Why "se"? And should I be using "nunca"?

Question

¡Mis fines de semana no se pierden!

My weekends are never wasted!

Why is wasted translated as ""se pierden"?

I understand perder = to lose, to waste and that weekends are plural so perder is congugated to third person plural in the present tense. But if "se" is correct I don't understand why.

Also should "no" be "nunca"? - Mis fines de semana nunca se pierden

Answer 1

If you wish to say "are never wasted", then the correct translation is: "nunca se pierden", or even better, "nunca se desperdician".

The use of "se" indicates that the subject "my weekends" (mis fines de semana) never get wasted.

Answer 2

The verb is perderse, hence the inclusion of the reflexive pronoun "se".

Y a mi parecer, está bien tu frase así.

Example of "detransitizing se' waste what? The se removes the what. or passive se. depending on how you want to look at it. There is no distinct verb perderse. It is only perder being used pronominally. - 0074b507, Jan 10, 2011

De acuerdo, en este caso se convierte en un verbo intransitivo el verbo "perder" al añadir el "se". - Deanski, Jan 10, 2011

Answer 3

Hi bandit , I think if this is the machine translator it tends to lead us to wrong answers.

I'd say it as you said like:

¡Nunca son perdidos mis fines de semana!

And if it's said with se it's the impersonal se as you may have guessed. Just because it's passive, the translator makes it se.

This sounds really strange, Culé. The way that Bandit wrote is far more natural (and correct). - Gekkosan, Jan 10, 2011

I don't know, maybe you are right, I think I have to give it a time after I get up and tell spanish speaking people not to call me around my sleeping times. :))) - culé, Jan 10, 2011

That is always a good idea. I know some of my weirdest posts have been perpetrated when I have been tired, or haven't slept enough. :-p - Gekkosan, Jan 10, 2011

More than strange, simply wrong. - lazarus1907, Jan 10, 2011

Yes , that happens, :D thanks lazarus, although I'd already noticed that :p - culé, Jan 10, 2011

Answer 4

I understand perder = to lose, to waste and that weekends are plural so perder is congugated to third person plural in the present tense. But if "se" is correct I don't understand why.

Because if you say it without "se", the sentence is incomplete and meaningless:

¡Mis fines de semana no pierden..... [¿Qué es lo que no pierden tus fines de semana?]

My weekends don't lose..... [what is the thing your weekends don't lose?]