Ways of expression

Question

I'm having trouble understanding some of the ways things are expressed in Spanish. An example is this: Le tengo miedo. It is said that this means "I'm afraid of him/her". However, "le tengo" = "I have him/her", and "miedo" = "fear", therefore, this "should" translate to "I have his/her fear", which would actually imply the opposite: "he/she fears me". If I were to translate the sentence "I'm afraid of him/her", I would say: "Estoy asustado de el/ella". Can someone please explain to me how the original sentence translates to "I'm afraid of him/her"?

Answer 1

In this context "le tengo" means "to him/her I have". So it is "To him/her I have fear. Which, worded more naturally, is "I am afraid of him/her/it". If you were to include the indirect object you would say "Le tengo miedo a él/ella/eso."

That makes sense, I guess. However, there seems to be no real "indicator" to let you know how to interpret that context. If what you say is true, then "le tengo" can mean BOTH "I have him" AND "to him I have" - ArchLich, Aug 12, 2011

No, "I have him" = "lo tengo". In this case "him" is a direct object. - gintar77, Aug 12, 2011

I thought "le" was just the neutral pronoun? Now I'm even more confused.. I thought there were 3: lo, la, le. Lo=him/it, la=her, le=him/her? - ArchLich, Aug 12, 2011

"Le" is the 3rd person singular **indirect** object pronoun. The 3rd person singular **direct** object pronouns are "lo" and "la". - gintar77, Aug 12, 2011

Brush up on the differences between direct and indirect objects. - gintar77, Aug 12, 2011

Watch a cooking show in Spanish. The food is commonly referred to with 'le'. Ex. Le vamos a poner.... - Jack-OBrien, Aug 12, 2011

Answer 2

The way I have always expressed fear is to say either "me da miedo" or "tengo miedo de él" because these are simpler constructions. (literally "he gives me fear" and "I have fear of him")

I can tell you though that I have never heard "le tengo miedo" so that could just be something I don't know, or that doesn't exist : P Saying "I have his fear" would look more like "tengo el miedo de él" or "tengo su miedo" if I'm correct...

Every translation you gave makes sense. Perhaps "le tengo miedo" is just an extremely weird/rare way of saying it. - ArchLich, Aug 12, 2011

Answer 3

Le tengo miedo. It is said that this means "I'm afraid of him/her". However, "le tengo" = "I have him/her", and "miedo" = "fear", therefore, this "should" translate to "I have his/her fear", which would actually imply the opposite: "he/she fears me".

Interesting comparison, but your analysis is flawed.

You assumed that "le" means "his/her", because in English it works like that. Big mistake! The idea of "being afraid" is still there; the indirect object "le" only points at the thing or person who is most concerned about that, not to the "owner" of the mess.

When you hear "le", you think to yourself: "there is something about him, her or it that concerns me". After "tengo miedo" you just think "I'm afraid". That "le" implicates me. Simple.

I'm still a bit confused, because I've never seen "le" used like that before. Example: "le dije" I told him/her. "I" is implied from the verb conjugation, and "him/her" is implied from the pronoun "le". If I see "le tengo", I think "I have him/her". - ArchLich, Aug 12, 2011

The construction "le dije" is more like "To him/her I said". - gintar77, Aug 12, 2011