I just want to make sure I am doing this right?

Question

The title of my essay is "My Parents Wouldn't Let Me Go..." I translated it to "Mis padres no me dejan ir..." is that correct?

Hello, welcome to the forum! - rac1, Dec 4, 2012

Answer 1

I think that "Mis padres no me dejarían ir" (condicional simple) could fit better with that you want to say, but a person more experienced in English could help better than me.

Creo que está bien tu propuesta. - francobollo, Dec 4, 2012

"would not" is past tense in English so I would think preterite. - gringojrf, Dec 4, 2012

Answer 2

Caefuego is right if you are using "wouldn´t" in conditional case, but if you are talking about a past event, then "dejaban" or "dejaron" depending on context would be appropriate.

good point JC - Kiwi-Girl, Dec 4, 2012

Supongo que no capté lo que hannnahjackson quería decir. Yo siempre interpreto "would" como condicional o subjuntivo, así que esto podría desbaratar los cimientos de mi entendimiento del inglés. - -cae-, Dec 4, 2012

Don't worry Carlos, you chose the more likely option but as JC mentioned 'would' could be used conditionally in English as well - eg. Why don't you ask your parents if you can go. Nah, they wouldn't let me go. ;) - Kiwi-Girl, Dec 4, 2012

Answer 3

Hello hannah

You are making the translation more difficult for yourself by including the "would" which is a Modal.

"Would" can be used to refer to the past and the future.

Spanish does not have Modals - a good liitle trick is to re-word the sentence.

"My parents did not permit / allow me to go" or "My parents will not permit / allow me to go IF .........

These are easier to translate.

Excellent advice. - gringojrf, Dec 4, 2012