Tiene una cara tan bonita.
She has such a pretty face.
This is how you say someone has a pretty face: tener una cara, then the adjective.
From The Blacklist · Spanish audio
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "face" in Spanish
la cara
nounfeminineplural: las caras
"Face" in Spanish is la cara. In formal or written Spanish you'll also meet el rostro. Keep the article in mind, because the adjective cara means "expensive": una crema cara is an expensive cream, and crema para la cara is face cream.
Hear "cara" in real movie scenes
A compliment and a boast about memory. Each video starts and stops on that line.
Nunca olvido una cara.
I never forget a face.
Some people remember every face but never a name, and una cara here means any face at all.
From No te metas con Zohan · Spanish audio
Everyday phrases with cara
Six ways the word shows up outside the bathroom mirror.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| cara a cara | face to face |
| lavarse la cara | to wash your face |
| tener cara de cansado | to look tired |
| poner mala cara | to pull a face, to look annoyed |
| tener mucha cara | to have a lot of nerve (Spain) |
| el rostro | face (formal or written) |
Tip: A friend who keeps borrowing your things without asking tiene mucha cara, at least in Spain.
Grammar: la cara, las caras
Four habits that make you sound natural.
Feminine
la cara, una cara, las caras. Adjectives take the -a ending: una cara bonita.Your face is la cara
For your own body, Spanish uses the article and a reflexive verb: Me lavo la cara. I wash my face.Describing a face with tener
Tiene una cara bonita. Add de to say how someone looks: Tienes cara de cansado. You look tired.The other cara
caro, cara is also the adjective for expensive. After a noun, cara means pricey: una crema cara.Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
Me pongo crema en la cara.
I put cream on my face.
Me cuido la cara y el cuerpo con crema.
I take care of my face and body with cream.
No solo es una cara bonita.
It's not just a pretty face.
Nunca olvido una cara.
I never forget a face.
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗Me lavo mi cara
✓Me lavo la cara
The reflexive me already tells you whose face it is, so use la.
✗una crema cara (meaning face cream)
✓una crema para la cara
Crema cara is a cream that costs a lot. Face cream is crema para la cara or crema facial.
✗la cabeza (meaning face)
✓la cara
La cabeza is the whole head. La cara is only the front, with the eyes, nose and mouth.
Real conversation: whose cream is this?
A short dialog in a shared apartment, just before you head out.
You're both getting ready to leave when your roommate picks up a tube from the bathroom shelf and asks what it's for.
Oye, ¿esta crema es para la cara?
Hey, is this cream for your face?
No, esa es para el cuerpo.
No, that one's for the body.
¡Uy! Yo siempre me pongo esta. ¿Y tú?
Oops! I always put this one on. What about you?
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
Cara starts with car, and the front of a car looks like a face, with headlights for eyes. Picture that grille smiling at you.
Questions about "face" in Spanish
How do you say face in Spanish?
La cara. The more formal word, common in writing, is el rostro.
How do you say "wash your face" in Spanish?
Tell a friend Lávate la cara. For yourself, say Me lavo la cara, with la instead of mi.
Does cara also mean expensive?
Yes. Cara is the feminine of caro, so una crema cara is an expensive cream. As a noun with la, it's the face.
How do you say "face to face" in Spanish?
Cara a cara, with no article: Hablamos cara a cara.
