"I would say"

Question

Can anyone explain which tense & voice this is in Spanish? Please translate the phrase that's in bold.

Are they rich?

I would say they're comfortable.

Thanks.

A vote for the question that elicited "bosquederoble's" response! - Jubilado, Feb 9, 2013

Answer 1

“Diría que...” as given by Rodneyp is correct.

To more fully explain, this is my opinion of the underlying grammar:

It is part of an implicit “contrary to fact” (don’t read too much into that, it is often used for the merely unlikely or even to mute something more likely) “si” construction:

If X were…. X or Y would…. (the two clauses can go in either order)

Quite frequently the “If I were” part is left unsaid (in both languages).

In Spanish:

A “si + imperfect subjunctive” phrase combined with a “conditional phrase”

So

Well, if you (were to) want my opinion, I would say (that) they’re comfortable.

And of course here we are using it right after the question, so clearly we were asked and there is no “contrary to fact” really involved (why would you ask if you didn’t want my opinion), but we still use that formula, just to make it sound less direct than a bare: “They are comfortable”.

Note in the English we generally drop the part that makes it imperfect subjunctive, if you use that phrase in Spanish you should stick with the imperfect subjunctive.

So, "Si me preguntara, diria que..." es correcto, no? - PeterRS, Feb 9, 2013

Thanks, I think I'm starting to understand. The first part of the answer "I would say" is understood to be "If I were asked", so "I would say" is just in indicative conditional. - PeterRS, Feb 9, 2013

Yes, or "Si me preguntaras" or even "Si se me preguntara" depending on how you wanted to say it. You need "se" to make it impersonal, otherwise it is he/she/Usted. Obviously you would not use that phrase if you were actually asked, just leave it implicit. - bosquederoble, Feb 9, 2013

A most exellent explanation of grammar! - Jubilado, Feb 9, 2013

Gracias, Jubilado. No estoy seguro si debería haber usado "passive" en lugar de "impersonal" porque para mí no me importa la diferencia entre los dos; no soy gramático. - bosquederoble, Feb 9, 2013

Answer 2

I would say... Diría que...

The Conditional tense.

Thanks - PeterRS, Feb 9, 2013

Answer 3

Thanks for the answer and a proper explanation. Since I am learning Spanish, want to know more such things.