Questions tagged [pronombres]
Uso de pronombres (palabras cuyo referente no es fijo, sino determinado por el contexto u otros sustantivos ya usados en la frase). // Use of pronouns (words that refer to another noun previously mentioned in the sentence or inferred from the context).
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Question words: "qué" versus "cuál"
English
Often "qué" is translated to English as "what" and "cuál" is translated as "which." However, I know that this is not always the case. Here are some examples. (Please correct me if I am wrong.)...
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¿Cuál es la diferencia entre tú, usted y vos?
He oído las palabras "tú", "usted", y "vos", pero la traducción de todas esas palabras al inglés es la misma: "you".
¿Cuándo es mejor usar "tú" o "vos" en vez de "usted", o viceversa?
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How do I ask someone not to call me "usted"?
Suppose you're in a situation where you have a formal/business relationship with someone, but the relationship has become more familiar over time. The other person continues to call you usted. How ...
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'Vos' vs 'tú' usage by country
I lived for a while in Bolivia, and I noticed some people used "vos" instead of "tú" as the second person familiar singular pronoun. Which countries use "vos" instead of "tú", and are there any that ...
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All about datives, or: What's that funny "le" or "me" doing in there?
This is a canonical question / Esta es una pregunta canónica
This is a canonical question and answer about dative uses of le, les, me, nos, se, te and os that often confuse and confound the Spanish ...
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What does "lo" in "(no) lo es" refer to?
English:
In this sentence, for example:
El dinero no lo es todo en la vida.
What does this "lo" refer to?
Can it be omitted ("El dinero no es todo")?
Español:
En esta frase, por ejemplo:
El ...
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How do I know whether to attach a direct object pronoun to the infinitive?
I often struggle to decide what sounds right when I need to use direct object pronouns. Lessons on these pronouns have not been much help because they teach that when using a direct object pronoun it ...
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When should I use the word 'yo' in a sentence where the verb conjugation already shows that I am the subject?
Early on while I was learning Spanish, my teachers would always make us use the pronoun 'yo' even if it was redundant:
Yo pienso que...
Yo quiero...
Yo hablo...
etc.
However, a more advanced ...
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Why is "Usted" grammatically a third person?
In English polite form of address is "You" which is second person singular and plural. In Russian it is "Вы" which is plural second person.
In Spanish (and probably French and Italian) polite address ...
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What is the role of the "le" in the sentence "Miguel le dio a su novia un anillo."?
The sentence:
Miguel le dio a su novia un anillo.
Translates into:
Miguel gave a ring to his girlfriend.
I would think that there would be no need for the "le", since the direct object (...
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What is the etymology of the pronoun "usted"? What formal pronouns existed before?
What is the etymology of the pronoun "usted"? What formal pronouns existed before, and when did the current "usted" come into existence?
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When is "ello" used?
A long time ago in Spanish class, we were taught that "it" was literally ello but is rarely translated that way. I was thinking about the word recently, and realized I don't know if I've ever (at ...
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Are there regions or dialects which use both "tú" and "vos"?
In my experience most places use either "tú" or "vos" for the second person singular intimate/informal pronoun.
But I haven't been to every Spanish speaking country and area. Are there places which ...
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¿Cómo se pronunciaban infinitivos ligados a pronombres con doble ele?
En el Quijote hay varios ejemplos de infinitivos ligados a pronombres con doble ele:
...jurando de ir a buscar al valeroso don Quijote de la Mancha y contalle punto por punto lo que había pasado...
.....
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Why is Usted sometimes abbreviated as Vd. instead of Ud.? Is there any difference in usage between the two?
I've noticed that the word Usted can be abbreviated at least 2 ways, the most common of which being Ud. and Vd. to my knowledge. I see how Ud. makes perfect sense, but why is a V used instead of a U ...
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¿Por qué los españoles usan la palabra "vosotros" pero los latinoamericanos no?
Soy un estudiante de español en los Estados Unidos de America. En mi clase, mi maestra enseñó que los españoles usan la palabra "vosotros" para situaciones informales, pero los ...
