Expressing quantity in Spanish
Poco (little), mucho (much), demasiado (too much), bastante (enough), and suficiente (enough/sufficient) all express an undefined quantity.
Note that in Spanish these adjectives agree with the noun they modify.Let's see how to use them!
Poco, poca, pocos, pocas + [noun] = little / not much / few / not many + [noun]
María come poco pan.Maria doesn't eat much bread.
En esta casa entra muy poca luz.In this house there's very little light.
Tengo pocos caramelos.I have few candies.
Tengo pocas cosas que llevar.I have few things to carry.
Poco and poca are used with a singular noun to express little/not much (of), while pocos and pocas are used with a plural noun to express few/not many (of).
Here's a recapitulative table:
|
Quantitative Adjective |
Masculine | Feminine |
|
Singular |
poco little/not much |
poca little/not much |
|
Plural |
pocos |
pocas |
Mucho, mucha, muchos, muchas + [noun] = much / a lot of / many + [noun]
Alberto come mucho queso. ¡Le encanta!Alberto eats a lot of cheese. He loves it!
Nosotros tenemos mucha energía.We have a lot of energy.
Ellos poseen muchos coches.They own many cars.
Ella visita muchas veces a sus padres.She visits her parents often [lit: many times].
Mucho and mucha are used with a singular noun to express much/a lot of, while muchos and muchas are used with a plural noun to express many/a lot of.
Here's a recapitulative table:
|
Quantitative Adjective |
Masculine | Feminine |
|
Singular |
mucho much/a lot of |
mucha much/a lot of |
|
Plural |
muchos |
muchas |
Demasiado, demasiada, demasiados, demasiadas + [noun] = too much / too many + [noun]
Tenemos demasiado dinero.We have too much money.
Hay demasiada fruta en la nevera.There is too much fruit in the fridge.
En Londres hay demasiados días grises.There are too many grey days in London.
Tengo que esperar demasiadas horas para que me vea un médico.I have to wait too many hours for a doctor to see me.
Demasiado and demasiada are used with a singular noun to express too much (of), while demasiados and demasiadas are used with a plural noun to express too many (of).
Here's a recapitulative table:
|
Quantitative Adjective |
Masculine | Feminine |
|
Singular |
demasiado too much (of) |
demasiada too much (of) |
|
Plural |
demasiados |
demasiadas |
Tanto, tanta, tantos, tantas + [noun] = so much / so many + [noun]
Tanto dinero no da la felicidad.So much money doesn't bring happiness.
Tanta luz no es buena para sacar fotos.So much light is not good for taking photos.
Después de tantos años mantenemos el contacto.After so many years we keep in touch.
Con tantas explicaciones no entiendo bien el problema.With so many explanations I don't really understand the problem.
Tanto and tanta are used with a singular noun to express so much (of), while tantos and tantas are used with a plural noun to express so many (of).
Here's a recapitulative table:
|
Quantitative Adjective |
Masculine | Feminine |
|
Singular |
tanto so much |
tanta so much |
|
Plural |
tantos |
tantas |
Bastante, bastantes + [noun] = enough (of) + [noun]
Tenemos bastante pan para cenar.We have enough bread for dinner.
Hay bastantes clientes en la tienda.There are enough customers in the shop.
Bastante is used with a singular noun to express enough (of), while bastantes is used with a plural noun to express enough (of).
Bastante / bastantes do not agree in gender: they keep the same form in masculine and feminine!
Here's a recapitulative table:
|
Quantitative Adjective |
Masculine/ |
|
Singular |
bastante enough (of) |
|
Plural |
bastantes |
Suficiente, suficientes + [noun] = enough (of), sufficient + [noun]
Juan tiene suficiente dinero para ir al cine.Juan has enough money to go to the cinema.
Elisa vio suficientes museos en Londres.Elisa saw enough museums in London.
Suficiente is used with a singular noun to express enough (of) or sufficient while suficientes is used with a plural noun to express enough (of) or sufficient.
Suficiente / suficientes do not agree in gender: they keep the same form in masculine and feminine!
Here's a recapitulative table:
|
Quantitative Adjective |
Masculine/ |
|
Singular |
suficiente enough (of), sufficient |
|
Plural |
suficientes |
See also Muy vs Mucho in Spanish (intensifiers)
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