+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Subjunctive question

 
  1. #1
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Age
    56
    Posts
    10
    Rep Power
    170

    Default Subjunctive question

    Lets say I have the following phrase:


    " No le llame "


    and " llame " is Subjuntivo Presente. Would a good translation be ....

    "I am probably not calling him" or maybe " I don't think I am calling him " ?


    gracias Tom

  2. #2
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Bay Area, California, United States
    Posts
    567
    Rep Power
    1024

    Default Re: Subjunctive question

    No le llame. ==> Don't call him/her. (formal) or No lo/la llame. ===> Don't call him/her. (The le/lo/la thing is different in different countries.)

    No le llamé. ==> I didn't call him/her. or No lo/la llamé. ==> I didn't call him/her.

    Disclaimer: I hope I have this right. I'm not a native Spanish speaker. Let's hope a native speaker comes along and helps us both!

  3. #3
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Age
    56
    Posts
    10
    Rep Power
    170

    Default Re: Subjunctive question

    I would actually like to know a good translation for both ; "no le llame" and " no lo llame ". All I know for sure is this is NOT a command. Colombian Spanish. I understand the basic translation, I just want to know what the meaning would be when "llame" is subjunctive.

  4. #4
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Bay Area, California, United States
    Posts
    567
    Rep Power
    1024

    Default Re: Subjunctive question

    Some countries use le as a direct object for a person and others use lo for a man and la for a woman, so "no le llame" and "no lo llame" could mean the same thing.

    The subjunctive is used for a lot of different reasons. It's also important to know if this is the complete phrase or if there are words before it. There are a lot of words in Spanish that trigger the subjunctive in a following phrase. For example:
    Mi amiga quiere que no le llame. ==> My girlfriend doesn't want me/him/her to call him/her.
    Luisa desconecta el telefono para que ella no le llame. ==> Luisa disconnects the phone so she won't call him.

    Are you sure it's not past tense? ==> No le llamé.

  5. #5
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Age
    56
    Posts
    10
    Rep Power
    170

    Default Re: Subjunctive question

    There are no words before it, the complete phrase is " no lo llame", and the person is refering to a man.

    Is " lo " ever used for " him" in Colombia?

    Does the subjunctive tense have to have "indicator" or "trigger" words, or can a subjunctive verb stand alone like "llame" in this sentence?

  6. #6
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Bay Area, California, United States
    Posts
    567
    Rep Power
    1024

    Default Re: Subjunctive question

    Le instead of lo as a direct object is used mostly in Spain---my guess is that lo would be used in Columbia.

    No le llame with no other words around it is in the form of a formal command: Don't call him. (The subjunctive form is what makes it a command.)

    If you're sure it's not a command and there are no other words, you could also consider that it was incorrectly written without an accent over the e and it's not subjunctive, it's past indicative, no le llamé: I didn't call him.

    Or it could be a different kind of typo: No le llama: He/She doesn't call him.
    No le llamo: I don't call him.

    That's all I can think of. Where are all our native Spanish-speaking friends when we need them? I'm really in over my head here, giving advice about a language I'm struggling to learn.
    Last edited by mariaklec; 10-15-2010 at 10:17 AM.

  7. #7
    Forum User aleCcowaN's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    Buenos Aires, Argentina
    Posts
    98
    Rep Power
    264

    Default Re: Subjunctive question

    Quote Originally Posted by MED123 View Post
    I would actually like to know a good translation for both ; "no le llame" and " no lo llame ". All I know for sure is this is NOT a command. Colombian Spanish. I understand the basic translation, I just want to know what the meaning would be when "llame" is subjunctive.
    "No le llame" (or "lo" or "la") as an independent sentence is a COMMAND -Don't call him/her-.

    "No le llamé" (or "lo" or "la") as an independent sentence means "I didn't call him/her".

    "No le llame" not involving commands must be part of a sentence, then, what sentence was that?

    Puede que no le llame.
    Es vergonzoso que no le llame.
    El hecho de que no le llame ...
    ... después de que no le llame ...
    ¿Qué hace que no le llame?
    [+1000 sentences]

+ Reply to Thread

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Can anyone conjugate this into a present subjunctive form?
    By coconut in forum General English to Spanish Translation
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 02-28-2010, 03:23 PM
  2. Can anyone translate this into a present subjunctive form?
    By coconut in forum General English to Spanish Translation
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 02-28-2010, 07:34 AM
  3. Should the King use the subjunctive?
    By eduncan in forum Spanish Linguistics
    Replies: 11
    Last Post: 04-06-2009, 06:02 PM
  4. Question....
    By Droelas in forum General English to Spanish Translation
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 07-19-2008, 07:56 AM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •