Do you remember the last time you went shopping? No? Yes?
Well, if your answer wasn’t affirmative, you need to do some shopping therapy. After all, it has been proven that it helps to reduce stress.
However, that’s not the only important thing about shopping. In general, when we buy things like food or clothes, for example, we use adjectives of quantity to describe our requirements.
In Spanish, adjectives of quantity can be your holy grail on many occasions. “Cada” is one of the most common adjectives.
It can help you express quantity, frequency, and many other things.
The Spanish adjective “cada” is a must-have word in your vocabulary. For that reason, today we will show you how to use it.
Keep reading this explanation and find out what “cada” got for you and how it could be your life savior.
How to use “cada”
In simple words, “cada” is an adjective that helps us, as we said, express quantity. In fact, it’s cada’s main purpose.
Nonetheless, there are other uses that you will learn from the rest of this article. Although most Spanish adjectives change their endings depending on the noun’s gender, “cada” doesn’t do it.
Frequently, we can translate “cada” to the English words “every” or “each”. But, depending on how you use it, the translation of “cada” may vary.
There are many formulas available with “cada”, but, the most popular is shown below:
Subject + verb + “cada” + noun + complement
That is a very simple formula that will help you build basic sentences.
And, to teach you how to do it, here are some examples:
Voy a lavar cada plato.
I will wash every dish.
Enviaré cada paquete por correo postal.
I will send each package by postal mail.
Me comeré cada una de las fresas.
I’ll eat every one of the strawberries.
As you may see, “cada” doesn’t change and it’s followed by a noun. Also, you probably noticed that all nouns are singular.
If you think we can’t build plural sentences with “cada”, the answer is: Yes we can!
To build plural sentences with “cada”, we usually add a number between “cada” and the plural noun. So, the formula, in that case, will look like the one below:
Subject + verb + “cada” + number + plura noun + complement
Let’s see a few more examples to get a clearer picture:
Debes pelar una de cada ocho manzanas.
You should peel one out of every eight apples.
Hay puntos de hidratación cada 2 cuadras.
There are hydration points every 2 blocks.
“Cada” to express frequency
Expressing frequency using “cada” is a piece of cake. To do it, we just use “cada” plus a time expression.
We can use words like “semanas”, “horas”, “minutos”, “días”, or “años”. Expressing frequency helps you describe your routine or someone else’s routine.
Let’s look at the following examples:
Me lavo la cara cada 8 horas.
I wash my face every 8 hours.
Voy a tomar café con mis amigos cada tres días.
I’m going to have coffee with my friends every three days.
Mi familia y yo viajamos cada 6 meses.
My family and I travel every 6 months.
“Cada” to express progression
There are many ways to express progression in Spanish. One of the most common methods is using the present progressive tense.
With “cada”, there are two expressions that help us get the job done. But, they don’t have a direct translation.
The first expression is: “Cada vez más”, and its negative form: “Cada vez menos”. To keep it simple, we will say it’s equivalent to the English phrase “more and more”.
The second expression is: “Cada vez mejor” and, of course, its negative form: “Cada vez peor”. We will say that the second expression is equivalent to the English phrase “better and better”.
Let’s see some examples to get a better idea of how to use them:
¿Echas de menos vivir en Nueva York? – Cada vez más.
Do you miss living in New York? – More and more.
Este trabajo me gusta cada vez menos.
I like this job less and less.
Las cosas siguen cada vez mejor.
Things just keep getting better and better.
No quisiera decirlo, pero las cosas siguen cada vez peor.
I don’t want to say it, but things keep getting worse and worse.
How to be empathic using “cada”
Being empathic is something everyone should do. It helps you sound polite and it’s essential to have good relationships.
Using “cada” to be empathic isn’t a challenge, you only have to use (“cada” + noun + qualifying positive adjective). For these situations, “cada” often translates to the English word such.
Here are some examples:
Ella tiene cada joya hermosa.
She has such beautiful jewelry
Camila ha comprado cada vestido precioso.
Camila has bought such beautiful dresses
Please note that there are other ways to say these sentences without “cada”. Nevertheless, native speakers often use “cada” to be empathic and it’s completely correct.
Cada as a distributive word
Finally, we can use “cada” as a distributive word.
Have you ever heard a teacher or the principal of your school saying “The first ones from each class will go on a trip as a prize”? Well, that’s when “cada” becomes our hero.
In Spanish, that sentence would be “Los primeros de cada clase irán de viaje como premio” and works as a distributive word. We weren’t the first of our classes, but we hope you are! – At least in Spanish. Above all, who does not want to go on a trip?
Spanish adjectives
In summary, the main purpose of “cada” is to express quantity and it’s an invariable adjective. As a result, no matter if you use plural or singular, feminine or masculine noun it will stay the same in every case.
Expressing frequency with “cada” to describe your routine is also very common. So, if you meet someone new, don’t hesitate to use “cada” to describe your weekly routine, for example.
Always try to be empathic and, if the time comes, use “cada” to do it.
Remember that our personalities tell the world a lot about us!