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Spanish Relative Pronouns, Part 1:El que, La que, Los que, Las que

Are you familiar with the Spanish relative pronouns el que, la que, los que and las que? Do you know how to use them? Today's lesson will explain the differences and similarities between these four Spanish phrases, all of which are most typically translated as "the one" or "ones that" or "who." 

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Gender and Number Agreement 

Like other relative pronouns, el quela quelos que and las que are used to introduce relative clauses, which provide more information about a noun or noun phrase. Let's see an example:

 

Al principio, las traducciones al español son las que serán visibles para los estudiantes.

At first, the translations to Spanish are the ones that will be visible for the students.

Captions 39-40, Tutoriales de Yabla Cómo crear clases

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Here, las que is used to introduce the relative clause serán visibles para los estudiantes, making it clear that the "the ones" referenced are those that "will be visible for the students." Note that, in this case, las que is chosen because it refers to the feminine plural noun las traducciones (the translations) as these relative pronouns must agree with the nouns they refer to in terms of number and gender as broken down below:

 

el que ("the one that" or "who" for masculine singular nouns)

la que ("the one that" or "who" for feminine singular nouns)

los que ("the ones that" or "who" or "those" for masculine plural or mixed nouns)

las que ("the ones that" or "who" or "those" for feminine plural nouns)

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Antecedents

The noun to which the relative pronoun refers is known as an antecedent or referent. Be aware that while antecedents are sometimes mentioned explicitly in sentences containing the relative pronouns el quela quelos que and las que (as was las traducciones in the aforementioned example), in other cases, the speaker understands what is being referenced based on the previous conversation. Let's look at each of these relative pronouns in sentences with and without antecedents.

 

El que

Antecedent:

Ese dato es el que necesitamos, hermano.

That piece of information is the one that we need, brother.

Caption 27, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 4 - Part 12

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Here, we see that the relative pronoun el que refers to the masculine singular antecedent dato (piece of information). 

 

No Antecedent: 

¿El que me había robado a Cata?

The one who had stolen Cata from me?

Caption 5, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 11 - Part 2

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Although there is no antecedent in the sentence, we know from the previous dialogue that the speaker is referring to a boy named Sergio Casas, warranting the choice of the singular masculine el que. Remember that even though the third person singular male pronoun él has an accent to distinguish it from el meaning "the," the relative pronoun el que should not be written with an accent, even when referring to a specific male person.

 

La que

Antecedent:

Yo soy la que le da el toque especial al grupo.

I'm the one who gives the group that special touch.

Caption 21, X6 1 - La banda - Part 6

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In this case, the female speaker's use of the word Yo (I) sheds light on her choice of the feminine singular la que.

 

No Antecedent: 

La que cantaste.

The one you sang.

Caption 6, Hispanoamericanos en Berlín Karla y Fernando hablan de música

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Here, it is clear to the listener based on the subjects' conversation topic that the speakers is referring to una canción (a song).

 

Los que

Antecedent:

clientes como usted son los que necesitamos.

clients like you are the ones we need.

Caption 49, La Sucursal del Cielo Capítulo 2 - Part 10

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The inclusion of the noun clientes leaves no doubt as to what los que refers to.

 

No Antecedent: 

Los que viven en sus casas siempre andan por su misma zona

The ones who live in their homes always roam around their same area

Caption 25, Fermín y los gatos Mis gatas vecinas

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Since gatos (cats) is the subject of the video, we understand that los que refers to them. Let's see an additional example where los que is translated as "those":

 

Para los que no me conocen, mi nombre es Karina García

For those who don't know me, my name is Karina García,

Caption 2, Venezolanos por el mundo Karina en Barcelona - Part 2

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Las que

Antecedent:

cosas parecidas a las que hacemos con los textos en papel.

things similar to the ones we do with text on paper.

Caption 13, Club de las ideas Libertexto

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The feminine plural noun cosas is stated prior to las que to let us know the antecedent.

