Adjectives

Position of adjectives

An important difference between Portuguese and English is that the default position for attributive adjectives is after the noun in Portuguese.

Gender

Portuguese adjectives agree in gender and number with the nouns they refer to. So, adjectives tend to follow the same rules as nouns.

Note: As a rule, adjectives have a feminine form in -a, especially adjectives ending in -o, -ês, -or and -u:

magro > magra = thin
inglês > inglesa = English (man/woman)
encantador > encantadora = charming
nu > nua = naked

Note: But some adjectives ending in -or have the same form for both the masculine and the feminine:

anterior = anterior bicolor = bicolour
posterior = posterior interior = interior
incolor = colourless exterior = exterior

Note: The same happens with the comparative form of adjectives:

maior = bigger inferior = inferior
menor = smaller melhor = better
superior = superior pior = worse

Note: However, most adjectives ending in -a, -e, -ar, -l, -m, -s and -z in the masculine keep the same form in the feminine.

Number

In matters of number, adjectives tend to follow the same rules as nouns

Note: Adjectives ending in -s have the same form in both singular and plural

Agreement

In Portuguese, adjectives always agree in gender and number with the nouns they qualify

If the nouns are of different gender, the adjective goes into the masculine plural

And if the nouns are of different number, the adjective changes to plural and agrees with the gender of the nouns it is qualifying, remembering that the masculine takes precedence over the feminine.