Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.

That move is difficult but fun.

Breakdown of Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.

• ser: to be
• divertido: fun
• pero: but
• difícil: difficult
• esa: that
• .: period
• la jugada: the move

Questions & Answers about Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.

Why is it esa jugada and not esta jugada or aquella jugada?

Spanish has three basic demonstratives:

• esta = this (near the speaker)
• esa = that (near the listener or not very far)
• aquella = that (over there) (far from both speaker and listener, or more “distant” in time / context)

So:

• Esa jugada: that move/play we were just talking about, or that you just did, or that is a bit away from me.
• Esta jugada: this move/play I’m doing or that’s very close to me right now.
• Aquella jugada: that move/play from long ago, or far away, or more emotionally “distant”.

The sentence uses esa because the speaker is probably referring to a specific move that is known in the conversation but not “right here right now” in the speaker’s immediate space.

What exactly does jugada mean, and why is it feminine?

Jugada is a noun, and it is feminine (it ends in -a and its article/demonstratives are feminine: la jugada, esta/esa/aquella jugada).

Its main meanings:

• In sports or games: a move / a play / a specific action
  
  • e.g. a chess move, a football (soccer) play, a risky move in a game.
• Sometimes figuratively: a move or maneuver in life, business, politics
  
  • e.g. Fue una buena jugada = It was a good move (strategy).

It is different from:

• juego: the game itself (the activity or match as a whole)
• partido: a match (football match, tennis match, etc.)

So:

• Esa jugada = that specific move or play, not the whole game/match.

Why are difícil and divertida feminine? Aren’t adjectives usually masculine by default?

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

Here, the noun is jugada, which is feminine singular. So:

• difícil: this adjective has the same form for masculine and feminine, so it stays difícil.
• divertida: this adjective does change, so:
  • masculine singular: divertido
  • feminine singular: divertida
  • masculine plural: divertidos
  • feminine plural: divertidas

Because jugada is feminine singular, we get difícil pero divertida.

Why doesn’t difícil change to something like difícila for feminine?

Some Spanish adjectives have only one form for masculine and feminine:

• difícil, fácil, triste, joven, grande, etc.

For these, gender only shows up in the article or noun, not in the adjective ending:

• un problema difícil (masc.)
• una jugada difícil (fem.)

Difícil only changes for number:

• singular: difícil
• plural: difíciles

So:

• Esa jugada es difícil (singular)
• Esas jugadas son difíciles (plural)

Why is it divertida and not divertido?

Because divertida has to agree with jugada:

• Noun: jugada → feminine, singular
• Adjective: divertido/divertida

So:

• Esa jugada es divertida. ✔️
• Ese juego es divertido. ✔️ (because juego is masculine)
• Ese jugada es divertido. ✖️ wrong (gender mismatch)

Spanish is very strict about this agreement between noun and adjective.

Why is it es and not está in this sentence?

Both ser and estar translate to “to be”, but they’re used differently.

Ser (es) is used for more inherent, general or characteristic descriptions:

• Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.
  → As a type of move, it is generally difficult but fun.

Estar (está) is more for states, conditions, locations, or temporary situations:

• Hoy esa jugada está difícil.
  → Today that move is hard (for us), maybe because we are tired, or the situation is special.

In your sentence, the speaker is describing what that kind of play is like in general, so es is the natural choice.

What does pero add here, and how is it different from sino?

Pero means “but” and introduces a contrast:

• difícil pero divertida
  → it’s difficult, but (despite that) it’s fun.

Sino is also translated as “but rather / but instead”, and is used mostly when you negate the first part and then correct or replace it:

• No es fácil, sino difícil.
  → It’s not easy, but rather difficult.

In the original sentence there is no negation being corrected, so pero is the right conjunction:

• Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida. ✔️
• Esa jugada no es aburrida, sino divertida. ✔️ (different meaning)

Could I say Esa jugada es difícil pero es divertida, or is that wrong?

You can say Esa jugada es difícil pero es divertida, and it’s grammatically correct.

However, in Spanish it’s very natural to omit the repeated verb when it’s the same on both sides of pero:

• Full form: Esa jugada es difícil pero es divertida.
• More natural: Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.

Both are understood the same, but the shorter version sounds smoother and is what speakers normally use.

Why are difícil and divertida placed after es instead of before jugada, like Esa difícil jugada?

In Spanish there are two common patterns:

1. Attributive adjectives (directly modifying the noun)

   • Usually: noun + adjective
     
     • una jugada difícil, una jugada divertida
   • Your example Esa difícil jugada is grammatically possible but unusual; it sounds more literary or emphatic.

2. Predicate adjectives (after a verb like ser/estar):

   • Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.

Your sentence uses the second structure:
subject (Esa jugada) + verb (es) + predicate adjectives (difícil, divertida).
This is the most neutral way to describe the move rather than just classify it.

Can I change the order to Esa jugada es divertida pero difícil? Does it change the meaning?

You can say both:

• Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.
• Esa jugada es divertida pero difícil.

The basic idea is the same, but the emphasis changes slightly:

• difícil pero divertida:
  Focus first on the difficulty, then you “redeem” it by saying it’s fun.
• divertida pero difícil:
  Focus first on the fun, then you add a warning: it’s also hard.

Both are correct; choose the order based on what you want to emphasize.

Could I say La jugada es difícil pero divertida instead of Esa jugada? What’s the difference?

Yes, both are correct:

• La jugada es difícil pero divertida.
  → The move/play is difficult but fun.
  Refers to a move that is already clearly identified in the context.

• Esa jugada es difícil pero divertida.
  → That move/play is difficult but fun.
  Points more directly: that one (the specific one we’re talking about, or that you just did, etc.).

In practice:

• If you’re pointing at or clearly distinguishing one among others: esa jugada.
• If there’s only one move in question and it’s obvious: la jugada is enough.

How do you pronounce the whole sentence naturally?

Approximate guide (Spain):

• Esa → EH-sa (stress on E)
• jugada → hu-GA-da
  
  • j like a strong English h (throaty)
  • stress on GA
• es → like English “ess”
• difícil → di-FEE-thil (in most of Spain, c before i is “th”; stress on FÍ)
• pero → PE-ro (stress on PE)
• divertida → di-ver-TEE-da (stress on TI)

Rhythmically:
É-sa hu-GA-da es di-FÍ-cil pe-ro di-ver-TÍ-da.

The sentence flows in one intonation group, with a slight pause (or intonation change) around pero to mark the contrast.