Adjectives in Spanish must agree in gender and number with the nouns they describe. Adjectives take different forms depending on whether the noun is masculine or feminine, singular or plural. Adjectives ending in -o have four forms to account for all combinations of gender and number. Adjectives ending in -e or consonants typically have two forms, changing the ending to mark plural but not gender. The correct form of the adjective is like an equation that matches attributes of the noun.

1. Just the facts!
About adjectives in Spanish.

2. OK, so what’s the
scoop on adjectives

3. You know that nouns in
Spanish have gender.
masculine
el libro
el muchacho
feminine
la casa
la muchacha

4. They also have number.
singular
el libro
la muchacha
plural
los libros
las muchachas

5. Well, here’s the way it
is...adjectives have to
agree with whatever
they tell about!

6. The noun is
masculine, then the
adjective is
masculine

7. The noun is
feminine, then the
adjective is feminine

8. The noun is
singular, then the
adjective is singular.

9. The noun is plural,
then the adjective is
plural.

10. What if the noun is
feminine
AND
plural?

11. Then the adjective
is feminine and
plural.

12. Are you telling me
that this is like an
equation in math?

13. Yeah, yeah....
masculine noun = masculine adjective
feminine noun = feminine adjective
singular noun = singular adjective
plural noun = plural adjective
Kinda like that.....

14. OK, give me some
more facts.

15. Let’s check out how to talk
about a boy, then a girl.
• el muchacho alto
• la muchacha alta

16. What about more than
one boy and more than
one girl?
• los muchachos altos
• las muchachas altas

17. Many common adjectives end in -o.
These adjectives have four forms. The
following words all mean “red:”
• rojo
• roja
• rojos
• rojas

18. The correct form of the adjective depends
upon the noun it modifies. Is the noun
masculine or feminine? Singular or plural?
• el teléfono rojo
• la casa roja
• los teléfonos rojos
• las casas rojas

19. Notice how the endings
are the same:
el teléfono rojo
la casa roja
los teléfonos rojos
las casas rojas

20. What about adjectives
that end in e...
like inteligente?

21. Easy. Adjectives that
end in -e also change
form for singular or
plural. To form the
plural, simply add -s
la muchacha inteligente
las muchachas inteligentes

22. Easier yet...adjectives that end in
-e do not change form for
masculine or feminine.
el muchacho inteligente
la muchacha inteligente
los muchachos inteligentes
las muchachas inteligentes

23. In much the same way, most
adjectives that end in a consonant
do change form for singular or
plural, but do not change for
masculine or feminine. To form the
plural, add
-es.
el muchacho popular
la muchacha popular
los muchachos populares
las muchachas populares

24. OK...let’s wrap up this
story.
Give me the 411.

25. Here it is...
• Adjectives ending in -o have four forms: alto,
alta, altos, altas
• Adjectives ending in -e have two forms:
inteligente, inteligentes
(form plural by adding –s)
• Most adjectives ending in a consonant have two
forms: popular, populares
(form plural by adding -es)