Diminutives are endings (-ito, -illo, -ito) that are added to words to refer to smaller versions of something or to express that something has less intensity. They can be used as a form of endearment or can even have a pejorative (negative/insulting) tone. Diminutives agree in gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural) with the words they refer to. Want to know more about these palabrillas ("little words")? Let's get to it!
How are diminutives used in Spanish?
Diminutive endings can be added to nounsNo definition set for nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., adjectivesNo definition set for adjectivesLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., and adverbsNo definition set for adverbsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.. When used with nouns, diminutives can refer to smaller versions of the noun it refers to. For example:
Carlos tiene una casita en la playa.
Carlos owns a small beach house.
They may also be used as a form of endearment. For example, the following sentence expresses a form of endearment towards my house.
Quiero llegar pronto a mi casita.
Or to act friendly towards someone:
Por favor tómate este cafecito.
Please, drink this coffee.
When used with adjectives, diminutives can make the meaning of such words more polite.
When used with adverbs they enhance or give a more precise meaning.
Mi casa está aquí cerquita.
My house is very close by.
In some cases, diminutives can also be used as a form of sarcasm. For example: to mean the opposite of the size of something.
Luis gave me a big present. When I get home, my roommate expresses:
Check here for a list of everyday Spanish expressions with diminutives.
Mexican Spanish and other varieties in Latin America tend to use diminutives much more due to the influence of Indigenous languages in the area. In spoken interactions, they are considered more polite than their non-diminutive counterparts. For example, when talking about home remedies, the following is a common way of describing the steps to follow:
Pon un limoncito en un vasito de agua. Tómate el agüita y date un masajito en la garganta.
Squeeze a lemon in a glass of water. Drink the water and give yourself a gentle massage in the throat.
Giving these instructions without diminutives would sound rather impolite, or it would imply that the speaker doesn’t care much about the person’s well being.
Check this link for further information on this topic.
How to form diminutives in Spanish?
As mentioned previously, diminutive endings (-ito, -illo, ico) can be added to nouns, adjectives, and some adverbs. When added to nouns or adjectives, they agreeNo definition set for agreeLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. in numberNo definition set for numberLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. and genderNo definition set for genderLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. with the noun they refer to. Each diminutive ending has four forms:
-ito, -ita, -itos, -itas
(-cito, -ecito) | niño → niñito, niñita, niñitos, niñitas child → little child /children |
-illo, -illa, -illos, -illas
(-cillo, -ecillo) | travieso → traviesillo, traviesilla, traviesillos, traviesillas mischievous (as a form of endearment) |
-ico, -ica, -icos, -icas
(-cico, -ecico) | libro → librico, libricos planta → plantica, planticas |
For more on Spanish plurals, click the link!
When added to adverbs, diminutives are invariable, that is, their forms don't change. For example, the adverbs apenas ("barely") or despacio ("slowly") only have one diminutive form:
Apenitas llegué a tiempo.
I barely made it on time.
Each ending also has two variants (-c- and -ec-) that are added depending on the ending of the word. Let’s see how these endings and their variants are added to words:
For words ending in -o or -a, simply drop the vowelNo definition set for vowelLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. and add -ito, -ico, or illo:
perro ("dog")→ perrito, perrillo, perrico
For words ending in a consonantNo definition set for consonantLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. other than n or r, just add the diminutive ending:
árbol ("tree") → arbolito, arbolillo, arbolico
For words ending in r, n, or e, you will need to add a -c- before the ending to make it flow:
avión ("plane") → avioncito, avioncillo, avioncico
And, for one-syllableNo definition set for syllableLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. words, add -ec- before the ending:
flor ("flower") → florecita, florecilla, florecica
These are the general rules that are applicable to most words, but of course, there are always exceptions. For instance:
nieto ("grandson") → nietecito; siesta ("nap") → siestecita; nuevo ("new") → nuevecito
When adding endings, the general Spanish spelling rules come into play:
Words ending in -co or -ca will change to -qu- before adding a diminutive:
poco ("few") → poquito
Words ending in -ga, -go or -gua- will change to -gu- or -gü-, respectively, before adding a diminutive:
mago ("wizard") → maguito
agua ("water") → agüita
Words ending in -z will change to -c- before adding the ending:
lápiz ("pencil") → lapicito
Diminutive meanings
Now that we know how to form them, let’s see how each diminutive ending is used.
