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A colorful storybook illustration showing a small child character holding a piece of visibly rotten, brown fruit. Green wavy lines symbolizing a foul odor are rising from the fruit, and the child is recoiling slightly with a wrinkled nose.

desagradable

deh-sah-grah-DAH-bleh

adjectivem/fA2
unpleasant?describing a feeling, smell, or situation,disagreeable?describing a person, taste, or task
Also:nasty?stronger, often used for people or smells,awful?general negative descriptor

📝 In Action

El olor en la cocina era muy desagradable.

A2

The smell in the kitchen was very unpleasant.

No quiero trabajar con él; es una persona muy desagradable.

B1

I don't want to work with him; he is a very disagreeable person.

Tuvimos una experiencia desagradable en el aeropuerto.

B1

We had an unpleasant experience at the airport.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • molesto (annoying)
  • antipático (unfriendly)
  • fastidioso (tedious)

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • sabor desagradable – unpleasant taste
  • situación desagradable – awkward/unpleasant situation

💡 Grammar Points

Gender Agreement Tip

Since 'desagradable' ends in '-e', it describes both masculine and feminine things without changing its ending. You only need to make it plural: 'desagradables'.

Using Ser vs. Estar

When describing a permanent or typical characteristic (like a person's personality), use 'ser': 'Él es desagradable'. For a temporary state (like a bad taste right now), use 'estar': 'La sopa está desagradable hoy'.

❌ Common Pitfalls

Forgetting the Plural

Mistake: "Las personas desagradable."

Correction: Las personas desagradables. (Adjectives must match the noun's number.)

⭐ Usage Tips

Stronger Negative

If something is extremely unpleasant, you can pair it with intensifiers like 'sumamente' (extremely) or 'bastante' (quite): 'Fue sumamente desagradable'.

✏️ Quick Practice

💡 Quick Quiz: desagradable

Question 1 of 1

Which sentence correctly uses 'desagradable'?

📚 More Resources

Word Family

agradable(pleasant) - adjective
desagrado(displeasure/disgust) - noun
agradar(to please) - verb

Frequently Asked Questions

Does 'desagradable' only describe people?

'Desagradable' is most often used to describe things, smells, tastes, and experiences (e.g., 'un sabor desagradable'). When used for people, it means they are rude, unfriendly, or generally unpleasant to be around.

How do I make 'desagradable' plural?

You simply add an 's' to the end: 'desagradables'. It is the same for both masculine and feminine plural nouns (e.g., 'los momentos desagradables', 'las sorpresas desagradables').