Using gustar in a list
Hi! I was writing about what foods I like in Spanish, but then I came across a problem. I created a list with plural and singular nouns after gustar, and now I'm not sure how to conjugate it. Here's the sentence: "me gusta el arroz, los huevos, y las fruits". Is that right? Should it be gustan instead of gusta? Thanks so much!
1 Answer
In your example it can be either- if you started with a plural article it would have to be gustan.
If it is a list of infinitives, it will always be singular:
Me gusta cantar y bailar (mentally me gusta cantar y me gusta bailar).
In a list of nouns following gusta, there are two legitimate options:
Match the first article:
Me gustan los perros y el gato.
Me gusta el gato y los perros.
or sum them up:
Me gustan el gato y los perros.
I prefer the first option, as does Julian and I think it is most common- I believe Daniela prefers the second.
Here is an answer by a native Speaker who is a grammar fanatic, with even more detail:
http://www.spanishdict.com/answers/168518/gusta-vs.-gustan
lazarus1907
Not quite that simple. If the items are plural, the verb will be in plural:
Me gustan los perros y los gatos.
With several individual items, sentence can be also understood as several coordinated sentences where the verb is omitted:
Me gusta el arroz y el tomate
Me gusta el arroz y (me gusta) el tomate
Even if the second element is plural, if the subject is understood as a whole, and the agreement is normally (but not obligatorily) done with the first element:
Me gusta el arroz y las verduras.
Me gustan el arroz y las verduras. (very uncommon)
Me gustan las verduras y el arroz.
However, when the subject precedes the verb, the verb is used in plural unless the items are seen as parts of one reality:
El arroz y el tomate me gustan.
La lengua y la literature me gustan (two different subjects)
La lengua y la literature me gusta (the name of a subject)
This is not a simple issue once it is analysed in depth. I hope I didn't make things too complicated.
