32 Advanced Spanish Adjectives for Better Self-expression

There comes a point in your Spanish studies where you have to get proactive about enriching your adjective vocabulary list as much as you can. 

We’ve compiled a list of 32 advanced Spanish adjectives for you to use and spice up your conversations, as well as seven excellent additional resources so you can keep learning more and more Spanish adjectives.

Contents

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Advanced Spanish Adjectives

1. Desagradecido — Ungrateful

Example: No seas desagradecido con tus padres. (Don’t be ungrateful to your parents.)

Synonyms: Ingrato, desnaturalizado

2. Inesperado — Unexpected

Example: El divorcio de Fernanda fue inesperado. (Fernanda’s divorce was unexpected.)

Synonyms: Casual, brusco, insospechado

3. Incipiente — Emerging

Example: Su barba incipiente lo hacía lucir desaliñado. (His emerging (growing) beard made him appear untidy.)

Synonyms: Rudimentario, embrionario, primitivo, naciente

4. Inexacto — Inaccurate

Example: Lo que estás diciendo no es completamente incorrecto, pero es inexacto. (What you are saying is not completely incorrect, but it is inaccurate.)

Synonyms: Incorrecto, errado, falso, equivocado

5. Inadmisible — Unacceptable

Example: El plagio es una conducta inadmisible en la universidad. (Plagiarism is unacceptable in university.)

Synonyms: Inacceptable

6. Ridículo — Ridiculous

Example: Lo que dijo sobre la pintura moderna fue ridículo. (What he said about the modern painting was ridiculous.)

Synonyms: Grotesco, absurdo, necio, cómico

7. Inadecuado — Unsuitable

Example: Este programa es inadecuado para el horario infantil. (This program is unsuitable for a children’s time period.)

Synonyms: Inconveniente, incongruente, impropio, opuesto

8. Sabio — Wise

Example: Sus sabios consejos le ayudaron a enderezar su vida. (His wise advice helped him to rectify his life.)

Synonyms: Erudito, ilustrado, científico

9. Asustado — Frightened

Example: No había nadie en casa, sólo el perro asustado por la tormenta. (There was no one at home except the dog, who was frightened by the storm.)

Synonyms: Acobardado, atemorizado

10. Asqueroso — Disgusting

Example: De allí salía un olor asqueroso a pescado podrido. (The smell of a disgusting, decomposed fish came from down there.)

Synonyms: Inmundo, repugnante, sucio, repulsivo, nauseabundo

11. Conocido — Well-known

Example: Esta vez probamos suerte y no fuimos a cenar a un restaurante conocido. (We tried our luck this time and didn’t have dinner at a well-known restaurant.)

Synonyms: Célebre, afamado, famoso, popular

12. Presuntuoso — Conceited

Example: Juan es un presuntuoso. Cree que hace todo mejor que nadie. (Juan is conceited. He thinks he does everything better than anyone else.)

Synonyms: Presumido, altanero, pretencioso

13. Trivial — Trivial

Example: Es un hombre muy superficial, su plática trivial me aburre. (He’s a superficial man, his trivial conversation bores me.)

Synonyms: Banal, insignificante

14. Abundante — Abundant

Example: Este río es abundante en truchas. (Trout are abundant (or plentiful) in this river.)

Synonyms: Cuantioso, copioso, desbordante

15. Carismático — Charismatic

Example: El carismático político ha sido reelegido. (The charismatic politician has been reelected.)

Synonyms: Agradable

16. De poca confianza — Untrustworthy

Example: Él me dijo que su hermana es de poca confianza. (He told me that his sister is untrustworthy.)

Synonyms: No fidedigno, rajón, fajón

17. Travieso — Mischievous

Example: El niño no es malo, solo es muy travieso. (The child is not a bad kid, he is just very mischievous.)

Synonyms: Revoltoso, enredador, diablillo

18. Duradero — Durable

Example: El objetivo es conseguir un motor duradero y confiable. (The goal is to get a durable and trustworthy motor.)

Synonyms: Resistente, durable, estable, firme, permanente

19. Reluctante — Reluctant

Example: Juan estaba reluctante a decir la verdad a los policías. (Juan was reluctant to tell the truth to the policemen.)

