¿Qué tal la oreja?
How's the ear?
This is how you ask about a body part that was hurting. Oreja is the outer ear, the part anyone can see.
From Breaking Bad · Spanish audio
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "ear" in Spanish
la oreja
nounfeminineplural: las orejasinner ear: el oído
"Ear" in Spanish is la oreja when you mean the outer ear, the part you can see and touch. The inner ear, and your sense of hearing, is el oído. So an earache is dolor de oído, but earrings hang from las orejas.
Hear "oreja" in real movie scenes
Two scenes about an ear that needs attention. Each video starts and stops on that line.
Vaya, toda la oreja.
Wow, the whole ear.
A man reaches for his ear and is surprised that it isn't one spot but the entire ear. Toda takes the -a ending to match la oreja.
From Un fantasma fastidioso · Spanish audio
Oreja or oído: which ear?
Spanish has one word for the outside of the ear and one for the inside.
| Spanish | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| la oreja | outer ear | Tiene las orejas grandes. (He has big ears.) |
| el oído | inner ear, hearing | Me duele el oído. (My ear hurts inside.) |
| el dolor de oído | earache | Tengo dolor de oído. (I have an earache.) |
| tener buen oído | to have a good ear | Tiene buen oído para la música. (She has a good ear for music.) |
| decir al oído | to whisper in someone's ear | Me lo dijo al oído. (He whispered it to me.) |
Tip: A quick test: if you could pull a hat over it or hang an earring from it, say oreja. If it hears, aches inside or gets infected, say oído.
Grammar: la oreja, las orejas
Four points for the outer ear and the inner one.
Feminine oreja, masculine oído
la oreja, las orejas, but el oído, los oídos. Each word keeps its own article.Doler with body parts
Me duele la oreja. My ear hurts. For both ears, the verb goes plural: Me duelen las orejas.The, not my
With body parts Spanish usually uses the article: Me lavo las orejas. I wash my ears.The throaty j
The j in oreja is a strong h from the back of the throat: oh-REH-hah.Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
Me duele la oreja.
My ear hurts.
Sí, y me duelen las orejas.
Yes, and my ears hurt.
No pienso con las orejas.
I don't think with my ears.
Me duele el oído.
I have an earache.
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗el oreja
✓la oreja
Oreja is feminine. El belongs to the other ear word, oído.
✗Me duele mi oreja
✓Me duele la oreja
With doler, the me already tells you whose ear it is.
✗una infección de oreja (an ear infection)
✓una infección de oído
Problems inside the ear go with oído.
Practice: 3 quick exercises
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1 of 3 · Watch and choose
What do you hear in the video?
The other 34 exercises on this topic are in the app.
How to remember it
Oreja starts with an O, roughly the shape of the ear you can see, while oído looks like oír, to hear.
Questions about "ear" in Spanish
How do you say ear in Spanish?
La oreja for the outer ear you can see, and el oído for the inner ear and your hearing.
What's the difference between oreja and oído?
Oreja is the outside part, where earrings go. Oído is inside the head, and it also means the sense of hearing: tener buen oído.
How do you say "my ear hurts" in Spanish?
Me duele el oído if the pain is inside, and me duele la oreja if it's the outer ear.
How do you say earrings in Spanish?
Los pendientes in Spain and los aretes in Mexico and much of Latin America.
