reversing words...confusing

Question

So, I'm realizing through work with my teacher that a lot of phrases are said backwards. Examples:
My favorite food = mi comida favorita A wonderful party = una fiesta maravillosa

What's up with that? How can I know when to do that? Do all adjectives follow the nouns in Spanish?

Welcome to SpanishDict. - rac1, Jan 4, 2017

Answer 1

In Spanish, the adjectives generally follow the noun. There are instances where they don't.

The logic is this. You speak of a noun first, like "man" then you describe him, "tall"

So you have "El hombre alto." The man (tall). This is more logical than English which puts the description first, then the noun, like: "The tall man."

There are rules and instances where the adjective precedes the noun like in "la bella mujer" but they get a little confusing for the beginner. It is also proper to say "la mujer bella,' but there is a slight change in meaning.

There are some really good textbooks out there that explain these things in very simple language. I suggest. Panorama, introducción a la lengua española. Any edition will do, the third and fourth editions are really great and can be had for VERY cheap on Amazon.com.

What, no vote? :P - rac1, Jan 4, 2017

You have a great answer. :) - rac1, Jan 4, 2017

ha, sorry. Was doing online lessons. There ya go! - Jmoneyfreeze, Jan 4, 2017

Answer 2

I would suggest you take our free Spanish lessons, right here on this site. Spanish isn't backwards. It's a different language from what you are used to.

I really believe these lessons will help you understand more about the language.

Here is the link for the lessons:

Spanish Lessons

Thanks Rac1, doing the lessons now. very helpful. - Jmoneyfreeze, Jan 4, 2017

You are most welcome. Dani is a native Spanish speaker, so she has a great answer. :) - rac1, Jan 4, 2017