Español — Fractions and multiples
Spanish expresses fractions with special words (la mitad, un tercio, un cuarto) and multiples with doble and triple. Some forms agree in gender with the noun, others do not.
How it works
"Half" is la mitad as a noun (la mitad del pastel) or medio/media as an adjective (medio litro, media hora). From "a third" up, use the ordinal-like fraction forms: un tercio, un cuarto, dos tercios, tres cuartos. Multiples are el doble and el triple (el doble de trabajo). Percentages use por ciento: el veinte por ciento.
Examples
| Spanish | Meaning |
|---|---|
| la mitad del pastel | half of the cake |
| media hora / medio litro | half an hour / half a litre (agrees: media, medio) |
| un tercio de la clase | a third of the class |
| tres cuartos de litro | three quarters of a litre |
| dos tercios de los votos | two thirds of the votes |
| el doble / el triple de personas | twice / three times as many people |
| el veinte por ciento del total | twenty percent of the total |
Good to know
As an adjective, medio agrees with the noun (media botella, medio kilo), but la mitad is an invariable noun and takes de: la mitad de la botella, not "media de". The fraction word tercio/cuarto stays masculine regardless of the noun (dos tercios de la población), and por ciento is invariable — never *por cientos.