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The Verb gustar

By Jami Sipe

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Me gusta is often translated as “I like.”

Me gusta la pizza. = (I like pizza.) Me gusta el coche rojo. = (I like the red car.)

Ejemplos:

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Actually, the verb gustar does not translate well into English.

“I am pleased by the book,” or “The book pleases me,” or “The book is pleasing to me.”

In English, we would say, “I like the book.” but the meaning is really closer to

Por ejemplo:

Me gusta el libro.

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Otro ejemplo:

Le gustan los panqueques. = (He is pleased by the pancakes.) In English, we would say:

He likes pancakes.

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The verb gustar is conjugated to go with the thing you like,

which is actually the subject of the sentence.

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Ejemplos:

Me gusta la manzana. = (I like the apple.) Me gustan las galletas. = (I like cookies.)

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Gustar is almost always used with indirect object pronouns.

Indirect Object Pronouns Singular

me (me)

te (you, familiar) le (you, formal/him/her)

Plural

nos (us)

os (you, ya’ll, you all familiar - Spain)

les (you/them)

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+ form of gustar + what you like

(indirect object pronoun)

To talk about likes and dislikes with gustar …

Use this formula!

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Ejemplos:

Me gusta la música. = (I like music.) Le gusta la música. = (He/She likes music.) (You (formal) like the music.) Nos gusta la música. = (We like music.)

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• Use gusta if the thing you like is singular.

Ejemplo: Me gusta el libro. = (I like the book.)

• Use gustan if the things you like are plural.

Ejemplo: Me gustan los tacos. = (I like tacos.)

Remember, the verb is conjugated to agree

with the subject of the sentence. With gustar the subject is the

thing or things you like.

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• Me gusta la casa. = (I like the house.)

• Te gusta el cuarto. = (You [familiar] like the room.)

• Le gusta la silla. = (He/She likes the chair./You [formal] like the chair.)

• Nos gusta el hotel. = (We like the hotel.)

• ¿Os gusta la comida? = (Do you all [familiar] like

the meal?)

• Les gusta el reloj. = (You all like the clock./They like the clock.)

Ejemplos:

Singular

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• Me gustan las casas. = (I like the houses.)

• Te gustan los cuartos. = (You [familiar] like the rooms.)

• Le gustan las sillas. = (He/She likes the chairs./You

[formal] like the chairs.)

• Nos gustan los hoteles. = (We like the hotels.)

• Os gustan las comidas. = (You all [familiar] like the meals.)

• Les gustan los relojes. = (You all like the clocks./They

all like the clocks.)

Más ejemplos: Plural

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Me gusta nadar. = (I like to swim.)

Te gusta correr. = (You like to run.)

Nos gusta leer. = (We like to read.)

Ejemplos:

You can also use gustar with an infinitive!

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Ejemplos:

No me gusta el pescado. = (I don’t like fish.)

No me gusta patinar. = (I do not like to skate.)

To say someone does not like something, or does not like to do something

use “no” before the phrase.

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Look closely at this example:

Le gusta la silla. It is impossible to tell whether this means:

1. He likes the chair.

2. She likes the chair.

3. You [formal] like the chair.

¡OJO!

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The sentence may begin with a clarifying prepositional phrase:

• A él le gusta la silla.

• A ella le gusta la casa.

• A usted le gusta la bandera.

For purpose of clarification

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name: example – A Ana le gusta bailar. = (Ana likes to dance.)

noun: example – Al doctor le gusta trabajar. = (The doctor likes to work.)

pronoun: example – A nosotros nos gusta estudiar. = (We like to study.)

a mí – me gusta a ti – te gusta a usted, él, ella – le gusta

When you want to emphasize or identify the person you are talking about, use:

a nosotros/as – nos gusta a vosotros/as – os gusta a ustedes, ellos/as – les gusta

A +

These pronouns

follow a:

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Me gusta leer.

Nos gusta el español.

(A ella) le gusta el libro.

(A él) le gusta bailar.

No les gustan las flores.

(A ti) te gustan los zapatos.

(A nosotros) nos gusta correr. (A usted) no le gustan los postres.

I like to read.

We like Spanish.

She likes the book.

He likes to dance.

They don’t like the flowers.

You (familiar) like the shoes.

We like to run.

You (formal) do not like desserts.

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