Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Este cinturón combina bien con mis vaqueros.

este / esta / estos / estas → this / these, near the speaker
ese / esa / esos / esas → that / those, at a medium distance or “near” the listener
aquel / aquella / aquellos / aquellas → that / those (over there), far from both speaker and listener, or more “remote” in some way

In Este cinturón combina bien con mis vaqueros, este suggests the belt is close to the speaker (for example, the one they’re holding or wearing).

You could hear ese cinturón or aquel cinturón if the belt is farther away, or if you’re talking about it as something less “mentally present”. But este is the natural choice if you’re referring to the belt you’re pointing at, holding, or wearing.

Why is it cinturón and not a feminine form like cinturona?

In Spanish, every noun has grammatical gender, and the gender is mostly arbitrary. Cinturón (belt) is masculine:

el cinturón – the belt
los cinturones – the belts

The -ón ending is often (though not always) masculine, which fits cinturón.

There is no common feminine form cinturona for “belt”; you just use the masculine noun regardless of who is wearing it. The demonstrative and any adjectives must agree with cinturón, so you say:

este cinturón negro – this black belt
ese cinturón viejo – that old belt

Why is the verb combina and not combino or combinar?

The verb is combinar (to match, to go well together). Here, it’s conjugated in the present tense:

yo combino – I match
tú combinas – you match
él / ella / usted combina – he / she / you (formal) match
este cinturón combina – this belt matches / goes well

The subject of the sentence is este cinturón (3rd person singular), so the verb must be combina.

You would use:

combino if I am the subject:
Yo combino este cinturón con mis vaqueros. – I match this belt with my jeans.
combinar is the infinitive (to match), used after other verbs:
Este cinturón puede combinar bien con mis vaqueros. – This belt can go well with my jeans.

Is combinar bien con a fixed expression? Are there other ways to say this?

Combinar bien con is a very common collocation meaning “to go well with / to match (in style or color)”.

You’ll also hear in Spain:

ir bien con – Este cinturón va bien con mis vaqueros.
pegar con – Este cinturón pega con mis vaqueros. (informal)
quedar bien con – Este cinturón queda bien con mis vaqueros.

All of these can mean that the belt looks good with the jeans.
Combinar bien con focuses a bit more explicitly on colors or style matching, but in everyday speech they overlap a lot.

Why is it bien and not bueno after combina?

Bien is an adverb (well), and bueno is an adjective (good).

Adverbs modify verbs:
combina bien – it matches well
Adjectives modify nouns:
un cinturón bueno – a good belt

Since bien is describing how the belt matches (the verb combina), you need the adverb bien, not the adjective bueno.

So:

Este cinturón combina bien con mis vaqueros. – This belt goes well with my jeans.
Este es un cinturón bueno. – This is a good belt.

Why is the preposition con used? Could another preposition work?

The verb combinar, when used in the sense of matching/going well together, almost always takes con:

combinar con algo – to match / go with something
Este cinturón combina bien con mis vaqueros.

You don’t normally replace con with other prepositions here. You wouldn’t say combinar a, combinar en, etc., in this meaning.

So you can think of combinar con as a unit:
combinar bien con + [clothes, colors, accessories].

Why is it mis vaqueros and not mi vaqueros?

Possessive adjectives in Spanish agree in number (singular/plural) with the thing possessed:

mi cinturón – my belt (singular)
mis cinturones – my belts (plural)
mi vaquero – my (one) pair of jeans / cowboy
mis vaqueros – my jeans (plural)

Here, vaqueros is plural, so the possessive must also be plural: mis vaqueros.

Also, in Spanish you do not use a definite article when you already have a possessive:

✅ mis vaqueros
❌ los mis vaqueros

What exactly does vaqueros mean here? Does it always mean “jeans”?

In Spain, vaqueros almost always means jeans (denim trousers).

Literally, vaquero can mean:

Cowboy / cattle herder
Denim-related (from vaca, cow) → pantalones vaqueros = jeans

In everyday Peninsular Spanish:

vaqueros (plural) by itself usually = jeans.
You can also say pantalones vaqueros, tejanos, or even jeans, but vaqueros is very common.

