B2 · Fine points and style
The neuter article lo
English needs a dummy noun here; Spanish needs none.
At a glance
- Remember
- lo stands in front of anything that is not a thing — no dummy noun needed.
- Form
- lo bueno, lo peorbefore an adjective
- Signal words
- lo bueno
- lo que
- lo de
- lo cual
- por lo menos
- Trap
- Wrong:El importante es llegar a tiempo.Right:Lo importante es llegar a tiempo.
Your turn
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Now write it yourself4 sentences on this topic, typed and checked instantly.
The form
The patterns at a glance
Each row first says when or what the pattern is used for, then gives an example in Spanish.
| before an adjective | lo bueno, lo peor |
| with que | lo que quieras |
| intensifying | lo rápido que corre |
| with de | lo de ayer |
| a state of affairs | …, lo cual me sorprendió |
| set phrases | a lo mejor, por lo menos |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
lo before an adjective makes it a concept.
Lo mejor es esperar.The best thing is to wait.
lo que points at a whole state of affairs.
Haz lo que creas correcto.Do what you think is right.
lo plus adjective plus que intensifies; the adjective agrees.
No sabes lo contenta que está.You have no idea how pleased she is.
lo de means «that business with».
¿Sabes lo de Marta?Have you heard about Marta?
Example sentences
Lo importante es que estés bien.The important thing is that you are well.
No me creo lo que me contaste.I do not believe what you told me.
¡Lo caro que es todo aquí!How expensive everything is here!
Lo de anoche fue un error.That business last night was a mistake.
6 more example sentences
Lo peor ya ha pasado.The worst is over.
Cuéntame lo que sepas.Tell me what you know.
No te imaginas lo lejos que está.You cannot imagine how far away it is.
Lo del viaje sigue en pie.The trip is still on.
Por lo menos avísame.At least let me know.
Lo bueno de vivir aquí es el clima.The good thing about living here is the climate.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
el is used before an adjective, because English props it up with a noun and «the important thing» looks masculine enough: el importante. That means «the important man». For a concept with no thing attached it is lo: lo importante.
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
Beside el and la Spanish has lo, an article that never goes in front of a noun. Put before an adjective it turns it into a concept: lo importante, lo difícil, lo peor. English cannot do this and props the adjective up with a noun instead — «the important *thing», «the worst part*», «what is difficult». Spanish needs no prop, and putting el there turns the phrase into a person: el importante is «the important man».
With que it points at a whole state of affairs: No entiendo lo que dices, Llegó tarde, lo que me molestó. That is English «what» in its neuter sense, and the trap is that a single noun would take el que or la que instead.
In the pattern lo plus adjective plus que it intensifies: No sabes lo cansado que estoy — «you have no idea how tired I am». English uses «how» there, which is also its question word; Spanish keeps the two apart. The adjective agrees even though lo itself never changes.
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The verbs on this page, in every form: ser · estar · saber · creer · hacer · esperar · contar