive
Extremo	Extreme

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

Adverbs that start with E

Although less common than nouns and verbs, adverbs beginning with E enhance sentences by modifying verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.

Spanish	English
Educadamente	Politely
Efectivamente	Effectively
Eficazmente	Efficiently
Elegantemente	Elegantly
Emocionalmente	Emotionally
Empáticamente	Empathetically
Enérgicamente	Energetically
Enigmáticamente	Enigmatically
Equitativamente	Equitably
Escasamente	Scarcely
Especialmente	Especially
Espiritualmente	Spiritually
Espléndidamente	Splendidly
Espontáneamente	Spontaneously
Estadísticamente	Statistically
Estéticamente	Aesthetically
Estratégicamente	Strategically
Estrictamente	Strictly
Estupendamente	Wonderfully
Eventualmente	Eventually
Exactamente	Exactly
Exageradamente	Exaggeratedly
Excepcionalmente	Exceptionally
Excesivamente	Excessively
Exclusivamente	Exclusively
Exigentemente	Demandingly
Exóticamente	Exotically
Explícitamente	Explicitly
Explosivamente	Explosively
Extremadamente	Extremely

Fundamental Spanish words that start with E

Now that we’ve gone through the main categories of Spanish E words, let’s take a closer look at some assorted but essential Spanish words that start with E. These include some of the most common pronouns and demonstratives, as well as a couple of other essentials.

We’ll start here with a quick list of these fundamental Spanish words that start with E, and then introduce each one in its own subsection below. Since they’re all quite vital in Spanish grammar, we have dedicated posts on each one that we’ll link to within their respective explanations.

Spanish	English
El	The
Él	He, Him
Ella	She, Her
Ellos, Ellas	They, Them
Ello	It, This
Elle, Elles	They, Ze (gender-neutral pronouns)
El cual	The one that
Este, Esta, Estos, Estas	This, These
Éste, Ésta, Éstos, Éstas	This one, Those ones
Esto	This, It
Ese, Esa, Esos, Esas	That, Those
Ése, Ésa, Ésos, Ésas	That one, Those ones
Eso	That, It
En	In, On
Encima	Above, On top of
Entonces	Then, So, Therefore
-érrimo	a suffix used to create superlatives

El

El in Spanish is our masculine singular definite article meaning the. Its feminine and plural counterparts are la, los, and las.

• El perro – The dog

• El doctor – The doctor

• El niño – The child

Él

Él with an accent in Spanish is our third-person singular pronoun meaning he or him. Normally thought of as a subject pronoun, it’s also the corresponding prepositional pronoun used to refer to a single male person or subject.

• Él es un hombre muy amable. – He is a very kind man.

• No hablamos con él porque es muy grosero. – We don’t talk to him because he’s very rude.

Ella

Ella is the feminine counterpart to él, used as the subject pronoun and prepositional pronoun to mean she or her.

• Ella es profesora de Español en la universidad. – She is a Spanish professor at the university.

• Le daremos el premio al trabajador más puntual a ella. – We will give the most punctual worker award to her.

Ellos, Ellas

The plural versions of the personal pronouns we saw above are ellos and ellas, both meaning they in Spanish when used as subject pronouns. As prepositional pronouns, both are translated as them in English.

• Mis hijas son buenas cantantes. Ellas cantan en una banda. – My daughters are good singers. They sing in a band.

• Los niños quieren ir al parque. ¿Puedes ir con ellos? – The children want to go to the park. Can you go with them?

Ello

Ello is a neutral third-person pronoun used in Spanish grammar to refer to abstract concepts, ideas, or things that are not explicitly named. While it is less common in everyday conversation where we usually use eso instead, it appears more often in formal or literary contexts. Ello typically translates to it or that in English.

• No quiero hablar de ello. – I don’t want to talk about it.

• Ello no significa que esté de acuerdo. – That doesn’t mean I agree.

