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grandes

GRAHN-dess/ˈɡɾandes/

“grandes” means “big” in Spanish (referring to physical size).

big, large

Also: great, grown-up, major
Two friendly, very large brown dogs sitting next to each other in a bright green field.

📝 In Action

Tengo dos perros grandes.

A1

I have two big dogs.

Las ciudades grandes tienen mucho tráfico.

A2

Large cities have a lot of traffic.

Fueron grandes amigos durante muchos años.

B1

They were great friends for many years.

Mis hijos ya son grandes, van a la universidad.

B1

My children are grown-up now, they go to college.

Tomaron decisiones grandes para el futuro de la empresa.

B2

They made major decisions for the company's future.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • enormes (enormous)
  • amplios (spacious, wide)
  • importantes (important)

Antonyms

  • pequeños (small)

Common Collocations

  • grandes almacenes – department stores
  • a grandes rasgos – in broad strokes, generally speaking
  • grandes éxitos – greatest hits

Idioms & Expressions

  • palabras grandes – big words, boasts, or serious statements

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: grandes

Question 1 of 2

Which sentence correctly uses 'grandes'?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family▼
grande(big, large, great) — Adjective
agrandar(to enlarge, to make bigger) — Verb
grandeza(greatness, grandeur) — Noun
grandote(very big (informal)) — Adjective
🎵 Rhymes▼
andes
📚 Etymology▼

Comes from the Latin word 'grandis', which meant 'big', 'great', or 'full-grown'. It has kept a very similar meaning in Spanish and other related languages.

First recorded: Used since the earliest forms of Spanish, around the 10th century.

Cognates (Related words)

Portuguese: grandesFrench: grandsItalian: grandi

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Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between 'grandes' and 'gran'?

'Grandes' is for describing more than one thing (e.g., 'grandes ideas'). 'Gran' is a shortened version of 'grande' that you can only use before a single noun (e.g., 'una gran idea'). You can't say 'una grandes idea'.

Is 'grandes' for masculine or feminine things?

It's for both! 'Grandes' is the plural form for masculine groups ('los chicos grandes'), feminine groups ('las chicas grandes'), and mixed groups.