The diminutives: suffixes (-ito, -illo, -ico, -iño...) Share Copied!
Study the diminutives in Spanish to talk about something small or to emphasise affection.
Gramática: Los diminutivos: sufijos (-ito, -illo, -ico, -iño...)
A2 Spanish Diminutive
Level: A2
Module 3: Estilo de vida (Lifestyle)
Lesson 22: Visitando amigos (Visiting friends)
Teaching guidelines +/- 15 minutes
Audio and video
- Diminutives are suffixes that we add to nouns or adjectives to indicate small size or affection.
- We add "ito/-a" to nouns or adjectives that end in a vowel, especially in "a" or "o".
- Other diminutives are "ico/-a", "-iño/-a" or "illo/-a".
- Its use depends on the region of Spain.
| Diminutivo (Diminutive) | Ejemplo (Example) |
|---|---|
| -ito/a | El perro es pequeñito y camina despacito durante el paseo. (The dog is tiny and walks slowly during the walk.) |
| -ico/a | Llegó prontico para no perder la conversación. (He arrived quite early so as not to miss the conversation.) |
| -iño/a | Este es un detalle pequeñiño pero muy bonito. (This is a tiny detail but very beautiful.) |
| -illo/a | En el día a día, me gusta caminar hasta un pueblillo cerquita de casa. (In the day-to-day, I like to walk to a little village close to home.) |
Exceptions!
- When a word ends in a consonant, vowels are usually added before the suffix. Example: flor => florecita, pan => panecillo.
- Some words change orthographically when adding diminutives. For example, amigo => amiguito.
Exercise 1: Los diminutivos: sufijos (-ito, -illo, -ico, -iño...)
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
momentico, ratico, cafecito, prontiño, mesilla, besito, perrito, casiña
Exercise 2: Translate and use in a sentence
Instruction: Pick a word, translated and use the word in a sentence or dialogue.
1
panecillo
bread roll
2
momentico
a little while
3
florecilla
little flower
4
casiña
little house
