The neuter lo
Type the missing word in each sentence. You hear each sentence read by a native voice.
no conozco, no lo envidio.
What I don't know I don't envy.
The rule
English has no single equivalent, so learners often leave it out or use el instead. Using lo helps you say common phrases such as “what you said,” “the important thing,” and “how expensive it is.”
The pattern
Lo refers to an idea or an unnamed thing. It is not a masculine version of el.
| Pattern | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| lo que + verb | what, the thing that | Lo que dices |
| lo + adjective | the ... thing, what is ... | Lo importante |
| lo de + noun or time | the thing about, the business of | Lo de ayer |
| lo + adjective + que | how ... | Lo difícil que es |
Use lo que when English “what” means “the thing that.” No entiendo lo que dices means “I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
Use lo + adjective to turn an adjective into an abstract idea. The adjective always stays masculine singular: lo bueno, lo importante, lo mejor. It does not change to match a person or object because no noun is named.
Use lo de to refer to a situation people already know about. Lo de la fiesta means “the thing about the party” or “what happened with the party.”
Lo + adjective + que expresses degree. In English, this is often “how” plus an adjective.
Use el or la before nouns. Things have gender. Ideas and unnamed qualities take lo.
Examples
- No entiendo lo que dices.I don’t understand what you’re saying.
- Lo importante es intentarlo.The important thing is to try.
- Lo mejor fue la comida.The best part was the food.
- Lo de ayer fue raro.The thing about yesterday was strange.
- Lo de la fiesta fue un desastre.The thing about the party was a disaster.
- No sabes lo difícil que es.You don’t know how difficult it is.
- No sabes lo caro que es vivir aquí.You don’t know how expensive it is to live here.
Watch out
- Lo libro está aquí. El libro está aquí.Lo never goes before a noun; libro is a masculine noun, so it takes el.
- El importante es llegar. Lo importante es llegar.Use lo importante for the abstract idea of what matters.
- No entiendo que dices. No entiendo lo que dices.Use lo que when “what” means “the thing that.”
- No sabes cómo difícil es. No sabes lo difícil que es.Use lo + adjective + que to say “how” plus an adjective.