When is the word "to" translated as "que"?
I'm aware that "I have to go" is translated as "Tengo que irme" or "Me tengo que ir."
I think I've seen "I have something to tell you" translated as "Tengo algo que decirte"; is this correct?
And is the phrase, "I'm going to run to find something to eat" translated as either:
"Voy a correr a encontrar algo a comer",
"Voy a correr para encontrar algo a comer",
or "Voy a correr para encontrar algo para comer",
or should I use "que" instead of one of the "a"s?
Please help! Basically what I'm asking is how do I know when to use "que" or "a" instead of "to".
2 Answers
There are lots of so-called 'linked' verbs in Spanish, many are followed by 'a', lots be 'de' and I can only think of a couple by 'que' - tener que and haber que.
With your second example I guess para or a could work but if you want to get technical 'a' is the preposition of choice with verbs of motion when you want to say what you intend to do when you arrive where you're going. 'Para', on the other hand, is better when you want to really talk about purpose instead of specifically what you'll do when you arrive. Tricky I know as they might seem to overlap a little but I hope it sheds a little light on the subject.
With the 'tengo algo que decirte' example, it's perfect but I can't think of the grammar rule as to why the 'que' is there, obviously it isn't translated in English but I think it's required in spanish because there's two subjects 'me' wanting to say something and 'you'. But if any grammarian happens to pop in I'd be interested in hearing if there's a certain rule to cover the use of 'que' there.
"Tengo que irme" y "Me tengo que ir" significan lo mismo
Tengo algo que decirte (Correcto)
La mejor es "Voy a correr a encontrar algo de comer" si no (Voy a por algo de comer)
