Which form of gustar is used and when?
Hola ! I am learning Spanish and now need your help. I am a beginner learner in this amazing language, so please interact me in English. Gustar , which generally means to please, have to forms- gusta and gustan. When are these used and on which exception are they not used? Please help me with a suitable sentence.
4 Answers
Remember that Gustar is an impersonal verb which means it's not conjugated according to the object, but it's conjugted according to the subject, so that regardless of the person(s) who is talking and the related pronoun you use (me, te, le, nos, os ,les), you always use the third person singluar of the verb (gusta) or the third person plural of the verb (gustan) depening on whether the subject is singular or plural. Examples:
- Me gusta cantar. (subject is singular)
- Nos gusta el cine. (subject is plural)
- Me gustan las manzanas. (subject is singular)
- Les gustan los deportes. (subject is plural)
And this works for all tenses of the verb. Examples:
In preterit: Me gustó montar en bici / Te gustaron las manzanas.
In Imperfect: Nos gustaba jugar fútbol / Me gustaban mis vecinos.
.... etc.
Gustar is one of those words in Spanish that works opposite of the subject-verb-object (SVO) format to which English-speakers are accustomed. "Gustar" means "is pleasing to," and is formed so that the subject of gustar may precede or follow the verb and the verb and subject agree number. English speakers consider gustar to mean "likes" but it works a bit differently than "like." Here is SD's video on gustar and gustar-like words.
Here are some very simple examples:
I like milk. Me gusta la leche.
In the above English sentence, "I" is a subject pronoun and "milk" is the direct object. In its Spanish equivalent, indirect object pronouns (me, te, nos, os, le, les) are used as the object, while the subject is what follows the verb gustar. And like all verbs, gustar must agree in plurality with the subject, viz:
I like the book. Me gusta el libro. "El libro" is singular, and so is "gusta" to match it.
I like books. Me gustan los libros. "Los libros" are plural here and so the form of gustar required is "gustan".
You can also follow the conjugated form of "gustar" with an infinitive to indicate that a certainly activity or action is pleasing or not pleasing to you.
You like to play soccer. Te gusta jugar al fútbol.
You like to play soccer; soccer enchants us Nos encanta jugar al futbol.
She has a headache. (Literally: Her head hurts her
A ella le duele la cabeza.
She likes flowers. A ella le gustan las flores.
We stay here. Nos quedé aquí.
Other verbs like "gustar" are: aburrir to bore
aparecer(se) to appear
bastar to be sufficient
caer bien (mal) to (not) suit. (No me cae bien el nuevo maestro. The new teacher doesn't agree with me.)
dar asco to be loathsome
disgustar to hate something
doler (o:ue) to be painful
faltar to be lacking something
fascinar to be fascinating to
importar to be important to
interesar to be interesting to
molestar to be a bother
parecer to appear to be
picar to itch
quedar to be left over, remain
volver (o:ue) loco to be crazy about
Gustar (despite its unusual construction) works just like any other verb in Spanish, in other words, it is conjugated according to the number and person of the verb's subject and inflected to show tense or mood.
A mi profesor le gusta cantar.
Cantar (singing) is the subject of the sentence so the verb is conjugated as 3rd person, singular just as any other verb would be.
The A mi profesor le.....has nothing to do with conjugating the verb.
And gustar has more the two forms (gusta and gustan). It is not a defective verb, nor does it only exist in the present tense of the indicative mood.
I am only a beginner in Spanish myself, so the extent of my ability to help is limited. However, for starters, I recommend you take a look HERE to see all of the possible conjugations for "gustar".
