How to Use Descriptive Adjectives in Spanish

There are several ways to use adjectives in the Spanish language. One of the most common is when you need to describe something. Descriptive adjectives are a great way to enhance your native Spanish speaking abilities and add depth to your conversations. They can help you identify different nouns and clarify objects or places during conversation. In this article, we’ll help you better understand how to use descriptive adjectives in Spanish.

What are Descriptive Adjectives in Spanish?

Descriptive adjectives in Spanish are used to describe a noun or a pronoun in a sentence. They work the same as they do in English but must agree with the noun or pronoun in both gender and number. This is called adjective agreement and is common across the entire Spanish language. However, descriptive adjectives are listed in the masculine singular form, so it’s important to make the proper adjustments when using them in a sentence. Some examples of descriptive words in Spanish are as follows:

• Estoy leyendo un libro rojo — “I’m reading a red book”
• Tengo un coche rápido — “I have a fast car”
• Los árboles son altos — “The trees are tall”

Descriptive adjectives in Spanish can be used to explain the characteristics of an object, person, or place. Three of the most common types of adjectives in Spanish include descriptive, possessive, and demonstrative adjectives. It’s important to understand how to use possessive adjectives in Spanish, which help dictate a relationship between one person or object to another. Another essential type of adjective is demonstrative adjectives, which are used to describe location, possession, and characteristics of nouns. These types of adjectives work together in Spanish to create robust, descriptive sentences.

How to Use Descriptive Adjectives in Spanish

Descriptive adjectives in Spanish are usually placed after a noun in a sentence when you want to describe it in further detail. However, the sentence structure can vary depending on the adjective being used and the underlying intent. They should also be adjusted based on gender and number. To practice using descriptive adjectives in conversation, download Tandem and speak with a native Spanish speaker today. Just remember, using descriptive adjectives in Spanish differs from using descriptive adjectives in English, where they usually go before a noun and don’t need to be adjusted based on gender or number.

How Spanish Adjectives Work with Gendered Nouns

As we’ve mentioned a few times, every noun in Spanish has a gender and the supportive words in a sentence need to be altered to match. Gendered nouns are either masculine or feminine, and the Spanish descriptive adjectives always need to agree with a noun’s gender and number. This means that the ending of the descriptive adjective will be changed in each sentence it’s used in. The example below demonstrates how different endings will change based on the gendered noun used in a sentence.

• El hombre es alto — “The man is tall”
• Los hombres son altos — “The men are tall”
• La mujer es alta — “The woman is tall”
• Las mujeres son altas — “The women are tall

Notice how the descriptive adjective in Spanish changes with the noun, while the one in English remains the same. This is a common practice in the Spanish language, making it extremely important to learn the correct gender for each noun.

Where to Place Spanish Adjectives in a Sentence

Spanish descriptive adjectives almost always go after the noun in a sentence. While there are a few exceptions to this rule, nearly all regular descriptors will follow the noun. In English, most adjectives will go before a noun, especially when directly describing the word. The best way to get used to the differences between English and Spanish is to practice. Tandem can help you get the most out of your language learning experience by connecting you with like-minded individuals around the world.

All possessive, demonstrative, and descriptive adjectives in Spanish must agree with the gender and number of the nouns they describe. However, there are certain adjectives that can be used to refer to either gender. Some examples of this include:

• Él es inteligente — “He is intelligent”
• Ella es inteligente — “She is intelligent”

When using Spanish descriptive adjectives that can be used for either gender, you still need to change them if they are describing a plural noun. In the example above, you would change inteligente as follows:

• Ellos son inteligentes — “They (male) are intelligent”
• Ellas son inteligentes — “They (female) are intelligent”

Using Different Descriptive Adjectives in Spanish

There are hundreds of different descriptive words in Spanish that can be used to add depth to your sentences. Some of the most helpful adjectives to know include bueno, malo, grande, pequeño, rápido, lento, and more. These mean good, bad, big, small, fast, and slow respectively. To grow your vocabulary, try to learn new descriptive adjectives each week.

Spanish Adjectives Ending in “o”

When descriptive words in Spanish end with an -o, they’re in the masculine singular form. These are often the easiest to conjugate into their respective forms. Descriptive adjectives in Spanish that end in -o are changed as follows:

Spanish Adjectives Ending in “e” or “ista”

Spanish descriptive words that end in -e or -ista will not change according to gender. These are exceptions to the gendered noun rule that agree with both masculine and feminine endings. However, descriptive adjectives do change based on number. Descriptive adjectives in Spanish that end in -e are changed as follows:

Descriptive adjectives in Spanish that end in -ista are changed as follows:

Spanish Adjectives Ending in a Consonant

Similarly, in most cases, when an adjective ends in a consonant, they do not follow the gendered noun rule, but they will need to be changed for number. Some examples are as follows:

• El coche es azul — “The car is blue”
• La moto es azul — “The motorcycle is blue”
• El hombre es débil — “The man was weak”

One exception to this rule is when an adjective ends in -z. In these instances, the -z will change to -c before the plural ending is added.

• El perro es feliz — “The dog is happy”
• Los perros son felices — “The dogs are happy”

There are thousands of different descriptive adjectives in Spanish, but when you learn the conjugations and gendered nouns, using them in a sentence gets easier.

To help you practice using Spanish descriptive words in spoken language, download Tandem. Our community includes millions of like-minded individuals around the world who band together to practice language and improve fluency. This unique language learning experience allows you to match with Spanish speakers, practice using descriptive adjectives in Spanish, and even work on your native accent. At Tandem, our goal is to help our users foster a deeper understanding of language while improving fluency and building long-lasting friendships. To join our community and work on your fluency, sign up for Tandem today.