 

No Antecedent:

Y las que te faltan por conocer.

And the ones that you still have to experience.

Caption 40, La Sucursal del Cielo Capítulo 1 - Part 10

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Interestingly, las que also refers to las cosas (the things) here, which came up one sentence prior in this conversation. 

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El que, La que, Los que or Las que With Prepositions

Note that when the relative pronouns el que, los que, la que and las que are preceded by prepositions, they can be translated with a vast array of terms such as "which," "that," "when, "where," "who" or "whom," dpending upon what they refer to. Let's take a look at some examples where we have also highlighted the prepositions that accompany these relative pronouns. 

 

El material con el que fue construido

The material with which it was built

Caption 14, Paseando con Karen Bienvenidos a Parque Fundidora

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Madrid es una ciudad en la que se respira historia.

Madrid is a city where one breathes history.

Caption 19, Con Marta por Madrid Lavapiés y la corrala - Part 1

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Another possible translation in this example would be "in which."

 

Cada noche escribo en él las cosas por las que estoy agradecida.

Every night, I write in it the things that I'm grateful for.

Captions 42-43, Aprendiendo con Silvia Las emociones - Part 13

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Although "for which" could be an alternative, more formal translation, "that" is the more colloquial choice. 

 

Ha habido días en los que había más de treinta incendios activos,

There have been days on which there were more than thirty active fires

Caption 48, Soledad Incendios

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You probably inferred that "when" could substitute "on which" in this utterance. Let's see one more:

 

como una persona muy distinta a mí y con la que yo no podría tener una conversación distendida

as a very different person from me and with whom I wouldn't be able to have a relaxed conversation

Captions 54-55, Soledad Los prejuicios

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That's all for today. We hope that this lesson has helped you to better understand the somewhat tricky relative pronouns el que, la que, los que and las que and their different uses and translations, and don't forget to write us with your questions and comments.

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How Do You Say "Good Luck" in Spanish?

According to Holden Caulfield in J.D Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye: "I'd never yell, 'Good luck!' at anybody. It sounds terrible, when you think about it." Well... whether or not you agree with this somewhat cynical viewpoint, most of us can concur that everyone could use a little extra luck, and every culture employs different expressions to wish others well. In fact, Spanish-speakers are very likely to use many of these daily! So... how do you say "good luck" in Spanish? Today's lesson will teach you a plethora of ways.

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Buena suerte

The most literal translation for "good luck" in Spanish is buena suerte. Let's hear it in action:

 

¡Buena suerte!

Good luck!

Caption 91, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 2: Sam va de compras - Part 6

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There are many variations of (buena) suerte, including mucha suerte (lots of luck), which are often used with the subjunctive form of the verb tener (to have) in expressions like Que tengas mucha suerte (I hope you have a lot of luck) or the verb desear (to wish) as in Te deseo mucha/buena suerte (I wish you a lot of/good luck). 

 

Suerte

Another way to say "good luck" in Spanish is to say simply "Suerte," which literally means just "Luck." 

 

Suerte, Fernando. 

Good luck, Fernando.

Caption 23, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 3 - Part 8

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In Latin America, you might notice that both people you know well and people you just met, such as store clerks and taxi drivers, will often say this to you when you depart. 
 

La mejor de las suertes

Another common expression to wish someone "the best of luck" in Spanish is La mejor de las suertes, which could be said alone or with the verb desear :

 

te deseamos la mejor de las suertes, ¿oís? 

we wish you the best of luck, you hear?

Caption 47, La Sucursal del Cielo Capítulo 1 - Part 5

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Éxito(s)

Saying ¡É​xito! (Success!) to someone in the singular or plural is another way of wishing someone "good luck" in Spanish, which could also be used with the verb desear:

 

Les deseamos muchos éxitos, ehm... 

We wish you a lot of success, um...

