Inklingo

How to Say "citizenship" in Spanish

English → Spanish

nacionalidad

/nah-syoh-nah-lee-DAHD//nasjonaliˈðað/

nounA1casual
Use 'nacionalidad' when casually asking about or stating someone's country of origin or legal belonging, often interchangeably with citizenship.
A person holding a small blue book with a golden emblem, standing in front of a colorful map of the world.

Examples

¿Cuál es tu nacionalidad?

What is your nationality?

Tengo la nacionalidad argentina y la italiana.

I have Argentine and Italian nationality.

Es necesario indicar su nacionalidad en este formulario.

It is necessary to indicate your nationality on this form.

The '-dad' Gender Rule

A great trick to remember: almost every Spanish word that ends in '-dad' is feminine. That means you should always use 'la' or 'una' with 'nacionalidad'.

Describing yourself

When you want to say where you are from using this word, you usually say 'Mi nacionalidad es...' or 'Soy de nacionalidad...'. Note that the word 'nacionalidad' is a noun, while 'mexicano' or 'español' are the adjectives that describe it.

Using the wrong gender

Mistake:El nacionalidad mexicana.

Correction: La nacionalidad mexicana. Because it ends in '-dad', it's always a 'girl' word!

Capitalization confusion

Mistake:Mi Nacionalidad es Española.

Correction: Mi nacionalidad es española. In Spanish, we don't capitalize names of languages or nationalities unless they start a sentence.

ciudadanía

nounB1formal
Use 'ciudadanía' when referring to the formal, legal status of being a citizen of a particular country, especially after meeting residency requirements.

Examples

Después de vivir diez años en México, obtuvo la ciudadanía.

After living in Mexico for ten years, he obtained citizenship.

Citizenship vs. Nationality

Learners often use 'nacionalidad' even when 'ciudadanía' is more precise for legal status. While 'nacionalidad' can mean citizenship, 'ciudadanía' specifically denotes the legal rights and responsibilities granted by a country.

Related Translations

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