ellos

/EH-yohs/

PronounmA1

they?referring to a group of males or a mixed-gender group

Also:them?used as the subject of a sentence, e.g., 'It was them who arrived.'

📝 In Action

Ellos son mis hermanos.

They are my brothers.

Mis padres no están en casa. Ellos salieron a cenar.

My parents aren't home. They went out to dinner.

¿Dónde están los libros? Ellos están en la mesa.

Where are the books? They are on the table.

Ellos mismos construyeron la casa.

They built the house themselves.

Word Connections

Common Collocations

ellos mismos – they themselves
ellos son – they are
ellos tienen – they have

💡 Grammar Points

The 'One-Man' Rule

In Spanish, if a group includes even one male, you use 'ellos'. A group of 99 women and 1 man is still 'ellos'.

Not Just for People

You also use 'ellos' to refer to a group of non-living things, as long as the nouns are masculine (e.g., 'los libros' becomes 'ellos').

The 'Doer' of the Action

Use 'ellos' when 'they' are the ones doing something (e.g., 'Ellos corren' - 'They run'). If 'they' are receiving the action, you'll use a different word like 'los' (e.g., 'Yo los veo' - 'I see them').

❌ Common Pitfalls

Confusing `ellos` and `ellas`

Mistake: "Talking about a brother and sister: 'Ellas son mis hermanos.'"

Correction: Use 'Ellos son mis hermanos.' Because the group includes a male, you must use the masculine form 'ellos'.

Confusing `ellos` (they) and `ustedes` (you all)

Mistake: "Talking directly to a group of friends: '¿Ellos quieren ir al cine?'"

Correction: Use '¿Ustedes quieren ir al cine?' Use 'ellos' to talk *about* a group, and 'ustedes' to talk *to* a group.

⭐ Usage Tips

You Can Often Drop It

Once you've established who 'they' are, you can often drop 'ellos' from the sentence. For example, 'Ellos llegaron. Ahora comen.' ('They arrived. Now [they] are eating.') is perfectly natural.

✏️ Quick Practice

💡 Quick Quiz: ellos

Question 1 of 2

If you are talking about a group of friends named Ana, Sofía, and David, which pronoun means 'they'?

📚 More Resources

Word Family

él(he, him) - pronoun

ella(she, her) - pronoun

ellas(they (feminine)) - pronoun

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Spanish use 'ellos' for a mixed group of men and women?

This is a traditional feature of Spanish grammar. The masculine form is used as the 'default' for mixed groups. While there are ongoing conversations about more inclusive language, using 'ellos' for any group containing at least one male is the standard, grammatically correct way to speak.

Do I always have to say 'ellos'?

No, and in fact, it's very common to drop it! The ending of the verb usually tells you who is doing the action. For example, you can say 'Ellos comen' or just 'Comen' and they both mean 'They eat'. Leaving it out sounds very natural once the context is clear.