Using the Spanish Word Tamaño

'Tamaño' Can Be Noun or Adjective

tattoo for lesson on tamaño
Puedes obtener un descuento en un tatuaje de cualquier tamaño. (You can get a discount on a tattoo of any size. "Salvador" is the Spanish word for "savior" and is often used as a first name.). Cristian Borquez/Creative Commons.

Tamaño is the most common Spanish word for "size." Here are some examples of its use as a noun. Note that it is sometimes more natural to translate sentences containing tamaño by referring to the sizes themselves rather than using the word "size."

  • No sé el tamaño de tu ropa. (I don't know your clothing size.)
  • ¿De qué tamaño debe ser el cuestionario? (How long should the questionnaire be?)
  • El tamaño del cerebro del bebé es sólo un 25 por ciento del que tendré cuando sea adulto. (The size of a baby's brain is only 25 percent of what it will be when she's an adult.)
  • Quiero enviar un archivo adjunto de gran tamaño. (I want to send a large attached file.)
  • Puedes obtener un descuento en un tatuaje de cualquier tamaño. (You can get a discount on a tattoo of any size.)
  • El artista italiano crea esculturas de madera a tamaño natural. (The Italian artist creates life-size wood sculptures. Tamaño real could have been used here with the same meaning.)
  • Los mamíferos de tamaño medio pueden ser los más propensos a extinguirse. (Medium-sized mammals can be the ones with the greatest tendency to go extinct.)
  • El tiempo de hornear depende del tamaño del pan. (The baking time depends on the size of the bread loaf.)
  • Con el tamaño familiar, obtendrás 166 lavados para todo tipo de ropa. (With the family size, you'll get 166 washer loads for every type of clothing.)
  • Voy a comprar un servidor de impresión de tamaño de bolsillo. (I'm going to buy a pocket-size print server.)

Tamaño can also function as an adjective to mean "such a large," "such a" or something similar. Note that while tamaño as a noun is masculine, tamaño as a adjective must match the gender and number of the noun that follows.

  • My madre dijo tamañas palabras en una de esas ocasiones. (My mother said such big words on one of those occasions.)
  • ¿Cómo es posible que un niño de siete años sea capaz de tamaña aventura? (How is it possible that a 7-year-old be capable of such an adventure?)
  • Los libros hacen tamaña diferencia en las vidas del nuestros hijos. (Books make such a big difference in the lives of our children.)
  • Es tamaño insulto para la inteligencia. (It's such an insult to the intelligence.)

Etymology

Tamaño comes from the Latin tam magnos, meaning "so large."

Synonyms

Although not as versatile as tamaño, talla is frequently used for "size," especially when talking about clothing or body size: Normalmente las tallas americanas son más grandes que las europeas. (Normally the American sizes run larger than the European ones.)

Other words that sometimes translate as "size" include altura (height), ancho (width), capacidad (capacity), dimensión (dimension), medida (measurement) and volumen (volume).

Sources

Sample sentences were derived from sources that include ElOrigenDelHombre.com, Sabrosia.com Prezi.com, Cultura Inquieta, MuyInteresante.es, GroupOn.es, Jasnet de Barcelona and ElPlural.com.

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Erichsen, Gerald. "Using the Spanish Word Tamaño." ThoughtCo, Apr. 5, 2023, thoughtco.com/using-the-spanish-word-tamano-3080186. Erichsen, Gerald. (2023, April 5). Using the Spanish Word Tamaño. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/using-the-spanish-word-tamano-3080186 Erichsen, Gerald. "Using the Spanish Word Tamaño." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/using-the-spanish-word-tamano-3080186 (accessed March 28, 2024).