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Why "a ti" and not just "ti"
I am very much a beginner when it comes to learning Spanish. I have turned my language settings for Facebook from English to Spanish so that I see the language regularly and I have noticed that the ...
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¿Existen las palabras «nosotras» y «vosotras»?
¿Es posible usar nosotras o vosotras? Nunca las he oido, pero pienso que tal vez son como ellas, pero para la primera y segunda personas del plural, respectivamente. ¿Han oido ustedes estas palabras?
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Are there any non-binary pronouns or neopronouns in Spanish?
Is there any existing or proposed third-person singular pronoun that, unlike "él" or "ella", does not necessarily specify the sex of the person referred to? (I understand that nobody wants to be ...
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Is Spain the only country that uses "vosotros" for "you all"?
Is Spain the only country that uses vosotros for you all (informal) instead of ustedes? (In the second-person perspective). Examples:
Spain: Vosotros sois inteligentes.
Other (?): Ustedes sois ...
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What is the grammatical explanation of "sí" in "entre sí"?
This means "they" mix together (or each other):
mezclan entre sí
In my knowledge, sí is to acknowledge or affirm. Please explain the effect or function of sí in this case. Does it create "mutual" ...
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If someone asks a question using “quién”, how can one shortly respond?
In English, if someone asks, for example
Who is here?
one can respond with an object pronoun, like “me”, “her”, “us”, etc.
In Spanish, if someone asks
¿Quién está aquí?
One can say “Yo estoy ...
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What is the correct order of object pronouns?
I know that there are (at least) three types of personal pronouns in Spanish (well, and English): direct, indirect, and reflexive. In cases where all three (or at least two) are present, what is the ...
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If "dar" means "to give", what does "daros" mean?
In the sentence, "Queremos daros una pequeño parte para el viaje a España" (from Olly Richards' Short Stories in Spanish for Beginners, Volume 1) what is the "os" in "daros" for, if "dar" means "to ...
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What is "le" referring to in "preguntarle a las personas"?
In the sentence
Vamos a preguntarle a las personas
what is the "le" referring to specifically in "preguntarle"? I thought the pronoun refers to the direct object (in this case, the people). So ...
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Using 'le' vs 'se' pronoun
I have these two sentences from my book, one is using le and another one is using se:
Esa camiseta no le queda bien a Luisa.
Clara nunca se pinta los labios ni los ojos.
I believe both se and le in ...
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Why does "hay" have no pronoun?
The Spanish word hay means there is/are, however it comes from the present indicative impersonal third-person for of the verb haber.
When constructing most impersonal phrases such as "one must" - "...
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Conmigo, contigo, consigo... connusco, convusco?
In addition to the pronouns conmigo, contigo, consigo there are the antiquated forms connusco, and convusco.
These forms have been seen as outdated since at least as far back as 16111, having competed ...
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Indirect object and "le"
La madre le lava la cara a la niña.
In that sentence, why is the word "le" there? The sentence already has a indirect object ("a la niña"), but removing the "le" makes the sentence to sound unnatural....
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Personal pronouns: When to hook at the end of verb and when to keep separate?
I am learning Spanish with the Michel Thomas Method.
I am a bit confused with when to put 'lo' at the start of a phrase and when to hook it on to the verb. For example:
Why can't you do it that way? ¿...
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¿Por qué se usa la forma "tú" en publicidades en vez de "usted"?
Muchas veces he encontrado publicidades que usan la forma tú como lo siguiente:
Yo pienso que que estaría mejor usar la forma usted, porque es mas formal y profesional (en mi opinión).
¿Quizás no ...
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"Leísmo de cortesía" and consistency
I've read about the "leísmo de cortesía" i.e. the use of "le" and "les" as direct object pronouns when referring to a person or group you are addressing formally.
Most of my learning resources never ...
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Redundant indirect object pronoun: is "le" redundant in "preguntémosle al estúpido / a él"?
This is a canonical question / Esta es una pregunta canónica
In a movie scene from "Revenge" ("La Venganza", 1990, with Kevin Costner) the character Tiburón Méndez was discussing ...
