El ordenador central de la FMI.
The IMF's central computer.
Spy movies always have one big central machine that guards every secret, and el ordenador central is the name for that box.
From Misión: Imposible · Spanish audio
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "computer" in Spanish
el ordenador
nounmasculineplural: los ordenadoresLatin America: la computadora
"Computer" in Spanish is el ordenador in Spain and la computadora in Mexico and most of Latin America. In Chile and Colombia people also say el computador. Mind the gender: ordenador is masculine, computadora is feminine.
Hear "ordenador" in a real movie scene
A spy movie and its secret machine. The video starts and stops on that line.
Ordenador, computadora or computador?
The machine is the same everywhere. The word and its gender depend on the country.
| Word | Where you'll hear it | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| el ordenador | Spain | Masculine, stressed on the last syllable: or-de-na-DOR. |
| la computadora | Mexico and most of Latin America | Feminine, so adjectives end in -a: una computadora nueva. |
| el computador | Chile and Colombia | Masculine, built on the same root as computadora. |
| el portátil | Spain | A laptop. In Latin America you'll hear la laptop or la computadora portátil. |
Tip: Wordy teaches el ordenador, the word from Spain. In Mexico switch to la computadora, and remember to make the article and adjectives feminine.
Grammar: el ordenador, los ordenadores
Four points, including the gender switch between countries.
Masculine, like most -or nouns
el ordenador, un ordenador. Nouns ending in -or are usually masculine: el color, el motor.Plural with -es
It ends in a consonant, so the plural adds -es: los ordenadores.The adjective follows the word you pick
un ordenador nuevo in Spain, una computadora nueva in Mexico. Same machine, different agreement.Stress at the end
Say or-deh-nah-DOR. A word ending in r is stressed on its last syllable, so it needs no written accent.Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
Es un ordenador, el número doce.
It's a computer, number twelve.
Es un ordenador nuevo.
It's a new computer.
El ordenador ya funciona.
The computer works now.
Leer y escribir en el ordenador es fácil.
Reading and writing on the computer is easy.
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗la ordenador
✓el ordenador
Ordenador is masculine. The la belongs to computadora.
✗los ordenadors
✓los ordenadores
After a final consonant, the plural ending is -es.
✗una computadora nuevo (in Mexico)
✓una computadora nueva
Once you switch to computadora, the adjective has to switch to the feminine -a.
Real conversation: an old computer
A short dialog over coffee in your living room. Tap to listen.
Natalia drops by for a coffee and looks over the gadgets in your living room.
¡Oye! ¿Es un ordenador nuevo?
Hey! Is that a new computer?
No, es bastante viejo.
No, it's pretty old.
¡Ay! Aquí hay un virus.
Uh-oh! There's a virus here.
Your turn to answer
In the app you reply in Spanish for the last 2 lines.
Continue the conversation in WordyPractice: 3 quick exercises
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1 of 3 · Watch and choose
What do you hear in the video?
The other 31 exercises on this topic are in the app.
How to remember it
Ordenador starts with orden, order. Picture a computer sorting a messy desk into neat, ordered piles.
Questions about "computer" in Spanish
How do you say computer in Spanish?
In Spain it's el ordenador. In Mexico and most of Latin America it's la computadora, and in Chile and Colombia el computador is common too.
Is it el or la computadora?
La computadora, because it's feminine. Ordenador is the opposite: el ordenador.
How do you say "on the computer" in Spanish?
En el ordenador in Spain, en la computadora in Latin America: Leo en el ordenador.
How do you say laptop in Spanish?
El portátil in Spain. In Latin America people say la laptop or la computadora portátil.
