Nouns ending in L

As you know, most Spanish nouns ending in o are masculine; and most ending in a are feminine. But what about nouns ending in L?

Most nouns ending in L are masculine. For example, el árbol, el papel, el sol.

Here are the most common exceptions:

• ¿Me pasas la sal. Salt.
• Tengo la piel reseca. Really dry skin.
• Una vocal larga. A long vowel.
• Una fuerte señal. A strong signal.
• La col roja. Red cabbage.
• Me mandó una postal. She sent me a postcard.
• En otra sucursal. In another branch (of the bank).
• Te veo en la terminal. In the station.

Some words ending in L come in both masculine and feminine flavors, with distinct meanings:

• La capital is the capital city. To remember the gender, recall that ciudad, city, is feminine. El capital is money used to invest in a business. Here, remember that dinero, money, is masculine.
• El final de la serie. The last episode of the series, the ending. Here you might find it helpful to remember that capítulo, episode, is masculine. La final de la Copa Mundial. The final round of the competition. Here, final, like competencia, is feminine.