La de + noun + que + verb to intensify

Using la de + noun + que verb in Spanish

In Spanish, if we want to express "how much or how many of something" in a sentence in a context that implies surprise for the speaker, we can use this construction:

This way, the speaker puts a lot of emphasis on/intensifies the quantity, in a similar way to when we use ¡Cuánto/cuánta/cuántos/cuántas + noun!

For example:

As you can see, it does not matter if the noun is singular or plural, masculine or feminine - "La de" is invariable, it does not need to agree with the noun. It is as if we were omitting the word "cantidad" in the sentence:

This structure is generally used in exclamatory sentences but it could also be a statement:

For a differnt structure expressing the same see:

• Using qué de + noun in exclamations about quantities

See also:

• El/la/los/las + noun + que + verb to indicate quantity/intensity (exclamations)
• Using el de/la de/los de/las de to specify what/who you are talking about