Inklingo

How to Say "little" in Spanish

English → Spanish

pequeño

adjectiveA1general
Use 'pequeño' when referring to the physical size or dimensions of a noun, meaning 'small'.

Examples

Mi casa es muy pequeña.

My house is very small.

poco

/PO-ko//ˈpoko/

adjectiveA1general
Use 'poco' as an adjective before nouns that cannot be counted to mean 'a small amount of' or 'few'.
A nearly empty bookshelf with only a few books on one shelf, illustrating the concept of 'few'.

Examples

Hay poca gente en la fiesta.

There are few people at the party.

Hay pocos coches en la calle hoy.

There are few cars on the street today.

Tengo poca paciencia para estas cosas.

I have little patience for these things.

Recibimos pocas quejas sobre el servicio.

We receive few complaints about the service.

Making 'Poco' Agree

When 'poco' describes a thing, it must change to match. Use 'poco' for masculine things, 'poca' for feminine things, 'pocos' for plural masculine things, and 'pocas' for plural feminine things.

The Unchanging Word

When 'poco' tells you how an action is done (like 'hablo poco') or describes another describing word (like 'poco interesante'), it never changes. It's always just 'poco'.

Forgetting to Match

Mistake: “Tengo poco amigas.”

Correction: Tengo pocas amigas. You need to use 'pocas' because 'amigas' is a feminine, plural word.

Trying to Make it Match

Mistake: “Ella estudia pocas.”

Correction: Ella estudia poco. Because 'poco' describes the action of studying, it doesn't change to match 'ella'.

poco

/PO-ko//ˈpoko/

adverbA1general
Use 'poco' as an adverb after a verb to indicate doing something to a small extent or for a short duration.
A nearly empty bookshelf with only a few books on one shelf, illustrating the concept of 'few'.

Examples

Duermo poco durante la semana.

I sleep little during the week.

Hay pocos coches en la calle hoy.

There are few cars on the street today.

Tengo poca paciencia para estas cosas.

I have little patience for these things.

Recibimos pocas quejas sobre el servicio.

We receive few complaints about the service.

Making 'Poco' Agree

When 'poco' describes a thing, it must change to match. Use 'poco' for masculine things, 'poca' for feminine things, 'pocos' for plural masculine things, and 'pocas' for plural feminine things.

The Unchanging Word

When 'poco' tells you how an action is done (like 'hablo poco') or describes another describing word (like 'poco interesante'), it never changes. It's always just 'poco'.

Forgetting to Match

Mistake: “Tengo poco amigas.”

Correction: Tengo pocas amigas. You need to use 'pocas' because 'amigas' is a feminine, plural word.

Trying to Make it Match

Mistake: “Ella estudia pocas.”

Correction: Ella estudia poco. Because 'poco' describes the action of studying, it doesn't change to match 'ella'.

chico

/CHEE-ko//ˈtʃiko/

adjectiveA2informal
Use 'chico' as an adjective, similar to 'pequeño', to describe something as small, often in size or stature, and common in informal speech.
A tiny, miniature red apple resting on a large wooden table, emphasizing its small size.

Examples

El perro es muy chico, pero muy juguetón.

The dog is very small, but very playful.

Mi coche es muy chico, es fácil de aparcar.

My car is very small, it's easy to park.

Compré una camisa chica porque la grande no me quedaba.

I bought a small shirt because the large one didn't fit me.

Estos problemas son chicos comparados con los de antes.

These problems are small compared to the ones before.

Matching the Noun

When you use chico to describe something, its ending must match the noun. un coche chico (a small car), una casa chica (a small house), unos zapatos chicos (small shoes), unas mesas chicas (small tables).

Forgetting to Change the Ending

Mistake: “El vestido es chico y las faldas es chico también.”

Correction: Say 'El vestido es chico y las faldas son chicas también.' The describing word (`chico/chica`) must match the gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural) of the thing it describes.

Confusing 'poco' and 'pequeño'

The most common mistake is using 'poco' when you mean 'small' in size. Remember: 'pequeño' (or 'chico') describes physical size, while 'poco' describes quantity of uncountable things or degree.

Related Translations

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