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Is it regular grammar to use pronoun 'él' as 'it'?
Given this sentence:
Pero no era un silencio del todo incómodo. En él se hicieron amigos.
'Él' refers to 'un silencio', if I am not mistaken. Is it just regular grammar, or something special? ...
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What's the difference between "ti" and "te"?
I've heard both "ti" and "te" in learning Spanish, and I don't understand the difference.
"Ti" I've heard in:
¿Y a ti?
and "te" I've heard in
¿Te gusta ___?
So what's the difference in how ...
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In a declarative statement, why would you put a subject pronoun at the end of a sentence or verb phrase?
I was recently doing another Instituto Cervantes activity when I came across the following dialogue:
¿Y no quieres también un pantalón?
No, lo prefiero comprar yo.
And don't you also want a pair of ...
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Is it idiomatic to use a noun as the apparent subject of a first person plural?
I feel I must have heard this but am now not sure. Can I say
Los ancianos vivimos en regiones litorales
assuming I am old myself of course. Possible options which occur to me
Nosotros ancianos ...
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Agreeing with the complement not the subject: esto son, eso son, lo mejor son
There are times in Spanish when a linking verb agrees in number not with its subject but with its predicate complement.
Lo mejor de la televisión son los avisos.
La mejor televisión son los avisos.
...
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Convention for group-recited, gender-specific, self-referencing pronouns
What convention (or conventions) exist for words that are recited by a group of people, but refer to oneself using gender-specific pronouns? The most common context is probably group worship in a ...
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Is the use of two "que" in a row sanctioned by the RAE?
I just came across this sentence. Notice the two "que" in the beginning:
Y es que que la lengua obligue constantemente a escoger palabras y terminaciones que conllevan un género social que no se ...
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When is the indirect object pronoun required in sentences with an indirect object?
Spanish
¿Cuándo son necesarios en una frase los pronombres indirectos y cuándo son opcionales? Creo que aprendí en el colegio que se requieren siempre (por ejemplo, "le dije a ella que..." es ...
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Redundancia en el complemento directo
Un conocido está estudiando español y no he sido capaz de encontrar una respuesta más o menos buena a esto.
Pongamos un par de ejemplos:
El pan lo compré ayer
Ayer compré el pan
Todo ...
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Where did using "un servidor" to address yourself come from? / De donde se origina la costumbre de llamerse a sí mismo "un servidor"?
I've heard from many Spanish-speakers now that when they talk about themselves, they use the phrase "un servidor" instead of "yo" or "mi." I have always thought of the English equivalent of the phrase ...
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Is the sentence "La pelota es roja. La niña juega con la" correct?
I've been thinking about this a lot:
La pelota es roja. La niña juega con la.
As far as I can tell, the second sentence is correct, with "la" being the direct object pronoun. But the sentence ...
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Why is the tú after the verb in "Prepara tú el café"?
In the sentence, "Prepara tú el café, yo los voy sirviendo" why is the tú after the verb?
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Syntax of the sentence ''Me voy''
"Me voy" means "I'm leaving". The subject of the verb "voy" is "yo" and it is omitted.
Is the reflexive pronoun "me" the object of the verb? And if so, why is it essential to use "me" when the ...
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How do you use the "passive se" with a reflexive verb?
What is the rule for using the "passive se" (e.g. "¿Cómo se dice?") with a reflexive verb that involves another se pronoun? For example, how would you translate "One takes a shower (ducharse) ...
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Etymology of "nada" and "nadie"
In English, the words to describe the total absence of anything or anybody (and other similar meanings) are nothing and nobody, whose etymologies are quite direct: "no thing" or "not any thing" and ...
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Pronoun placement in "La Compuerta Número 12" [duplicate]
In "La Compuerta Número 12" by Baldomero Lillo some pronouns are placed on the end of the verb rather than before it. Why aren't the pronouns placed before the verb? Is it an older style and if so ...
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What is the meaning of "que" and "cual" without an accent mark?
What does "que" and "cual" mean without an accent mark? How do they compare when to each other? How do they compare to their accent-marked form?
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