"Como comida / como la comida?"

Question

I have read this: http://www.spanishdict.com/topics/show/5 but am still uncertain about the difference that seems to exist between definite article usage for subjects and objects. Two examples are given: Como helado. (I eat ice cream.) and: La comida de México es deliciosa. (Mexican food is delicious.) In the first "ice cream" is a general object and no definite aricle is included. In the second "La comida de México" is a general subject and an article is included. Would it then be correct to assume that the following is correct: Como comida de México. (I eat Mexican food)?

Very good question :) By the way, please fill out your profile information. We only ask that you fill out the language portion, it helps us tremendously! Thank you! - 00ffada9, Jan 11, 2015

Welcome to SpanishDict. - rac1, Jan 11, 2015

La comida de México - is not general, it is specific to Mexico. - 00551866, Jan 12, 2015

Comida is general. - 00551866, Jan 12, 2015

Language carries with it a certain aesthetics of sound that resides in the native speaker. This is what JulianChivi is implying in his answer as well as saying that there is no general rule to answer your question. - Jubilado, Jan 12, 2015

Sometimes you just have to live with a language. - Jubilado, Jan 12, 2015

Answer 1

Como comida de México. (I eat Mexican food)?

Here we still need the article la.

Even though this is now grammatically correct with the article, it sounds very unnatural due to the proximity como and comida. So we would say something like: Me encanta la comida mexicana / Yo como a la mexicana / Me alimento con la comida mexicana / Me gusta la cocina mexicana.

Gracias. But what is the difference between ice cream and food. Why does the former not require an article while the latter does? - jellonz, Jan 11, 2015

Aside from generalities, there are certain words that use articles and others that don´t and which can´t really be explained. This is why your lesson provides "guidlines" for article use - 005faa61, Jan 12, 2015

Answer 2

Boy, where do I begin.

First of all the definite article is always needed with the subject of a sentence.

"La comida mexicana es la mejor. Mexican food is the best. Las mujeres son más intelegentes que los hombres. Women are more intelligent than men.

El helado de fresas es mi favorito. Strawberry ice cream is my favorite.

You don't need it many times when it is not the subject of a sentence. Mami siempre prepara comida mexicana. Mom always prepares Mexican food.

Siempre como helado de fresas. I always eat strawberry ice cream.

Secondly, you should use the article whenever it would be used in English.

La comida que tuvimos anoche estuvo estupenda. The meal that we had last night was wonderful.

El helado de fresas que comí anoche también estuvo fantástico. The strawberry ice cream that I ate last night was also terrific.

OK??

Muchas gracias Daniela. This is the subject/object difference I have noticed. It is good to have it confirmed by a Spanish speaker. - jellonz, Jan 12, 2015

¡Muy bien dicho, maestra! - Jubilado, Jan 12, 2015

Very good answer, I had never thought about this.. However, my Spanish friends always use ' estaba' about food-comments. El helado estaba delicioso. Don't ask me why!. - annierats, Jan 12, 2015

I guess it's a Mexican thing. That's all I hear among my Mexcan friends. - Daniela2041, Jan 12, 2015

Answer 3

From what I understand it is kind of like this.

I eat ice cream.

I eat Mexican ice cream, is just another way of saying, I eat the ice cream from Mexico.

Como helado.

Como el helado de México.

Como comida.

Como la comida de México.

Gracias, that seems logiclal, but unfortunately Julian is saying that the "la" is required for "Como la comida." I read somewhere that the definite article is required for categories, so perhaps that is the distinction between "ice cream" and "food" here. - jellonz, Jan 12, 2015

I asked many here about this and got various answers, one will be asking a profesor at the U. About this and for a list of nouns that that always require an article if such exists. - 00551866, Jan 12, 2015