Understanding Descriptive Adjectives:
Descriptive adjectives (Adjetivos Descriptivos) serve the purpose of adding qualities or characteristics to nouns, enhancing the details of the subject being described. In English, we use words like “happy,” “blue,” or “tall” to provide additional information about a person, place, or thing. Similarly, in Spanish, descriptive adjectives play a crucial role in painting a more complete picture.
Agreement in Gender and Number:
One distinctive feature of Spanish descriptive adjectives is their agreement with the gender and number of the noun they modify. This means that the adjective must match the gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) of the noun.
| Masculine Singular | Feminine Singular | Masculine Plural | Feminine Plural | |
| Examples | El chico alto Tall Boy | La chica alta Tall Girl | Los chicos altos Tall Children (Boys and Girls or Boys) | Las chicas altas Tall Girls |
Common Descriptive Adjectives:
Physical Descriptions:
Examples:
- Una montaña alta (A tall mountain)
- El sol brillante (The shining sun)
- Ojos azules (Blue eyes)
Personality Traits:
Examples:
- Un perro amigable (A friendly dog)
- Una persona inteligente (An intelligent person)
- Un profesor paciente (A patient teacher)
Colors:
Examples:
- Un vestido rojo (A red dress)
- El cielo anaranjado (The orange sky)
- Flores amarillas (Yellow flowers)
Size:
Examples:
- Una casa pequeña (A small house)
- El coche grande (The big car)
- Árboles altos (Tall trees)
Age
Examples:
- Un hombre joven (A young man)
- La abuela vieja (The old grandmother)
Positioning of Descriptive Adjectives:
In Spanish, descriptive adjectives typically follow the noun they modify, which is different from English where adjectives often precede the noun.
English: A beautiful garden
Spanish: Un jardín hermoso (A garden beautiful)
