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 |
| A narrow path | Un sendero estrecho | Masculine | Singular |
| an boring magazine | una revista aburrida | Feminine | Singular |
| an interesting magazine | una revista interesante | Feminine | Singular |
| A full glass | Un vaso lleno | Masculine | Singular |
| dirty cars | coches sucios | Masculine | Plural |
| a difficult task | una tarea difícil | Feminine | Singular |
| a expensive hotel | un hotel caro | Masculine | Singular |
| A small table | Una mesa pequeña | Feminine | Singular |
| an easy task | una tarea fácil | Feminine | Singular |
| A big table | Una mesa grande | Feminine | Singular |
| dark colours | colores oscuros | Masculine | Plural |
| red wine | vino tinto | Masculine | Singular |
| a short man | un hombre bajo | Masculine | Singular |
| a tall man | un hombre alto | Masculine | Singular |
| An empty glass | Un vaso vacío | Masculine | Singular |
| two rich women | dos mujeres ricas | Feminine | Plural |
| long journeys | viajes largos | Masculine | Plural |
| The dry river | El rio seco | Masculine | Singular |
| The good looking sisters | Las hermanas guapas | Feminine | Plural |
| a weak man | un hombre débil | Masculine | Singular |
| thin girls | chicas delgadas | Feminine | Plural |
| a strong man | un hombre fuerte | Masculine | Singular |
| a hardworking dog | un perro trabajador | Masculine | Singular |
| a cold beer | una cerveza fria | Feminine | Singular |
| a cheap hotel | un hotel barato | Masculine | Singular |
| a hot beer | una cerveza caliente | Feminine | Singular |
| 5 big houses | 5 casas grandes | Feminine | Plural |
| A bad book | un libro malo | Masculine | Singular |
| short journeys | viajes cortos | Masculine | Plural |
| 5 small houses | 5 casas pequeñas | Feminine | Plural |
| fat girls | chicas gordas | Feminine | Plural |
| a lazy dog | un perro perezoso | Masculine | Singular |
| The ugly sisters | Las hermanas feas | Feminine | Plural |
| clean cars | coches limpios | Masculine | Plural |
| A red cat | Un gato rojo | Masculine | Singular |
| two poor women | dos mujeres pobres | Feminine | Plural |
