Adverbios de cantidad: muy, mucho, bastante, poco | Spanish (Spain) Grammar

Quantity adverbs say how much. They are everywhere — come mucho, trabajo poco, es bastante alto, hay demasiada gente — and they introduce one of the trickiest features of Spanish grammar for English speakers: some of these words live a double life as both invariable adverbs (modifying verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs) and inflected adjectives (agreeing with the nouns they modify).

This page covers the core inventory of quantity adverbs, the adverb-vs-adjective dual-citizenship, and the high-frequency neighbours (algo, nada, todo, casi, apenas, solo).

The core inventory

Adverb	Meaning	Inflects?
muy	very (intensifier for adj/adv)	No — always invariable
mucho	a lot, much, many	Adverb: no. Adjective: yes (mucho/-a/-os/-as)
poco	little, few, not much	Adverb: no. Adjective: yes (poco/-a/-os/-as)
bastante	quite, enough, fairly	Adverb: no. Adjective: number only (bastante/bastantes)
demasiado	too much, too many	Adverb: no. Adjective: yes (demasiado/-a/-os/-as)
suficiente	enough, sufficient	Mostly adjectival: number only (suficiente/suficientes)
más	more	Always invariable
menos	less, fewer	Always invariable
tanto	so much, as much	Adverb: invariable. Adjective: yes (tanto/-a/-os/-as)
algo	somewhat (as adverb); something (as pronoun)	Invariable
nada	not at all (as adverb); nothing (as pronoun)	Invariable
casi	almost, nearly	Invariable
apenas	hardly, barely	Invariable
solo	only, just	Invariable (when adverb)

The right-hand column is the key to using these words correctly. An adverb does not change form. An adjective agrees with its noun. For muy, más, menos, casi, apenas, solo this never matters — they are always invariable. For mucho, poco, demasiado, tanto it matters constantly, because these words switch between adverb and adjective depending on what they modify.

The dual-citizenship rule

The general principle:

Modifying a verb → the word is an adverb, invariable. Come mucho (he eats a lot).
Modifying a noun → the word is an adjective, agrees in gender and number. Mucha gente (a lot of people), muchos libros (many books).
Modifying an adjective or another adverb → the word is an adverb, but here use muy for "very", not mucho.

Mi hermano lee mucho; tiene muchos libros en casa.

My brother reads a lot; he has lots of books at home. — mucho invariable after the verb (lee); muchos plural masculine before libros.

Hoy hay demasiada gente en el centro; ayer había menos.

There are too many people in the centre today; yesterday there were fewer. — demasiada agrees with feminine singular gente; menos invariable.

Tengo bastantes amigos en Madrid, pero veo a pocos con regularidad.

I have quite a few friends in Madrid, but I see few of them regularly. — bastantes agrees in number with amigos; pocos plural masculine.

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The rule "adverbs don't inflect, adjectives do" is universal in Spanish. The trick with quantity words is that the same lexical item can play either role. Ask yourself: what does it modify? If it's a noun, inflect it; if it's a verb, leave it alone.

Mucho: the most important quantity word

Mucho is the workhorse of Spanish quantity. It deserves its own treatment because it covers so much ground.

Mucho as an adverb (invariable)

After a verb, mucho is invariable. It means "a lot, much".

Hablas mucho cuando estás nervioso.

You talk a lot when you're nervous. — mucho post-verbal, invariable.

Te quiero mucho.

I love you a lot. — the standard everyday expression of affection in Spanish.

Trabajamos mucho este mes; ha sido agotador.

We've worked a lot this month; it's been exhausting. — mucho after the verb.

Mucho as an adjective (agrees)

Before or after a noun, mucho agrees with the noun: mucho/-a/-os/-as.

Hay mucho ruido en esta cafetería.

There's a lot of noise in this café. — mucho + masculine singular ruido.

Bebe mucha agua; le ayuda con los dolores de cabeza.

He drinks a lot of water; it helps with his headaches. — mucha + feminine singular agua (the singular article is el for phonetic reasons, but the adjective stays feminine).

Tengo muchos amigos en Barcelona y muchas amigas en Sevilla.

I have many friends in Barcelona and many female friends in Seville. — muchos masculine plural; muchas feminine plural.

Muy vs mucho

These two are a permanent source of A1 confusion. The short version:

muy = very (modifies adjectives, adverbs, past participles): muy alto, muy bien, muy cansado.
mucho = a lot, much, many (modifies verbs and nouns): come mucho, mucha gente.

