I walked through the room with the TV in it the other evening and on glancing saw two men talking, One said to the other: "Te guste o non te guste?" I didn't hear the context. Would that have been the present subjunctive? Is it supposed to convey the meaning of doubt as in english: could it be that you like it or don't like it? If it is I could not make it fit in to any of occasions to use the subjunctive in my grammar book
- Thread starter granca
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Te guste o non te guste?
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the subjunctive mood conveys the notion of 'whether'
The subjunctive usage in that phrase conveys the sense of "even if" or "whether or not".
Therefore, in that phrase the person is saying whether you like it or not......
Without the subjunctive using the indicative (te gusta or no te gusta) which would be grammatically incorrect does not make sense. (You would have to express the phrase differently to use the indicative).
granca,
Depending on how strong your understanding is of Spanish in general what is very helpful when trying to understand why the subjunctive is used (once it's used by someone who used it correctly of course) change the verb or verb phrase back to the indicative mood and compare the meaning (see if it makes sense or could even be used and in this case it cannot). This is something I invented when explaining the usage of the subjuntive to people in certain scenarios.
Careful here your daughter would say:
Me gusta la escuela OR
Indirect speech: 'le gusta la escuela' (She likes school)
Te guste o no te guste- whether you like it or not .......
In my opinion, it's a condition. The person is conveying the notion that s/he does not know whether you like it or not but..... this is what may happen.....
-MP.
The subjunctive usage in that phrase conveys the sense of "even if" or "whether or not".
Therefore, in that phrase the person is saying whether you like it or not......
Without the subjunctive using the indicative (te gusta or no te gusta) which would be grammatically incorrect does not make sense. (You would have to express the phrase differently to use the indicative).
granca,
Depending on how strong your understanding is of Spanish in general what is very helpful when trying to understand why the subjunctive is used (once it's used by someone who used it correctly of course) change the verb or verb phrase back to the indicative mood and compare the meaning (see if it makes sense or could even be used and in this case it cannot). This is something I invented when explaining the usage of the subjuntive to people in certain scenarios.
Careful here your daughter would say:
Me gusta la escuela OR
Indirect speech: 'le gusta la escuela' (She likes school)
Te guste o no te guste- whether you like it or not .......
In my opinion, it's a condition. The person is conveying the notion that s/he does not know whether you like it or not but..... this is what may happen.....
-MP.
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You would say - te gusta....
No problem. If and when you fully understand the subjunctive you will see it’s a vital part of the language and the usage is masterful in common everyday speech and literature.
I am not sure what you mean in your statement but if you are asking your daughter if she likes her ice cream you would say: ?Te gusta? (you would not say ?Te guste? - not possible). Asking her or stating to her that she likes her ice cream does not imply doubt at all. I hope this is clear. It's not the same meaning as te guste o no te guste.
-MP.
No problem. If and when you fully understand the subjunctive you will see it’s a vital part of the language and the usage is masterful in common everyday speech and literature.
I am not sure what you mean in your statement but if you are asking your daughter if she likes her ice cream you would say: ?Te gusta? (you would not say ?Te guste? - not possible). Asking her or stating to her that she likes her ice cream does not imply doubt at all. I hope this is clear. It's not the same meaning as te guste o no te guste.
-MP.
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