Adjectives#
Adjectives in Spanish inflect for gender and number. They retain the same stress in all forms, which can lead to an acute accent appearing in some forms but not in others.
Gender#
Adjectives in Spanish are listed by their masculine singular form and can be divided into a few categories:
| Category | Feminine Singular | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine singular in -o | Change -o to -a | alto, alta (tall); rojo / roja (red); fresco / fresca (fresh, cool) |
| Masculine singular in -e | No change | inteligente, inteligente (intelligent); dulce, dulce (sweet) |
| Masculine singular in -ista | No change | optimista, optimista (optimistic) |
| Masculine singular in a consonant | No change | azul, azul (blue); difícil, difícil (difficult) |
| Masculine singular in a consonant denoting a nationality | Add -a | inglés, inglesa (English); francés, francesa (French); alemán, alemana (German); español, española (Spanish) |
| Masculine singular in -án, -ón | Add -a | holgazán, holgazana (lazy); preguntón, preguntona (inquisitive) |
| Masculine singular in -or with comparative meaning | No change | exterior, exterior (exterior); inferior, inferior (inferior/lower); posterior, posterior (later, following) |
| Masculine singular in -or without comparative meaning | Add -a | hablador, habladora (talkative) |
Almost all adjectives fall into one of the above categories, although some exceptions do exist.
Number#
Plural of adjectives is pretty much identical to the plural formation of nouns:
| Category | Plural | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Adjectives ending in an unstressed vowel or diphthong which does not end in -y | Add -s | rojo -> rojos, roja -> rojas (red); grande -> grandes |
| Adjectives ending in a stressed -í or -ú | Add -es | israelí -> israelíes; hindú -> hindúes |
| Adjectives ending in a stressed -á, -ó or -é | Add -s | calé -> calés (gypsy) |
| Adjectives ending in a consonant | Add -es | cortés -> corteses (polite); útil -> útiles (useful) |
| Adjectives ending in -z | Replace -z with -ces | feliz -> felices |
Comparative#
The comparative in Spanish is built periphrastically using the following construction:
"más" ("more") / "menos" ("less") + adjective
Example: Comparative Constructions
más grande (bigger, greater)
menos interesante (less interesting)
A few adjectives have special comparative forms and therefore do not use "más". These are the same both in the masculine and feminine:
| Positive | Comparative |
|---|---|
| bueno (good) | mejor (better) |
| malo (bad) | peor (worse) |
| grande (big; old) | mayor (bigger; older) |
| pequeño (small; young) | menor (smaller; younger) |
Info
When "grande" and "pequeño" refer to size, then the "más" construction can also be used.
Comparisons of inequality are done using the construction comparative + "que" ("than"). Comparisons of equality are done using the construction "tan" + positive + "como"
Example: Comparisons
Esta casa es más grande que la mía. (This house is bigger than mine.)
La película es menos interesante que el libro. (The movie is less interesting than the book.)
Sara es tan inteligente como su hermano. (Sara is as smart as her brother.)
Superlative#
There are two superlatives in Spanish.
The relative superlative expresses the idea of the highest or lowest possible degree of a given quality within a given context. It is expressed using the definite article and the comparative. The preposition "de" can optionally be used to introduce the context of the relative superlative.
Example: Relative Superlative
Ella es la más lista de la clase. (She is the smartest in the class.)
Ellos son los menos serios de todos. (They are the least serious of all.)
Es el edificio más alto de la ciudad. (It is the tallest building in the city.)
Es el más alto. (It is the tallest.)
The absolute superlative expresses the idea of a very great or extreme degree. It is built by adding the suffix -ísimo/a/os/as to the positive. If the positive ends in a vowel, then it is dropped before adding the suffix. If the letter before the suffix is "c", "g" or "z", then it changes to "qu", "qu" or "c", respectively, in order to retain the pronunciation.
Example: Absolute Superlative
guapo -> guapísimo (very handsome)
rápida -> rapidísima (very fast)
fácil -> facilísimo (very easy)
rico -> riquísimo
largo -> larguísimo
feliz -> felicísimo