Adjectives Preceding Nouns (00)

La tienda de comestibles es muy buen negocio. means A grocery is a very good business.

The adjective BUEN in this sentence precedes the noun NEGOCIO.

Most adjectives follow nouns but there are many adjectives that precede nouns.

Adjectives preceding nouns:

• Possessive adjectives (mi perro = my dog) - Lesson on Possessive adjectives here
• Demonstrative adjectives (este edificio = this building) - Lesson on Demonstrative adjectives here
• Adjectives of quantity (pocas personas = few people) - Lesson on Expressions of quantity here
• Numbers (dos manzanas = two apples)
• Adjectives changing meaning when their position changes (una gran película = a great movie)
• Adjectives expressing appreciation (la sabrosa comida = the tasty food)
• Adjectives strenghtening the meaning of the noun (la oscura noche = the dark night)
• Other adjectives (único, último, próximo)

Some adjectives can be placed either before or after the noun.

The most common are BUENO (good) and MALO (bad). They drop the -o before a masculine noun.

(Él) lee un buen libro. = He reads a good book. (un buen libro = a good book)

Hay una buena carretera. = There is a good road. (una buena carretera = a good road)

Nos quedamos en un mal hotel. = We stay in a bad hotel. (un mal hotel = a bad hotel)

Hay una mala conexión, tienes que cambiar trenes. = There is a bad connection, you have to change trains. (un mala conexión = a bad connection)

Adjectives with a different meaning when they are placed before the noun.

The adjective GRANDE is an example how meaning changes when its position changes. It has a short form GRAN before singular nouns.

Mi colega es un gran hombre. = My colleague is a great man. (un gran hombre = a great man)

Alejandra es una gran chef. = Alejandra is a great chef. (una gran chef = a great chef)

More adjectives with different meaning before and after a noun.

Viejo = old

Mi viejo vecino siempre habla conmigo. = My longtime neighbour always talks to me. (VIEJO before the noun = longtime)

Mi vecino viejo ve todo. = My old neighbour sees everything. (VIEJO after the noun = old)

Pobre = poor

Gente pobre vive aquí. = Poor people live here. (POBRE after the noun = poor, without money)

Le duele la herida al pobre niño. = The wound hurts the poor child. (POBRE before the noun = unfortunate, poor)

Antiguo = ancient, former

A Marco le interesan las civilizaciones antiguas. = Marco is interested in ancient civilizations. (ANTIGUO after the noun = ancient )

Veo a mi antiguo jefe a menudo. = I often see my former boss. (ANTIGUO before the noun = former, old)

MISMO = same

Te gusta la misma canción. = You like the same song. (MISMA/-O before the noun = the same)

La mujer misma pinta su departamento = The woman herself paints her apartment. (MISMA/-O after the noun = oneself)

CIERTO = certain, sure

Tienes que leer ciertos libros. = You need to read certain books. (CIERTO before a noun = certain)

Apuesto a número 3, es victoria cierta. = I bet on number 3, it is a sure victory. (CIERTO after the noun = sure)

Adjectives ÚNICO = the only one, PRÓXIMO = next and ÚLTIMO = last.

El único vuelo sale a las 10 de la noche. = The only flight departs at 10 pm. (ÚNICO, ÚNICA = the only)

Domingo es el único día de descanso. = Sunday is the only day of rest. (ÚNICO, ÚNICA = the only)

Te veo la próxima semana. = See you next week. (PRÓXIMO, PRÓXIMA = the next)

El próximo autobús llega a las 3:30 de la tarde. = The next bus arrives at 3:30 pm. (PRÓXIMO, PRÓXIMA = the next)

No tengo la última pieza. = I don´t have the last piece. (ÚLTIMO, ÚLTIMA = the last)

Este es el último juego. = This is the last game. (ÚLTIMO, ÚLTIMA = the last)

Adjectives expressing appreciation, emotion and adjectives strenthening the meaning of the nouns

Adjectives that express emotion (una estupenda canción = a wonderful song) and adjectives that strenghten the noun (el profundo mar = the deep sea) also go before the noun.

Adjectives expressing emotion

Adjectives strenghtening the meaning of the noun

Summary

• Demonstrative adjectives, possessive adjectives, adjectives of quantity and numbers always precede the nouns.
• Some adjectives can be before or after the noun (bueno, malo).
• Some adjectives change their meaning when changing the position (grande).
• Adjectives describing emotion (maravilloso) and emphasizing the noun are placed before the noun .