Questions concerning subjunctive, qué, and estar

Question

Spanish: No espero tener que comprar un nuevo ventilador. No sé qué voy a hacer. O espera, el enchufe no estaba enchufado. Temí que este ventilador no iba a funcionar.

English: I hope that I don't have to buy a new fan. I don't know what I am going to do. Oh wait, the plug wasn't plugged in. I was afraid that this fan was not going to work.

How's my translation?

Should I conjugate "tener que"? I learnt that an infinitive can go after a conjugated verb, especially when using the subjunctive and both clauses are about the same subject. In this case, I'm talking about My hope that I do not have to buy a new fan.

Should I substitute "lo que" for qué? Is qué only used at the beginning of questions?

Is estaba the correct conjugation of estar and not estuvo?

Can someone explain why "iba a functionar" is correct even though the verb after "temer que" should be subjunctive according to the uses of subjunctive?

Answer 1

Hello Ramona,

I will help you with your translations

Spanish: No espero tener que comprar un nuevo ventilador. No sé qué voy a hacer. O espera, el enchufe no estaba enchufado. Temí que este ventilador no iba a funcionar. English: I hope that I don't have to buy a new fan. I don't know what I am going to do. Oh wait, the plug wasn't plugged in. I was afraid that this fan was not going to work.

I would say either:

Espero que no tengo que comprar un nuevo ventilador. No sé qué voy a hacer. Espera, el enchufe no fue enchufado. Estaba preocupada (I was concerned/worried) que este ventilador no iba a funcionar.

o

Espero que no será necesario comprar un nuevo ventilador. No sé qué voy a hacer. Espera, el enchufe no fue enchufado. Estaba preocupada que esta ventilador no iba a funcionar. (I hope that it will not be necessary to buy etc..., this is another more objective / less personal way to say the same thing)

Yes, I believe that you need to conjugate the verb tener in your sentence. I don't think that you need the subjunctive in any of these sentences, despite a degree of doubt or uncertainty in your mind about the outcome, because there is only one subject that is the first person I (Espero) tengo etc...For the subjunctive to be necessary, it usually requieres two different subjects, one in the firstb clause,the second in the following clause: eg I and you, he and they etc....

I am not sure if an object eg the ventilator, qualifies as a subject (it) for the purposes of using the subjunctive mood. I am sure that the native/fluent Spanish speakers will correct me if I am wrong about this or anything else that I have written in my answer!

I am going to eat my lunch now so I will let somebody else answer your other questions/concerns!

I hope this helps

Corrijan mi español si es necesraio, por favor

I like your translations! Thanks so much for helping me! I'd like to know if you could help explain the difference between lo que and qué. - Ramonaspiker, Sep 4, 2016

I'm pretty sure we still have to use subjunctive with the same subject, but a shortcut would be using the infinitive and getting rid of the "que". - Ramonaspiker, Sep 4, 2016

Ramona,. 'lo que' can often mean = that, ex: He entendido todo lo que has dicho = I have understood all that you have said. The word 'que' is used here as a relative pronoun. - FELIZ77, Sep 4, 2016

In sentences using the subjunctive in Spanish the relative pronoun 'que' is often translated as 'to',when used with querer, as in: I want you to help me = Quiero que me ayudes. In other sunjuctive sentences with verbs like Esperar, it would mean 'that' - FELIZ77, Sep 4, 2016

Eg, Esperamos que ellos lleguen pronto = I hope 'that' they will arrive soon. The context will guide you as to the correct translation from Spanish to English! You will just have to learn the - FELIZ77, Sep 4, 2016

differences as to the meanings! ;) Regarding the use of the interrogative pronoun qué, this is used when asking questions andd means 'what' as in this example: ¿Qué hiciste anoche? = What did you do last night? - FELIZ77, Sep 4, 2016

I hope this helps :) You are welcome regarding the help :) - FELIZ77, Sep 4, 2016

So helpful! Thank you so much! :) - Ramonaspiker, Sep 5, 2016

Answer 2

Espero no tener/que no tenga (both are correct) que comprar un ventilador nuevo. No sé qué voy a hacer. Oh, espera. El enchufe no estaba enchufado (this is correct but it produces a cacofonía, I'd just say: "no estaba enchufado" because from context we understand what you mean)
Qué is correct, it's not only used at the beginning of questions. It's also used in indirect questions
I don't know whether if iba a funcionar is gramatically correct or not, but it sounds horrible to my ears... I'd use the subjunctive
I hope someone with a better knowledge of grammar can help you

This is a nominal relative clause:
What you did is wrong.

This is a wh-clause:
I don't know what to do.

If you translate them:
Lo que hiciste está mal.

No sé qué hacer.

These sentences are correct but:

Qué hiciste está mal.
No sé lo que hacer.

These sentences are NOT correct

I hope this helps you spot the difference

Thank you Mariifer!! Can you tell me what the difference between lo que and qué is? Does this sentence sound horrible too: Es posible que iba a llover mañana? - Ramonaspiker, Sep 4, 2016

And if I used subjunctive for iba a.... Would it be "Temí que no vaya a funcionar"? - Ramonaspiker, Sep 4, 2016

Yes, it sounds bad! I prefer: Es posible que llueva mañana. I'd say: Temí que no fuera a funcionar. I don't know how to explain the difference between lo que and qué but I'll give you some examples - mariifer, Sep 4, 2016

Yes that would be great! Examples, anything helps! Haha. Thanks a bunch! Fuera is a good choice, forgot "temí" was preterite - Ramonaspiker, Sep 4, 2016

The difference between lo que and qué is tough to see! Thanks for trying, but I still don't get it. I'll do some more research - Ramonaspiker, Sep 4, 2016