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IntermediateAdjective Order
How multiple adjectives are sequenced before nouns in Spanish, English and Chinese.
Compare languages
English has a strict adjective order (opinion-size-age-shape-color-origin-material-purpose). Spanish order is more flexible, though opinion typically precedes description. Chinese places all modifiers before the noun, with 的 linking adjective to noun.
Overview
When multiple adjectives modify a noun, their order is governed by rules that vary across languages.
- Spanish: Flexible order with preferences. Evaluative adjectives (hermoso, terrible) usually precede descriptive ones (grande, viejo). Some adjectives change meaning by position (un hombre grande = a big man; un gran hombre = a great man).
- English: Rigid order following the mnemonic OSASCOMP (opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin, material, purpose). Violations sound distinctly foreign.
- Chinese: All modifiers precede the noun. The order is generally: evaluative > size > color > shape > material. 的 links adjectives to nouns.
Spanish
Default order
Evaluative before descriptive:
- un hermoso coche rojo (a beautiful red car)
- una interesante película larga (an interesting long film)
Descriptive before evaluative is also possible, with a slight shift in emphasis:
- un coche rojo hermoso (emphasis on the car being red and beautiful)
Meaning-changing position
Some Spanish adjectives change meaning based on position:
| Before noun | After noun |
|---|---|
| un gran hombre (a great man) | un hombre grande (a big man) |
| mi antiguo jefe (my former boss) | mi jefe antiguo (my old boss [in age]) |
| una pobre mujer (a poor woman [pitiful]) | una mujer pobre (a poor woman [no money]) |
| cierta persona (a certain person) | una persona cierta (a trustworthy person) |
| diferentes opiniones (various opinions) | opiniones diferentes (differing opinions) |
Coordinate adjectives
With y/e:
- una película larga y aburrida (a long and boring film)
- un coche rápido e inteligente (a fast and smart car)
Multiple adjectives without coordination
- una casa blanca grande. (a big white house.)
- un libro interesante antiguo español. (an interesting old Spanish book.)
Note: This order is less fixed than English.
English
OSASCOMP order
Mnemonic for adjective order:
| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Opinion | beautiful, ugly, lovely, terrible |
| Size | big, small, huge, tiny |
| Age | old, young, ancient, new |
| Shape | round, square, flat, oval |
| Color | red, blue, green, black |
| Origin | Italian, Chinese, American |
| Material | wooden, metal, silk, plastic |
| Purpose | racing, sleeping, hunting, walking |
Examples:
- a beautiful old Italian car
- a big round red wooden table
- a lovely little old rectangular green French iron writing desk
- a terrible huge new oval blue American plastic swimming pool
Note: Native speakers rarely use more than 3-4 adjectives.
Coordinate adjectives
When adjectives are from the same category, they are “coordinate” and separated by commas or and:
- a long, boring film (opinion + opinion)
- a big and ugly building (opinion + opinion)
- a red and blue flag (color + color)
Test: If you can insert “and” between them and reverse the order, they are coordinate:
- ✅ a boring and long film / a long and boring film → coordinate
- ❌ a red big ball → not coordinate (must be “big red”)
Postpositive adjectives (rare)
A few fixed expressions have postpositive adjectives:
- attorney general
- court martial
- heir apparent
- notary public
- something interesting (when modified by indefinite pronouns)
- the president elect
Chinese
All modifiers before noun
Chinese never places adjectives after the noun:
- 好书 (good book)
- 漂亮的车 (beautiful car)
Default order
| Order | Category | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evaluation / modality | 好, 漂亮, 重要 |
| 2 | Size / quantity | 大, 小, 多 |
| 3 | Color | 红, 蓝, 绿 |
| 4 | Shape | 圆, 方 |
| 5 | Material | 木, 铁, 塑料 |
| 6 | Noun | 车, 书, 桌子 |
- 一辆漂亮的大的红色的木头车 (a beautiful big red wooden car)
Note: Multiple 的 is grammatical but can be heavy. In natural speech, some 的 are often dropped:
- 一辆漂亮的大红木车 (a beautiful big red wooden car — one 的)
的 omission
Monosyllabic adjectives in fixed expressions often drop 的:
- 红花 (red flower)
- 白马 (white horse)
- 大街 (big street)
But with modified nouns, 的 is preferred:
- 红色的花 (red-colored flower)
Compound adjectives
Chinese sometimes compounds adjectives before the noun:
- 高大 (tall and big)
- 干净 (clean)
- 整齐 (tidy)
Examples
A beautiful old Italian car
un hermoso coche italiano antiguo / un antiguo coche italiano hermoso
A big red wooden box
una caja grande roja de madera
Order flexibility
Moderate (opinion usually first)
Multiple <ruby>的<rt>de</rt></ruby>
No (adjectives agree directly)
Postpositive adjectives
Limited (casa grande, cosa cierta)
Coordinate adjectives
y / e between adjectives
Common Mistakes
Reversing English adjective order
Follow OSASCOMP: opinion-size-age-shape-color-origin-material-purpose
'A red big ball' sounds foreign — must be 'a big red ball.'
