Question about articles and verbs
I'm learning lesson 1.4. Question is: Why we use articles in some cases, and in some don't. For example, 'comen manzanas' and 'come una manzana'. There is an article for plural too. Why we don't use it in this case? And one more: Why we sometimes say 'bebe leche' and sometimes 'bebes jugo', if we are about to say the same thing, that some girl drinks something.
2 Answers
Great question!
Comen manzanas (They eat apples) vs. Comen las manzanas (They eat the apples). The use of the article in the second sentence, makes the statement more specific. You almost need more information when using "las" (Ex. Comen las manzanas verdes, las manzanas que están en la mesa, las manzanas maduras).
In the singular, you can also have variants:
El niño come manzana (It's correct, but seldom used). I would say, "El niño come manzanas" (as opposed to oranges or pears). It doesn't really matter if they boy eats one or 100 apples, you are just making a general statement.
El niño come una manzana (The boy eats an apple, just like in English)
El niño come la manzana (The boy eats the apple, just like in English).
Bebe leche vs. Bebes jugo
Bebe leche can mean two things (He drinks milk or a command (Tú) ¡bebe leche!)
Bebes jugo means "You drink juice."
I hope this helps.
One more question: What 'El nino come unas manzanas' mean?
The boy eats some apples.
