{"id":145050,"date":"2016-07-06T15:07:11","date_gmt":"2016-07-06T19:07:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/siguiente-vs-proximo\/"},"modified":"2025-05-27T12:08:42","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T16:08:42","slug":"siguiente-vs-proximo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/spanish\/siguiente-vs-proximo\/","title":{"rendered":"The Difference Between Siguiente vs Pr\u00f3ximo [With Quiz]"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Spanish words siguiente<\/em> (next, following) and pr\u00f3ximo <\/em>(next, near\/close) cause a lot of confusion among Spanish learners. When I was first learning Spanish, I certainly made my fair share of mistakes mixing the two up.<\/p>\n

If you want some clarity, keep reading. I’ll give you a full breakdown of the difference between these two words and when to use each one.\u00a0
\n[fluentu-toc]
\n<\/p>\n

Siguiente <\/em>vs.\u00a0Pr\u00f3ximo<\/em><\/h2>\n

Siguiente<\/em> and pr\u00f3ximo<\/em> are both adjectives that can mean “next” in English, but they take different time reference points.<\/p>\n

Siguiente<\/em> takes a previously-mentioned or implied time element as its reference point. This means that siguiente <\/em>can refer to past or future events<\/strong>. It can also be translated as “following” and is often used to refer to the next thing in a series, such as the next person in line.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On the other hand, pr\u00f3ximo <\/em>always uses the moment of speaking as the reference point. This means pr\u00f3ximo <\/em><\/strong>can only refer to future events or actions<\/strong>, never to things that happened in the past.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Check out this example of how both words can be used to refer to a future event:<\/p>\n

Quiero organizar la <\/em>pr\u00f3xima<\/strong><\/em> fiesta.<\/em> (I want to organize the next<\/strong> party.)<\/div>\n
Quiero organizar la <\/em>siguiente<\/strong><\/em> fiesta.<\/em> (I want to organize the next<\/strong> party.)<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
While they can sometimes be interchangeable, this isn’t the case when talking about past events. Take a look at the difference between these sentences:<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
El pr\u00f3ximo<\/strong>\u00a0lunes tenemos una reuni\u00f3n.<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>(Next<\/strong> Monday we have a meeting.)<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
In the sentence above, we could replace pr\u00f3ximo <\/em>with siguiente<\/em> to refer to a future meeting. However, in the following sentence, we cannot <\/strong>replace siguiente<\/em> with pr\u00f3ximo <\/em>to refer to a meeting in the past.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
El lunes\u00a0siguiente<\/strong> tuvimos una reuni\u00f3n.<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>(The following<\/strong> Monday we had a meeting.)<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
Here’s another sentence that demonstrates the difference between these two words:\u00a0<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
No me voy la pr\u00f3xima<\/strong> semana. Me voy la semana siguiente<\/strong>.<\/em> (I’m not leaving next<\/strong> week. I’m leaving the following<\/strong> week.)<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
A simpler way to say this would be:<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/div>\n
No me voy la pr\u00f3xima<\/strong> semana sino la siguiente<\/strong>.<\/em> (I’m not leaving next<\/strong> week but the following<\/strong>.)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

How to Use Siguiente<\/em><\/h2>\n

Siguiente<\/em> can mean “next” or “following.” You can easily remember this because the word comes from the verb seguir<\/em> which means “to follow.” It can go before or after the noun.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Siguiente<\/em> typically refers to something that comes immediately after the previously mentioned or inferred point in time or sequence. For example:<\/p>\n

La siguiente<\/strong> pregunta es dif\u00edcil.<\/em> (The next<\/strong>\u00a0question is difficult.)<\/p>\n

Pasen a la siguiente<\/b> p\u00e1gina.<\/em> (Go to the next<\/strong> page.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

En la siguiente<\/strong> reuni\u00f3n, discutiremos el presupuesto anual.<\/em> (In the next<\/strong> meeting, we’ll discuss the annual budget.)<\/p>\n

We can also use siguiente <\/em>to talk about something that followed something else in the past. For example:<\/p>\n

Joaqu\u00edn suspendi\u00f3 su primer examen, pero aprob\u00f3 el siguiente<\/strong><\/em>. (Joaqu\u00edn failed his first exam, but he passed the next<\/strong> one.)<\/p>\n

Ten\u00eda un vuelo temprano al d\u00eda siguiente<\/strong>.<\/em> (I had an early flight the following<\/strong> day.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

It can also be used as a noun:<\/p>\n

\u00bfQui\u00e9n es el siguiente<\/strong>?<\/em> (<\/span>Who’s next<\/strong>?)<\/span><\/p>\n

How to Use Pr\u00f3ximo<\/em><\/h2>\n

Pr\u00f3ximo <\/em>can also mean “next.” Unlike siguiente<\/em>, we can’t use pr\u00f3ximo<\/em> to talk about past events. This is because pr\u00f3ximo<\/em> uses the present as its reference point and refers to something that’s coming up or approaching.<\/p>\n

Pr\u00f3ximo<\/em> can also go before or after the noun, but we typically put it before the noun<\/strong>. For example:<\/p>\n

El pr\u00f3ximo<\/strong> mes ir\u00e9 de vacaciones.<\/em> (Next<\/strong> month I’ll go on vacation.)<\/p>\n

Te devolver\u00e9 el dinero\u00a0<\/span>la pr\u00f3xima <\/strong>vez que te vea<\/span>.<\/span><\/em> (I’ll pay you back the next<\/strong> time I see you.)<\/p>\n

El pr\u00f3ximo<\/strong> episodio de la serie se estrena el viernes.<\/em> (The next<\/strong> episode of the series premieres on Friday.)<\/p>\n

Pr\u00f3ximo<\/em> has another meaning that it doesn’t share with siguiente:<\/em> “near” or “close.”<\/strong> For example:<\/p>\n

Mi casa est\u00e1 muy pr\u00f3xima<\/strong> al parque.<\/em> (My house is very close<\/strong> to the park.)<\/div>\n

Changing the Ending of Siguiente <\/em>vs. Pr\u00f3ximo<\/em><\/h2>\n

Another difference between siguiente<\/em> and pr\u00f3ximo<\/em> is how we change the ending of the word. Siguiente <\/em>is gender-neutral, so it can be used with a masculine or feminine noun. For example:<\/p>\n

El siguiente<\/strong> estudiante<\/em> (The next\/following student)
\nLa siguiente<\/strong> pregunta<\/em> (The next\/following question)<\/p>\n

However, we do need to add an -s<\/em> when talking about a plural noun:<\/p>\n

Los\u00a0siguientes<\/strong> estudiantes<\/em> (The next\/following students)
\nLas siguientes<\/strong> preguntas<\/em> (The next\/following questions)<\/p>\n

With the adjective pr\u00f3ximo<\/em>, we must change the ending to match the gender and number of the noun it’s modifying.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

El pr\u00f3ximo<\/strong> lunes<\/em> (Next Monday)
\nLa pr\u00f3xima <\/strong>semana<\/em> (Next week)
\nLos pr\u00f3ximos<\/strong> d\u00edas<\/em> (The next days)
\nLas pr\u00f3ximas<\/strong> elecciones<\/em> (The next elections)<\/p>\n

Quiz on Using Siguiente <\/em>vs.\u00a0Pr\u00f3ximo<\/em><\/h2>\n

Now that we’ve gone over the difference between these two words, it’s time to test your understanding. Take the following quiz and just refresh the page if you want to start over or retake it.\u00a0<\/p>\n