Spanish sentence structure & word order: A fun and easy guide (2024)

The Spanish sentence structure is the basic building block that will help you express yourself.

Learning Spanish vocabulary and a few phrases is great if you’re just starting to learn Spanish, but understanding how sentences are strung together will help you get a sense of how the language works. Beyond just memorizing simple phrases, you’ll be able to actually use all the vocab and tools you’ve learned to put together a coherent sentence that expresses complex thoughts.

From basic sentences to negatives, interrogatives, and even compounds, there are a several essential Spanish questions that you should get a handle on as you advance in your Spanish mastery.

Although it may sound a little daunting, remember to always look at Spanish grammar as a resource that is always there to help you. If you’re ever in doubt, grammar rules are your friend, as they can help you easily figure out what you’re missing or what you need to change.

Below, we’ll cover some of the most important grammar rules about the Spanish sentence to help you start talking and writing like a pro.

Table of contents

• Basic Spanish sentence structure
• Noun-Adjective agreement in Spanish
• Verb conjugations depending on subject conjugation
• Spanish word order and question formation
• Use of pronouns in Spanish sentence structure
• Structuring negation sentences in Spanish
• Compound and complex sentence structure in Spanish
• FAQs about the Spanish sentence structure
• Conclusion

Basic Spanish sentence structure

Just like in English, Spanish sentences typically follow a subject-verb-object (SVO) structure. Sounds like math? Don’t worry, it’s easier than it sounds:

Variations in Spanish word order and sentence structure

Spanish is a very flexible language, and you’ll find that sentence structures can vary quite a bit. This flexibility can add emphasis, create different nuances, or simply match the speaker’s style. Here are some of the most common types of basic Spanish structures:

Examples of simple sentences and how they can be modified

Here are a few helpful examples of just how versatile the Spanish sentence structure can be. Below, you’ll find examples of the same sentence in different orders, each grammatically correct and representing a different emphasis.

Adding more flavor to Spanish sentences

What we just covered is only the most basic Spanish structures. You can add more flavors to your sentences by adding adjectives, adverbs, prepositional phrases, and more to make them more descriptive and interesting.

Noun-Adjective agreement in Spanish

Using adjectives is an essential part of making sentences in Spanish, as they can help you describe things like personality traits, sizes, and shapes and include so many cool words that you can use to add some spice to your sentences.

To use them correctly, you’ll want to understand noun-adjective agreement in Spanish. Unlike in English, Spanish nouns are gendered, and adjectives must match the nouns they describe in both gender and number. For example, you can say “El gato es bonito” (The cat is pretty) or “Las ballenas son bonitas” (Whales are pretty). In each case, notice how the adjective is modified to match the gender and number of the noun. Let’s take a quick look at over 150 Spanish adjectives.

Singular to plural

Spanish adjectives must agree in number, regardless of the gender of the noun. This means they should be singular when the noun is singular and plural when the noun is plural.

• Singular adjectives: These don’t change. For example, “grande” remains “grande” when describing a singular noun.
• Plural adjectives: Add an -s if the adjective ends in a vowel (“grandes”) or -es if it ends in a consonant (“azules”).

Masculine to feminine

Spanish nouns are either masculine or feminine. Most masculine nouns end in -o (“libro” for book, while most feminine nouns end in -a (“casa” for house). Any time you use an adjective, you must make sure it matches the gender of the noun.

• Masculine adjectives: Typically end in -o (“bonito” for describing a masculine noun).
• Feminine adjectives: Typically end in -a (“bonita” for describing a feminine noun).
• Irregular adjectives: Some adjectives end in -e or a consonant and do not change for gender. For example, “amable” (kind) can be used to describe both male and female nouns without changing forms (“El señor amable” and “La señora amable”).

