In Spanish, adjectives play a crucial role in describing people and things. They must agree with the nouns they modify in gender and number. This rule is essential for accurately conveying information about someone's appearance, nationality, or profession.
Adjective placement also matters in Spanish. Most adjectives come after the noun, but some common ones go before. Certain adjectives can even change meaning based on their position. Mastering these rules helps you describe people and things more effectively in Spanish conversations.
Adjective agreement in Spanish
Understanding the basics of adjective agreement
- In Spanish, adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in both gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural)
- The four possible adjective endings are:
- -o (masculine singular)
- -os (masculine plural)
- -a (feminine singular)
- -as (feminine plural)
- Adjectives that end in -e or a consonant have only two possible endings
- -es is added for plural nouns, regardless of their gender
- The singular form remains unchanged (verde, azul)
Applying proper adjective agreement
- To make an adjective agree with a masculine singular noun, use the -o ending (carro rojo)
- To make an adjective agree with a masculine plural noun, use the -os ending (carros rojos)
- To make an adjective agree with a feminine singular noun, use the -a ending (casa blanca)
- To make an adjective agree with a feminine plural noun, use the -as ending (casas blancas)
- For adjectives ending in -e or a consonant, simply add -es for plural nouns, regardless of their gender
- coche verde → coches verdes
- flor azul → flores azules
Adjective placement
General rules for adjective placement
- In Spanish, most adjectives are placed after the noun they modify
- la casa grande (the big house)
- los libros interesantes (the interesting books)
- Some common adjectives, such as numbers, possessives, and demonstratives, are placed before the noun
- dos gatos (two cats)
- mi libro (my book)
- este coche (this car)
Adjectives that change meaning based on placement
- Certain adjectives change their meaning depending on their position relative to the noun
- "gran" before a noun means "great," while "grande" after a noun means "big"
- un gran hombre (a great man)
- un hombre grande (a big man)
- Other examples include "nuevo" (new) and "pobre" (poor)
- un nuevo amigo (a new friend) vs. un amigo nuevo (a newly acquired friend)
- un pobre hombre (a poor man, in terms of pity) vs. un hombre pobre (a man who lacks money)
Describing with adjectives
Describing people
- When describing people, use adjectives that agree with the person's gender and number
- El niño es alto. (The boy is tall.)
- La niña es alta. (The girl is tall.)
- Los niños son altos. (The boys are tall.)
- Las niñas son altas. (The girls are tall.)
- Use "ser" to describe inherent characteristics, such as physical descriptions, nationalities, and professions
- Ella es alta y delgada. (She is tall and thin.)
- Él es canadiense. (He is Canadian.)
- Nosotros somos doctores. (We are doctors.)
Describing nationalities and professions
- Adjectives of nationality are not capitalized in Spanish and must agree with the noun
- un estudiante mexicano (a Mexican male student)
- una estudiante mexicana (a Mexican female student)
- estudiantes mexicanos (Mexican male students)
- estudiantes mexicanas (Mexican female students)
- Professions and occupations are often used as adjectives and must agree with the noun
- un profesor español (a Spanish male teacher)
- una profesora española (a Spanish female teacher)
- profesores españoles (Spanish male teachers)
- profesoras españolas (Spanish female teachers)