Learn 40 Common Spanish Adjectives | How to Pronounce & Use Them (Beginner-Friendly)

10 min video

Describing people and places gets easier with a core set of adjectives. Lucía walks through 40 common Spanish adjectives and how to pronounce and use them.

Watch the lesson

Try it yourself

Select six adjectives and use them to describe two familiar places. Check whether each adjective needs to change form with the noun.

Watch the original lesson on YouTube.

Edited lesson transcript and vocabulary

Read the complete substantive lesson in its original order. The English explanation is edited from the published manual captions and compared with the original automatic Spanish track. Every original Spanish word, example and inflected form included from the video was checked against its graphics. Punctuation and caption errors are repaired for reading; contextual translations and labelled learner notes are additions. The original vocabulary selection and order are retained. This is an edited caption-based transcript, not a pronunciation assessment. Music and the brand bumper are omitted.

Each adjective’s four forms are listed in the original order: masculine singular, feminine singular, masculine plural, feminine plural. A shared form is repeated in the two relevant positions of the sequence, just as in the video.

The timestamp chapters link to the original video. Their start times are approximate.

• 0:00 — Meet Lucía
• 0:17 — Gender and number
• 1:02 — The usual endings
• 1:37 — One gender form and omitted subjects
• 2:31 — Adjectives 1–10
• 4:16 — Adjectives 11–20
• 6:09 — Adjectives 21–30
• 8:08 — Adjectives 31–40
• 10:03 — Keep practising

0:00 — Meet Lucía

¡Hola! ¿Qué tal?
Example translation: Hello! How are you?

This is Lucía, from My Daily Spanish. I’m going to teach you forty basic adjectives in Spanish, their pronunciation and their different forms. Are you ready? Let’s go!

0:17 — Gender and number

To start, adjectives are words that accompany nouns and describe them. Nouns in Spanish have a gender: masculine or feminine.

el sofá / la casa
Example translation: the sofa (masculine) / the house (feminine)

And number: singular or plural.

la casa / las casas
Example translation: the house (singular) / the houses (plural)

So adjectives also have to match with nouns in gender and number.

el sofá bonito
Example translation: the pretty sofa — masculine singular

la casa bonita
Example translation: the pretty house — feminine singular

las casas bonitas
Example translation: the pretty houses — feminine plural

1:02 — The usual endings

Usually, masculine adjectives end in -o, while feminine adjectives end in -a. But not always.

guapo / guapa
Example translation: handsome / beautiful

The plural adds an -s to the singular form when the adjective ends in a vowel, which is the large majority, and adds -es when it ends in a consonant, as nouns do.

guapos / débil / débiles
Example translation: handsome (plural) / weak (singular) / weak (plural)

Learner note — The plural rules are a starting point: These rules work for the ordinary endings practised here. They are not a rule for every consonant or stressed vowel. In this list, feliz becomes felices, with z changing to c. Written accents also follow the resulting word’s stress and spelling, as in joven → jóvenes. Source: RAE: plural.

1:37 — One gender form and omitted subjects

Some adjectives have the same form for masculine and feminine. For example, grande: big.

la casa grande / el coche grande
Example translation: the big house — feminine singular / the big car — masculine singular

Many times the noun will be implicit. For example:

Eres guapo.
Example translation: You’re handsome.

The subject is tú, “you” singular, but it is omitted. In Spanish, the verb form tells us who the subject is, so we omit the pronouns a lot. This sometimes happens with nouns too, because the adjective tells us about the gender and number of the noun, so it is easy to figure it out from the context. This explained, let’s learn those essential Spanish adjectives. Yay! I’m going to say each adjective in masculine singular, feminine singular, masculine plural and feminine plural, okay? Let’s go!

Learner note — Use the form together with context: Eres clearly identifies tú in this example. Other verb forms can have more than one possible subject, and a form such as grande does not distinguish masculine from feminine. The context supplies what the ending alone does not tell you.

