In this lesson, we study indefinite adjectives and pronouns in Spanish.
Indefinite adjectives describe a noun in a vague or non-specific way, e.g., “otra gente” (other people), “cada persona” (eachperson), “varias cosas” (several things), “todas las escuelas” (all schools).
On the other hand, an indefinite pronoun replaces the noun in a vague and non-specific way, e.g., “Te digo algo” (I tell you something), “Hablé con alguien” (I spoke to someone), “Todo está bien” (All is well).
Many indefinite pronouns are identical to their indefinite adjective counterpart, e.g., “todo” (all), “otro” (other), “mucho” (muchor many).
Unlike most adjectives in Spanish, indefinite adjectives precede the noun they describe. Some also change form to agree with the noun in gender and number. Indefinite adjectives and pronouns are used abundantly in Spanish. Thus, it is very useful to learn the most common ones.
List of Indefinite Adjectives and Pronouns in Spanish
Here is a list of the most common indefinite adjectives and pronouns:
| Meaning | Examples | ||
| bastante suficiente | enough | Tengo bastante dinero. | I have enough money. |
| demasiado, -a, -os, -as | too much, too many | Este auto es demasiado caro. | This car is too expensive. |
| uno a otro una a otra | each other | Deben ayudarse unos a otros. | They must help each other. |
| uno u otro una u otra | one or the other | Debes elegir una u otra de estas casas. | You must choose one or the other of these houses. |
| ambos, -as | both | Ambas opciones están disponibles. | Both options are available. |
| ni uno, -a | not a single one | Ni una sola persona apareció. | Not a single person showed up. |
| ni uno ni otro ni una ni otra | neither the one nor the other | No puedo elegir ni uno ni otro. | I can choose neither one nor the other. |
| los otros las otras | the others | Los otros no están disponibles. | The others are not available. |
| los demás | the rest of | Me gustan los gatos y los demás animales. | I like cats and the rest of the animals. |
| mismo, -a, -os, -as | same, self | Es la misma persona que vimos anoche. | It is the same person we saw last night. |
| cierto, -a, -os, -as | certain | Solo ciertas personas pueden hacer eso. | Only certain people can do that. |
| otro, -a, -os, -as | other, another | Quisiera otra copa de agua por favor. | I’d like another glass of water, please. |
| todo, -a | all, every | Todo el año llueve en el país. | All year round, it rains in the country. |
| todos, -as | all, everybody | Todos nosotros somos de Australia. | All of us are from Australia. |
| poco, -a | little, not much | Necesitamos poco tiempo para llegar. | We need little time to arrive. |
| pocos, -as | few | Tiene pocos amigos en la escuela. | He has few friends at school. |
| mucho, -a, -os, -as | much, many | Hay muchas opciones para los jóvenes. | There are many options for young people. |
| varios, -as | several | Varios campos están abiertos para todos. | Several fields are open to everyone. |
| cualquier(a) | any, whichever | Dame cualquier periódico. | Give me any newspaper. |
| propio, -a, -os, -as | own, self, same | Lo hizo con sus propias manos. | He did it with his own hands. |
| tal(es) | such a, such | Nunca he visto tal celebración. | I have never seen such a celebration. |
| ninguno, -a | no one, not any | Ninguna casa era grande. | Not any of the houses were big. |
| algún alguna, -os, -as | some, any, a/an | Solo tengo una casa y algunos libros. | I only have a house and some books. |
| alguno, -a, -os, -as | one, someone, any, anyone | Alguno de ustedes me puede ayudar. | One of you can help me. |
| cada | each, every | Jugamos al fútbol cada sábado. | We play soccer every Saturday. |
| algo | something | Quiero decir algo muy importante. | I want to say something very important. |
| alguien | somebody | Hablé con alguien muy interesante. | I talked with someone very interesting. |
| nada | nothing | Hoy no voy a hacer nada en todo el día. | I am going to do nothing all day today. |
| nadie | nobody | Hoy no hay nadie en la oficina. | Nobody is in the office today. |
| quienquiera | whoever | Quienquiera que sea, voy a cumplir. | Whoever it is, I will comply. |
Indefinite Adjectives vs. Indefinite Pronouns
Many indefinite pronouns are identical to their indefinite adjective counterpart, e.g., “todo” (all), “otro” (other), “mucho” (muchor many).
Note that “cada” (each) can only be used as an indefinite adjective because it is always followed by a noun, e.g., “cada libro” (each book), “cada persona” (each person), etc.
On the other hand, “algo” (something), “alguien” (somebody), “nada” (nothing), “nadie” (nobody), and “quienquiera” (whoever) can only be used as indefinite pronouns because they cannot be followed by a noun, e.g., “No pasó nada” (Nothing happened).
“Bastante” vs. “Suficiente”
Although both “bastante” and “suficiente” are often translated as “enough” in English, “suficiente” indicates that something is just barely enough, whereas “bastante” often has a more positive connotation that indicates an abundance and is not typically used in negative contexts.
For example, both “Tengo suficiente dinero” and “Tengo bastante dinero” indicate that you have enough money. Nevertheless, the former indicates that you have just enough to get by or to buy something, for example, whereas the latter indicates that you have quite a lot of it.
On the other hand, you would say “No tengo suficiente dinero” to indicate that you do not have enough money to buy something, for example. However, you would not say “No tengo bastante dinero” unless you want to emphasize that you do not have quite a lot of it.
Quiz: Indefinite Pronouns & Adjectives in Spanish
Next: Present Progressive Tense
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