Adjective position: after the noun by default

Erklärung

The default position of a descriptive adjective is after the noun: una casa blanca, un contrato largo, vino tinto, una decisión difícil. This is where Spanish classifies and distinguishes — las casas viejas singles out the old ones as opposed to the others.

Some adjectives normally go before the noun: quantifiers and indefinites (mucho, poco, varios, otro), ordinals and numbers (el primer piso, dos opciones), and adjectives used ornamentally or as an assumed quality (la blanca nieve, una larga espera). Preposing an adjective tends to evaluate or take the quality for granted rather than distinguish.

So position carries nuance: las casas viejas (the old ones, vs the new) vs las viejas casas (the houses, which happen to be old). And a small set of adjectives flips meaning entirely by position — covered in its own rule (un gran hombre vs un hombre grande).

Beispiele

Verwandte Regeln

• Adjectives that change meaning by position
• Shortened adjectives: buen, gran, primer, algún