- Use hace + noun to describe weather (hace calor, hace frío)
- Use está + adjective for weather conditions (está nublado, está despejado)
- Talk about rain and snow with llueve and nieva
- Name the four seasons and talk about seasonal weather
- Discuss temperature and read forecasts
- Master weather small talk - the universal conversation starter
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ArticlesBeginner
Weather in Spanish (El Tiempo)
Hace calor, está nublado, llueve - master the three weather structures and never be lost for small talk
What You'll Learn
Overview
Weather is the universal conversation starter. In Spain, you might hear "¡Qué calor!" every five minutes in August. In Mexico, the rainy season dominates daily plans. Knowing how to talk about weather in Spanish is essential for small talk, travel, and everyday life.
The Three Weather Structures
Hacer + noun
Hace mucho calor hoy
It's very hot today
Estar + adjective
Está nublado esta mañana
It's cloudy this morning
Verb alone
Llueve mucho en abril
It rains a lot in April
Unlike English, Spanish does not use a subject pronoun for weather. You never say "ello hace calor" - just hace calor. The verb hacer (to make/do) is used impersonally, always in the third person singular.
Structure & Formation
1. Hace + Noun - The Core Weather Pattern
This is the most common weather structure in Spanish. Hacer is used in the third person singular (hace) followed by a noun. To intensify, add mucho/a before the noun.
| Spanish | English | Intensified |
|---|---|---|
| Hace calor | It's hot | Hace mucho calor |
| Hace frío | It's cold | Hace mucho frío |
| Hace sol | It's sunny | Hace mucho sol |
| Hace viento | It's windy | Hace mucho viento |
| Hace buen tiempo | The weather is nice | Hace muy buen tiempo |
| Hace mal tiempo | The weather is bad | Hace muy mal tiempo |
| Hace fresco | It's cool / chilly | Hace bastante fresco |
Key rule: Use mucho (not muy) with hace + noun because mucho modifies the noun. Muy modifies adjectives and adverbs. So: hace mucho calor (not *hace muy calor).
2. Está + Adjective - Describing the Sky and Conditions
Use estar in the third person singular to describe the current state of the weather, especially for sky conditions.
Sky Conditions
Está nubladoIt's cloudy
Está despejadoIt's clear
Está soleadoIt's sunny
Está cubiertoIt's overcast
Está oscuroIt's dark
Other Conditions
Está húmedoIt's humid
Está secoIt's dry
Está heladoIt's icy / freezing
Está tormentosoIt's stormy
Está brumosoIt's misty / hazy
3. Llueve, Nieva - Weather Verbs
Some weather phenomena use their own specific verbs, always in the third person singular. These are impersonal verbs - they have no real subject.
| Infinitive | Present | English | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| llover (o→ue) | llueve | it rains | Llueve mucho en Londres |
| nevar (e→ie) | nieva | it snows | Nieva en la sierra en enero |
| tronar (o→ue) | truena | it thunders | Truena por la noche |
| granizar | graniza | it hails | A veces graniza en primavera |
| lloviznar | llovizna | it drizzles | Llovizna un poco esta tarde |
| amanecer | amanece | it dawns | Amanece a las siete |
| anochecer | anochece | it gets dark | Anochece temprano en invierno |
Note: Llover and nevar are stem-changing verbs (o→ue and e→ie). You can also use the noun forms: Hay lluvia (There is rain), Hay nieve (There is snow), Hay tormenta (There is a storm).
4. Las Estaciones - The Seasons
Use en + season to say "in spring/summer/etc." Seasons are not capitalised in Spanish.
la primavera
spring
marzo - mayo
el verano
summer
junio - agosto
el otoño
autumn
septiembre - noviembre
el invierno
winter
diciembre - febrero
En primavera llueve bastante
In spring it rains quite a lot
En verano hace mucho calor
In summer it is very hot
En otoño hace fresco y viento
In autumn it is cool and windy
En invierno nieva en las montañas
In winter it snows in the mountains
5. La Temperatura - Temperature
Spanish-speaking countries use Celsius. Use estar a + degrees or hay + degrees to state the temperature.
Saying the Temperature
Estamos a 30 gradosIt's 30 degrees
La temperatura es de 25 gradosThe temperature is 25 degrees
Hay 15 gradosIt's 15 degrees
Estamos a bajo ceroIt's below zero
La máxima será de 35 gradosThe high will be 35 degrees
La mínima será de 5 gradosThe low will be 5 degrees
Temperature Vocabulary
grados (centígrados)degrees (Celsius)
la máximathe high / maximum
la mínimathe low / minimum
bajo cerobelow zero
la sensación térmicathe wind chill / feels like
subir / bajarto rise / to fall
6. El Pronóstico - Weather Forecasts
Forecasts use the future tense or ir a + infinitive. Here are common phrases you will hear on the news or read in a weather app.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Mañana va a llover | Tomorrow it is going to rain |
| Se esperan tormentas por la tarde | Storms are expected in the afternoon |
| Las temperaturas van a subir | Temperatures are going to rise |
| Habrá cielos despejados | There will be clear skies |
| Se prevé lluvia para el fin de semana | Rain is forecast for the weekend |
| La ola de calor continuará hasta el jueves | The heatwave will continue until Thursday |
| Hay alerta por lluvias fuertes | There is a warning for heavy rain |
| El tiempo mejorará a partir del miércoles | The weather will improve from Wednesday |
7. Weather Small Talk - Conversación sobre el Tiempo
Weather is the go-to topic for starting conversations in Spanish, just like in English. Here are the phrases you need.