Here are some examples:

Color adjectives

Colors in Spanish must follow the same rules for noun-adjective agreement when used to describe nouns. Here’s how you can master using color adjectives correctly in your Spanish sentences:

• Standard colors: Most color adjectives, like “rojo” (red) change their ending to agree with the gender of the noun. For example, “El lápiz rojo” and “La silla roja.”
• Invariable colors: Some color adjectives don’t change based on gender. These typically end in -e or a consonant. For example, “El lápiz verde” and “La silla verde.”
• Number agreement: Color adjectives must also agree with the noun in number, and they follow standard rules. For example, “El lápiz verde” and “Los lápices verdes.”
• Compound colors: When colors are compound adjectives, they usually don’t change for gender or number. For example, “La camisa azul claro” (The light blue shirt) or “La casa verde oscuro” (The dark green house).
• Adjectives ending in -a: Some color adjectives, like “rosa” (pink) and “naranja” (orange) don’t change for gender, but they do change for number. For example, “El carro rosa” and “Los carros rosas.”

Here are some examples of color adjectives in action:

Quality adjectives

These adjectives describe characteristics like size, shape, and personality. Just like other adjectives in Spanish, quality adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in both gender and number. Here’s how to use them correctly:

• Gender agreement: Many quality adjectives change their ending to match the gender of the noun. Typically, masculine adjectives end in -o (“alto” and “pequeño”) and feminine adjectives end in -a (“alta” and “pequeña”). Some quality adjectives that end in -e or a consonant don’t change their form (“inteligente” and “fácil”).
• Number agreement: Quality adjectives must also match the noun in number. They remain singular when describing a singular noun (“alto” and “inteligente”) and become plural when describing plural nouns (“altos” and “inteligentes”).
• Special cases: Adjectives ending in -or, -án, -ón, and -ín remain unchanged for masculine nouns (“trabajador” and “holgazán”) and add -a to form the feminine singular (“trabajadora” and “holgazana”). For plural nouns, first adapt the adjective to the gender and then follow normal pluralization rules (“trabajadores” and “trabajadoras”).

Let’s take a look at a few quality adjectives at work:

Adjectives with invariant forms for gender

Some adjectives remain the same regardless of the gender of the noun they describe. These invariant adjectives simplify agreement rules since they only need to change to match the number of the noun.

• End in -e or consonant: Many adjectives that end in -e or a consonant don’t change based on gender. They stay the same whether the noun is masculine or feminine. For example, “grande” (big) and “feliz” (happy).
• Adjectives ending in -ista: These adjectives are also invariant in gender but do change for number. For example, “optimista” (optimist) and “pesimista” (pessimist).

Here are some examples where you can see them in action:

Verb conjugations depending on subject conjugation

Knowing how to conjugate verbs in Spanish is a critical part of making even the most basic Spanish sentences. In fact, verb conjugation is so important that it often makes the subject unnecessary, since the verb conjugation includes information about who the subject is.

Unlike in English, Spanish verbs can change their forms significantly depending on the subject. Understanding these changes can help you greatly improve your Spanish fluency, making you sound like more of an intermediate or advanced Spanish speaker.

There are three main types of verbs according to their infinitive endings: -ar, -er, and -ir. Each group follows a specific conjugation pattern in different tenses.

-AR verbs

Verbs ending in -ar are some of the most common verbs in Spanish. They typically follow a regular conjugation pattern, except for notable exceptions like the conjugation of estar in Spanish and other irregular verbs. Regular verbs typically follow this conjugation structure:

-ER verbs

Verbs ending in -er also tend to be regular, almost always following these conjugation patterns:

-IR verbs

Verbs ending with -ir typically follow this conjugation pattern:

Example sentences showing verb conjugations in different tenses

Now that you’re familiar with the regular conjugation pattern for each of the three types of Spanish verbs, let’s take a look at some examples of each:

Hablar (To speak)

Comer (To eat)

Vivir (To live)

Spanish word order and question formation

Knowing how to ask questions in Spanish is extremely helpful, and the Spanish question structure is quite easy to nail down. There are two main types of questions in Spanish: yes/no questions and information questions. Let’s take a look.

Yes/no questions in Spanish

Yes/no questions are typically formed by inverting the subject-verb order found in declarative sentences. While in English, you might add auxiliary verbs like “do” or “does” to form a question, Spanish relies on this simple inversion. For example, the statement “Tú hablas español” can be inverted into “¿Hablas tú español?” to ask a question. Since the conjugated verb includes the person doing the action, the pronoun is usually dropped, and you end up with a simple “¿Hablas español?”

