When something is small, we have two options: either we say something like “una casa pequeña” (a small house), or we add a suffix to the word. A suffix is a letter or a group of letters added at the end of words, which have a grammatical meaning. One example in English could be -less, in words like “speechless” or “flawless”. In this case, it is a negative suffix.
The most common diminutive suffix in Spanish is -ito/ita. So we can say “una casa pequeña” o “una casita”. To form the diminutive, drop the final -o/a and replace it with -ito/ita:
Un libro pequeño, un librito
Una carpeta pequeña, una carpetita
We also use diminutives in affectionate speech, so when we are talking with a baby, for example, we tend to say things like: “Ahora mamita va a prepararte una rica comidita”, meaning “Now, mom is going to prepare a tasty food for you”. We say “mamita” and “comidita”, but this doesn’t mean that mom and the food are tiny.
We also have to consider phonetical variation, which simply means that some letters change due to the pronunciation.
-Words with “c” or “g” after the final vowel change in this way:
Loco, loquito
Diego, Dieguito
This is because these two letters have two different sounds, so we change to keep the same pronunciation. You will see that this happens all the time, not only with diminutives.
-Words ending with “r, n, e” take -cito/cita:
Flor, florcita
Avión, avioncito
Triste, tristecito
-Words ending with “z” take -ecito/ecita:
Luz, lucecita
Pez, pececito
-Also, remember to switch “z” for “c” when you drop the final vowel:
Brazo, bracito
Trozo, trocito
In some countries or regions, there are other forms, like -illo/illa or -ico/ica. So when we have a teaspoon, we can say “cucharita” or “cucharilla”. However, to do things a little more interesting, we have some cases where, if you change the suffix, the meaning is totally different. Some of them are:
Cabecita (little head), cabecilla (leader, especially in a criminal organisation)
Camita (little bed), camilla (stretcher)
Casita (little house), casilla (guard booth, compartment, cabin, kennel)
Espinita (little thorn), espinilla (pimple)
Manzanita (little apple), manzanilla (camomile)
Maquinita (little machine), maquinilla (razor)
Mesita (little table), mesilla (bedside table)
Perita (little pear), perilla (goatee)
Sombrita (little shade), sombrilla (beach umbrella)
¡Eso es todo! That’s all! Or, as they say in Mexico, ¡todito!
