Like and dislike
¡Hola!
I watched lesson 1.6. I'm from the Czech Republic and my English isn't very good. "I like to dance" is the same like "I like dancing"? - Me gusta bailar. There is verb gustar and it's endening on -ar, so why not gusto but gusta? And in question ¿Qué te gusta hacer? (It's mean - What do you want to do. -, isn't it?) is also gusta but what about gustas - it's 2nd person. I'm out ![]()
5 Answers
In English, the following sentences are correct:
I like the room.
We like the books.
Examine the same sentences more closely:
I like the room.
I = subject of sentence
like = verb
the room = direct object
We like the books.
We = subject of sentence
like = verb
the books = direct object
In English, it is correct to construct a sentence that has the subject "liking" a direct object. In Spanish, this never occurs. In Spanish, a different construction is used.
English: I like the room.
Spanish: The room is pleasing to me.
English: We like the books.
Spanish: The books are pleasing to us.
The first thing you need to notice is that both versions really mean the same thing. They are merely different expressions of the same idea.
Idea: My feelings with regard to the book are positive.
English Way: I like the book.
Spanish Way: The book is pleasing to me.
The second thing to notice is that in English, the subject of the sentence is the person (I, we) while in Spanish the subject of the sentence is the object (room, books).
The room is pleasing to me.
Subject: The room
I like the room.
Subject: I
Finally notice that while the English sentence has a direct object, the Spanish sentence has an indirect object.
The room is pleasing to me. me = Indirect Object
I like the room. room = Direct Object
Let's study the following example:
Me gustan los libros.
Literal Translation: To me are pleasing the books.
Actual Translation: I like the books.
Notice that gustar is conjugated as "gustan" not "gusto." A common mistake is to say "Me gusto los libros." This is incorrect because the subject of the sentence is "los libros" even though it comes at the end. Remember, the verb is conjugated to agree with the subject of the sentence.
Me gustan los libros. (I like the books.)
Notice that the conjugation of gustar changes to "gusta" when the subject of the sentence is singular.
Me gusta el libro. (I like the book.)
Since the subject of the sentence must be either singular (book) or plural (books), the only forms of gustar you will use are "gusta" and "gustan." This is true regardless of what IO pronoun appears in the sentence.
Me gusta el libro.
I like the book.
Te gusta el libro.
You like the book.
Nos gusta el libro.
We like the book.
Me gustan los libros.
I like the books.
Te gustan los libros.
You like the books.
Nos gustan los libros.
We like the books.
Remember, gustar becomes either gusta or gustan, depending upon whether the subject of the sentence is singular or plural. It has nothing to do with which IO pronoun is used.
Subject is singular - use gusta
Me gusta el libro.
Te gusta el libro.
Subject is plural - use gustan
Me gustan los libros.
Te gustan los libros.
Remember, the IO pronoun is not the subject of the sentence!
Nos gustamos ... incorrect!
Te gustas ... incorrect!
Tomiik, I think that "gustar" is used like "líbit se" in Czech. "I like dancing" is constructed like "Líbí se mi tanec" (I'm not sure whether this is correct, but hopefully you get the idea), not "líbím se tanec".
The reason that you do not say gusto, and gustas, etc, is because gustar is actually the verb that means to please. Therefore, you are saying, "dancing pleases me" (me gusta bailar) and "dancing pleases you" (te gusta bailar) and so on. Verbs are conjugated to the subject and in this sentence you are not the subject, dancing is. "To dance" is singular, so gustar becomes "gusta." If the object was plural, it would be "gustan" (me gustan, te gustan, etc).
Am I correct in thinking that gustó is used in past tense?
¿Te gusta la película?
No me gustó la película : I didn´t like the film
For beginning students the "is pleasing to" explanation usually makes the most sense.
gustas...you are pleasing to; not.... you like. Gustar is not a transitive verb as is to like, but is used in intransitive sentences (no direct object). What would be the direct object in an English to like transitive sentence is the subject in the Spanish intransitive sentence.