Please Help Me Understand Subjects etc...when writing.

Question

In the quoted sentence below, my teacher stated I was missing the subject. I've added what I thought would be the corrected version. Can you please provide any insight? Thank you. Note: I'm taking beginners Spanish. I just want to make sure I'm not off the mark completely etc.

[Teacher stated this was missing the subject] "Celebramos nuestro aniversario de boda y mi cumpleaños."

[My correction, is this now okay?] "Nosotros celebramos nuestro aniversario de boda y mi cumpleaños."

Answer 1

In Spanish, almost always subject pronouns are dropped, especially if it is obvious. The only time I would include the nosotros is if I needed to emphasize the nosotros for some reason, like it was part of a conversion, and someone just said what they did, and you are responding with what you did, and need the contrast.

So if I were the teacher, if you gave me the second sentence, I would say fix it to the first, because your subject is obvious, and it is unnatural to use it.

Nonetheless if the exercise is to put in an unnecessary pronoun to prove you recognize what it would be, you chose the right one.

If they are looking for a true subject, not a pronoun- (I do not know your sex as you have not filled out your profile, I am going to guess female?) you might pick "mi esposo y yo" (my husband and I).

Yes, I am a female. - nanimahoney, Dec 4, 2015

That makes complete sense! Thank you so much for the insight! - nanimahoney, Dec 4, 2015

De nada. :) - bosquederoble, Dec 4, 2015