Describing Sizes and Dimensions in Spanish

Here are three common ways to express measurements in Spanish. Deciding which ones to use is largely a matter of personal preference since they are interchangeable in most cases.   1. Medir   This verb, which is conjugated irregularly, generally means to measure. Examples: Mido cinco pies y cinco pulgadas de alto. (I measure 5 feet, 5 inches tall.) Los cientà ­ficos hallaron un fà ³sil que mide dos metros de largo. (The scientists found a fossil that measures two meters long.) 2. Tiene This verb literally means to have. It can be used to directly indicate dimensions. It also is conjugated irregularly. Examples: El centro comercial tiene tres kilà ³metros de largo. (The commercial center is three kilometers long.) Si antes tenà ­a cinco metros de profundidad, ahora tiene dos. (If it was five meters deep before, its now two meters.) 3. Ser de This is the rough equivalent of saying in English that something is a certain size. Note the use of the preposition de, which is not translated to English. This method of describing dimensions is less common than the other two. Examples: El à ¡rea es de 160 metros cuadrados. (The area is 160 square meters.) Las dimensiones del nuevo almacà ©n son de 25 por 70 metros, y la altura es de ocho metros. (The horizontal dimensions of the new warehouse are 25 by 70 meters, and its height is 8 meters.)