Es delicioso.
It's delicious.
It slips out after the first bite, once it's clear the kitchen got the dish right.
From Piensa como hombre · Spanish audio
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "delicious" in Spanish
delicioso
adjectivefeminine: deliciosaplural: deliciosos
"Delicious" in Spanish is delicioso, or deliciosa for feminine nouns. To praise what's on your plate, say Está delicioso. In casual speech you'll also hear rico, as in ¡Qué rico!
Hear "delicioso" in real movie scenes
One with es, one with está. Each video starts and stops on that line.
Está delicioso.
This is delicious.
Said over the plate with a mouth full of food, these two words are all a cook needs to hear.
From Dr. House · Spanish audio
Delicioso, rico, sabroso: ways to praise food
Delicioso works everywhere. These are the words you'll hear next to it at the table.
| Spanish | English | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| delicioso | delicious | The standard word, fine at a family meal or in a restaurant review. |
| rico | tasty, yummy | The everyday choice: Está muy rico. |
| riquísimo | super tasty | The -ísimo ending turns rico up to the max. |
| sabroso | flavorful | From sabor, flavor. Good for food with a lot of taste. |
| ¡Qué delicia! | What a treat! | A whole exclamation built on the noun delicia. |
Tip: Rico changes meaning with the verb: Es rico means he's rich, while Está rico says the food tastes good.
Grammar: delicioso, deliciosa
Four points for praising food correctly.
Four endings
delicioso, deliciosa, deliciosos, deliciosas. Match the food: una cena deliciosa, unos tacos deliciosos.Está or es
Está delicioso is about the plate in front of you right now. Es delicioso describes a dish in general: El gazpacho es delicioso.After the noun
It follows the noun like most adjectives: un café delicioso. In an exclamation it can stand alone: ¡Qué delicioso!Before the first bite
To hope it tastes good, say ¡Ojalá esté delicioso! After ojalá comes the subjunctive form esté.Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
Esto está delicioso.
This is delicious.
La cena resultó deliciosa.
The dinner turned out delicious.
¡Ojalá esté delicioso!
I hope it's delicious!
¡Qué delicia!
What a treat!
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗una sopa delicioso
✓una sopa deliciosa
Sopa is feminine, so the adjective takes the -a ending.
✗¡Ojalá está delicioso!
✓¡Ojalá esté delicioso!
Ojalá expresses a wish, and wishes take the subjunctive esté.
✗deh-LISH-oh-soh (pronunciation)
✓deh-lee-SYOH-soh
There's no English sh sound here, and the stress falls on the syllable before the last.
Real conversation: lunch at a new place
A short dialog with a coworker before the food arrives.
You sit down for lunch with your coworker Gonzalo at a new restaurant. The food hasn't come out yet.
Todo es gourmet. No sé qué te gusta.
Everything here is gourmet. I don't know what you like.
Bueno, ojalá esté delicioso.
Well, let's hope it's delicious.
Mira, ya llega tu hamburguesa.
Look, here comes your burger.
Your turn to answer
In the app you reply in Spanish for the last 2 lines.
Continue the conversation in WordyPractice: 3 quick exercises
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1 of 3 · Watch and choose
What do you hear in the video?
The other 30 exercises on this topic are in the app.
How to remember it
Swap the -ous of delicious for -oso and you get delicioso. The same swap turns famous into famoso and curious into curioso.
Questions about "delicious" in Spanish
How do you say delicious in Spanish?
Delicioso, or deliciosa with feminine nouns. A more casual word that means the same is rico.
How do you say "this is delicious" in Spanish?
Esto está delicioso. Use está because you're reacting to the food as you taste it.
Is it es delicioso or está delicioso?
Both are correct. Está delicioso is your reaction to this meal, and es delicioso is a general statement about a dish.
How do you pronounce delicioso?
Say deh-lee-SYOH-soh. In most of Spain the c sounds like the th in think: deh-lee-THYOH-soh.