2:31 — Adjectives 1–10

1. 2:31 — alto
Meaning in this lesson: tall / high

• altoMasculine singular
• altaFeminine singular
• altosMasculine plural
• altasFeminine plural

2. 2:41 — bajo
Meaning in this lesson: low / short

• bajoMasculine singular
• bajaFeminine singular
• bajosMasculine plural
• bajasFeminine plural

3. 2:52 — grande
Meaning in this lesson: big

• grandeMasculine singular
• grandeFeminine singular
• grandesMasculine plural
• grandesFeminine plural

4. 3:02 — pequeño
Meaning in this lesson: small

• pequeñoMasculine singular
• pequeñaFeminine singular
• pequeñosMasculine plural
• pequeñasFeminine plural

5. 3:13 — bonito
Meaning in this lesson: pretty

• bonitoMasculine singular
• bonitaFeminine singular
• bonitosMasculine plural
• bonitasFeminine plural

6. 3:23 — feo
Meaning in this lesson: ugly

• feoMasculine singular
• feaFeminine singular
• feosMasculine plural
• feasFeminine plural

7. 3:33 — abierto
Meaning in this lesson: open

• abiertoMasculine singular
• abiertaFeminine singular
• abiertosMasculine plural
• abiertasFeminine plural

8. 3:44 — cerrado
Meaning in this lesson: closed

• cerradoMasculine singular
• cerradaFeminine singular
• cerradosMasculine plural
• cerradasFeminine plural

9. 3:55 — fuerte
Meaning in this lesson: strong

• fuerteMasculine singular
• fuerteFeminine singular
• fuertesMasculine plural
• fuertesFeminine plural

10. 4:06 — débil
Meaning in this lesson: weak

• débilMasculine singular
• débilFeminine singular
• débilesMasculine plural
• débilesFeminine plural

4:16 — Adjectives 11–20

11. 4:16 — fácil
Meaning in this lesson: easy

• fácilMasculine singular
• fácilFeminine singular
• fácilesMasculine plural
• fácilesFeminine plural

12. 4:26 — difícil
Meaning in this lesson: difficult

• difícilMasculine singular
• difícilFeminine singular
• difícilesMasculine plural
• difícilesFeminine plural

13. 4:38 — largo
Meaning in this lesson: long

• largoMasculine singular
• largaFeminine singular
• largosMasculine plural
• largasFeminine plural

14. 4:48 — corto
Meaning in this lesson: short

• cortoMasculine singular
• cortaFeminine singular
• cortosMasculine plural
• cortasFeminine plural

15. 4:59 — divertido
Meaning in this lesson: fun / amusing

• divertidoMasculine singular
• divertidaFeminine singular
• divertidosMasculine plural
• divertidasFeminine plural

16. 5:12 — aburrido
Meaning in this lesson: boring

• aburridoMasculine singular
• aburridaFeminine singular
• aburridosMasculine plural
• aburridasFeminine plural

Learner note — Aburrido in context: The list introduces “boring.” With estar, aburrido can instead describe being bored; choose the meaning that fits the sentence. This is not a different gender or plural form. Source: RAE: ser and estar.

17. 5:24 — dulce
Meaning in this lesson: sweet

• dulceMasculine singular
• dulceFeminine singular
• dulcesMasculine plural
• dulcesFeminine plural

18. 5:35 — salado
Meaning in this lesson: salty

• saladoMasculine singular
• saladaFeminine singular
• saladosMasculine plural
• saladasFeminine plural

19. 5:46 — triste
Meaning in this lesson: sad

• tristeMasculine singular
• tristeFeminine singular
• tristesMasculine plural
• tristesFeminine plural

20. 5:57 — enfadado
Meaning in this lesson: angry

• enfadadoMasculine singular
• enfadadaFeminine singular
• enfadadosMasculine plural
• enfadadasFeminine plural

6:09 — Adjectives 21–30

21. 6:09 — feliz
Meaning in this lesson: happy

• felizMasculine singular
• felizFeminine singular
• felicesMasculine plural
• felicesFeminine plural

22. 6:21 — preocupado
Meaning in this lesson: worried

• preocupadoMasculine singular
• preocupadaFeminine singular
• preocupadosMasculine plural
• preocupadasFeminine plural

23. 6:34 — listo
Meaning in this lesson: smart / ready

• listoMasculine singular
• listaFeminine singular
• listosMasculine plural
• listasFeminine plural

Learner note — Listo: two meanings: The two meanings shown are legitimate: ser listo describes someone as smart, while estar listo means being ready. Source: RAE: listo with ser and estar.

