Referring to Ages in Spanish

In Spanish, stating a persons age is done by indicating how many years a person has rather than stating how old that person is. The most common way of stating someones age in Spanish is using a form of the phrase tener _____ aà ±os. For example, to say Laura is 26 years old, say Laura tiene 26 aà ±os.In general, you shouldnt omit aà ±os, the word for year.Other units of time, such as meses for months or dà ­as, can be used instead of aà ±os when appropriate. Using Tener for Ages The Spanish idiom for expressing a persons age is tener ___ aà ±os. Tener is the verb for to have, and un aà ±o is a year. Tengo catorce aà ±os.  (I am 14 years old.)Mi madre tiene cincuenta aà ±os.  (My mother is 50 years old.)Yo tenà ­a 31 aà ±os, casado y padre de un hijo.  (I was 31 years old, married and the father of a son.)Para el aà ±o 2025, uno de cada tres habitantes de la isla tendrà ¡ 65 aà ±os o mà ¡s.  (In the year 2025, one out of three inhabitants of the island will be 65 or older.) ¿Cuà ¡ntos aà ±os tienes?  (How old are you?) To ask a persons age, you also could ask:  ¿Quà © edad tienes? (Edad is the word for age.) In contrast with English, in Spanish you normally cannot leave out  aà ±os, unless the word has been used previously and the context makes clear what is meant. An example of where the word could be omitted would be a sentence such as this: Tengo veinte aà ±os, y mi hermano tiene quince. (I am 20 years old, and my brother is 15.) The equivalent of the phrase at ____ years of age is a la edad de ___ aà ±os or a los ___ aà ±os de edad. The words de edad are frequently omitted, perhaps more often than not. Thus a statement such as at the age of 30 she was rich and famous could be translated any of these ways: A los treinta aà ±os era rica y famosa. (This would be the most likely to be said.)A la edad de treinta aà ±os era rica y famosa.A los treinta aà ±os de edad era rica y famosa. Variations on Using Ages Although aà ±os is the most common unit of time with ages, others can also be used. Also, the same rules are applied to the ages of animals and things as with people. Mi bebà © tiene tres meses. (My baby is three months old.)Se dice que Matusalà ©n tenà ­a mà ¡ 900 aà ±os. (It is said that Methusela was more than 900 years old.)Esta casa tiene tres siglos. (This house is three centuries old.)Mi perrito tiene 15 dà ­as. (My puppy is 15 days old.) Past Tenses and Ages When speaking about ages in the past, the imperfect tense normally is used. Use of the preterite suggests the time when someone turned a certain age. See how the verb choice affects the meaning of these sentences: El atleta tomà ³ esteroides cuando tenà ­a 18 aà ±os. (The athlete took steroids when he was 18 years old. Tenà ­a is in the imperfect tense.)Cuando el estudiante tuvo 18 aà ±os, una psiquiatra le diagnosticà ³ con esquizofrenia. (When the student turned 18, a psychiatrist diagnosed him with schizophrenia. Tuvo is in the preterite tense.) Phrases Referring to Age Phrases shown in boldface are frequently used in referring to those of various ages: Investigan la muerte de una anciana por negligencia en un hospital. (They are investigating the death of an old woman because of negligence in a hospital.)Los alimentos contaminados son una amenaza para los nià ±os de corta edad. (Contaminated foods are a danger for young children.)A muchas personas de edad avanzada les disminuye el apetito. (Many older people have a reduced appetite.)En Gran Bretaà ±a la presià ³n para descender la edad de consentimiento tiene mucha fuerza. (In Great Britain the pressure to reduce the age of consent is very strong.)La edad del pavo se convierte en la etapa en que los padres son considerados por sus hijos como los mà ¡s insoportables e incomprensibles. (The awkward age becomes the stage at which parents are considered by their children to be the most unbearable and difficult to understand. Edad del pavo, literally the age of a turkey, is generally considered to be the preadolescent years, approximately from 11 to 13.)Estudios habà ­an mostrado q ue una persona se sentà ­a de mediana edad cuando tenà ­a alrededor de 36 aà ±os. (Studies have shown that a person feels middle-aged at around 36 years old.)Uno de los asaltantes es menor de edad. (One of the assailants is a minor.)Los ejercicios de natacià ³n son excelentes para la tercera edad. (Swimming excercises are excellent for senior citizens.)