Synonyms: Reacio, reticente, opuesto

20. Reconfortante — Comforting

Example: La reunión con su familia fue reconfortante para él después de la tragedia. (It was comforting to him to be with his family after the tragedy.)

Synonyms: Reconstituyente, vigorizador

21. Genuino — Genuine

Example: Este vino es genuino, su gusto no deja lugar a dudas. (This wine is real, its taste doesn’t leave any doubt.)

Synonyms: Auténtico, real, original, verdadero

22. Resistente — Resistant, resilient

Example: Ha surgido una cepa resistente a los antibióticos. (An antibiotics-resistant strain appeared.)

Synonyms: Tenaz, duro, robusto, poderoso, vigoroso, fuerte, eficaz

23. Emocionante — Exciting

Example: La final del Mundial de Sudáfrica 2010 fue muy emocionante. (The world cup final game in South Africa was exciting.)

Synonyms: Interesante, excitante

24. Solemne — Solemn

Example: No te puedes estar riendo en un acto tan solemne como este. (You can’t be laughing during an event as solemn as this one.)

Synonyms: Formal, serio, enfático, ceremonioso, grave, digno, severo

25. Incómodo — Uncomfortable, awkward

Example: Se hizo un incómodo silencio al entrar su hermano. (An awkward silence happened when his brother came into the room.)

Synonyms: Irritante, molesto, perturbador

26. Asombrado — Amazed

Example: Se quedaron asombrados de lo fácil que era. (They were amazed at how easy this was.)

Synonyms: Confuso, atónito, estupefacto

27. Meticuloso — Meticulous, careful

Example: Juan es muy meticuloso en su trabajo y siempre quiere que quede perfecto. (Juan is very careful during his work and always wants things to be perfect.)

Synonyms: Minucioso, detallista, escrupuloso

28. Eficiente — Efficient

Example: Los trabajadores de su empresa son muy eficientes y han convertido la empresa en líder del mercado. (The workers in his company are very efficient and have made the company a leader in its field.)

Synonyms: Eficaz

29. Hecho a mano — Handmade

Example: Esta cartera está totalmente hecha a mano. (This wallet is completely handmade.)

30. Fascinante — Fascinating

Example: Me parece fascinante la personalidad de mi jefe. (I find my boss’s personality fascinating.)

Synonyms: Alucinante, atrayente, deslumbrante, encantador

31. Preocupado — Worried

Example: Un padre siempre es un hombre preocupado. (A dad is always a worried man.)

Synonyms: Intranquilo, inquieto, alarmado

32. Increíble — Incredible

Example: Por increíble que parezca, una cucaracha puede sobrevivir sin cabeza varias semanas. (Although it may seem incredible, a cockroach can survive for several weeks without a head.)

Synonyms: Inverosímil, inconcebible

How to Use Spanish Adjectives

Let’s give you a quick refresher on how to use these adjectives properly in Spanish.

Changing an Adjective’s Gender

Unlike in English, where adjectives have only one form, Spanish adjectives change form to agree with the gender of the noun they modify (masculine or feminine) and the number indicated by the noun (plural or singular).

Most Spanish adjectives end in –o in their masculine form and –a in their feminine form.

Masculine Form	Feminine Form	Meaning
aburrido	aburrida	boring
afortunado	afortunada	fortunate
enfermo	enferma	sick
enojado	enojada	angry

Nevertheless, there are some exceptions to this rule. Sometimes, a masculine singular Spanish adjective may end in –a or –e, or even a consonant.

Masculine Form	Feminine Form	Meaning
egoísta	egoísta	selfish
materialista	materialista	materialistic
eficiente	eficiente	efficient
responsable	responsable	responsible
azul	azul	blue
débil	débil	weak

Making Adjectives Plural

There are three basic rules to making adjectives plural in Spanish.

First, you just add a –s to singular adjectives ending in a vowel.

Singular Form	Plural Form	Meaning
alto	altos	tall
rubia	rubias	blonde
interesante	interesantes	interesting

Second, you add –es to adjectives ending in a consonant.

Singular Form	Plural Form	Meaning
fácil	fáciles	easy
trabajador	trabajadores	hardworking

Third, if a singular adjective ends in –z, change –z to –c and add –es.

