Adjectives – (Agreement and word order)

Summary of contents – Lesson 26

1-     What is an adjective? Some basic points about agreement, word order and when adjectives are used in conversation. A comparison between how adjectives are used in Spanish and English.

2-     How to make adjectives agree with the people or things they are describing. Some adjectives take ending changes and some don’t

3-     How to form plural adjectives, both feminine and masculine. When to add ‘s’ to form the plural and when to add ‘es’.

4-     A look at where adjectives are placed in sentences relative to the nouns they describe. Word order.

5-     Adjectives that change form when positioned in front of masculine singular nouns. How these adjectives are shortened. Other examples of adjectives that take short forms. Other irregularities.

Aims of the lesson

1-     To understand the basic concepts of what adjectives are and when and how they are used in Spanish as compared to English. Appreciating the importance of gender and what makes an adjective singular or plural.

2-     Being able to form masculine and feminine adjectives by following a general set of guidelines. Recognising how adjectives change form depending on whether they end in a vowel or a consonant.

3-     Being able to form plural adjectives by following a general set of guidelines. Recognising how plural adjectives are formed depending on whether the singular form of an adjective ends in a vowel or a consonant.

4-     Knowing where to correctly position adjectives when used with other words in sentences. Knowing which common adjectives can be positioned in more than one way.

5-     Being aware that some adjectives never change. They are always spelt the same.

6-     Knowing which common adjectives take short forms when positioned before masculine singular nouns. Identifying which adjectives ending in ‘o’ are shortened and which other adjectives are more irregular.