Preposition "de" with coloursIn the second question of the writing exercise Red Poppies (B2) the way that the preposition "de" changes the meaning of the phrase is not the way I understood that it should be used with colour.
In the exercise we are asked to translate: "red poppies will cover (the Spanish fields)" and the hint goes on to suggest we use: Lit: "the poppies will cover of red", to cover = cubrir. From this hint I was able to assume the required answer should be: "las amapolas cubrirán de rojo los campos españoles"
However, this phrase does not seem to translate well to "red poppies will cover" (that would be "las amapolas rojas cubrirán...) rather it translates more closely to "the poppies will cover the Spanish fields (with) red".
I believe there is a small, but important, difference between these two: one describes the quality (red) that a thing possesses; the other describes an action performed by a thing on another thing (the poppies on the field). Grammatically speaking, in the latter, we could say that the two things in the phrase have a subject/object relationship (in a similar way to how the giver/receiver relationship works in grammar: "Ellas los cubrirán de rojo").
Some examples:
El cielo es azul.
El sol pintó el cielo de naranja.
Llevaba un vestido blanco.
Ella estaba vestida de blanco.
Era una puerta verde, pero la luz del amanecer la había coloreado de rojo.
I appreciate any feedback
In the examples above the translation is in present continuous, but in Spanish the sentence is just using present simple. Is there a difference in meaning between:
En dos dias me mudo a Mexico.
En dos dias estoy mudandome a Mexico.
Gracias!
On my latest quiz, I was asked to write “Alicia has as much joy as Carmen.” I chose “Alicia tiene tanta alegría como Carmen”, because I understood “tanta” means “as much/as many…as”. My answer was wrong. The correct answer is “Alicia tiene tan alegría como Carmen”. I thought “tan” here meant ”as…as”. Did I misunderstand something from the tan/tanta mini-lessons?
In the second question of the writing exercise Red Poppies (B2) the way that the preposition "de" changes the meaning of the phrase is not the way I understood that it should be used with colour.
In the exercise we are asked to translate: "red poppies will cover (the Spanish fields)" and the hint goes on to suggest we use: Lit: "the poppies will cover of red", to cover = cubrir. From this hint I was able to assume the required answer should be: "las amapolas cubrirán de rojo los campos españoles"
However, this phrase does not seem to translate well to "red poppies will cover" (that would be "las amapolas rojas cubrirán...) rather it translates more closely to "the poppies will cover the Spanish fields (with) red".
I believe there is a small, but important, difference between these two: one describes the quality (red) that a thing possesses; the other describes an action performed by a thing on another thing (the poppies on the field). Grammatically speaking, in the latter, we could say that the two things in the phrase have a subject/object relationship (in a similar way to how the giver/receiver relationship works in grammar: "Ellas los cubrirán de rojo").
Some examples:
El cielo es azul.
El sol pintó el cielo de naranja.
Llevaba un vestido blanco.
Ella estaba vestida de blanco.
Era una puerta verde, pero la luz del amanecer la había coloreado de rojo.
I appreciate any feedback
There could be an element of doubt in "Piensan que"
Would you use subjunctive to translate?
They think that the missing jewels might have been stolen but they are not sure.
She might have left them at the hotel.
In the exercise we are asked to translate: "Also, they would teach them a new language and accompany them in their daily games." The answer given is "También, les enseñaría un idioma nuevo y los acompañaría en sus juegos diarios." but this should be enseñarían.
The problem seems to be that the hint in the exercise doesn't match the actual text: "También, el robot les enseñaría un idioma nuevo y los acompañaría en sus juegos diarios."
Why is the first sentence future and not present?
Hi,
In the above sentence could 'ir' replace 'irse'? If not, why not?
What is the meaning of 'irse' if not 'to go'? And, when would it be used?
Thank you.
Colin
Can you use terminar instead of acabar for question 2 in this lesson. Thanks
Hello. Can you please explain why the definite article isn't used in this phrase? Is it similar to the difference between "en casa" (at home) and "en la casa" (in the house, as in a physical location)? Thank you!
Find your Spanish level for FREE
And get your personalised Study Plan to improve it
Find your Spanish level