Caption 68, Doctor Krápula Entrevista

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Así que les deseo lo mejor, éxito en todo

So I wish you the best, [I wish you] success with everything

Caption 66, Outward Bound Danny

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Note that this second example contains yet another way of wishing someone well in Spanish: desear(le a alguien) lo mejor, or "wishing (someone) the best." Another alternative to this manner of wishing someone good luck and best wishes in Spanish is to say simply Mis mejores deseos (My best wishes). 

 

Que te vaya bien

Que te vaya bien is yet another expression that friends and strangers alike often utter to wish you good luck and best wishes in Spanish. It's literal meaning is "(I hope) everything goes well for you," but it might sometimes be translated with the similarly well-wishing English phrase "Take care":

 

¡Qué te vaya bien! -¡Qué te vaya bien! ¡Qué tengas suerte! -¡Chao! -¡Chao! ¡Suerte! ¡Chao! 

Take care! -Take care! Good luck! -Bye! -Bye! Good luck! Bye!

Captions 67-69, Salvando el planeta Palabra Llegada - Part 5

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Cruzar los dedos 

Just like English-speakers, Spanish speakers sometimes use the phrase cruzar los dedos (to cross one's fingers) to describe a superstitious action thought to promote good luck.

 

Bueno pues, crucemos los dedos para que todo salga bien

Well then, let's cross our fingers for everything to go well

Caption 17, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 4 - Part 12

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(Mucha) mierda

Yep, you read that right! Although it literally means "crap" or "shit," telling someone ¡Mierda! or ¡Mucha mierda! (A lot of crap) is one to say "good luck" in Spanish slang and can be thought of as an equivalent expression to the English "Break a leg!" Interestingly, in the theater world, Spanish speakers often use the French version, merde.

 

Now that you know how to say "Good luck" in Spanish, we'd like to leave you with the following:

 

OK, buena suerte al aprender español.

Okay, good luck learning Spanish.

Caption 29, Cabarete Escuela de trapecio

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And don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments!

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Yabla's Top 10 Verbs Like Gustar

The focus of today's lesson will be "verbs like gustar." But... what is gustar like?! 

 

The Verb Gustar 

The Spanish verb  gustar describes the concept of "liking" someone or something. In contrast to English, where we'd say "We" (the subject) "like cheese" (the object), in Spanish, whatever "we like" becomes the subject that projects the action "onto us." This is similar to how the English verb "to please" functions, e.g., "Cheese pleases us," where "the cheese" carries out the action of "pleasing" (us). For an in-depth exploration of this topic, we recommend this two-part lesson on Gustar vs. "To Like": A Difference in Perception. In the meantime, we'll give you a few tips regarding conjugating the verb gustar and verbs that act in a similar fashion. 

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1. An indirect object pronoun (me (to me), te (to you), le (to him/her/formal "you"), nos (to us), os (informal plural "to you"), and les ("to them" or plural "to you")) is used to indicate who is "being pleased," or, in English, the person who "likes" someone or something. 

 

2. Regardless of tense, the verb gustar is conjugated in accordance with the Spanish subject (what is "being liked" or "pleasing").

 

3. If the subject is a noun, the definite article is used (el, la, los, las, which mean "the").

 

4. Optionally, a phrase with a (to) + a prepositional pronoun ( (me), ti (you), él (him), ella (her), usted (formal "you"), nosotros (we), vosotros (informal plural "you"), or ustedes (plural "you")) can be added before or after the verb for emphasis. A direct object may also be introduced with a.

 

Armed with this information, let's look at a few examples:

 

A mí me gustan las hamburguesas.

I like hamburgers.

Caption 11, Español para principiantes Los colores

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Me gustas. 

I like you.

Caption 44, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 4 - Part 12

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¡A las niñas grandes les gustan los coches deportivos, les gusta el dinero, les gusta bailar!

Big girls like sports cars, they like money, they like "bailar"!

