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A simple storybook illustration of a person sitting peacefully with a glowing, colorful light emanating from their head, representing thoughts and the mind.

mentales

men-TAH-les

adjectivem or fB1
mental?relating to the mind or thinking
Also:intellectual?related to the intellect

📝 In Action

Los ejercicios mentales son buenos para el cerebro.

A2

Mental exercises are good for the brain.

Debemos cuidar nuestros estados mentales.

B1

We must take care of our mental states.

Ella hace cálculos mentales muy rápido.

B1

She does mental math very quickly.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • intelectuales (intellectual)
  • psíquicos (psychic/mental)

Antonyms

  • físicos (physical)
  • corporales (bodily)

Common Collocations

  • salud mental – mental health
  • agilidad mental – mental agility
  • mapas mentales – mind maps

💡 Grammar Points

One word for everyone

In Spanish, words ending in '-al' like 'mental' don't change for 'boy' or 'girl' nouns. Since this is the plural version, 'mentales' works for both 'los' and 'las'.

Plural Matching

Because we are talking about more than one thing, we add '-es' to 'mental' to make it 'mentales'. It must match the plural noun it describes.

❌ Common Pitfalls

Adding just an 's'

Mistake: "los problemas mentals"

Correction: los problemas mentales

⭐ Usage Tips

Natural Math

If you want to say you are doing 'mental math', use the phrase 'cálculo mental' (singular) or 'cálculos mentales' (plural).

✏️ Quick Practice

💡 Quick Quiz: mentales

Question 1 of 2

Which of these is the correct way to say 'mental health' (plural) in Spanish?

📚 More Resources

Word Family

mente(mind) - noun
mentalidad(mentality) - noun
mentalmente(mentally) - adverb

Frequently Asked Questions

When do I use 'mental' vs 'mentales'?

Use 'mental' when describing one thing (la nota mental) and 'mentales' when describing more than one thing (las notas mentales).

Is it used for 'crazy'?

While 'mental' can sometimes refer to mental health issues, calling someone 'mental' to mean 'crazy' is much less common in Spanish than it is in English slang. It's better to use more specific words for that.