Singular Form	Plural Form	Meaning
feliz	felices	happy
capaz	capaces	capable

How to Place Spanish Adjectives

In Spanish, adjectives may precede or follow the noun they modify. Here are the rules you need to follow for the word order of Spanish adjectives.

Most descriptive adjectives follow the nouns they modify. Check out the following examples:

Word Order	Meaning
gatos feos	two ugly cats
madre querida	dear mother
lugares interesantes	interesting places

Adjectives that impose limits—numbers, possessive adjectives, demonstrative adjectives and adjectives of quantity—usually precede the noun they modify.

Word Order	Meaning
su novia alemana	his German girlfriend
una empresa exitosa	one successful company

Resources for Learning More Advanced Spanish Adjectives

Dictionaries

“Spanish English: Bilingual Visual Dictionary”

This dictionary introduces a wide range of useful current vocabulary in thematic order, using full-color photographs and artworks.

It covers topics rarely covered by other dictionaries such as people, appearance, health, services, studies, transportation, sports, leisure and environment, among other things.

You will appreciate that it goes into such specific words as the different parts of a computer or camera, the different players (positions) in a football game or the members of a rock band.

FluentU Language Learning Program

Another great way to learn advanced adjectives is to use a program like FluentU, which uses authentic content such as movie clips, music videos, commercials and more.

FluentU has a built-in video dictionary function through which you can search for words. It will give you the definition and show you all the videos that use the word so you can hear it in context. You can then save it to a flashcard deck to practice later on. 

In the video clips themselves, there are interactive subtitles through which you can hover over a Spanish word and get the immediate definition and pronunciation. The iOS and Android apps also make it easy to also learn on the go if that’s more your style. 

“A Frequency Dictionary of Spanish”

This book is an up-to-date Spanish frequency dictionary which provides a list of the 5,000 most commonly-used words in the language.

What really sets this dictionary apart from other frequency dictionaries is that the majority of the processed texts used to compile this 5,000-word list were taken from the 1990s through the 2000s, so modern relevancy and up-to-date usage frequency is assured.

In addition, you’ll find 30 thematically organized lists of frequently used words on different topics that may not make it onto the 5,000 most common words list. 

Readers

“Contemporary Latin American Literature”

This advanced Spanish reader gathers almost 100 works from some of the greatest Latin American authors such as Jorge Luis Borges, Mario Vargas Llosa, and Nobel Prize winners Octavio Paz and Gabriel García Márquez and more.

Note that each text is unabridged, in its original length and form (unlike other books in which the texts are adapted to suit the level).

The book also includes an introduction of the author, pre-reading notes, footnotes of difficult words with English translations and post-reading questions to complete your reading sessions.

“Read and Think Spanish”

This second reader features more than 100 interesting articles about the enchanting diversity of Latin American culture—from Spain’s Andres Segovia to Peru’s ancient fishing techniques to El Día de los Muertos in Mexico and the United States.

You’ll surely appreciate the wide variety of texts covering food, traditions, music, history and geography, among other things.

You’ll also find new vocabulary along with their English translations in the margins, end-of-chapter questions in Spanish and a 100-minute audio CD with native speakers reading aloud many of the articles contained in the book.

Books

“1,001+ Spanish Language Flash Cards”

“1,001+ Spanish Language Flash Cards” will introduce you to the 1,001 most useful Spanish words, together with their meanings.

You will find a great number of categories ranging from Activities to Animals, Body Parts, Business, Colors, Communication, Direction Education, Entertainment, Family and more.

Believe me, memorizing new advanced-level Spanish adjectives is a breeze thanks to this book!

“1001 Most Useful Spanish Words”

This very small, 55-page book packed full with a ton of vocabulary will make your day!

For just a few bucks, you are getting the most common Spanish words arranged by such categories as foods, numbers, days of the week, months, colors, seasons and family.

Everything comes with definitions and sample Spanish sentences with English translations. This is a very good way to learn some useful Spanish adjectives that you might not know for a bargain!

 

So there you have it! Once you know all of these advanced Spanish vocabulary, make sure to practice so you can remember them. ¡Buena suerte! (Good luck!)

Download:
This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you
can take anywhere.
Click here to get a copy. (Download)