arma de asedio

• IPA^(key): /ˌaɾma de aˈsedjo/ [ˌaɾ.ma ð̞e aˈse.ð̞jo]
• Syllabification: ar‧ma de a‧se‧dio

arma de asedio f (plural armas de asedio)

1. siege engine

• Before feminine nouns beginning with stressed /ˈa/ like arma de asedio, the singular definite article takes the form of el (otherwise reserved for masculine nouns) instead of the usual la: el arma de asedio. This includes the contracted forms al and del (instead of a la and de la, respectively): al arma de asedio, del arma de asedio.

This also applies to the indefinite article, which takes the form of un, which is otherwise used with masculine nouns (although the standard feminine form una also occurs): un arma de asedio or una arma de asedio. The same is true with determiners algún/alguna and ningún/ninguna, as well as for numerals ending with 1 (e.g., veintiún/veintiuna).

However, if another word intervenes between the article and the noun, the usual feminine singular articles and determiners (la, una etc.) are used: la mejor arma de asedio, una buena arma de asedio.

• In these cases, el and un are not masculine but feminine, deriving from Latin illa and una, respectively, even though they are identical in form to the corresponding masculine singular articles. Thus, they are allomorphs of the feminine singular articles la and una.
• The use of these allomorphs does not change the gender agreement of the adjectives modifying the feminine noun: el arma de asedio única, un(a) arma de asedio buena.
• In the plural, the usual feminine plural articles and determiners (las, unas, etc.) are always used.