Linking ideas: e, u, sino, cuyo and desde hace

Join ideas accurately with a range of conjunctions, use cuyo (whose), and say how long something has or had been going on.

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Y, o, pero and sino

y becomes e before a word starting with i- or hi-: padres e hijos, español e inglés.
o becomes u before o- or ho-: siete u ocho, mujeres u hombres.
pero = but. sino = but rather, after a negative: No es español sino mexicano. (He isn't Spanish but Mexican.)
Others: porque, ya que (because, since), aunque (although), sin embargo (however), por lo tanto (therefore), mientras (while).

Cuyo: whose

cuyo / cuya / cuyos / cuyas = whose. It agrees with the thing that is owned, not with the owner:
Mi amigo, cuya madre es médica, vive aquí. (My friend, whose mother is a doctor, lives here.)
La chica, cuyos padres son ingleses, habla bien. (The girl, whose parents are English, speaks well.)
In questions, whose? is ¿De quién...?: ¿De quién es este libro?

Desde hace and desde hacía

desde hace + present = have been doing for: Estudio español desde hace tres años. Also: Hace tres años que estudio español.
desde hacía + imperfect = had been doing for: Esperaba desde hacía una hora cuando llegó el autobús.
Quantifiers agree with nouns: muchos amigos, poca gente, demasiadas tareas, bastantes libros. With adjectives they do not change: muy caro, bastante difícil.
Worked example

Translate: I have been learning Spanish and Italian for two years.

  1. have been learning for = present + desde hace: aprendo ... desde hace
  2. Spanish and Italian = español e italiano (y becomes e before i-)
  3. two years = dos años

Answer: Aprendo español e italiano desde hace dos años.

Key idea

Y becomes e before i- / hi-; o becomes u before o- / ho-. Sino after a negative. Cuyo agrees with the thing owned. Desde hace + present = have been; desde hacía + imperfect = had been. Mucho, poco, demasiado, bastante agree with nouns.

Key words
pero
but
porque
because (one word, no accent)
el autobús
bus
difícil
difficult

All GCSE and International GCSE Spanish key terms and definitions →

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Extra practice

2 more questions

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  1. Complete with the word for "and": Mi padre ___ hijo son altos.

    1. y
    2. o
    3. e
    4. u
    Show the answer

    Answer: e

    Before an i sound, y becomes e: padre e hijo.

  2. Complete: No es rojo, ___ azul.

    1. sino
    2. pero
    3. porque
    4. aunque
    Show the answer

    Answer: sino

    No ... sino = not ... but rather.

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Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.

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