In Spanish, adjectives must agree in gender and number with the nouns they describe. This is a fundamental grammar rule that affects almost every sentence.
Gender Agreement
- Adjectives ending in -o change to -a for feminine: el chico alto → la chica alta
- Adjectives ending in -e or a consonant stay the same: el libro interesante / la clase interesante
Number Agreement
- Add -s after a vowel: alta → altas
- Add -es after a consonant: joven → jóvenes
Position — Usually After the Noun
- un carro rojo — a red car
- una casa grande — a big house
Adjectives That Go Before
A small group goes before the noun: bueno, malo, grande, pequeño, primero, último.
Bueno and malo shorten before masculine singular nouns: un buen hombre, un mal día.