Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): En el aniversario de su matrimonio, mis tíos preparan una cena sencilla pero muy romántica. - On their wedding anniversary, my aunt and uncle prepare a simple but very romantic dinner.

En el aniversario de su matrimonio = On the anniversary of their marriage.
- More explicit: it specifies what anniversary (the anniversary of their marriage).
En su aniversario = On their anniversary.
- Shorter and more general; context would need to make it clear it’s a wedding anniversary.

In Latin American Spanish, you’ll also often hear:

En su aniversario de bodas (very common: on their wedding anniversary).

What exactly does “su” mean here? Does it mean his, her, their, or your?

In Spanish, su is ambiguous; it can mean:

his
her
their
your (formal singular or plural, depending on the country)

In this sentence:

En el aniversario de su matrimonio, mis tíos…

Context tells us that su refers to mis tíos (my aunt and uncle), so it means “their”:

su matrimonio = their marriage / their wedding.

If you needed to avoid ambiguity, you could say:

…el aniversario del matrimonio de mis tíos
(the anniversary of my aunt and uncle’s marriage)

What’s the difference between “matrimonio” and “boda” here?

Both relate to getting married, but they focus on different aspects:

matrimonio = marriage as a state/relationship; also used for married couple.
- aniversario de su matrimonio = the anniversary of their marriage.
boda = the wedding ceremony/party itself.
- aniversario de bodas (very idiomatic) = wedding anniversary.

So:

aniversario de su matrimonio
aniversario de bodas

are both understood as wedding anniversary, though aniversario de bodas may sound a bit more set‑phrase-like.

Why is it “En el aniversario de su matrimonio” and not “Para el aniversario de su matrimonio”?

en focuses on time: “on” that date → on their anniversary.
para would mean for, in the sense of for the purpose of / in preparation for.

So:

En el aniversario de su matrimonio, mis tíos preparan…
= On the anniversary of their marriage, my aunt and uncle prepare… (when they do it)

If you said:

Para el aniversario de su matrimonio, mis tíos preparan una cena…
it would sound like: For their anniversary, my aunt and uncle prepare a dinner… (in preparation for that event). It’s possible, but the nuance is different.

Why is the verb in the present tense (“preparan”) if it sounds like something they do every year?

Spanish often uses the simple present for:

habitual actions (things they do regularly):
- Mis tíos preparan una cena…
  = My aunt and uncle prepare / usually prepare a dinner…
general truths, routines, etc.

So preparan here very naturally means they (typically) prepare a dinner on each anniversary.

If you wanted to emphasize just one future occasion, you could say:

…mis tíos van a preparar una cena… (are going to prepare / will prepare)

Why is it “mis tíos preparan” and not “ellos preparan” or “mis tíos ellos preparan”?

In Spanish, subject pronouns (yo, tú, él, ella, ellos, etc.) are usually omitted because the verb ending already tells you the subject.

Mis tíos preparan… = clear subject from the noun phrase.
Ellos preparan… would also be grammatical, but:
- you usually only add ellos for contrast or emphasis (e.g. they do, but others don’t).

“Mis tíos ellos preparan…” sounds redundant or wrong in standard Spanish; you normally pick either the noun phrase (mis tíos) or the pronoun (ellos).

Does “mis tíos” mean only uncles, or can it include an aunt and an uncle?

Mis tíos can mean:

my uncles, or
my aunt and uncle (one male + one female)
my aunts and uncles (mixed group)

Spanish uses the masculine plural (tíos) for any mixed group. Here, because we’re talking about their marriage and a romantic dinner, we naturally imagine a married couple: an aunt and an uncle.

Why do the adjectives come after the noun: “una cena sencilla pero muy romántica” instead of “una sencilla pero muy romántica cena”?

In Spanish, the default position of descriptive adjectives is after the noun:

una cena sencilla = a simple dinner
una cena romántica = a romantic dinner

Putting the adjectives before the noun (una sencilla cena, una romántica cena) is possible but:

Sounds more literary, poetic, or emphatic.
Can sometimes change nuance or sound unnatural in everyday speech.

So the natural order in normal conversation is:

una cena sencilla pero muy romántica

What’s the difference between “sencilla” and “simple” for describing the dinner?

Both exist in Spanish, but they’re used slightly differently:

sencilla (from sencillo/a)
- Common for things that are modest, not fancy, uncomplicated.
- una cena sencilla = modest, not elaborate, but positive in tone.
simple can work similarly, but:
- In some contexts, it can feel more neutral or even a bit negative (like “plain” or “basic”).
- Una cena simple is okay, but cena sencilla is more idiomatic and warm.

So “una cena sencilla” sounds like a nice, modest dinner, not cheap or disappointing.

Why are “sencilla” and “romántica” feminine?

Adjectives in Spanish must agree with the noun in gender and number.

cena is a feminine singular noun:
- la cena
So the adjectives must also be feminine singular:
- sencilla, not sencillo
- romántica, not romántico

If the noun were masculine plural, for example:

los platos son sencillos pero muy románticos
(the dishes are simple but very romantic)
→ adjectives change to -os.

What does “muy” add to “romántica”? Could I just say “romántica”?

You can absolutely say:

una cena sencilla pero romántica = a simple but romantic dinner

Adding muy:

una cena sencilla pero muy romántica
makes it stronger: very romantic.

So muy functions just like English “very”, intensifying the adjective:

romántica = romantic
muy romántica = very romantic

Can I move both adjectives to the front and say “una muy romántica y sencilla cena”?

Grammatically, versions like:

una muy romántica y sencilla cena

are possible, but:

They sound literary, poetic, or stylistically marked.
They are not the neutral, everyday way to say this.

In normal spoken or written Spanish, the most natural version is exactly:

una cena sencilla pero muy romántica

Noun first, then adjectives.

Could I say “En su aniversario de bodas, mis tíos preparan la cena” instead of “una cena sencilla pero muy romántica”?

Yes, but it changes the meaning:

la cena = the dinner (specific, probably the main evening meal that day).
una cena sencilla pero muy romántica = a (particular kind of) dinner described as simple but very romantic.

So:

…preparan la cena → They just make dinner (no description).
…preparan una cena sencilla pero muy romántica → They prepare a special dinner that is simple but very romantic.

You choose depending on how much detail or emphasis you want to give to the type of dinner.