Saying what you like

What you will practice

• Use gusta for one thing or an action, and gustan for more than one thing.
• Mark the person with me, te, le, nos, or les.
• Keep the pronoun when you add a mí or a name.

Explanation

The thing is the subject

gustar does not work like English “like.” The thing that is liked is the grammatical subject, and the person is an indirect object. Me gusta el café means the coffee is pleasing to me. el café is singular, so the verb is gusta. Me gustan los tacos has a plural subject, so the verb is gustan. An infinitive counts as one subject: Me gusta bailar. Yo gusto el café copies the English subject and is not a Spanish sentence.

Pronouns for the person

The person is an indirect-object pronoun placed before the verb: me, te, le, nos, or les. le covers him, her, and formal you. les covers them and plural you, ustedes. These two pronouns do not show gender. Several people and one thing still take the singular verb, because the thing is the subject: A ellos les gusta el café. The table gives one singular example for each pronoun. Plural things would change gusta to gustan.

A name and the negative

a mí, a ti, or a name adds emphasis. It does not replace the pronoun. A mí me gusta el café stresses that the person is me. A Ana le gusta el té names Ana and still keeps le. A Ana gusta el té drops the pronoun and is not the pattern. Put negation before the pronoun: No me gusta el frío. Use this pattern for things and actions. It is not how you say that you like a person.

Examples

1. Me gusta el café.I like coffee.
2. Me gustan los tacos.I like tacos.
3. Me gusta bailar.I like to dance.
4. A Ana le gusta el té.Ana likes tea.
5. No me gusta el frío.I do not like the cold.

Common mistakes

• Do not make the verb plural just because several people like one thing. One thing stays gusta.
• The pronoun remains when a name is added. A Ana le gusta el té is the sentence to learn.