Inklingo

How to Say "homework" in Spanish

The most common Spanish word for “homework” is “deberes” — use 'deberes' when referring to school assignments in general, often implying a collection of tasks or duties assigned by a teacher..

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deberes

deh-BEH-rehs/deˈβeɾes/

nounA1school assignments
Use 'deberes' when referring to school assignments in general, often implying a collection of tasks or duties assigned by a teacher.
A young child with brown hair sitting at a wooden desk, concentrating on writing in a notebook with a pencil, surrounded by colorful school books.

Examples

Los niños están haciendo sus deberes.

The children are doing their homework.

¿Ya hiciste tus deberes de matemáticas?

Did you already do your math homework?

Tengo muchísimos deberes para el fin de semana.

I have so much homework for the weekend.

La maestra revisó los deberes de todos los estudiantes.

The teacher checked all the students' assignments.

Always Plural

Even if you only have one assignment, 'deberes' is almost always used in its plural form in this context.

Using the Singular

Mistake: “Hice mi deber.”

Correction: Hice mis deberes. ('deber' in singular usually means 'duty' or 'obligation.')

tarea

/tah-REH-ah//taˈɾea/

nounA1school assignment
Use 'tarea' when referring to a specific assignment or task given by a teacher, which could be a single piece of work.
A young student sitting at a wooden desk with an open textbook and notebook, holding a pencil, focused on completing their school assignment.

Examples

Tengo que terminar mi tarea de historia.

I have to finish my history homework.

¿Hiciste la tarea de matemáticas?

Did you do the math homework?

La profesora nos dio mucha tarea para el fin de semana.

The teacher gave us a lot of homework for the weekend.

Gender Check

Remember 'tarea' is feminine, so you must use 'la tarea' (the homework) and not 'el tarea'.

Confusing Tarea and Trabajo

Mistake: “Usando 'Mi trabajo es difícil' cuando se refiere a la tarea escolar.”

Correction: Use 'Mi tarea es difícil' when talking about school assignments. 'Trabajo' usually means paid employment or a large project.

Choosing Between 'Deberes' and 'Tarea'

Learners often wonder if there's a strict rule between 'deberes' and 'tarea'. In many contexts, they are interchangeable for 'homework'. However, 'deberes' can sometimes feel more like 'duties' or a set of tasks, while 'tarea' can more easily refer to a single assignment.

Related Translations

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