Examples
A beautiful old Italian car
a beautiful old Italian car (opinion-age-origin)
A big red wooden box
a big red wooden box (size-color-material)
Order flexibility
Strict (violations sound foreign)
Multiple <ruby>的<rt>de</rt></ruby>
No (adjectives in sequence)
Postpositive adjectives
Very limited (attorney general, court martial)
Coordinate adjectives
comma or 'and' between coordinate adjectives
Common Mistakes
Applying English adjective order to Spanish literally
Spanish allows more flexibility: un coche italiano antiguo rojo is acceptable
English 'old Italian beautiful car' is ungrammatical; Spanish has more freedom.
Omitting 的 between adjectives and nouns in Chinese
Monosyllabic adjectives often need 的: 红色的车, not 红色车
While some fixed compounds omit 的, learners should use 的 until they know exceptions.
Using postpositive adjectives in Chinese
Chinese adjectives are always before the noun: 好书, never 书好 as attributive
Chinese 书好 is a predicate ('the book is good'), not an attributive adjective.
Examples
A beautiful old Italian car
一辆漂亮的古老的意大利车
A big red wooden box
一个大的红色的木头箱子
Order flexibility
Relatively fixed (modality > evaluation > color > shape > material)
Multiple <ruby>的<rt>de</rt></ruby>
Yes (each adjective can take 的)
Postpositive adjectives
None (all prepositive)
Coordinate adjectives
而 / 又 for coordination
Comparison at a glance
| Grammar concepts | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| A beautiful old Italian car | un hermoso coche italiano antiguo / un antiguo coche italiano hermoso | a beautiful old Italian car (opinion-age-origin) | 一辆漂亮的古老的意大利车 |
| A big red wooden box | una caja grande roja de madera | a big red wooden box (size-color-material) | 一个大的红色的木头箱子 |
| Order flexibility | Moderate (opinion usually first) | Strict (violations sound foreign) | Relatively fixed (modality > evaluation > color > shape > material) |
| Multiple <ruby>的<rt>de</rt></ruby> | No (adjectives agree directly) | No (adjectives in sequence) | Yes (each adjective can take 的) |
| Postpositive adjectives | Limited (casa grande, cosa cierta) | Very limited (attorney general, court martial) | None (all prepositive) |
| Coordinate adjectives | y / e between adjectives | comma or 'and' between coordinate adjectives | 而 / 又 for coordination |
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Side-by-side comparison
| Grammar concepts | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| A beautiful old Italian car | un hermoso coche italiano antiguo / un antiguo coche italiano hermoso | a beautiful old Italian car (opinion-age-origin) | 一辆漂亮的古老的意大利车 |
| A big red wooden box | una caja grande roja de madera | a big red wooden box (size-color-material) | 一个大的红色的木头箱子 |
| Order flexibility | Moderate (opinion usually first) | Strict (violations sound foreign) | Relatively fixed (modality > evaluation > color > shape > material) |
| Multiple <ruby>的<rt>de</rt></ruby> | No (adjectives agree directly) | No (adjectives in sequence) | Yes (each adjective can take 的) |
| Postpositive adjectives | Limited (casa grande, cosa cierta) | Very limited (attorney general, court martial) | None (all prepositive) |
| Coordinate adjectives | y / e between adjectives | comma or 'and' between coordinate adjectives | 而 / 又 for coordination |
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Examples in context
A beautiful old Italian car
Spanish
un hermoso coche italiano antiguo / un antiguo coche italiano hermoso
English
a beautiful old Italian car (opinion-age-origin)
Chinese
一辆漂亮的古老的意大利车
A big red wooden box
Spanish
una caja grande roja de madera
English
a big red wooden box (size-color-material)
Chinese
一个大的红色的木头箱子
Order flexibility
Spanish
Moderate (opinion usually first)
English
Strict (violations sound foreign)
Chinese
Relatively fixed (modality > evaluation > color > shape > material)
Multiple <ruby>的<rt>de</rt></ruby>
Spanish
No (adjectives agree directly)
English
No (adjectives in sequence)
Chinese
Yes (each adjective can take 的)
Postpositive adjectives
Spanish
Limited (casa grande, cosa cierta)
English
Very limited (attorney general, court martial)
Chinese
None (all prepositive)
Coordinate adjectives
Spanish
y / e between adjectives
English
comma or 'and' between coordinate adjectives
Chinese
而 / 又 for coordination
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Key Takeaways
Spanish: Flexible order with preferences. Evaluative adjectives (hermoso, terrible) usually precede descriptive ones (grande, viejo). Some adjectives...
English: Rigid order following the mnemonic OSASCOMP (opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin, material, purpose). Violations sound distinctly forei...
Chinese: All modifiers precede the noun. The order is generally: evaluative > size > color > shape > material. 的de links adjectives to nouns.
Key concepts compared: A beautiful old Italian car, A big red wooden box, Order flexibility.
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Last updated: June 4, 2026