Spanish adjectives describe nouns, but they must also match the nouns they describe. This cheat sheet helps students remember how adjectives change for gender and number. It also explains where adjectives usually go in a Spanish sentence.
These rules make sentences clearer and more accurate when speaking and writing.
Most descriptive adjectives come after the noun, such as la casa blanca. Adjectives usually change to match masculine, feminine, singular, or plural nouns, such as alto, alta, altos, and altas. Some adjectives go before the noun, especially common adjectives like bueno and malo, or adjectives that express quantity or opinion.
A few adjectives change meaning depending on whether they come before or after the noun.
Key Facts
- Most Spanish adjectives must agree with the noun in gender and number, such as el chico alto and las chicas altas.
- Adjectives ending in -o usually have four forms: alto, alta, altos, and altas.
- Adjectives ending in -e usually have two number forms and do not change for gender, such as inteligente and inteligentes.
- Adjectives ending in a consonant often add -es for the plural, such as fácil and fáciles.
- Most descriptive adjectives come after the noun, as in el perro negro and una mochila roja.
- Some common adjectives usually come before the noun, such as buen amigo, mala idea, and gran ciudad.
- When a noun is plural, the adjective must also be plural, such as los libros interesantes.
- If an adjective describes a mixed group of masculine and feminine nouns, use the masculine plural form, such as los chicos y las chicas simpáticos.
Vocabulary
- Adjective
- A word that describes a noun, such as rojo, grande, or interesante.
- Agreement
- The rule that an adjective must match the noun it describes in gender and number.
- Gender
- The noun category in Spanish that is usually masculine or feminine.
- Number
- The noun category that shows whether a word is singular or plural.
- Descriptive adjective
- An adjective that tells what someone or something is like, such as alto, pequeño, or azul.
- Position
- The place where an adjective appears in relation to the noun, usually after the noun in Spanish.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using a masculine adjective with a feminine noun is wrong because the adjective must match the noun, so la casa blanco should be la casa blanca.
- Forgetting to make the adjective plural is wrong because plural nouns need plural adjectives, so los libros interesante should be los libros interesantes.
- Putting every adjective before the noun is wrong because most descriptive adjectives in Spanish come after the noun, such as el coche rojo.
- Changing adjectives ending in -e for gender is wrong because many -e adjectives keep the same form for masculine and feminine, such as el estudiante inteligente and la estudiante inteligente.
- Using the feminine plural for a mixed group is wrong because Spanish uses the masculine plural for mixed groups, such as los amigos simpáticos.
Practice Questions
- 1 Change the phrase el gato negro to describe three cats.
- 2 Choose the correct adjective: la profesora es simpático / simpática / simpáticos.
- 3 Write the Spanish phrase for the red books using libros and rojos.
- 4 Explain why la chica alto is incorrect and how to fix it.