How is "le" translated in "Le tenía planes"?
1
vote
The title of an online news article this morning was "Obama quería vivo a Osama Bin Laden. Le tenía planes."
Obama wanted OBL alive.
I am having trouble translating the second part "Le tenía planes" because I am not sure about "le" in this sentence.
He (Obama) had plans for him (OBL)?
964 views
updated Oct 7, 2012
posted by cdunn3
.. for him.. . He had made plans for him, he had planned something ( nasty) for him.. - annierats, Oct 6, 2012
1 Answer
1
vote
Le tenía planes sounds like a literal translation from "He had plans for him". It sounds awkward. Instead, you can say:
Tengo grandes planes para ti (I have great plans for you). So, in your case, I'd say: "Obama le tenía algo preparado a Bin Laden" or "Lo tenía en la mira" (He was targeting him). You could also use "Le tenía en la mira", but "le" is used more in Spain. Its excessive use has been labelled as "Leísmo".
I hope this helps.
updated Oct 7, 2012
edited by francobollo
posted by francobollo
Thanks francbollo. Your explanation sheds some light. Still unclear about the usage of "le" here. If it is "for him" then "para él" makes sense to me. Why use the "le" which implies to me "to him"? - cdunn3, Oct 6, 2012
Le should not be use with "tener planes"... Tener planes (para) is what you need. So there's no room for a construction using le. - francobollo, Oct 6, 2012
Once again, thanks francobollo ;0) - cdunn3, Oct 7, 2012
