"Lo del subjuntivo"

Question

¡Buenas tardes!

"No me cabe en la cabeza lo del subjuntivo."

I don't quite understand what this sentence means (as an aside, the translation offered by one of the translation tools is hilarious: "I do not fit on the head of the subjunctive."). Caber works the other way round like gustar, no problem. Me is the indirect object pronoun, check, and la cabeza is clear. But what exactly does the "lo del subjuntivo" signify here, what does the pronoun refer to? Thanks!

Answer 1

Yes, the translation engine mistakes en, as in, for en as on. Doesn´t work here,

I think it is saying fairly literally, That of the subjunctive doesn´t fit in my head..

lo, del subjuntivo. it (or that, or stuff) of the subjunctive.

We might say, I can´t get the subjunctive into my head.

Or, I can´t get my hands around the subjunctive.

Or, I just can´t get this subjunctive stuff into my head.

Right, that makes sense. Is it a common expression, "lo/la/etc. de xx" ~ "xx stuff"? - Manity, Mar 21, 2013

You´ll find a lot of ´la´s and Very many ´lo´s in Spanish. Lo mismo, Lo bueno, Lo malo, Lo difícil. The same, The good (part), The bad part about, The hard stuff, etc etc. - rogspax, Mar 21, 2013

When I first started studying Spanish, I was frustrated by their not having a word for ´it´. Over time, you get used to it, and realize they have many, depending on context, including eso, esto, and a lot of ´lo´ constructs. - rogspax, Mar 21, 2013

Awesome, I'll keep this in mind :) - Manity, Mar 21, 2013

Answer 2

No me cabe en la cabeza/No me entra en la cabeza. (=No entiendo, no comprendo)

Is a colloquial expression, used to emphasize the phrase. Is like saying: I can't understand it! It's too much for me.

Thanks, that's useful to know :) - Manity, Mar 21, 2013

Answer 3

"No me cabe en la cabeza lo del subjuntivo."

Translation machines are always good for a giggle when you present them with an idiomatic phrase: "I don´t understand the thing about subjunctive."

Answer 4

lo del subjuntivo = the part of the subjunctive