Here are some examples:

Information questions in Spanish

Information questions ask for specific details rather than a simple yes or no. They follow a slightly different structure, as they typically begin with an interrogative word like:

• Qué = what
• Cuándo = when
• Dónde = where
• Por qué = why
• Cómo = how

The structure generally involves placing the interrogative word at the beginning, followed by the verb, and then the subject. Like yes/no questions, the subject pronoun is often omitted unless it’s necessary for clarity or emphasis.

Use of pronouns in Spanish sentence structure

Spanish pronouns play a very big part in sentence structure. Unlike in English, where pronouns often maintain a consistent position, Spanish pronouns can shift within the sentence to provide more nuance and emphasis.

Subject pronouns

Subject pronouns in Spanish identify who is doing the action of the verb (Yo, tú/usted, él/ella, nosotros/nosotras, ustedes/vosotros, ellos/ellas). One key feature of Spanish is that subject pronouns are often omitted because the verb conjugation itself indicates the subject. For example, “I eat” translates to “Yo como” but more commonly to simply “Como.”

Subject pronouns are typically only included for emphasis or clarity, especially when contrasting between subjects in complex sentences. Here are some examples:

Direct object pronouns

Direct object pronouns (me, te, lo/la, nos, os, los/las) replace nouns that directly receive the action of the verb. They generally appear before the conjugated verb or attached to the end of an infinitive or gerund:

• Original sentence: Yo leo el libro. (I read the book.)
• With direct object pronoun: Yo lo leo. (I read it.)

When attached to the infinitive or gerund, the pronoun follows:

• Infinitive: Quiero leerlo. (I want to read it.)
• Gerund: Estoy leyéndolo. (I am reading it.)

Here are a few more examples:

Indirect object pronouns

Indirect object pronouns (me, te, le, nos, os, les) indicate to whom or for whom the action is performed. These pronouns typically precede the conjugated verb or attach to infinitives and gerunds.

• Original sentence: Yo doy el libro a María. (I give the book to María.)
• With indirect object pronoun: Yo le doy el libro. (I give her the book.)

In sentences with both a direct and an indirect object pronoun, the indirect object pronoun comes first:

• Combined pronouns: Yo se lo doy. (I give it to her.)

When both the direct and indirect pronouns are third person, “le” and “les” change to “se” to avoid awkward pronunciation.

Reflexive pronouns

Reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nos, os, se) are used when the subject and object of the verb are the same, meaning the action is performed on oneself. Reflective pronouns also precede the conjugated reflexive verb or attach to infinitives and gerunds.

• Original sentence: Yo lavo las manos. (I wash hands).
• With reflexive pronoun: Yo me lavo las manos. (I wash my hands.)

Here are a few more examples:

Structuring negation sentences in Spanish

Creating negative sentences in Spanish is very easy — and a critical part of everyday conversations. Knowing how to say no in Spanish involves forming negations, denials, and prohibitions effectively.

General denial

The basic negative sentence structure involves placing the word “no” before the verb. This simple structure works for both present and past-tense verbs:

• Affirmative: Yo hablo español. (I speak Spanish.)
• Negative: Yo no hablo español. (I don’t speak Spanish.)

Let’s take a look at some examples:

Double negatives

Spanish also uses negative words to enhance or specify the negation. These words can be used alone or in combination with “no” to create more complex negative sentences.

Negative pronouns

Negative pronouns in Spanish are used to indicate the absence of people, things or quantities. These pronouns are essential for expressing complete negation in a sentence. These pronouns can be used alone or in conjunction with “no” to reinforce the negation.

• Algo (something) → Nada (nothing)
• Alguien (someone) → Nadie (no one)
• Uno (one) → Ninguno (none)

Here are some example sentences:

Negative imperatives

Negative imperative sentences are used to give commands or instructions that prohibit an action. In Spanish, these commands are formed by placing “no” before the verb in its imperative form. The structure changes slightly depending on whether you’re using the informal tú vs. informal usted.

