Verbs that do not behave like English

gustar runs backwards, the ending is the pronoun, and two verbs mean "to know".

Some Spanish verbs are not harder than their English equivalents — they are arranged differently, and translating word by word produces sentences that are grammatical nonsense rather than mere mistakes. Yo gusto el café does not mean "I like coffee"; it means you are pleasing the coffee.

Each of these has a single structural insight behind it. Once you see the shape, the whole family of sentences comes with it.

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gustar runs backwardsa1

You do not like things — things please you

Why English speakers get this wrong. Every English speaker starts with "yo gusto" because that is where the subject goes in English. In Spanish the thing being liked is the subject.

The rule: me gusta el café = the coffee pleases me. Plural thing → me gustan.

So the verb agrees with the *thing*, not with you: me gusta el libro, me gustan los libros. To be emphatic you add "a mí": a mí me gusta.

Check yourself

1. Me ___ las películas españolas. — gustanPlural thing, so gustan.
2. A Juan le ___ el fútbol. — gustaOne thing: el fútbol.
3. ¿Te ___ este restaurante? — gustaOne restaurant.
4. No me ___ nada. — gusta"Nada" is singular.
5. Nos ___ mucho viajar. — gustaAn infinitive counts as one thing.

The verb ending is the pronouna1

so the pronoun is usually dropped

Why English speakers get this wrong. English needs "I" because "speak" alone says nothing. Spanish endings already say who, so saying "yo" every time sounds like you are insisting it was you.

The rule: hablo = I speak. Say "yo hablo" only for contrast or emphasis.

It also means the ending has to be right: "yo tiene" is not a small slip, it is a sentence with two different people in it.

Check yourself

1. Yo ___ al cine los viernes. — voyyo → voy.
2. Nosotros ___ en Madrid. — vivimosnosotros → -imos.
3. Ellos ___ mucho café. — bebenellos → -en.
4. ¿Tú ___ la respuesta? — sabestú → sabes.

Verbs that turn on themselvesa2

me levanto, se llama, nos vemos

Why English speakers get this wrong. English says "I get up" and hides the reflexive. Spanish states it, and the pronoun changes with the person.

The rule: me / te / se / nos / os / se, in front of the conjugated verb.

Some verbs change meaning entirely: ir = to go, irse = to leave. dormir = to sleep, dormirse = to fall asleep. That is not a nuance, it is a different verb.

Check yourself

1. ___ llamo Carlos. — meFirst person: me.
2. ¿Cómo ___ llamas? — teSecond person: te.
3. Los niños ___ acuestan tarde. — seThird person plural: se.
4. Nosotros ___ vemos mañana. — nosFirst person plural: nos.

saber vs conocera2

two kinds of knowing

Why English speakers get this wrong. English has one "know" for facts, skills and people. Spanish splits facts and skills from acquaintance.

The rule: saber = a fact, or how to do something. conocer = to be acquainted with a person, a place, a work.

Sé nadar — I can swim. Conozco Madrid — I have been there, I know it. You never "sabes" a person.

Check yourself

1. ___ hablar francés. — séA skill: saber.
2. ¿___ a mi hermana? — conocesA person: conocer.
3. No ___ dónde está. — séA fact: saber.
4. ___ muy bien esta ciudad. — conozcoA place: conocer.

Keep going

Reading a rule is not the same as producing it under time pressure, which is the only thing that makes it stick. Lunosia drills every point on this page, corrects what you say out loud, and brings your own mistakes back days later until you can fix them from memory.

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