In much of Latin America, people don’t usually say vaqueros for jeans. They prefer:

jeans, pantalones de mezclilla, pantalones de jean, pantalones de mezclilla azul, etc.

So this sentence sounds particularly natural for Spain.

Why is vaqueros plural? Could I say mi vaquero?

Yes, vaqueros is plural here. Like English jeans, Spanish usually talks about trousers in the plural form:

unos pantalones – a pair of trousers
unos vaqueros – a pair of jeans
mis vaqueros – my (pair of) jeans

You can say mi vaquero in some contexts, but:

It may sound like you are talking about a cowboy (especially in Latin America).
As “a pair of jeans”, vaqueros in the plural is by far the most natural and common.

So, to say “my jeans” in Spain, mis vaqueros is the usual form.

Why does cinturón have an accent, but vaqueros doesn’t?

Spanish accent marks (tildes) show where the stress falls when it doesn’t follow the default rules.

Basic rules:

Words ending in a vowel, n, or s are normally stressed on the second-to-last syllable.
Words ending in any other consonant are normally stressed on the last syllable.
If a word breaks these rules, it gets a written accent mark.

Cinturón ends in n, so by default it should be stressed on the second-to-last syllable: cin-tu-ron → CIN-tu-ron.
But we actually pronounce it cin-tu-RÓN, stress on the last syllable. Since this breaks rule 1, it needs an accent: cinturón.

Vaqueros ends in s, so by default it’s stressed on the second-to-last syllable: va-QUE-ros → that’s exactly how it’s pronounced. So no accent mark is needed: vaqueros.

Could I change the word order, like Este cinturón con mis vaqueros combina bien?

Spanish word order is more flexible than English, but not every option sounds equally natural.

The most neutral, everyday order here is:

Este cinturón combina bien con mis vaqueros. (Subject – Verb – Rest)

Other possibilities:

Este cinturón combina bien con mis vaqueros. – standard
Este cinturón combina con mis vaqueros muy bien. – also fine, emphasis on muy bien
Con mis vaqueros, este cinturón combina bien. – possible, a bit more marked or stylistic

Your version Este cinturón con mis vaqueros combina bien is understandable, but it sounds less natural and a bit awkward in everyday speech.

As a learner, it’s best to stick with Subject + Verb + Rest:
Este cinturón combina bien con mis vaqueros.

Can I drop este cinturón and just say Combina bien con mis vaqueros?

Yes, you can. Spanish often drops subject pronouns (and even full noun subjects) when the context makes the subject clear.

If everyone already knows which belt you’re talking about (for example, you’re holding it up in a shop), you can simply say:

Combina bien con mis vaqueros. – It goes well with my jeans.

The verb form combina already tells us the subject is he/she/it, so Spanish doesn’t need él, ella, or este cinturón unless you want to be extra explicit. Context does the rest.

How do I say “This belt doesn’t go well with my jeans” in Spanish?

To make the sentence negative, you usually place no directly before the verb:

Este cinturón no combina bien con mis vaqueros.
– This belt doesn’t go well with my jeans.

Other natural negatives:

Este cinturón no combina con mis vaqueros. – It doesn’t match my jeans.
Este cinturón combina mal con mis vaqueros. – It goes badly with my jeans (less common; sounds stronger).

How would I add a color or another description, like “this brown leather belt”?

Adjectives usually go after the noun, and multiple descriptors are normally ordered like:

Noun
Material / type
Color
Other descriptive adjectives

So you could say:

Este cinturón de cuero marrón combina bien con mis vaqueros.
– This brown leather belt goes well with my jeans.

Breakdown:

este – this
cinturón – belt
de cuero – of leather, leather
marrón – brown
combina bien con mis vaqueros – goes well with my jeans

You can add other adjectives after color if needed:
Este cinturón de cuero marrón estrecho combina bien con mis vaqueros.