19.6 Affectionate Diminutives Language

19.6 Affectionate Diminutives
Language & Culture Lessons
How can you say something is little without adding an adjective like 'pequeño'?
How can you show affection without the word 'querido'?
In English we say things like "doggy," "kitty" or "jammies" instead of "dog" or "pajamas" – why do we do this? Adding a -y or -ies makes the
word sound more affectionate perhaps? Or, perhaps it suggests a quality of smallness?
The Spanish language is RICH with affectionate-sounding, little-endings which are frequently used in the spoken language. Let's learn how to
speak like a native!
Language
Speaking affectionately
There are little tack-on words (a.k.a. "suffixes") which are added to nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and names to express not only
"smallness," but also affection, humor, pity, irony or ridicule.
Let me introduce the two most common Spanish Diminutives – as they are called.
It's –ito and –cito along with their feminine equivalents, -ita and -cita.
Yes, Diminutives change to match the gender and number of the word they are modifying.
Such as in:
Una perrita chiquita
A small (female) doggy
La perrita más chiquita del mundo mide unos 14 centímetros.
The smallest female-dog(gy) in the world measures around 14cm
[6 in].
Look at the chart below – you'll see some other common diminutive suffixes:
Masc.sing.
-ito
-cito
-ecito
-illo
-cillo
-ecillo
Fem.sing.
-ita
-cita
-ecita
-illa
-cilla
-ecilla
Masc.plu.
-itos
-citos
-ecitos
-illos
-cillos
-ecillos
Fem.plu.
-itas
-citas
-ecitas
-illas
-cillas
-ecillas
I. Some Guides
...these are NOT rules as there are many variations!
1. -ito/-ita & -illo/-illa
Generally, words ending in -a, -o, or -te drop the final vowel and add the suffix -ito/-ita or -illo/-illa (or plural equivalents).
root
formation
diminutive
meaning
hermano
drop 'o' + ito
hermanito
little brother
pato (duck)
drop 'o' + ito
patito
duckling
ventana (window)
little window; ticket office
drop 'a' + illa
ventanilla
flota (fleet)
drop 'a' + illa
flotilla
small fleet
solo (alone)
drop 'o' + ito
solito
lonely
Tu hermanito se parece a tí.
Your little brother looks like you.
2. -cito/-cita & -cillo/-cilla
Words with more that one syllable that end in -e, -n, -r, or a stressed vowel : add suffix -cito/-cita or -cillo/-cilla (or plural equivalents).
When attaching these suffixes, make sure to take the accent marks off the stressed vowels.
root
formation
diminutive
meaning
pobre (poor)
+ cito
pobrecito
poor little thing
mamá (mom)
drop accent on 'á' + cita
mamacita
mommy/sexy lady
amor (love)
+ cito
amorcito
dear love
café (coffee)
drop accent on 'é' + cito
cafecito
small coffee
To maré un cafecito.
I'll take a little coffee.
¡Vas a ser una mamacita!
You're going to be a mommy!
3. -ecito/-ecita & -ecillo/-ecilla
For words with one syllable that end in a consonant you simply need to tack on the endings -ecito/-ecita or -ecillo/-ecilla (or plural
equivalents).
root
formation
diminutive
meaning
pan (bread)
+ ecillo
panecito/panecillo
bread roll
flor (flower)
+ ecita
florecita
little flower
Ella me dío una florecita.
She gave me a little flower.
II. Spelling Changes
Before tacking on the diminutive suffixes -ito/-ita or -illo/-illa the following changes must occur if the word (generally more that one
syllable) contains a letter 'c' or 'g' or 'z':
Final 'c' changes to → 'qu'
Final 'g' changes to → 'gu'
Final 'z' changes to → 'c'
root
formation
diminutive
meaning
barco (boat)
'c' → 'qu' + ito
barquito
little boat
vaca (cow)
'c' → 'qu' + ita
vaquita
little cow/cowie
pedazo (piece)
'z' → 'c' + drop 'o' + ito
pedacito
little piece
cabeza (head)
'z' → 'c' + drop 'a' + ita
cabecita
little head
Por ejemplo:
un pedacito de chocolate
a little piece of chocolate
la vaquita
the little cowie
tu cabecita
your little head
Se recomienda comer un pedacito de chocolate diariamente.