Ending ‘-ito’
This diminutive and its variants (-cito and -ecito) are more common in Latin American Spanish. They are used to refer to something of a smaller size or as a form of endearment when added to nouns. For example, when talking to children:
Amorcito, ¿dónde está tu cochecito?
My love, where is your little car?
Some native speakers use the terms calorcito and friito to refer that the weather is either hot or cold enough.
When added to professions ending in -r, these diminutives are used as pejoratives.
actor → actorcito, doctor → doctorcitoThat is a bad little actor.
When used with adjectives, this diminutive ending can have several uses:
As a polite form, to soften the meaning of words that can be perceived as negative:
gordito ("chubby"), tontito ("silly"), feíto ("ugly"), pequeñito ("tiny").
As a form of endearment:
pobre ("poor") →
Pobrecita, está muy enferma.
Poor little thing, she’s very sick.
This also applies to some past participles used as adjectives:
dormido ("asleep") →
No despiertes a papá; está dormidito.
Don’t wake up daddy; he’s sleeping.
To highlight the characteristic of the object it refers to:
Mis sábanas están suavecitas.
My bedsheets are so soft.
Ending '-illo'
This diminutive (and its variants -cillo and -ecillo) is also used for smaller size and as a form of endearment. Interestingly, this diminutive can also be used as a form of sarcasm, may have a pejorative use, or can be used to downgrade the importance of something; it depends on the context and intonation of the speaker. Let’s see some examples:
Endearment or affectionate tone:
chico ("kid") →
Ese chiquillo es mi hijo.
That little boy is my son.
To soften a word that might be offensive:
loco ("crazy") →
Todos en esta familia estamos un poco loquillos.
Everybody in this family is a little crazy.
Used as sarcasm or to refer to an object/person in a pejorative or insulting way:
trabajo ("job") →
Tu empleo es un trabajillo que cualquiera puede hacer.
Your job is a job that anybody can do.
abogado ("lawyer") →
To downgrade the importance of something:
problema ("problem") →
juego ("game") →
No voy a caer en tu jueguillo.
I’m not gonna play your little game.
Ending '-ico'
The forms of -ico are commonly used in the Caribbean varieties and in some parts of Spain. They are also used to refer to a smaller size or as forms of endearment. The -ico endings are mostly used with words that have a -t- in the last syllable.
pregunta ("question") →
Tengo una preguntica para ti.
I have a question for you.
libreta ("notebook") →
Necesitas una libretica para la clase.
You need a notebook for class.
Costa Rican people are called Ticos and Ticas because of their peculiar use of the diminutive -ico, -ica, -icos, and icas.
People in Andalusia, Spain use "illo" or "illa" to refer to a friend or young person as a short form of chiquillo/a ("kid, used as "dude"").
Multiple diminutives
Two diminutives (or more) can be used in a word to highlight smaller size. In order to add this emphasis, multiple -it- can be added before the diminutive itself. For example:
chico ("small") →
No verás la mancha porque está chiquitita.
You won’t see the stain, as it is very small.
poco ("little") →
In Mexico, the expressions ahorita and ahoritita are common in spoken Spanish. These expressions don’t have a precise meaning. They may mean “soon,” “very soon,” “right away,” “when I have time,” or in an unknown amount of time.
Less common diminutives
Diminutives ending in -ín, -ete, -uelo are less common, but exist in Spanish.
The diminutive ending -ín is commonly used as a form of endearment. Oftentimes it’s used with words that have a negative connotation or meaning.
The diminutive ending -ete is commonly used as a pejorative form. The spelling of the word may change as in viejo ("old").
The diminutive ending -uelo is the only one in this list that has masculine/feminine and singular/plural forms. It’s commonly used as a form of endearment.
Curious to know what endings you can use to make something bigger in Spanish? Don’t miss out on our post on Spanish augmentatives!
Summary
Diminutives have multiple forms. The main ones are: -ito, -illo, -ico, and their variants.
They can be added to nouns, adjectives, and some adverbs.
They agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.
Diminutives -ito, -illo, -ico are mostly used to refer to a smaller size of something, but are used also:
as polite forms, especially when they are used with adjectives
to soften the importance of something
in some cases to have pejorative or insulting meanings
as a form of sarcasm, depending on the tone.
Now that you have read all the uses and forms of diminutives, practice with this exercise!
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