Transcript Gustar & Company - Gordon State College

Gustar & Company
You’ve heard and probably used “me gusta” for a
long time. Maybe you’ve even used “me gustan”
and used it correctly. But here you’re going to
get the reason.
Me gusta el gato.-I like the cat.
Me gustan los gatos. -- I like the cats.
Te gusta el perro.
-Te gustan los perros. --
You like the dog.
You like the dogs.
When the thing you like is singular, you use
“gusta.” When the thing you like is plural, you
use “gustan.”
The reason for “gusta” and “gustan” is that you’re
not literally saying, “I like the cat.” What you’re
literally saying is “The cat is pleasing to me.”
Me gusta el gato.
The cat is pleasing to me.
(Good English) I like the cat.
So the thing you like is actually the subject of the
sentence . . .
. . . and the person doing the liking is actually the object.
The INDIRECT object.
Me gusta el gato.
Te gusta el gato.
Le gusta el gato.
Nos gusta el gato.
Os gusta el gato.
Les gusta el gato.
I like the cat.
You like the cat.
He/She likes the cat.
We like the cat.
Y’all like the cat.
They like the cat.
Note that the verb doesn’t change at all. The only thing
that can make the verb change is the thing that’s being
liked:
Le gusta el gato. – He/She likes the cat.
Le gustan los gatos.
-- He/She likes the cats.
Click here to go to a brief practice exercise.
OK, think you have “gustar” nailed down? That’s good, because we have
some similar verbs.
“Encantar” is easy, because it means “love”:
Me gusta la vainilla,
I like vanilla,
pero me encanta el chocolate. but I love chocolate.
“Encantar” actually means “to enchant”:
El chocolate me encanta.
Chocolate enchants me.
(Good English) I love chocolate.
So “encantar” works exactly like “gustar.”
Note: “Encantar” is usually used with things. To love a person is “querer”
or “amar.” “Te quiero” or “Te amo” for “I love you.”
There are a few other verbs that work that way, where what’s the subject in
English is the object in Spanish and what’s the object in English is the
subject in Spanish.
Nos quedan dos semanas.
Literally, two weeks remain to us.
What’s the good English translation for the above sentence?
We have two weeks left.
What would “we have one week left” be?
Nos queda una semana.
You have to use “queda” because “semana” is singular.
How would you say, “I have one week left”?
Me queda una semana.
Now look at this one:
Me falta un dólar.
Literally, One dollar is lacking to me.
What would that be in good English?
I’m short one dollar.
How would you say, “I’m short two dollars”?
Me faltan dos dólares.
You have to say “faltan” because “dólares” is plural, and what you’re literally saying is
“two dollars ARE lacking to me.”
How would you say, “He’s short two dollars”?
Le faltan dos dólares.
Get it?
The long and short of it is that with these four
verbs—gustar, encantar, quedar, and faltar—
what’s the subject in English is the object in
Spanish and vice versa. You have to
remember to make the verb agree with the
thing being liked or loved, or the thing that the
person has left, or the thing that the person is
short.
Click here to go to a brief practice exercise.
Click here to go to your homework.