It's recommended for one to eat a little piece of chocolate
everyday.
La vaquita quiere pasear, ten cuidado que no se caiga.
The little calf wants to go for a walk, be careful that she doesn't
fall.
Las gafas son muy grandes para tu cabecita.
The glasses are very big for your little head.
Before tacking on the diminutive suffixes -ecito/ecita or -ecillo/-ecilla - if a word (generally one syllable) ends in 'z':
Final 'z' must change to 'c' before adding the appropriate suffix
root
formation
diminutive
meaning
voz (voice)
'z' → 'c' + ecita
vocecita
small voice
pez (fish)
'z' → 'c' + ecito
pececito
small fish
Por ejemplo:
Una sardina es un pececito.
A sardine is a little fish.
La niña tiene una vocecita.
The little girl has a little voice.
III. USO
When Diminutive suffixes are used with adjectives and adverbs, it gives a subtle nuance of meaning. That is, the words with such
suffixes express a slight variation to the original word.
original word
diminutive
meaning
ahora (now)
ahorita
right now
cerca (close)
cerquita
right next to; very near
luego (later)
lueguito
quite soon
gordo (fat)
gordito
(little) chubby
bajo (short)
bajito
"shorty"; quietly
poco (little)
poquito
just a little
rápido (fast)
rapidito
rapidly
Necesitamos salir ahorita.
We need to leave right now.
Me gustaría un poquito de azúcar.
I would like a little sugar.
Occasionally, the diminutive suffix is used to form a completely new word where the new word is not necessarily a diminutive of the
original:
original word
new word
meaning
bolsa (bag)
bolsillo
pocket
caja (box)
cajetilla
packet (ex: of cigarrettes)
manteca (cooking oil - Argentina)
mantequilla
butter (Mexico)
mano (hand)
manecilla
clock hand
pera (pear)
perilla
knob
palo (stick)
palillo
toothpick
¡Este abrigo tiene tanto bolsillos!
This coat has so many pockets!
Diminutives of diminutives
The fun thing about using these suffixes is that, sometimes, you can add several suffixes, one after the other, to increase whatever effect
you're trying to express!
chico → chiquito → chiquitito → chiquititito
small → quite small → very small → extremely small
poco → poquito → poquitito → poquititito
little → just a little → just a tiny (bit) → just an extra tiny (bit)
Por ejemplo:
En un barquito chiquitito viajaré con mi perrito.
In a really tiny little boat I will travel with my little dog.
Te quiero un poquititito.
I like you just a little (tiny) bit.
Culture
Pursuing a Qualification
A professional qualification is expensive for a Latin American income, and besides from a few scholarships a year, most people have
only one option to cover for their studies: getting in debt.
Each country has its own financial aid system. Chile has developed special agreements between private banks, the Government and
education institutions to ease and subsidize part of the payments since the mid 1990´s. Argentina gave away scholarships to some
scientific careers in 2009, while the Peruvian government is willing to pay part of the tuition fee for qualified students.
Chilean policies are closely watched by the citizens. In March 2009, 70% of tertiary students in Chile where the first generation of their
family to attend school, but odds are that many of them won't make it to the end of their studies due to lack of discipline and quality
education in their school years.
Most educational efforts in Latin America have been towards diminishing the number of school drop-out, rather than focusing on tertiary
studies. Unlike many countries in the developed world, where youngsters that drop-out of school may get regular jobs or even gain
further studies, it is a must in Latin America to hold a High School diploma to pursue a good salary. The lack of it can be used as an
excuse to decrease employer's wages in untrained jobs, like cleaners or garbage collectors.
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