What is wrong with these sentences?

Question

Hello. I wrote the following sentences in an essay, and my Spanish teacher said there were several words missing/wrong words used.

"Porque mi padre estaría ocupado jugando béisbol, mi abuela vino para ayudar a mi madre a cuidar (add a word?) a mi hermana y (add a word?) yo (use different/equivalent word?)."

I was trying to say - Because my father was occupied playing baseball, my grandmother came to help my mother take care of my sister and I.

and

"Entonces mi abuela y mi madre (add a word?) mantuvieron mi hermana y (add a word?) y yo (equivalent/different word) adentro."

I was trying to say - Then my grandmother and mother kept my sister and I inside.

So it appears to be the same type of mistake in both sentences? I can't figure it out. Any help is appreciated, thanks.

Answer 1

Hi, Jonka. I think that the missing word in the first sentence is the suffix "nos", the second missing word must be the preposition "a" and the equivalent word must be "mí". Therefore, the sentence would be like this: "Porque mi padre estaría ocupado jugando béisbol, mi abuela vino para ayudar a mi madre a cuidarnos a mi hermana y a mí"

The second sentence would be this way: "Entonces mi abuela y mi madre nos mantuvieron a mi hermana y a mí adentro."

Personally, I wouldn't express myself in the same way you do, instead I'd rather say: "Como mi papa estaba ocupado jugando béisbol, mi abuela vino para ayudar a mi madre a cuidarnos a mi hermana y a mí, y no nos dejaron salir." But it doesn't matter if you say it that way, because finally you could be clearly understood, although it would sound like you're not a spanish native speaker. I think that the most important thing is to be clear in the ideas you want to express, no matter if this is not the way that spanish speakers would say the same. Greetings from México.

Thank you! For an English speaker, it sounds strange to say my sister and me (mi hermana y mi) compared to my sister and I (y yo). But that is probably what my teacher meant. Thank you for your help! - JonKa, Mar 7, 2012

JonKa, your English sentence should actually say "my sister and me" also, as you are dealing with the "object" of the sentence, not the "subject". - ciscocaja, Mar 7, 2012

Imagine that you are talking about just you without your sister. Then decide whether "I" or "me" should be used. - ciscocaja, Mar 7, 2012

Also. I think maybe the word your teacher would like to see after cuidar is "de", but I'm not sure. - ciscocaja, Mar 7, 2012

The preposition "de" can be written after the verb "cuidar", so it woud say: "cuidar de nosotros", but both ways are completly correct. - MiguelRF, Mar 8, 2012

Thank you. I was unsure about that part. - ciscocaja, Mar 8, 2012

Thank you for answering this question, Miguel! - sanlee, Mar 17, 2012

Answer 2

I'll take a swing at it

Porque mi padre estaba ocupado jugando al béisbol, mi abuela vino para ayudar a mi madre a cuidar(nos) a mi hermana y yo a mí.

I'm not sure what things your teacher saw wrong. The only things that stood out to me were the tense of "estar" and "al béisbol".

Entonces mi abuela y mi madre (nos) mantuvieron a mi hermana y yo quedados(?) adentro a mí en el interior.

I don't think what I wrote made any sense, so I'd like to be easy on myself and just say:

Entonces mi abuela y mi madre no nos dejaron salir (de la casa).

Note: I do not proclaim perfection. Open to many corrections.

Thank you for your help. Nos is probably the word I am missing before the verbs in those two spots. But I'm still not sure what she found wrong with "mi hermana y yo" in both sentences. - JonKa, Mar 7, 2012

You're welcome. Honestly, though, I think "nos" at those points is optional since it is an direct pronoun here and you already have "a mi hermana y yo"; both aren't needed unless you want to add emphasis or clarify who "nos" is. - Goldie_Miel, Mar 7, 2012

"a mi hermana y a mí", "nos mantuvieron a mi hermana y a mí en el interior" :) - Cordobesa, Mar 8, 2012

Ah, thanks, Cordobesa. That "a mí" makes much sense (don't know how I missed it). Thanks again. I'd be so lost without your help :o) - Goldie_Miel, Mar 8, 2012