Gramatica A The Verb Gustar Worksheet Answers

Understanding the Verb "Gustar" and its Implications: A Comprehensive Guide with Worksheet Answers

The Spanish verb gustar is a notorious stumbling block for many learners. Unlike English, where we say "I like apples," in Spanish, we say "The apples please me" – a seemingly backwards construction using the verb gustar. This seemingly inverted structure reflects the inherent grammatical differences between the two languages. Mastering gustar is key to expressing preferences and opinions in Spanish, and this comprehensive guide will equip you with the knowledge and practice needed to confidently navigate this grammatical hurdle.

The Basics of Gustar: Subject and Object

The verb gustar belongs to a group of verbs known as impersonal verbs. This means they don't take a personal subject like "I," "you," "he," "she," or "they" in the same way as regular verbs. Instead, the subject of the sentence is the thing or person that is liked, disliked, etc. The indirect object pronoun reflects the person who feels that liking or disliking.

Let's break this down:

• Indirect Object Pronoun: This indicates who likes something. It changes according to the person doing the liking:

  • Me: me (singular)
  • Te: you (singular, informal)
  • Le: him/her/you (singular, formal)
  • Nos: us
  • Os: you (plural, informal) – used primarily in Spain
  • Les: them/you (plural, formal)

• Subject: This is what is liked, disliked, etc. It remains grammatically the subject of the sentence.

Example: "I like pizza."

In Spanish, this translates to: "Me gusta la pizza."

• Me: Indirect object pronoun (I like)
• Gusta: The conjugated form of gustar (third-person singular, agrees with the subject "pizza").
• La pizza: The subject (the pizza is what is liked).

Expanding Beyond "Gustar": Related Verbs

Gustar isn't alone! Several verbs share this similar impersonal structure: encantar (to love), interesar (to interest), importar (to matter), molestar (to bother), fascinar (to fascinate), aburrir (to bore), and many more. These verbs all follow the same indirect object/subject pattern as gustar.

Conjugation of Gustar and Related Verbs

Here's a conjugation table for gustar and some of its related verbs in the present tense:

Remember that the verb conjugation remains the same regardless of whether the subject is singular or plural. The number and gender of the subject influences the article preceding it (e.g., la pizza, los libros).

Dealing with Plural Subjects

When the subject is plural, the verb gustar changes to its plural form – gustan. This is true for all the related impersonal verbs as well.

Examples:

• "I like apples." – Me gustan las manzanas.
• "We love movies." – Nos encantan las películas.
• "They interest me." – Me interesan.

More Complex Structures

The complexity increases when you add additional subjects or objects to the sentence. Consider this:

"I like pizza and pasta."

Here, we use the plural form of the verb since there are two subjects:

Me gustan la pizza y la pasta.

Negative Sentences

Adding negation is straightforward. Place no before the conjugated verb.

Examples:

• "I don't like soccer." – No me gusta el fútbol.
• "They don't interest me." – No me interesan.

Questions

Forming questions with gustar is also quite simple. You can use the standard question word order (inversion of subject and verb) or add a question word like ¿Qué? (what?), ¿A quién? (to whom?), or ¿A quiénes? (to whom?).

Examples:

• "Do you like this book?" – ¿Te gusta este libro?
• "What do you like?" – ¿Qué te gusta?
• "Who do you like?" – ¿A quién te gusta?

Worksheet Answers: A Practical Application

Now, let's work through a sample worksheet to reinforce your understanding. (Note: The worksheet itself isn't included here, but the answers are provided assuming a standard gustar worksheet.)

Example Worksheet Questions and Answers:

1. Translate: "The book interests me."

Answer: Me interesa el libro.

2. Translate: "We like the beach."

Answer: Nos gusta la playa.

3. Translate: "They love to dance."

Answer: Les encanta bailar.

4. Translate: "Do you like coffee?"

Answer: ¿Te gusta el café?

5. Translate: "I don't like that movie."

Answer: No me gusta esa película.

6. Translate: "The flowers please her."

Answer: Le gustan las flores.

7. Translate: "My friends and I love to travel."

Answer: A mis amigos y a mí nos encanta viajar. (Note the use of "a mí" as it's not a direct object)

8. Translate: "What do they like to eat?"

Answer: ¿Qué les gusta comer?

9. Translate: "The music bores me."

Answer: La música me aburre. (Note: A slightly different verb used correctly here.)

10. Translate: "Does the painting interest you?"

Answer: ¿Te interesa el cuadro?

11. Translate: "The children love ice cream."

Answer: A los niños les encanta el helado.

12. Translate: "The teacher doesn't like noisy students."

Answer: A la profesora no le gustan los alumnos ruidosos.

13. Translate: "We love to read books."

Answer: Nos encantan los libros.

14. Translate: "I hate broccoli."

Answer: Odio el brócoli. (Note: "Odiar" is a different verb, but conveys similar meaning)

15. Translate: "Does she like to sing?"

Answer: ¿Le gusta cantar?

These examples illustrate the versatility and power of gustar and its related verbs. With consistent practice, you'll become comfortable using these verbs in a variety of contexts, and your ability to express nuances in preference and opinion will greatly improve. Remember to focus on the core structure: the indirect object pronoun showing who likes, and the subject indicating what is liked, and you'll master this challenging but rewarding aspect of Spanish grammar. Further practice with diverse sentence structures and contexts will solidify your understanding.