How to use adjectives in Spanish.
Tutorial about Spanish Adjectives
When an Enlish speaker learns Spanish there are 3 things that at first may be difficult when learning the adjectives.
1.
Word Order
In Spanish the adjective goes after the noun. In English it is the opposite.
Eg. In English we say: "A red book" but in Spanish we say "A book red"
Eg. A red book = Un libro rojo.
2.
Gender
All the nouns
in Spanish are either masculine or feminine and when we use an adjective
they must agree with the gender of the noun.
So if the noun is masculine we use an "o" Eg. "un chico guapo" (a good looking boy)
but with a feminine noun we use an "a" Eg. "una chica guapa" (a good looking girl)
Note.There are
also a lot of adjectives that do not have an "a" or "o" ending eg.
verde= green in which case there is no difference when you use them
with masculine or feminine nouns.
3.
Singular and Plural
The adjective must
agree in number so if the noun is plural so is the adjective.
Eg. "un libro negro" = a black book - unos libros negros = some black books
| Noun | Adjective | Translation |
| Una chica | guapa | A pretty girl |
| Unas chicas | guapas | Some pretty girls |
| Un libro | rojo | A red book |
| Unos libros | rojos | Some red books |
Instructions
You can use the Flashcard exercise below to get accustomed to how the adjectives work in Spanish. Click "restart" to start.There is another page which will help you learn the basic Spanish adjectives here.
The content of the flashcards
| English | Spanish | Gender | Number |
| an boring magazine | una revista aburrida | Feminine | Singular |
| a cheap hotel | un hotel barato | Masculine | Singular |
| a strong man | un hombre fuerte | Masculine | Singular |
| The good looking sisters | Las hermanas guapas | Feminine | Plural |
| The ugly sisters | Las hermanas feas | Feminine | Plural |
| thin girls | chicas delgadas | Feminine | Plural |
| dark colours | colores oscuros | Masculine | Plural |
| An empty glass | Un vaso vacío | Masculine | Singular |
| a lazy dog | un perro perezoso | Masculine | Singular |
| two rich women | dos mujeres ricas | Feminine | Plural |
| a short man | un hombre bajo | Masculine | Singular |
| short journeys | viajes cortos | Masculine | Plural |
| A big table | Una mesa grande | Feminine | Singular |
| a difficult task | una tarea difícil | Feminine | Singular |
| an easy task | una tarea fácil | Feminine | Singular |
| red wine | vino tinto | Masculine | Singular |
| a hot beer | una cerveza caliente | Feminine | Singular |
| a tall man | un hombre alto | Masculine | Singular |
| dirty cars | coches sucios | Masculine | Plural |
| 5 small houses | 5 casas pequeñas | Feminine | Plural |
| a hardworking dog | un perro trabajador | Masculine | Singular |
| a cold beer | una cerveza fria | Feminine | Singular |
| A red cat | Un gato rojo | Masculine | Singular |
| A full glass | Un vaso lleno | Masculine | Singular |
| A narrow path | Un sendero estrecho | Masculine | Singular |
| fat girls | chicas gordas | Feminine | Plural |
| The dry river | El rio seco | Masculine | Singular |
| a weak man | un hombre débil | Masculine | Singular |
| an interesting magazine | una revista interesante | Feminine | Singular |
| A bad book | un libro malo | Masculine | Singular |
| a expensive hotel | un hotel caro | Masculine | Singular |
| long journeys | viajes largos | Masculine | Plural |
| two poor women | dos mujeres pobres | Feminine | Plural |
| A small table | Una mesa pequeña | Feminine | Singular |
| 5 big houses | 5 casas grandes | Feminine | Plural |
| clean cars | coches limpios | Masculine | Plural |
