"¿Cuál quieres?" Why not "¿Cuál quiere?" ?

Question

This is a question from a beginning Spanish learner.

"Which ones do you want?" translates to "¿Cuáles quieres?"

However, "Which ONE do you want?" translates to "¿Cuál quieres?

Why isn't the singular "¿Cuál quiere?" ?

Answer 1

Hello, and welcome to the forum. "Which one do you want?" translates to "¿Cuál quieres?" because you are addressing your interlocutor as tú and not Usted. The verb, querer, varies with who is doing the wanting. Cuál varies with how many things are being wanted. In this case, one thing is being wanted, so you use the singular of cuál, and you are talking to someone you address as tú, so you use the tú form of the verb, quieres. So, here are a few examples: "¿Cuál quieres?" means "Which one do you (tú) want?" "¿Cuál quiere?" means "Which one do you (Ud.) want?" "¿Cuáles quieres?" means "Which ones do you (tú) want?" "¿Cuáles quiere?" means "Which ones do you (Ud.) want?"

Answer 2

"Quieres" is the present tense conjugation of the verb "querer" when the subject is "tú" (2nd subject)

"Quiere" is the present tense conjugation of the verb "querer" when the subject is "usted", "él", "ella" (3rd subject)

"Quieres" is not a plural form of "Quiere"

Answer 3

Quiere & Quieres are conjugations for formal & familiar "You" and have nothing to do with Cual & Cuales.

Answer 4

The subject of the verb "quieres" is you, though the pronoun is unwritten in Spanish. Therefore the verb required is the second person (singular here). The "cuál" or "cuáles" is the object of the verb - the thing that you want.

If it were "quiere", it would mean "what does he or she, or you in the polite usted form, want.

Does that make sense? Hope it helps.

Some of this is correct but Querer is the verb,quieres is the verb form conjugated for tú familiar you - FELIZ77, Jun 12, 2010

Quiere can be for He, She and You (polite form) the rest is correct - FELIZ77, Jun 12, 2010

Hi Feliz. Thank you for your comments. However, I am not quite sure where there is a difference between what you have written and what I wrote earlier. Quieres is the tú form (2nd per) and quiere is the él/ella/vd form (3rd per). No? - peregrinamaria, Jun 12, 2010

Sorry if I have misunderstood. Thank you for your help. - peregrinamaria, Jun 12, 2010