Elle, Elles

In contemporary Spanish, new gender-neutral pronouns are coming into use for people who prefer not to be associated with a masculine or feminine identity. Among these, elle and elles are probably the most widespread, where we’ve replaced the gendered -o and -a of the traditional pronouns with a gender-neutral alternative. Common English equivalents are ze or they.

• Stella y Logan me dijeron que elles van a adoptar un gatito. – Stella and Logan told me that they are going to adopt a kitten.

El cual

El cual is a Spanish relative pronoun used to refer to a noun mentioned earlier in a sentence. While it should technically be thought of as the one that, the one who, or the one which, it usually translates more simply as that, who, or which.

This relative pronoun has four forms that follow standard gender and number rules: el cual, la cual, los cuales, and las cuales. Even though the masculine singular form is the only one that starts with E, we’ll demonstrate all four forms in our examples.

• Este es el libro sobre el cual hemos hablado en clase. – This is the book that we talked about in class.

• Esa es la cama en la cual duermo. – That’s the bed in which I sleep.

• Los chicos a los cuales mi padre enseña son muy jóvenes. – The boys that my father teaches are very young.

• Las flores, las cuales planté en primavera, ya florecieron. – The flowers, the ones I planted in spring, are in bloom.

Este

Este is a demonstrative adjective used to refer to a noun that is close to the speaker, either in space or time. It translates to this in English. It has four forms, matching the gender and the number of the noun it precedes: este, esta, estos, estas.

• Este perro tiene las orejas muy largas. – This dog has very long ears.

• Uso esta libreta para tomar apuntes en la universidad. – I use this notebook to take notes at university.

• Estos gorros son de lana. – These hats are made of wool.

• Estas niñas son muy amables y educadas. – These girls are very nice and polite.

Éste

We use almost the same words as above to replace the nearby nouns entirely, as demonstrative pronouns. In modern Spanish the words are identical, though until recently the demonstrative adjectives were differentiated with additional accent marks. The four versions are therefore either the same as above, or éste, ésta, éstos, and éstas.

These all translate as either this one or these ones.

• ¿Viste los relojes? Solo me gusta éste, no me gustan los otros. – Did you see the watches? I only like this one, I don’t like the others.

• ¿Cuál casa es más grande, ésta o la de la esquina? – Which house is bigger, this one or the one on the corner?

• Me compré unos anteojos de plástico el año pasado, pero éstos de metal son más resistentes. – I bought plastic glasses last year, but these metal ones are stronger.

• Necesitas leer mis cartas. Lee estas de aquí primero. – You need to read my letters. Read these ones here first.

Esto

Esto is a neutral demonstrative pronoun used to refer to abstract concepts or ideas, or things that are close to the speaker that haven’t otherwise been mentioned. English translations of esto can therefore be this or it, depending on the context. There are no other versions, since only genderless things or concepts can be replaced by esto.

• Esto es un artefacto antiguo. – This is an ancient artifact.

• No quiero hablar de esto con nadie. – I don’t want to talk about it with anyone.

Ese

Ese is a demonstrative adjective, used to indicate a noun that is relatively close but not right here, either in space or time. Its English translation is that. It has four forms, based on the gender and number of the noun it modifies: ese, esa, esos, and esas.

• Ese libro es interesante. – That book is interesting

• Esa silla está rota. – That chair is broken.

• Esos perros son grandes. – Those dogs are big.

• Esas flores son hermosas. – Those flowers are beautiful.

Ése

Essentially identical to the demonstrative adjectives we just saw (which always precede the noun), demonstrative pronouns entirely replace nouns that are relatively close. The demonstrative pronouns were traditionally differentiated from the demonstrative adjectives by adding accents, but these are now optional in modern Spanish. The four forms are therefore either identical to the ones we saw above, or they appear with accents as ése, ésa, ésos, and ésas.

As pronouns, they usually translate into English as that one or those ones.

