The adjectives modify the noun or pronoun in some way. They are divided in two groups: 

1.- Adjectives with occasional meaning.
         
       The context and the person included in it will define the use of this group.           

•        Possessives.

•        Demonstratives.

•        Indefinites.

•        Relatives.

•        Interrogatives and exclamatives

                                                                  more...

 

2.- Adjectives with a fixed meaning
         
         It describes the qualities or characteristics of the noun (subject or thing)

e.g.  The yellow house.

Note: the adjectives can also be derivatives, for example:  
    flaco / thin
    flacucho / skinny 

•       Qualifying.

•       Numerals.

•       Nationality.

                more...

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 ADJECTIVES WITH OCCASIONAL MEANING

 

 Its use depends upon the context and they are divided into:

•        Possessives.

•        Demonstratives.

•        Indefinites.

•        Relatives.

•        Interrogatives and exclamatives

 

1.-Possessives:

 

Shows possession and matches in gender and number with the noun.

•     El auto es mío/ The car is mine.

•     La casa es mía/ The house is mine

•     Mi padre y mi madre van al cine/ My father and my mother go to the cinema.

 

One owner	mío, tuyo, suyo	after a masc.sing. noun
	mía, tuya, suya	after a fem. singular noun
	míos, tuyos, suyos	after a masc. plural noun
	mías, tuyas, suyas	after a  sing. plural noun
	mi, tu, su	before a singular noun
	mis, tus, sus	before a plural noun

 

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2.-Demonstratives:  

 

They point out a thing or person and can even show the position of the referenced object. They must match with the gender and the number of the noun they modify.

•     Esa flor es roja. / That flower is red.

•     Esos libros están en la mesa. / These books are on the table.

•     Esta casa es vieja./ This is an old house.

Notice they don't have a written accent. If written, they become pronouns.	este, ese, aquel (this here, that there, that far away)	Before a masc. singular noun
	esta, esa, aquella	Before a fem. singular noun
	esto, eso, aquello	Before a fem. or masc. singular noun
	estos, esos, aquellos	Before a masc. plural noun
	estas, esas, aquellas	Before a fem. plural noun

 

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3.-Indefinites:  

 

To be used for indefinite quantities. They must match in gender with the noun they modify.

•     Demasiada azúcar no es saludable / too much sugar is unhealthy.

•     Algunas vacas son negras / some cows are black.

Notice that when writing the indefinite adj. before the masc. noun, some adjectives lose the "o" or "a".  Those adjs. have been marked (*)	alguno / some	poco / a little
	ninguno / none	mucho / a lot
	demasiado / too much	bastante / enough
	tanto / so much-as much	todo / all
	cualquiera / any	unos / some
	varios / several

 

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4.-Relatives:  

 

      These adjectives repeat or confirm the meaning of a word or words in the context.

•     Me gusta la casa cuyo jardín es hermoso. / I like the house of which the garden is beautiful.

•     Me gusta el árbol cuyas manzanas son rojas. / I like the tree of which the apples are red.

•     Elena vió cuantas cosas pudo. / Elena saw as many things as she could.

•     Cuanto más tengo.../  The more I have ...

(whose or  of which)	cuyo	before a masc. sing. noun
	cuya	before a fem. sing. noun
	cuyos	before a masc. plural. noun
	cuyas	before a fem. plural noun
(as much as )	cuanto	before a masc. sing. noun
	cuanta	before a fem. sing. noun
	cuantos	before a masc. plural  noun
	cuantas	before a fem. plural noun

 

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5.-Interrogative and exclamative adjectives.:  

 

They repeat the meaning of a word or words from the context but with an interrogative expression or exclamatory attitude.

•     ¡Cuánto calor hace!

•     ¡Cuánta energía tienes!

•     ¿Cuánto dinero tienes?

•     ¿Cuántas pesetas tienes?

Note that the adjectives have a written accent which makes the difference between the relative and interrogative adjectives.	Qué                 What
	Cuánto            How much	before a masc. sing. noun
	Cuántos          How many	before a masc. plural  noun
	Cuánta               How much	before a fem. sing. noun
	Cuántas  How many	before a fem. plural noun

 

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ADJECTIVES WITH FIXED MEANING

 

They refer to the qualities of the noun they modify and have to match the gender and number of the noun being modified.

•       Qualifying.

•       Numerals.

•       Nationality.

 

1.-Qualifying:  

They refer to the qualities of what they appoint.

 

A.-   Descriptive.

         rojo, azul, (colors), cálido, frío  

 

B.-   Qualifies

         difícil, recta, grande, chico, limpio...  

 

C.-   Comparison degree
        difícil ( simple difficulty quality adj.)  

I.-   más + adj + que (superiority)

más difícil que...  /  more difficult than

 

II.-   tan + adj.+ como (equality)

tan difícil como... /  as difficult as

       igual + de + adj.+ que

               igual de difícil que ...

                               

III.-   menos + adj.+ que (inferiority)

                                            menos difícil que .../  less difficult than  

 

       D.-  Superlative degree. 

I.-   muy + adj.

              muy difícil / very difficult.

 

II.-   el más + adj.+ de ( relative)

              más difícil de la clase / The most difficult in the class.

 

III.-  Drop the final vowel and add the following endings  to any adjective to create the superlative form.
             -ísimo,-ísima, -ísimos,-ísimas

                                      dificilísimo  / The highest degree of difficulty

                               

 

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2.-Numerals:  

 

There are 5 kinds of adjectives in this category:

 

Cardinals	uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco...	1,2,3,4,5...
Multiples	doble, triple, cuádruple, quíntuple...	double, triple,...
Ordinal	primero, segundo, tercero, cuarto...	1°,2°,3°,4°, ...
Fractional	medio, tercio, cuarto, quinto...	1/2,1/3,1/4,1/5...
Distributives	cada, sendos, ambos.	each, one to one, both

 

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3.-Nationality:   

 

They modify the noun by referring to the nationality or region of origin.

•     Templo maya / Mayan temple .

•     Vino francés / French wine.

•     Café colombiano / Colombian coffee.

 

If the word ends in	Then...	Example
any vowel; a, e, i, o, u.	add an "s".	rosa--rosas
any consonant.	add "es".	camión--camiones
in "z".	change the "z" for "ces".	nuez--nueces

 

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