what is it?
Cada is an invariable distributive determiner meaning «each» or «every». It never changes for gender or number, and it always precedes a singular noun — unless a numeral separates them (e.g. cada dos días). Mismo / misma is an agreeing adjective with two distinct uses: it expresses sameness (equivalent to «the same … as») when it follows a definite article and is paired with que, and it adds emphasis («myself», «herself», etc.) when it follows a subject pronoun or noun. Because mismo is a regular adjective, it agrees in gender and number with the noun or pronoun it modifies.
when to use it
cada + singular noun — to distribute a statement over every individual member of a set: cada alumno, cada mañana, cada ciudad.
cada + numeral + plural noun — to express a recurring interval: cada dos semanas, cada tres horas. This is the only context where a plural noun follows cada.
el/la/los/las mismo/a/os/as … que — to state that two things are identical: la misma calle que antes. The article is obligatory and que (not como) introduces the comparison.
pronoun/noun + mismo/a — to add emphasis, equivalent to English «-self»: yo mismo, ella misma, el director mismo. No article is used in this emphatic pattern.
formation
cada has one form only. mismo follows the standard -o/-a/-os/-as adjective pattern. The table below shows both words alongside the noun or pronoun they accompany.
| word | form used | example phrase | meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| cada | cada (invariable) | cada día | every day |
| cada | cada (invariable) | cada alumna | every (female) student |
| cada | cada (invariable) | cada dos horas | every two hours |
| mismo | el mismo | el mismo libro | the same book |
| mismo | la misma | la misma calle | the same street |
| mismo | los mismos | los mismos amigos | the same friends |
| mismo | las mismas | las mismas ideas | the same ideas |
| mismo | mismo (emphatic) | yo mismo | I myself |
| mismo | misma (emphatic) | ella misma | she herself |
In the sameness pattern, the definite article (el, la, los, las) is part of the structure and cannot be dropped. In the emphatic pattern, no article appears.
examples in context
common pitfalls
Pluralizing or gender-marking cada. Cada is invariable. Forms such as «*cadas mañanas» or «*cada casas» are wrong. Without a numeral, the noun must be singular: cada mañana, cada casa. A plural noun is only possible when a numeral follows cada: cada dos días.
Using como instead of que after mismo. The sameness construction requires que: «el mismo profesor que antes». Saying «*el mismo profesor como antes» is a direct transfer from English «the same … as» or German «derselbe … wie» and is not correct in Spanish.
Dropping the article before mismo. In the sameness pattern the definite article is obligatory: «tenemos el mismo horario». Omitting it — «*tenemos mismo horario» — is ungrammatical. Only in the emphatic pattern (after a pronoun or noun) is the article absent: yo mismo, el director mismo.
Three sentences, graded here. Nothing is saved and no account is needed.
El árbol cayó durante la tormenta y el jardinero ___ lo cortó en pedazos.
Fill in the blank with the correct form of mismo/misma.