El problema es grande.

Breakdown of El problema es grande.

ser
to be
grande
big
el problema
the problem

Questions & Answers about El problema es grande.

Why is it el problema instead of la problema if the word ends in 'a'?
Problema is one of those sneaky rule-breakers! While most Spanish nouns ending in -a are feminine, problema is actually masculine. That is why it uses el. Many words ending in -ma share this masculine exception, like el clima (the climate) or el idioma (the language).
Would I ever change grande to grando to match the masculine word problema?
No, you can leave it as grande. Adjectives that end in -e in Spanish are gender-neutral. They stay exactly the same whether they describe a masculine noun like el problema or a feminine noun like la casa.
Why does this sentence use es instead of está for 'is'?
We use es (from the verb ser) because being big is a core description or characteristic of the problem. You use está (from estar) for temporary states, feelings, or locations.
How would I make this sentence plural to say 'The problems are big'?
It becomes Los problemas son grandes. Notice how every part of the sentence changes to match: el changes to los, es becomes son, and both problema and grande get an -s added to the end.

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