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Spanish Adjective Agreement Overview
Spanish adjectives must agree with the nouns they describe in both gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural). This is called concordancia in Spanish.
Unlike English, where adjectives never change form (e.g., "red car" vs "red cars"), Spanish adjectives change their endings to match the noun they modify.
Key Rule: Adjective endings must match the noun's gender and number.
Examples
el coche rojo
the red car (masculine singular)
la casa roja
the red house (feminine singular)
los coches rojos
the red cars (masculine plural)
las casas rojas
the red houses (feminine plural)
Gender Agreement Rules
Spanish adjectives change their endings to match the gender of the noun they describe:
Adjectives Ending in -o/-a
Most Spanish adjectives follow the -o (masculine) / -a (feminine) pattern:
Gender Agreement: -o/-a Adjectives
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -o | alto, bueno, pequeño |
| Feminine | -a | alta, buena, pequeña |
el niño alto / la niña alta
the tall boy / the tall girl
un libro bueno / una película buena
a good book / a good movie
el perro pequeño / la gata pequeña
the small dog / the small cat
Adjectives Ending in -e
Adjectives ending in -e have the same form for both masculine and feminine:
Gender Agreement: -e Adjectives
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -e | grande, inteligente, fuerte |
| Feminine | -e | grande, inteligente, fuerte |
el hombre inteligente / la mujer inteligente
the intelligent man / the intelligent woman
un edificio grande / una casa grande
a big building / a big house
el atleta fuerte / la atleta fuerte
the strong athlete (m) / the strong athlete (f)
Adjectives Ending in Consonants
Most adjectives ending in consonants have the same form for both genders:
Gender Agreement: Consonant Adjectives
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | consonant | fácil, difícil, popular |
| Feminine | consonant | fácil, difícil, popular |
el examen fácil / la tarea fácil
the easy exam / the easy homework
un problema difícil / una situación difícil
a difficult problem / a difficult situation
el cantante popular / la cantante popular
the popular singer (m) / the popular singer (f)
Number Agreement Rules
Spanish adjectives must also agree in number (singular/plural) with the nouns they describe:
Making Adjectives Plural
The rules for making adjectives plural are similar to making nouns plural:
Adjectives ending in vowel: Add -s
Adjectives ending in consonant: Add -es
Number Agreement Rules
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Vowel + s | alto → altos | rojo → rojos, grande → grandes |
| Consonant + es | fácil → fáciles | popular → populares |
los coches rojos
the red cars (rojo + s = rojos)
las casas grandes
the big houses (grande + s = grandes)
los exámenes fáciles
the easy exams (fácil + es = fáciles)
Complete Agreement Pattern
When adjectives must agree in both gender and number, they follow this complete pattern:
Four-Form Agreement (-o/-a adjectives)
Adjectives ending in -o/-a have four different forms:
Complete Agreement: Rojo (Red)
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine Singular | rojo | el coche rojo |
| Feminine Singular | roja | la casa roja |
| Masculine Plural | rojos | los coches rojos |
| Feminine Plural | rojas | las casas rojas |
Tengo un gato negro y una gata negra.
I have a black cat (m) and a black cat (f).
Los zapatos nuevos y las camisas nuevas.
The new shoes and the new shirts.
Two-Form Agreement (-e and consonant adjectives)
Adjectives ending in -e or consonants have only two forms:
Two-Form Agreement: Grande (Big)
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | grande | el/la estudiante grande |
| Plural | grandes | los/las estudiantes grandes |
El problema difícil y los problemas difíciles.
The difficult problem and the difficult problems.
Special Agreement Cases
Some adjectives have special agreement patterns or exceptions:
Nationality Adjectives
Nationality adjectives follow special rules:
Ending in -o: Follow normal -o/-a pattern (mexicano/mexicana)
Ending in consonant: Add -a for feminine (español/española)
Ending in -e: No change (canadiense)
el chico mexicano / la chica mexicana
the Mexican boy / the Mexican girl
el profesor español / la profesora española
the Spanish teacher (m) / the Spanish teacher (f)
el estudiante canadiense / la estudiante canadiense
the Canadian student (m) / the Canadian student (f)
Shortened Adjectives
Some adjectives shorten before masculine singular nouns:
bueno → buen (good)
malo → mal (bad)
grande → gran (great/big)
primero → primer (first)
tercero → tercer (third)
un buen hombre / una buena mujer
a good man / a good woman
un gran día / una gran oportunidad
a great day / a great opportunity
el primer capítulo / la primera página
the first chapter / the first page
Multiple Adjectives Agreement
When multiple adjectives describe the same noun, each adjective must agree independently:
Rule: Each adjective agrees with the noun it modifies
Position: Multiple adjectives can go before and/or after the noun
This is common when giving detailed descriptions.
Examples
una casa grande y blanca
a big and white house (both adjectives agree with "casa")
los coches nuevos y rojos
the new and red cars (both adjectives agree with "coches")
una buena película española
a good Spanish movie (both adjectives agree with "película")
unos estudiantes inteligentes y trabajadores
some intelligent and hardworking students
Common Agreement Mistakes
Here are the most common mistakes Spanish learners make with adjective agreement:
Mistake 1: Forgetting to change the adjective ending
Mistake 2: Using masculine form with feminine nouns
Mistake 3: Forgetting plural agreement
Mistake 4: Incorrect nationality adjective forms
Learning to avoid these mistakes will make your Spanish sound much more natural.
Examples
❌ la casa rojo → ✅ la casa roja
Wrong: the red house → Right: the red house
❌ los libro grande → ✅ los libros grandes
Wrong: the big books → Right: the big books
❌ la profesora español → ✅ la profesora española
Wrong: the Spanish teacher → Right: the Spanish teacher
❌ una bueno idea → ✅ una buena idea
Wrong: a good idea → Right: a good idea