This contrast is so important that it has its own dedicated page: see muy vs mucho.

Bastante: "quite" / "fairly" / "enough"

Bastante is a quantity adverb with a slightly slippery meaning. Depending on context it can mean fairly / quite (a moderate positive amount) or enough (sufficient).

Modifying an adjective or adverb: bastante = quite / fairly (invariable). Bastante alto (quite tall).
Modifying a noun: bastante / bastantes = enough / quite a few (agrees in number only, not gender). Bastante tiempo (enough time), bastantes problemas (quite a few problems).
Standalone with verb: bastante = quite a lot / enough. Como bastante (I eat quite a lot).

Mi vecino es bastante simpático, pero habla bastante.

My neighbour is fairly nice, but he talks a lot. — bastante + adj (simpático); bastante after a verb (habla).

Tenemos bastante dinero para el viaje; no hace falta llevar más.

We have enough money for the trip; we don't need to bring more. — bastante + noun, singular.

Hay bastantes restaurantes buenos en este barrio.

There are quite a few good restaurants in this neighbourhood. — bastantes + plural noun.

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Bastante agrees in number, not in gender. Unlike mucho, there is no bastanta — the form is always bastante (singular, any gender) or bastantes (plural, any gender). This is because bastante historically derives from a present participle, which has only one ending per number.

Poco: "little" / "few" / "not much"

Poco is the negative-leaning quantity adverb. It is the opposite of mucho and follows the same adverb/adjective split.

Adverb (verb modifier): invariable. Come poco (he doesn't eat much).
Adjective (noun modifier): agrees. Poco tiempo, poca paciencia, pocos amigos, pocas opciones.
Modifying adjective/adverb: poco = not very, somewhat un-. Poco inteligente (not very intelligent — note this is a polite way to say "stupid").

Tengo poco tiempo libre estos días; el trabajo me consume.

I have little free time these days; work is consuming me. — poco + masculine singular tiempo.

Pocas veces he visto a alguien tan paciente con los niños.

I've rarely seen someone so patient with children. — pocas feminine plural + veces.

Su explicación me ha parecido poco convincente.

His explanation struck me as not very convincing. — poco + adjective, invariable. Note: 'poco + adj' often softens a negative judgement.

Un poco vs poco

A vital distinction. Un poco means "a little (bit)" — a small but positive amount. Poco alone means "little / not much" — emphasising the smallness or insufficiency.

Estoy un poco cansado, pero puedo continuar.

I'm a little tired, but I can keep going. — un poco = a bit (positive: I do have some energy).

Estoy poco cansado. (Sounds odd in this context.)

Poco cansado would mean 'not very tired' — a near-zero amount of tiredness. Rare in casual speech.

¿Puedes hablar un poco más despacio?

Can you speak a little more slowly? — un poco + más + adv, the polite peninsular request.

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Un poco with adjectives almost always implies the negative pole (un poco cansado = a bit tired; un poco caro = a bit expensive). Spanish doesn't naturally say un poco contento or un poco guapo — for positive adjectives, bastante is the natural choice (bastante guapo = quite handsome).

Demasiado: "too much" / "too many"

Demasiado expresses excess. Like mucho and poco, it inflects when modifying a noun and stays invariable as an adverb.

Hace demasiado calor para salir; mejor nos quedamos en casa.

It's too hot to go out; we'd better stay home. — demasiado + masculine singular calor.

Pones demasiada sal en todo lo que cocinas.

You put too much salt on everything you cook. — demasiada + feminine singular sal.

Trabajas demasiado, deberías tomarte unas vacaciones.

You work too much, you should take a holiday. — demasiado as adverb, invariable.

Esta camisa es demasiado cara para mí.

This shirt is too expensive for me. — demasiado + adjective, invariable.

Suficiente: "enough"

Suficiente means "enough" and behaves like bastante: it agrees in number but not in gender, and it can go before or after the noun.

No tenemos tiempo suficiente para terminar el proyecto.

We don't have enough time to finish the project. — suficiente after the noun, singular.

Hay suficientes sillas para todos los invitados.

There are enough chairs for all the guests. — suficientes plural, no gender change.

Note the overlap with bastante: both can mean "enough". In peninsular Spanish, bastante often skews towards "quite a lot" and suficiente towards "the right amount, no more". Both work in most contexts.

Más and menos: the comparatives

Más (more) and menos (less / fewer) are invariable and live everywhere — as plain quantifiers, in comparative constructions, and in superlatives.

Quiero más café, por favor; menos azúcar esta vez.