Captions 22-23, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 3 - Sam aprende a ligar - Part 3

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In accordance with our tips, in all of these examples, the indirect object pronoun indicates or agrees with who is "liking"/"being pleased," with me being "I" and les agreeing with the direct object, las niñas grande. The verb gustar, on the other hand, agrees with who or what "pleases"/"is liked" in English: the plural gustan with las hamburguesas and los coches deportivosgustas with the implied tú (you), and gusta with el dinero and the infinitive bailar.

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Yabla's Top 10 Verbs that Function Like Gustar

Now that we've recalled how gustar functions, we bet you're dying to know Yabla's Top Ten Verbs Like Gustar in the sense of the "reversal" of the roles of the traditional subject and object. Let's take a look.

 

1. Doler (to hurt)

Although this verb is most often translated as just "hurt(s)," it might help you to think of the more literal translations for the examples below: "My legs hurt (me)" and "your head hurts (you)," respectively. 

 

¡Me duelen las piernas!

My legs hurt!

Caption 45, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 3 - Sam aprende a ligar - Part 1

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Cuando tú estás enfermo, te duele la cabeza,

When you're ill, your head hurts,

Captions 32-33, El Aula Azul Las Profesiones - Part 2

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2. Encantar (to love)

Note that as gustar can be translated as "to like," encantar is most often translated as "to love." However, it might behoove you to think of the English word "enchant(s)" to help remember the Spanish structure, e.g.  "Feathers enchant me." 

 

Me encantan las plumas.

I love feathers.

Caption 33, Ariana Cena especial

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Aquí, a los alemanes les encanta sentarse afuera

Here, Germans love to sit outside

Caption 21, Venezolanos por el mundo Zoraida en Alemania - Part 2

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3. Fascinar (to fascinate/be fascinated)

Interestingly, although fascinar can be translated as "to fascinate," it is more commonly used in Spanish than its English equivalent and can often mean something comparable to the verb encantar, or "to love." 

 

Es una ciudad que me fascina,

It's a city that fascinates me

Caption 16, Venezolanos por el mundo Gio en Barcelona

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y me fascinaba perderme entre sus calles

and it fascinated me to get lost in its streets

Caption 11, Venezolanos por el mundo Gio en Barcelona

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An alternative translation for this second caption might be: "and I loved getting lost in its streets."

 

4. Hacer falta (to need/be necessary)

While "need" is the most often-heard translation for the verb hacer falta, you can think of the following examples with "to be necessary for" to more closely imitate their Spanish structure, i.e., "the only thing that's necessary for us" and "Those songs are necessary for me."

 

lo único que nos hace falta es una voz líder.

the only thing we need is a lead singer.

Caption 31, X6 1 - La banda - Part 3

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Me hacen falta esas cantadas

I need those songs

Caption 66, Félix Carlos Hello Chamo

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5. Importar (to matter/be important to)

While the English verbs "to matter (to)" and "be important (to)" work much like the Spanish verb gustar, importar plus an indirect object pronoun can also occasionally be translated as "to care about."

 

Me importás vos.

You matter to me.

Caption 23, Yago 6 Mentiras - Part 2

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¡Mis hijos me importan!

I care about my children!

Caption 60, Yago 3 La foto - Part 6

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This second example could also be translated more literally as "My children matter to me!"

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6. Interesar (to interest/be interested in)

The verb interesar can be translated as either "to interest" or "be interested." For example, if you say, Me interesa la ciencia, either the more literal "science interests me" or "I'm interested in science" suffice as possible translations. Let's see a couple of examples, noting the inclusion of the word atraer (to attract), which also functions like gustar.

 

no me atraen ni me interesan...

they neither attract me nor interest me...

