Question 1

Why is the word for 'ninth' novena here instead of noveno?

Accepted Answer

Ordinal numbers act like adjectives, so they have to match the gender of the noun they describe. Because clase is a feminine noun, the masculine noveno changes its ending to become the feminine novena.

Question 2

Why does novena come before clase? I thought adjectives usually go after the noun.

Accepted Answer

You are right that most describing words go after the noun in Spanish. However, ordinal numbers (like first, second, ninth) are an exception. They almost always go before the noun, just like in English.

Question 3

clase ends in an 'e'. How do we know it is feminine?

Accepted Answer

Nouns ending in 'e' do not have a strict rule for gender, so their gender has to be memorized. The feminine article la and the feminine ordinal number novena give you clues in this sentence that clase is feminine.

Question 4

Why do we use es instead of está here?

Accepted Answer

es comes from the verb ser, which is used to describe defining characteristics. Being difficult is a general trait of this class, not a temporary condition or a physical location, so we use ser.

Question 5

Since clase is feminine, why doesn't difícil change its ending to match it?

Accepted Answer

Adjectives that end in a consonant (like the 'l' in difícil) usually have the exact same form for both masculine and feminine nouns. It would only change if the noun was plural, which would make it difíciles.

La novena clase es difícil.

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