Unit 15: Past perfect subjunctive, word families, relative pronouns, and passive voice
15.5 Word Families
In section 15.4, one sees how many adjectives and nouns can be made into verbs. It also stands true that many adjectives can be made into nouns. The common suffixes attached to adjectives are –ura and –ez (or –eza). These suffixes tend to refer to abstract ideas and correspond to English endings such as “-ness,” “-ship,” or “-ity”:
| blanco | white |
| blancuzco | whitish |
| blancura | whiteness |
| emblanquecerse | to become white |
Other adjective-to-noun examples include:
| loco | crazy |
| locura | craziness |
| viejo | old |
| vejez | old age, oldness |
Many of the nouns ending in –ura have masculine variants ending in –or (amargor, blancor, verdor), which are less common and essentially synonymous, though some parts of the Spanish-speaking world differentiate between the two, using the –ura form for the figurative and the –or form for the literal. Context should make it clear which one is indicated.
Study the following examples of adjectives and nouns. You do not need to memorize them. Focus on recognizing the pattern.
| amargo | bitter |
| la amargura | bitterness |
| dulce | sweet |
| la dulzura | sweetness |
| flaco | thin, skinny |
| la flaqueza | thinness, weakness |
| gordo | fat |
| la gordura | fatness |
| puro | pure |
| la pureza | purity |
| sencillo | simple |
| la sencillez | simplicity |
| tierno | tender, soft |
| la ternura | tenderness |
| triste | sad |
| la tristeza | sadness |
| verde | green |
| la verdura | greenness; vegetable |