Caption 8, Enanitos Verdes Amores Lejanos

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si les interesa saber cómo es la cumbia, en Yabla pueden encontrar un video

if you're interested in knowing what cumbia is like, you can find a video on Yabla

Captions 90-91, Cleer y Lida El Carnaval de Barranquilla - Part 2

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7. Molestar (to bother)

Since the English verb "to bother" works much like the Spanish molestar, the translations for sentences with the verb molestar plus an indirect object pronoun should seem pretty straightforward for English speakers. 

 

¿Por qué te molestan tanto?

Why do they bother you so much?

Caption 3, Guillermina y Candelario La Peluqueria del Mar - Part 2

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¡No, no me molestas para nada! -Adiós.

No, you don't bother me at all! -Goodbye.

Caption 48, Yago 9 Recuperación - Part 1

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8. Parecer (to seem/seem like/think)

In our first example below, a more literal translation would be "it seems cool to them." However, "to think" is a very common translation for parecer(le) a alguien (to seem to someone). For more on the verb parecer, check out Clase Aula Azul's seven-part series on El verbo parecer as well as Doctora Consejo's video on Parecer y parecerse.

 

Están muy interesados en la música, les parece chévere.

They're very interested in the music, they think it's cool.

Caption 54, Cleer Entrevista a Lila

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¿Te parezco una mujer?

Do I seem like a woman to you?

Caption 29, Muñeca Brava 8 Trampas - Part 1

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9. Preocupar (to worry)

When you want to talk about "being worried" or "worrying" yourself, the reflexive verb preocuparse (to worry) is the one to choose. But in the case that something worries you, the verb preocupar plus an indirect object pronoun can help you to describe this. 

 

Sí, te preocupa. -¿A mí qué me preocupa? -¿Morena?

Yes, it worries you. -What worries me? -Morena?

Caption 32, Yago 9 Recuperación - Part 4

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para hablarles de un tema que parece del pasado pero que nos preocupa a todos en el presente.

to talk to you about a topic that seems [to be] from the past but which concerns us all in the present.

Captions 28-29, La Sub30 Familias - Part 1

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10. Quedar (to have left)

In literal terms, quedar plus an indirect object pronoun can be thought of as "what remains" or "is left for" someone or something. Let's take a look at this verb in action:

 

Como: Todavía me queda tiempo.

Like: I still have time.

Caption 110, Escuela BCNLIP Clase con Javi: el futuro - Part 10

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todavía nos quedan muchos más prefijos para ver.

we still have a lot more prefixes left to look at.

Caption 52, Carlos explica Los prefijos en español - Part 4

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Note that this very same verb can also refer to how something "looks on" or "fits" someone when accompanied by adjectives such as bien, mal, grande, etc. 

 

Que me pasa a mí es que los guantes siempre me quedan grandes.

What happens to me is that the gloves are always too big for me.

Caption 78, 75 minutos Del campo a la mesa - Part 5

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With this final example, we conclude our list of Yabla's Top Ten Verbs Like Gustar. While these are just a handful of the many verbs that function like gustar in Spanish, we hope that this lesson has aided your understanding of how they work and look forward to your suggestions and comments.

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Gustar vs. "To Like": A Difference in Perception - Part 2

In the first part of this lesson, we focused on the difference in perception in English versus Spanish when it comes to expressing the concept of "liking." Although in English, the subject of a sentence (the person, place, thing, or idea who performs the action of the sentence's verb) is perceived to "perform the action" of "liking" onto the object of the sentence (the receiver of the action, or "what is being liked"), in Spanish, the opposite is true. Let's review this concept with a simple example:

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Me gustan mucho las ciudades.

I really like cities.

Caption 58, Carlos y Cyndy - Uso del Voseo en Argentina

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In English, "I" is the subject and "cities" is the object because "I" am the person who performs the action of liking upon "cities." In Spanish, on the other hand, las ciudades (the cities) are the subject that are thought to "cause" the implied object "yo" (I) to like them. As this functions similarly to the English verb "to please," it is useful to keep in mind the alternative translation "Cities really please me" when thinking about this and other sentences with gustar. 

