Spanish Grammar/Nouns Ending in -ma, -pa, -ta

Many Spanish nouns ending in -ma, -pa, or -ta are masculine despite ending in -a. These nouns are generally Greek in origin. Some examples:

el clima - climate

el tema - theme

el programa - program

el cometa - comet

el planeta - planet

el mapa - map

el papa - pope

There are many exceptions - for example:

la dama - woman

la tapa - lid, top

la dieta - diet