• No quiero otros vestidos, quiero ése. – I don’t want any other dresses, I want that one.

• La taza de mi mamá es nueva, pero ésa es vieja. – My mom’s mug is new, but that one is old.

• ¿Te gustaron los ponquecitos de chocolate? ¿Y ésos de vainilla ya los probaste? – Did you like the chocolate cupcakes? And did you try the vanilla ones?

• Ya te dije que no quiero las rosas que tienes, quiero ésas que venden en la floristería. – I told you I don’t want the roses you have, I want the ones they sell at the florist.

Eso

Eso is another neutral demonstrative pronoun, used specifically to refer to an idea, a situation, or a thing that’s not explicitly named but that’s understood from the context. It’s a common alternative to ello, as we saw above. There are no other forms for eso since, by definition, it can only be used as a pronoun to replace nouns whose gender is unknown.

Eso generally translates as that in English. It can sometimes take other translations like what, or even longer phrases that refer to the concept in more detail.

• Eso es increíble. – That is unbelievable.

• Eso que dijo Manuel fue extraño. – What Manuel said was strange.

• Ya no quiero comer eso. – I don’t want to eat that anymore.

En

En is a Spanish preposition with various meanings depending on the context. Its most common translations in English are in, on, or at.

• Mi abuela está en el supermercado comprando vegetales. – My grandmother is in the supermarket buying vegetables.

• Los libros están en la mesa. – The books are on the table.

• Los gatos duermen en su cesta. – The cats sleep in their basket.

Encima

Encima is a Spanish preposition used to indicate that something is above or on top of something else. It’s usually followed by de and the next noun, so we can think of the full preposition as encima de.

• No pongas el vaso encima del mantel blanco, por favor. – Don’t put the glass on top of the white tablecloth, please.

• El gato duerme encima del armario. – The cat sleeps on top of the wardrobe.

Entonces

Entonces is a versatile Spanish word that has a few meanings. When referring to a specific moment in time, its best translation is then. As a transition word to introduce a result or a conclusion, English equivalents are so or therefore. When responding to a condition, another suitable translation is in that case.

• Era muy feliz entonces. – I was very happy then.

• No tienes edad suficiente para ir solo, entonces no puedes ir. – You are not old enough to go alone, so you can’t go.

• Me encanta el chocolate. / Entonces, te encantará el postre que hice. – I love chocolate / Then you’ll love the dessert that I made.

-érrimo

The suffix -érrimo in Spanish is used on adjectives to form Spanish superlatives, conveying the sense of very or extremely. Just keep in mind that it’s not such a common suffix, since its use is restricted to certain words that historically adopted it from Latin.

Even once an adjective takes this suffix, it needs to respect standard Spanish adjective rules and change its ending to match the gender and number of the noun it’s being used to describe. The four endings can therefore be -érrimo, -érrima, -érrimos, and -érrimas.

Adjective	Superlative	English
Áspero	Aspérrimo	Extremely rough
Célebre	Celebérrimo	Extremely famous
Íntegro	Integérrimo	With extreme integrity
Libre	Libérrimo	Extremely free
Mísero	Misérrimo	Extremely miserable
Negro	Nigérrimo	Deepest black
Pobre	Paupérrimo	Extremely poor
Pulcro	Pulquérrimo	Extremely neat, Extremely tidy
Salubre	Salubérrimo	Extremely healthy

Conclusion: Spanish words that start with E

Well that was fun! We sure hope you enjoyed our exploration of the fascinating history, pronunciation, and versatility of the letter E in Spanish.

After a quick review of the history and pronunciation of this letter, today’s post consisted primarily of extensive lists of nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and other essential Spanish words that start with E, equipping you with more than 160 words to enhance your Spanish fluency.

Keep practicing and incorporating these words into your speech and writing, and enjoy the rewarding process of mastering this vibrant language!

¡Eso es! – That’s it!