 

Armed with this information, let's explore how to create and understand Spanish sentences with this verb. First off, how do we express in Spanish the English concept of who or what is "doing the liking"? In other words, how would one say, "I like" or "you like" or "they like," etc.? In order to do this, Spanish employs the following indirect object pronouns with the verb gustar as follows:

 

        -(A mí) me gusta/n: I like.

        -(A ti) te gusta/n: You like.

        -(A él/ella/usted) le gusta/n: He/She/You like(s).

        -(A nosotros/as) nos gusta/n: We like.

        -(A vosotros/as) os gusta/n: You (all) like.

        -(A ellos/ellas/ustedes) les gusta/n: They like/You (all) like.

 

Let's take a look at some examples:

 

Y aquí tengo una blusa que me gusta.

And I have here a blouse that I like.

Caption 6, Ana Carolina - Salir de compras

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Muy bien, ¿te gusta esa música?

Great, do you like that music?

Caption 63, Carlos y Cyndy - Comentario sobre Muñeca Brava

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A nosotras nos gustan los colores del arcoíris.

We like the colors of the rainbow.

Caption 10, Español para principiantes - Los colores

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Note that, while in the third example, A nosotras was included before nos gustan, this is completely optional, and we could have written simply, Nos gustan los colores del arcoíris (We like the colors of the rainbow) to mean exactly the same thing. In fact, all such "a phrases" (a , a ti, a vosotros, etc.) indicated in parentheses above serve to add emphasis but do not change the meaning of sentences with gustar.

 

Now that we have learned how to indicate or know who or what is "doing the liking," let's focus on how to conjugate the verb gustar, which we will do in accordance with "what is being liked." Let's revisit the previous examples, as well as their alternative translations, to better understand this: 

 

Y aquí tengo una blusa que me gusta. 

And I have here a blouse that I like.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION: And I have here a blouse that pleases me

 

Muy bien, ¿te gusta esa música

Great, do you like that music?

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION: Great, and does that music please you? 

 

A nosotras nos gustan los colores del arcoíris

We like the colors of the rainbow.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION: The colors of the rainbow please us. 

 

Notice that, since "what is being liked" is the subject that performs the action in Spanish, in the aforementioned examples, we see gustar conjugated in the third person singular (gusta) in the cases where the subject is singular (esa músical"that music" and una blusa/"a blouse") and third person plural (gustan) in the cases where the subject is plural (los colores del arcoíris/"the colors of the rainbow"). Similarly, the verb "to please" is conjugated in accordance with said subjects in English. 

 

What if, on the other hand, "what's liked" comes in the form of a verb's infinitive? In that case, the third person singular form of gustar should be utilized:

 

Y... aparte de... de la música, me gusta patinar.

And... apart from... from music, I like to skate.

Caption 14, Zoraida - Lo que gusta hacer

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While in all of the aforementioned examples, the verb gustar has been conjugated in either third person singular or plural, there are cases in which the subject calls for a diffrent conjugation. Let's take a look:

 

Me gustas.

I like you.

Porque sí.

Just because.

-Tú también me gustas mucho.

-I like you a lot too.

Captions 44-46, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 4

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ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION: You please me. Just because. -You please me too. 

 

Since the subject "being liked" is tú (you), gustar is conjugated in the second person singular: gustas, and the alternative translation "You please me" can again help us to grasp this construction. Let's examine a couple of additional examples:

 

A este chico le gusto mucho.

That guy likes me a lot.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION: I please that guy a lot. 

 

A ustedes les gustamos mucho. 

You guys like us a lot.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION: We please you guys a lot. 

 

As always, the verb gustar is conjugated in agreement with the Spanish sentences' subjects: yo/"I" (in the first person singular gusto) and nosotros/"we" (in the first person plural gustamos). 

 

Let's conclude with one final example: 

 

Y la directora de la biblioteca me dijo

And the director of the library told me

que el texto había gustado mucho.

that [people] had liked the text a lot.

