The verb gustar
Sentences in Spanish that use the verb gustar are translated into English as "I like".
However the verb literally means "to please". The sentence structure is essentially
backwards from English. Think about the opposite, the verb "to disgust", which does
exist in English and is always used similarly to the Spanish gustar:
The pizza disgusts me.
The hamburgers disgust her.
Gustar sentences follow this structure:
The pizza pleases me.
(I like the pizza.)
Me gusta la pizza.
The hamburgers please her.
(She likes the hamburgers.)
Le gustan las hamburguesas.
A gustar phrase will begin with one of the indirect object pronouns:
me
to me
nos
to us
te
to you (fam.)
os
to you all (fam.)
le
to him
to her
to you (form.)
les
to them
to them the girls
to you all (form.)
The pronoun is followed by the form of the verb gustar. You will use two of the forms
almost exclusively: gusta and gustan. Which one you use is decided by what comes
next. If the thing is a singular verb, use the singular form gusta. If the thing is a plural
verb, use the plural form gustan. If the thing is a verb or series of verbs, use the
singular form gusta.
Remember this division, that the person being pleased has no relation grammatically to
the thing liked.
- A Elena le / gusta el chocolate. (Elena the girl likes the masculine noun "chocolate")
- (A ti) te / gustan los libros. (You—the one person—like the plural noun "books")
- (A nosotros) nos / gusta la música. (We the male group like the singular noun music")
If you wish to express a dislike, put no in front of the indirect object pronoun:
- A Juan no le gustan las verduras.
- A mí no me gusta la comida china.
- A ellas no les gusta el ajedrez.
Note in many of the above examples the person is emphasized or clarified by using a
and the person or the pronoun (object of the preposition). This phrase usually goes at
the beginning of the sentence but can follow gustar or come at the end of the sentence.
a
a
a
a
a
mí
ti
él
ella
usted
a
a
a
a
a
nosotros(as)
vosotros(as)
ellos
ellas
ustedes
There are a number of verbs that follow the structure of gustar, with the notion that
something happens to the person or affects the person.
aburrir – to bore
alegrar – to make happy
bastar – to be enough
caer bien (mal) – to (not) suit
convenir – to be better/convenient for
corresponder – to have the responsibility
dar asco – to disgust
disgustar – to not like something
doler (ue) – to be painful
encantar – to love
faltar – to lack something
fastidiar – to annoy
fascinar – to fascinate
importar – to be important, matter
interesar – to interest
molestar – to bother, irritate
parecer – to appear, seem
preocupar – to worry
quedar – to have left, remain
tocar – to be responsible for
Any time one of these phrases is used in reference to a verb/action, only the first verb is
conjugated. The activity being talked about will be left in the infinitive, acting as a
gerund (the action is treated as a noun).
Me aburre leer.
Le encanta patinar.
Nos toca sacar la basura.
Reading bores me.
He/she/Ud. loves skating.
It’s our turn to take out the trash.