Starting the Conversation
¿Qué tiempo hace?What's the weather like?
¿Qué tal el tiempo?How's the weather?
¡Qué calor!It's so hot!
¡Qué frío!It's so cold!
¡Vaya tiempo!What weather! (bad)
¡Qué día tan bonito!What a beautiful day!
Responding and Commenting
Sí, hace un día estupendoYes, it is a wonderful day
Parece que va a lloverIt looks like it is going to rain
Dicen que mañana hará solThey say it will be sunny tomorrow
No aguanto este calorI can't stand this heat
Ojalá pare de lloverI hope it stops raining
El tiempo está muy loco últimamenteThe weather has been crazy lately
8. Regional Climate Differences - El Clima por Regiones
Spanish is spoken across vastly different climates. Here is how speakers from different regions talk about their local weather.
Spain (north)
En Galicia llueve mucho todo el año
In Galicia it rains a lot all year
Spain (south)
En Andalucía hace mucho calor en verano
In Andalusia it is very hot in summer
Mexico
Hay temporada de lluvias de junio a octubre
There is a rainy season from June to October
Argentina
En Buenos Aires los inviernos son húmedos y frescos
In Buenos Aires winters are humid and cool
Caribbean
En el Caribe hace calor y hay mucha humedad
In the Caribbean it is hot and very humid
Andes
En los Andes nieva mucho y hace mucho frío
In the Andes it snows a lot and is very cold
Examples
Daily Conversation
Compliment
Hoy hace un día precioso, ¿no?
It's a lovely day today, isn't it?
Past weather
Ayer llovió todo el día
Yesterday it rained all day
Asking about forecast
¿Has visto el pronóstico para mañana?
Have you seen the forecast for tomorrow?
Prediction
Creo que va a hacer frío este fin de semana
I think it is going to be cold this weekend
Travel Situations
Planning
¿Qué tiempo hace en Barcelona en abril?
What's the weather like in Barcelona in April?
Immediate need
Necesito un paraguas, está lloviendo
I need an umbrella, it is raining
Asking advice
¿Cuál es la mejor época para visitar?
What's the best time to visit?
Complaint
Hace demasiado calor para caminar
It's too hot to walk
Exclamations and Reactions
Extreme heat
¡Qué calor tan horrible!
What horrible heat!
Heavy rain
¡Está diluviando!
It's pouring down!
Continuous snow
¡No para de nevar!
It won't stop snowing!
Relief
¡Por fin sale el sol!
The sun is finally coming out!
Extra Weather Vocabulary
Essential item
el paraguas
umbrella
Severe weather
la tormenta
storm
During storms
el relámpago / el rayo
lightning
After rain
el arco iris
rainbow
Visibility
la niebla
fog
Summer danger
la ola de calor
heatwave
Winter mornings
la helada
frost
Common Mistakes
Common Weather Mistakes
Wrong: Es calor
Correct: Hace calor
Use 'hacer' (not 'ser') for weather. 'Hace calor' is the correct structure.
Wrong: Hace muy calor
Correct: Hace mucho calor
Use 'mucho' (not 'muy') before nouns like calor and frío. 'Muy' modifies adjectives.
Wrong: Está haciendo sol
Correct: Hace sol / Está soleado
Weather expressions with 'hacer' are not typically used in the progressive. Use simple present.
Wrong: Es lloviendo
Correct: Está lloviendo
Use 'estar' (not 'ser') for the progressive. Better yet, just say 'llueve'.
Wrong: Hace nublado
Correct: Está nublado
Use 'estar' (not 'hacer') with adjectives like nublado, despejado, húmedo.
"Hace" vs "Está" - When to Use Which
The key distinction is simple: hace + noun vs está + adjective.
Hace + NOUN:
Hace calor (heat = noun)
Hace frío (cold = noun)
Hace sol (sun = noun)
Está + ADJECTIVE:
Está nublado (cloudy = adj.)
Está soleado (sunny = adj.)
Está húmedo (humid = adj.)
Using "Hay" for Weather Phenomena
Use hay (there is/are) for weather events and phenomena:
Hay niebla
There is fog
Hay tormenta
There is a storm
Hay humedad
There is humidity
Hay helada
There is frost
Quick Test
Test your knowledge of Spanish weather expressions - can you pick the right structure every time?
1. How do you say 'It's very hot' in Spanish?
2. Which sentence correctly says 'It's cloudy'?
3. How do you say 'It rains a lot in April'?
4. What is 'spring' in Spanish?
5. How would you say 'It's 30 degrees'?
6. Someone says '¡Qué calor!' - what do they mean?
7. Which is correct for a weather forecast?
8. How do you say 'There is fog'?
9. Which phrase would you NOT use to start a weather conversation?
Useful Resources
Coming soon...