Master Adjective Placement in Spanish: 15 Rules and Exceptions

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One of the ways language learning stretches your mind is by requiring you to think about grammar in new ways. Adjective placement in Spanish is no exception. The rules differ from those in English, since most adjectives get placed after the noun. However, it turns out there are quite a few exceptions to this rule. 

The rules and exceptions explained below will help you understand Spanish adjective placement. Many of the most common adjectives in Spanish get placed after the noun, but a few don’t. Use these few simple adjective placement rules to guide you on your journey!

Adjectives that go after the noun in Spanish

When it comes to adjective placement in Spanish, most types of adjectives are placed after the noun, including these broad categories.

Descriptive

As the term suggests, adjectives that describe are called “descriptive,” and these types of adjectives are located after the noun in Spanish. Descriptive adjectives are often used with literal language for concrete things and ideas.

• los árboles hermosos = the gorgeous trees
• el plomero profesional = the professional plumber

Some broad subcategories of descriptive adjectives include colors and classifications.

Colors

The names of colors can be used to describe nouns and are therefore descriptive in nature. Colors get placed after the nouns with a few exceptions.

• un coche negro = a black car
• las flores blancas = the white flowers

Classifications

Adjectives that classify people, animals, or things are almost always placed after the noun:

• las hierbas comestibles = the edible herbs
• el terreno residential = the residential land
• la familia chilena = the Chilean family

Adjectives after the verbs ser and estar

An explanation of adjective placement in Spanish wouldn’t be complete without mentioning that, as in English, Spanish adjectives are used after the verb “to be.” Ser and estar, called copulative verbs, both mean “to be” in Spanish, and adjectives always follow them. For example:

• Estoy despierta. = I am awake.
• Eres divertido. = You are fun.

Which Spanish adjectives come before the noun? 

Unlike in English, most adjectives in Spanish go after the noun. Whereas in English you would say “the intelligent girl,” in Spanish it would be la niña inteligente. Adjectives placed before the noun are the exception, but there are quite a few of these exceptions to the usual rules about adjective placement in Spanish.

A known referent

If, within a conversation, everyone knows who’s being spoken about, the adjective may go in front of the noun:

• nuestro estimado amigo = Our esteemed (male) friend

However, if the people taking part in the conversation don’t know the person being spoken about, then the adjective goes after the noun:

• las amigas queridas de la novia = The beloved friends of the bride

Adjectives identified with the nouns they modify

Adjectives that tend to be identified with the word they modify, such as la negra noche (the black night) come before the noun:

• el verde pasto = the green grass
• la famosa doctora Marie Curie = the famous doctor Marie Curie
• las curvosas calles de San Francisco = the curvy streets of San Francisco

Adjectives that state the obvious

Short adjectives or adjectives with little descriptive power often go before the noun. Examples include:

• la alta basquetbolista = the tall (female) basketball player
• el musculoso luchador = the muscular wrestler

Figurative language

As in English, figurative language in Spanish can’t be taken at face value. Rather, it symbolically represents a concept. For instance, su enorme corazón (her enormous heart) doesn’t literally mean this woman’s physical heart is excessively large. Instead, it refers to her generosity of spirit and capacity to love.

Adjectives to stress innate qualities

These adjectives are used to emphasize the nature of the thing or person, such as:

• la bella Italia = beautiful Italy
• los poderosos políticos = the powerful politicians

Numbers

On a more practical side, numbers, whether cardinal or ordinal, always go before the noun they describe:

• dos tigres = two tigers (cardinal number)
• la cuarta novela del escritor = the writer’s fourth novel (ordinal number)

Adjectives that express position or uniqueness

A few adjectives describe a physical or abstract position such as first or last. Similarly, they may describe something that’s upcoming. These adjectives also go before the noun.

• el último emperador = the last emperor
• la próxima semana = next week

Quantifiers

Adjectives that express a quantity like poco (little, few) and mucho (a lot) are called quantifiers, and they’re always placed before the noun. The word alguno (some, a) gets shortened before masculine singular nouns. 

• Pocos hombres están a su nivel. = Few men are at her level.
• Muchos jóvenes se distraen fácilmente. = A lot of young people get easily distracted.

This chart shows some of the most common quantifiers that go before the adjective.

Adjectives that get shortened before masculine singular nouns

Some adjectives have a short form only when placed before masculine singular nouns. Unlike the words in the following section, these words don’t change meaning if they’re in other forms, such as the feminine, that are placed after the noun.

• Alguno
  • Algún día estaremos juntos. = Some day we’ll be together.
• Ninguno
  • Ningún niño debe ser maltratado. = No boy should be mistreated.
• Primero
  • ¡Gané primer lugar! = I won first place.
• Tercero
  • Julio pasó al tercer grado. = Julio passed to third grade.
• Uno
  • Tenemos un gato y dos perros. = We have one cat and two dogs.

Demonstrative adjectives

Though it may not be obvious, demonstrative adjectives in Spanish like este, esta, estos, estas (“this” and “these” in singular and plural form) and ese, esa, esos, esas (“that” and “those” in singular and plural form) are also adjectives. They always get placed before the noun:

• Estos tamales están deliciosos. = These tamales are delicious.
• Esa chica es mi hija. = That young woman is my daughter. 

Possessive adjectives

As their name suggests, possessive adjectives in Spanish—mi, tu, su, nuestro, vuestro (mine, yours, his/her/its, yours) and their plural counterparts—show possession of an object, but they also describe that object. These types of adjectives also go before the noun.

• Mi casa es su casa. = My house is your house.
• Nuestro abuelo es cariñoso. = Our grandfather is affectionate.

Adjectives with different meanings before or after the nouns

A few adjectives change meaning depending on their location before or after the noun. Take note that words like bueno, grande, and malo (good, large, and bad) change spelling before single, masculine nouns:

• Es un buen perro. = He is a nice dog.
• Es un gran pianista. = He is a great pianist.
• Es un mal hombre. = He is a bad man.

Key takeaways about Spanish adjective placement

Although Spanish adjectives usually come after the noun, for proper adjective placement in Spanish, it’s important to take note of certain rules and exceptions.

After the noun

• Descriptive adjectives like flojo (lazy)
• Classifying adjectives like colors and nationalities: bandera blanca (white flag)

Before the noun

• A known referent: nuestro querido amigo (our dear friend)
• Adjectives identified with the noun or stating the obvious: un divertido payaso (a fun clown)
• Figurative: un tierno corazón (a tender heart)
• Adjectives describing an innate quality: la suave almohada (the soft pillow)
• Numbers: tres empleados (three employees)
• Position or uniqueness: la única mujer (the only woman)
• Quantifiers: mucha tarea (a lot of homework)
• Demonstrative adjectives: esta leche (this milk)
• Possessive adjectives: su trabajo (her work)

A select group of adjectives change in meaning depending on if they go before or after the noun. To learn more about adjective placement in Spanish, check out Rosetta Stone’s immersive lessons, tutoring, TruAccent pronunciation help, and more to learn Spanish and sound like a native speaker!