My Childhood sentences

Question

Hey, can you look at these sentences and tell me if I am doing them right?

When I was a kid, I went to many homes because I was in foster care. I liked to drink milk, even though I hate now. I liked to eat my mom's home made peppermint ice cream. I also loved watching horses run and playing with my brothers. The first word I said as a child was hello, and I loved visiting my relatives in Ohio, West Virginia and Indiana. I loved having birthday parties and I was never short of them.

Cuando yo era niña, fui a muchos hogares porque estaba en hogares de guarda. Me gustaba de beber la leche, aunque yo odio ahora. Me gustaba comer de mi mamá hizo la casa de menta helado. También me encantaba mirar los caballos correr y jugar con mis hermanos. La primera palabra que habla como una niña hola, y me encantó visitar a mis parientes en Ohio, West Virginia, y Indianan. Me encantó haber fiestas de cumpleaños y yo nunca se corta una de ellas.

I would really like it if you could tell me, thanks!

P.S. I have to use the following verbs:

visitar
ir
hacer
jugar
comer
beber
mirar
ser
estar
hablar

Answer 1

Cuando yo era niña, fui a muchos hogares porque estaba en hogares de guarda en el programa de hogares substitutos. Me gustaba de beber la leche, aunque yo lo odio ahora. Me gustaba comer de mi mamá hizo la casa de menta helado el helado hecho en casa por mamá. También me encantaba mirar correr a los caballos correr y jugar con mis hermanos. La primera palabra que habla dije cuando niña fue hola (sorry, "hablar" is not right here), y me encantó encantaba visitar a mis parientes en Ohio, West Virginia, y e Indiana. Me encantó encantaba ir a haber fiestas de cumpleaños y yo nunca se corta una de ellas siempre tenía una adonde ir.

Answer 2

I'm glad these rules are well established in Spanish (even if I don't completely understand them). In English there is a problem in using the specific article "the" in some cases in the United States. If an ill person is placed in a medical center for treatment he is "in the hospital." If that happens in Canada he would be "in hospital." From my limited logic, it seems that the Canadians have it right. No bias here--I'm not Canadian, eh!

Answer 3

lazarus1907 said:

Ok, there is a good reason, and it can be very long... if you know nothing about cognitive grammar and a lot of linguistic details about deictic references. So, unless someone want the long answer, let me give you a simpler one:

Grammatical subjects in Spanish demand the definite article, unless they are proper names.

The short answer was absolutely wonderful!. (but the introductory paragraph was even better [and I'm glad that James posed the question])

Answer 4

So-

Me gusta la leche
Me gusta beber leche

Ok then, I'll take it on faith!

Thank you Lazarus (and everyone else, too)

Saludos.

Answer 5

Por cierto, eso de "¿Sale'" debe de ser un regionalismo, porque nunca lo había oído antes.

También puede ser un gringuismo, o un jaimismo. jeje

Pero creo que lo haya oído usar en México. Y también recuerdo oír decir el siguiente.

• ¿Sale?
• Sale vale.

Pero me estoy envejeciendo ya, y puede que me esté fallando la memoria.

Answer 6

Natasha said:

Lazarus said:

:

In the previous example, "Me gusta beber la leche", the phrase "la leche" is an object, not a subject, and here the definite article is generally used for specific objects; if it is missing, it refer to generic objects.

We're not talking about any specific glass of milk. So, it sounds like your explanation requires that we say "Me gustaba beber la leche." What am I missing here?

I'm not Lazarus, but in that sentence, the subject is "beber," not "leche," so I understood L to mean that in such cases the article isn't used unless the noun is a specific one.

Answer 7

James Santiago said:

Does this answer your question'

Contesta la mía, por lo menos. Muy bien. Gracias.

Entonces, en pocas palabras, el articulo se usa cuando el sustantivo es el subjeto, pero no cuando es el objeto, a no ser que sea un objeto específico entre muchos.

¿Sale?

Correcto.

Por cierto, eso de "¿Sale'" debe de ser un regionalismo, porque nunca lo había oído antes.

Answer 8

Lazarus said:

:

In the previous example, "Me gusta beber la leche", the phrase "la leche" is an object, not a subject, and here the definite article is generally used for specific objects; if it is missing, it refer to generic objects.

We're not talking about any specific glass of milk. So, it sounds like your explanation requires that we say "Me gustaba beber la leche." What am I missing here'

Answer 9

Does this answer your question'

Contesta la mía, por lo menos. Muy bien. Gracias.

Entonces, en pocas palabras, el articulo se usa cuando el sustantivo es el subjeto, pero no cuando es el objeto, a no ser que sea un objeto específico entre muchos.

¿Sale'

Answer 10

:

Lazarus - I have the same doubt. For example- Me gusta leche ? Me gustan mujeres ?

Surely it should be ...la leche, ...las mujeres?

Ok, there is a good reason, and it can be very long... if you know nothing about cognitive grammar and a lot of linguistic details about deictic references. So, unless someone want the long answer, let me give you a simpler one:

Grammatical subjects in Spanish demand the definite article, unless they are proper names. If you say:

Hierro is hard

it can only be understood if we assume that a guy called "Hierro" is hard, but never as "Iron is hard"; for that you have to say "El hierro" (in English is the opposite, I know). The same goes for milk:

Me gusta leche

If you like someone called "leche", you should have used capitals (Leche), hehe.

In the previous example, "Me gusta beber la leche", the phrase "la leche" is an object, not a subject, and here the definite article is generally used for specific objects; if it is missing, it refer to generic objects.

Does this answer your question'

Answer 11

I think Lazarus needs to re-think his answer, because it doesn't address the legitimate question that has been raised. Namely, we have learned the following.

"In Spanish, unlike English, the definite article is used before a noun to refer to something in a general way (mass or uncountable nouns) or to refer to all the members of its class."

This rule clearly applies to leche and mujeres. Hence the question.

I, too, would like to read the explanation from Guillermo or Lazarus (or anyone else).

Answer 12

Would you say in English "I used to drink the milk" to talk about milk in general'

Lazarus - I have the same doubt. For example-

Me gusta leche ?
Me gustan mujeres ?

Surely it should be ...la leche, ...las mujeres'

Answer 13

Sarasi Dunel said:

Question: why take out the 'la' from la leche? I thought you had to use an article with a noun.

You use the article if you are referring to a specific glass of milk; otherwise you omit it. Would you say in English "I used to drink the milk" to talk about milk in general'

Answer 14

Question: why take out the 'la' from la leche? I thought you had to use an article with a noun.

Answer 15

Thanks James. Then I would rephrase the last sentence as: ""Me encantaba cuando me daban fiestas de cumpleaños, y éstas nunca me faltaron".