I want more coffee, please; less sugar this time. — más + noun and menos + noun, both invariable.

Cada día estudio más y aprendo menos. Qué frustrante.

Every day I study more and learn less. How frustrating. — más / menos modifying verbs, invariable.

For comparative constructions (más alto que, menos rápido que), see comparatives and complex comparatives.

The smaller adverbs: algo, nada, casi, apenas, solo

A handful of useful quantity adverbs that don't quite belong to the main scale:

algo = somewhat (as adverb). Estoy algo cansado = I'm somewhat tired. (Different from algo as pronoun = "something".)
nada = not at all (as adverb, with a negative verb). No me gusta nada = I don't like it at all.
casi = almost, nearly. Casi siempre, casi nunca, casi nada.
apenas = hardly, barely. Apenas tengo tiempo = I hardly have time.
solo = only, just. Solo quiero un café = I just want a coffee.

Estoy algo preocupada por mi padre, pero seguro que está bien.

I'm somewhat worried about my father, but I'm sure he's fine. — algo + adjective, mild intensifier.

No entiendo nada de lo que dice este profesor.

I don't understand anything this teacher is saying. — nada + 'no' verb, idiomatic 'not at all' meaning.

Casi siempre desayuno fuera; apenas como en casa.

I almost always have breakfast out; I barely eat at home. — casi + frequency adverb; apenas + verb.

Solo tengo cinco minutos antes de la próxima reunión.

I only have five minutes before the next meeting. — solo as adverb, 'just/only'.

Sólo with accent: a historical note

Until 2010, the Real Academia Española prescribed sólo with a written accent when used as an adverb (= "only"), to distinguish it from the adjective solo (= "alone"). The 2010 reform abolished the accent: now both are written solo, without accent, and context disambiguates.

You will still see sólo in books written before 2010 and in writers who prefer the older orthography. The RAE now considers the accented form acceptable only when there is genuine ambiguity (rare in practice).

Vivo solo en un piso pequeño; solo tengo un gato por compañía.

I live alone in a small flat; I only have a cat for company. — solo (alone, adjective) and solo (only, adverb) in the same sentence, both without accent.

Common Mistakes

❌ Tengo mucho hambre.

Hambre is feminine, so the adjective should agree: mucha hambre. (Like agua, the singular article is masculine for phonetic reasons, but the noun is feminine.)

✅ Tengo mucha hambre.

I'm very hungry.

❌ Hay muchas gente en la calle.

Gente is a singular feminine collective noun: 'mucha gente' (a lot of people), not 'muchas'.

✅ Hay mucha gente en la calle.

There are a lot of people in the street.

❌ Tengo bastantas amigas.

Bastante agrees in number only, not in gender. The plural is always bastantes.

✅ Tengo bastantes amigas.

I have quite a few female friends.

❌ Estoy poco cansado. (intending 'a little tired')

For 'a little tired' use un poco cansado. Poco cansado would mean 'not very tired' — almost the opposite intent.

✅ Estoy un poco cansado.

I'm a little tired.

❌ Hablas mucho rápido.

To intensify an adverb (rápido) use muy, not mucho. Mucho is for verbs and nouns.

✅ Hablas muy rápido.

You speak very fast.

❌ Ponme algo de azúcar, pero no demasiado mucho.

Demasiado already means 'too much'; doubling with mucho is redundant. Just demasiado.

✅ Ponme algo de azúcar, pero no demasiado.

Put a bit of sugar in for me, but not too much.

❌ Hay suficientes tiempo.

Suficiente agrees in number with the noun: tiempo is singular, so suficiente (singular).

✅ Hay suficiente tiempo.

There's enough time.

Key Takeaways

Some quantity words (mucho, poco, demasiado, tanto) are adverbs when modifying verbs (invariable) but adjectives when modifying nouns (agree in gender and number).
Bastante and suficiente agree only in number, not in gender. The plurals are bastantes and suficientes.
Muy (very) modifies adjectives and adverbs; mucho modifies verbs and nouns. This is the cardinal A1 split — see the dedicated page.
Un poco = a little (positive amount); poco alone = little / not much (emphasises smallness). With adjectives, un poco almost always implies a negative pole (un poco cansado).
Demasiado means "too much / too many" — true excess, not just "very much". It agrees with the noun when adjectival.
Algo = somewhat (mild positive intensifier); nada = not at all (with negative verb); casi = almost; apenas = barely; solo = only.
Modern peninsular orthography writes solo without an accent in both its "alone" and "only" senses (RAE 2010 reform).

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