24. 6:46 — tonto
Meaning in this lesson: dumb / foolish

• tontoMasculine singular
• tontaFeminine singular
• tontosMasculine plural
• tontasFeminine plural

25. 6:57 — caliente
Meaning in this lesson: hot

• calienteMasculine singular
• calienteFeminine singular
• calientesMasculine plural
• calientesFeminine plural

26. 7:09 — frío
Meaning in this lesson: cold

• fríoMasculine singular
• fríaFeminine singular
• fríosMasculine plural
• fríasFeminine plural

27. 7:20 — joven
Meaning in this lesson: young

• jovenMasculine singular
• jovenFeminine singular
• jóvenesMasculine plural
• jóvenesFeminine plural

28. 7:31 — mayor
Meaning in this lesson: old, in the age-related use introduced here

• mayorMasculine singular
• mayorFeminine singular
• mayoresMasculine plural
• mayoresFeminine plural

Learner note — Mayor and age: The video introduces an age-related use of mayor. It can describe an older person or mean “older” in a comparison; in other contexts it is also the comparative of grande. It is not restricted to a single English equivalent. Source: RAE: mayor.

29. 7:45 — limpio
Meaning in this lesson: clean

• limpioMasculine singular
• limpiaFeminine singular
• limpiosMasculine plural
• limpiasFeminine plural

30. 7:57 — sucio
Meaning in this lesson: dirty

• sucioMasculine singular
• suciaFeminine singular
• suciosMasculine plural
• suciasFeminine plural

8:08 — Adjectives 31–40

31. 8:08 — lleno
Meaning in this lesson: full

• llenoMasculine singular
• llenaFeminine singular
• llenosMasculine plural
• llenasFeminine plural

32. 8:19 — vacío
Meaning in this lesson: empty

• vacíoMasculine singular
• vacíaFeminine singular
• vacíosMasculine plural
• vacíasFeminine plural

33. 8:32 — bueno
Meaning in this lesson: good

• buenoMasculine singular
• buenaFeminine singular
• buenosMasculine plural
• buenasFeminine plural

34. 8:44 — malo
Meaning in this lesson: bad

• maloMasculine singular
• malaFeminine singular
• malosMasculine plural
• malasFeminine plural

35. 8:54 — nuevo
Meaning in this lesson: new

• nuevoMasculine singular
• nuevaFeminine singular
• nuevosMasculine plural
• nuevasFeminine plural

36. 9:05 — viejo
Meaning in this lesson: old

• viejoMasculine singular
• viejaFeminine singular
• viejosMasculine plural
• viejasFeminine plural

37. 9:16 — rápido
Meaning in this lesson: fast

• rápidoMasculine singular
• rápidaFeminine singular
• rápidosMasculine plural
• rápidasFeminine plural

38. 9:27 — lento
Meaning in this lesson: slow

• lentoMasculine singular
• lentaFeminine singular
• lentosMasculine plural
• lentasFeminine plural

39. 9:39 — pobre
Meaning in this lesson: poor

• pobreMasculine singular
• pobreFeminine singular
• pobresMasculine plural
• pobresFeminine plural

40. 9:51 — rico
Meaning in this lesson: rich / yummy

• ricoMasculine singular
• ricaFeminine singular
• ricosMasculine plural
• ricasFeminine plural

Learner note — Rico in context: Rico can mean wealthy or delicious, as the lesson shows. A sentence such as es rico describes someone as wealthy; está rico commonly evaluates food as tasty. The glossary introduces those meanings, not a word-for-word replacement in every context. Source: RAE: ser and estar.

10:03 — Keep practising

These were the forty basic Spanish adjectives you need to know.

¿Qué otro adjetivo quieres aprender?
Example translation: What other adjective would you like to learn?

Tell me in the comments! Like the video and subscribe for more!

¡Hasta pronto!
Example translation: See you soon!