Here are some examples:

Absence

Absence sentence structures in Spanish use negative pronouns like “nada” (nothing), “nadie” (no one), and “ninguno/ninguna” (none) to indicate the absence of people, things, or quantities. These structures often combine with the word “no” for emphasis to communicate a complete lack or negation of something. Here are some examples:

Negation of past actions

Coming up with negative sentences for past actions in Spanish is extremely easy, as it just requires you to add a “no” before the conjugated verb to indicate that the action didn’t occur. Here are a few examples:

Negation of future actions

Similarly, coming up with negative sentence structures for future actions in Spanish is quite easy. Just add a “no” before the conjugated verb and you’re making it clear that the action won’t happen! Here’s how:

Conditional negations

Conditional negations in Spanish express hypothetical scenarios where an action won’t happen unless a certain condition is met. These sentences typically use “si” (if) followed by “no” right before the verb. This structure emphasizes the dependence of one action on another condition being met. Here’s how it works:

Compound and complex sentence structure in Spanish

Mastering compound and complex sentences is key to advancing your Spanish language skills. These sentence structures allow you to connect ideas and provide detailed explanations, making your communications more sophisticated and engaging. Let’s explore how compound and complex sentences can enrich your conversations and your writing in Spanish.

Compound sentence

Compound sentences are used to connect related ideas, showing their relationship and providing a clearer context. By mastering compound sentences, you’ll be able to express complex thoughts more naturally and fluently.

To form a compound sentence in Spanish, you will need to join two or more independent clauses in a single sentence. Independent clauses are complete sentences on their own, so a quick trick to tell if you’re dealing with an independent vs. an independent clause is to separate it from the rest of the sentence and see if it would make sense on its own.

Independent clauses in compound sentences are joined with words like “y” (and), “o” (or), “pero” (but), and “sino” (but rather). This type of sentence allows you to convey multiple ideas or actions within a single sentence, making your speech or writing more dynamic and engaging.

Complex sentence

Complex sentences in Spanish add depth to your language by combining an independent clause with one or more dependent clauses. A dependent clause cannot stand alone as a complete sentence, as opposed to an independent clause. Dependent clauses are

Sentences with a main clause and one or more subordinate clauses.

Subordinating conjunctions like “que” (that), “porque” (because), “cuando” (when), “aunque” (although), and “si” (if) typically introduce dependent clauses. This structure allows you to provide additional information and context, making your statements more informative and nuanced.

FAQs about the Spanish sentence structure

Do all Spanish sentences need a subject?

No, not all Spanish sentences need to have a subject. In Spanish, the subject is often implied by the verb conjugation and can be omitted if the context makes it clear who or what is being discussed. This feature helps simplify conversation and writing.

What is the most common word order in a Spanish sentence?

The standard word order in Spanish is Subject-Verb-Object (SVO), similar to English. However, Spanish is more flexible, so you might also find variations like Object-Verb-Subject (OVS) or Verb-Subject-Object (VSO) to emphasize different parts of the sentence.

Can adjectives be placed before nouns in Spanish?

While adjectives in Spanish typically follow the nouns they describe, they can be placed before the noun for emphasis or to express a subjective quality. For example, “un gran hombre” (a great man) emphasizes the greatness of the man.

How do you form questions in Spanish?

Questions in Spanish are formed by inverting the order of the subject and the verb. For example, “Tú comes manzanas” becomes “¿Comes tú manzanas?” However, remember that Spanish often drops the subject when the context is enough, and this is almost always the case with questions. So, after dropping the question, our example would end up as “¿Comes manzanas?”

How do reflexive verbs affect the sentence structure?

Reflexive verbs in Spanish require the addition of reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nos, os, se) that correspond to the subject. These pronouns are placed directly before conjugated verbs or are attached to the end of infinitive forms and gerunds, affecting the placement and form of verbs in sentences.

Take your Spanish to a whole new level with these sentence structures

Now that you’re familiar with all of these Spanish word orders and sentence structures, you’ll be able to communicate more effortlessly in Spanish. From expressing simple things as negations to describing complex sentences with multiple independent clauses, you’ll be much more able to express a wide range of emotions and ideas once you’re familiar with these simple Spanish sentence orders.

And if you want to learn even more about Spanish grammar, then check out our Spanish blog, where we routinely publish helpful guides. You can take a look at some of our latest articles, like our ultimate guide to Spanish false cognates or our expert review of Spanglish terms.