Captions 48-49, Aprendiendo con Carlos - El microrrelato

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ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION: and the director of the library told me that the text had pleased [people] a lot. 

 

Once again, gustar has been conjugated in the third person singular as había gustado (this time in the past perfect) in agreement with what is being liked: el texto (the text). However, the absence of an indirect object pronoun to specify who or what is "doing the liking" gives us the essence that the text is generally pleasing, in other words: people liked it. 

​We hope that these lessons have helped to shed some light on how to use/understand the verb gustar, which might initially seem daunting to English speakers. That's all for today, and don't forget to leave us your comments and suggestions.

Spanish Punctuation: 8 Simple Rules for Writing Better

Spanish punctuation may seem difficult if you are just learning the language. However, if you keep in mind the following rules, you will definitely improve your writing and the use of punctuation in Spanish.

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1. Learn the names of the basic punctuation signs in Spanish

 

  1. Punto (Period)
  2. Coma (Comma)
  3. Punto y coma (Semicolon)
  4. Dos puntos (Colon)
  5. Comillas (Quotation marks)
  6. Signo de interrogación (Question mark)
  7. Signo de exclamación (Exclamation point)
  8. Paréntesis (Parentheses)
  9. Corchetes (Square brackets)

 

2. Remember that question marks and exclamation points are always double-sided

In Spanish, you always need to use opening and closing punctuation. Keep this in mind especially for question marks and exclamation points.

 

a. Question marks ¿?

 

¿Qué más cosas hay en el sueño?

What other things are there in the dream?

Caption 15, El Aula Azul - La Doctora Consejos: Hay y estar

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b. Exclamation points ¡!

 

¡Todo el mundo paga para que lo escuchen!

Everyone pays for them to listen to you!

Caption 45, Yago - 14 La peruana

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c. Parentheses () 

 

d. Square brackets []

 

D.A.S. [Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad].

A.D.S [Administrative Department of Security].

Caption 28, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capitulo 4 - Part 10

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e. Quotation marks " "

 

3. Never put a period after a question mark or an exclamation point

After a question mark or exclamation point, you can put any punctuation mark except a period.

 

4. Use capital letters after a closing punctuation mark that's at the end of a statement

 

¡Acompáñame! Este recorrido inicia en la Calle Doctor Coss.

Join me! This tour begins at Doctor Coss Street.

Captions 5-6, Paseando con Karen - Canal Santa Lucía

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5. Avoid punctuation marks before an opening parenthesis

Don't put a comma or semicolon before an opening parenthesis. However, feel free to put those marks after the closing parenthesis.

 

6. Put a period after a closing quotation mark

If you want to put a period at the end of a sentence that is between quotations marks, you need to put the period after the closing quotation mark.

 

La cita de hoy es de Aldous Huxley y dice así:

Today's quote is by Aldous Huxley and goes like this:

"Todos los hombres son dioses para su perro".

"To his dog, every man is Napoleon" [literally "To their dog, all men are gods].

Captions 8-10, Los casos de Yabla - El perrito malcriado

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7. Use lower case after a colon

Unless you are quoting something (as in the example we mentioned for rule 6) or writing a particular document (e.g. a letter), you always need to use lower case after a colon.

 

Luego tendrá usted que rellenar un formulario

Then you will have to fill out a form

con las siguientes cuestiones: país de recogida, ciudad de recogida.

with the following questions: country of pickup, city of pickup.

Captions 14-16, Raquel - Alquiler de coche

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8. Use lower case if there is a comma or semicolon before an opening question mark or exclamation point

 

Sí, Zárate, ¿qué pasó?

Yes, Zarate, what happened?

Caption 20, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capitulo 4 - Part 12

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There are many more rules regarding punctuation in Spanish. However, we invite you to keep in mind the rules we just mentioned here because that way you'll certainly improve your writing in Spanish. And don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions.