s on dia - why?

Question

if dia is one singular day, why, in "buenas dias", does it have an 's'? It is not plural...

also, similarly, why does the bueno take on an 's'? I get why bueno becomes buena - it is a gender thing, but why the 's'?

Thanks

too bad i cant edit- sorry- i wrote it wrong! lol buenos dias, not buenas dias, but the question still remains, why the two have an 's' at the end. thanks - Emeegurl, Mar 29, 2012

Answer 1

Although the normal translation of "buenos días" is "good day", in reality it is a plural. Literally this would be "good days". It is also acceptable, although less common, to say "buen día".

Since the noun "días" is a plural and is masculine even though it ends in an "a", any adjectives modifying it must agree in number and gender. That is why "bueno" becomes "buenos".

Lastly, you notice when the singular is used, it is not "bueno día". I believe there is an article in the learning section on this issue.

Well said. - Ox-Y-Gen, Mar 29, 2012

This helps alot. Thank you very much! I have a linguistics background for several other languages, so I tend not to like 'that's just the way it is' answers LOL However, I di accept that sometimes, this is the case:) - Emeegurl, Mar 29, 2012

¡De nada! - Noetol, Mar 29, 2012

Answer 2

Buenos días. - Good Mornings (Spanish equivalent of - good morning)

Buenas tardes. - Good Afternoons (Spanish equivalent of - good afternoon)

Wrong! - fastrob1, Mar 29, 2012

This is not wrong at all, en efecto así se traduce =) - DoverMob, Mar 29, 2012

Answer 3

In first place "dia" is masculine (el dia), therefore we say, "Buenos días" not "Buenas dias." You can't translate everything literally. "Buenos dias" means "Good morning." However, you can say, "Que tenga un buen dia" which means have a good day. I hope this helped.

Thank you. Is it cause of a grammar rule that the 's' is added to bueno and to dia, or are these separate words and spellings in themselves, used only in this context? - Emeegurl, Mar 29, 2012

another response answered this for me- thanks again for taking the time to respond! much appreciated. - Emeegurl, Mar 29, 2012

Answer 4

Thanks for asking this question. very interesting.