Breakdown of Jo prefereixo una tassa de te, però la meva filla vol un got de llet.
un
a
voler
to want
la llet
the milk
el te
the tea
Questions & Answers about Jo prefereixo una tassa de te, però la meva filla vol un got de llet.
Why does the sentence include Jo? Is it necessary?
Not usually. Catalan often drops subject pronouns because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.
- (Jo) prefereixo = I prefer
- (Tu) vols = you want
- (Ella) vol = she wants
So Jo prefereixo una tassa de te... is correct, but Prefereixo una tassa de te... is also correct.
Using Jo can add:
- emphasis
- contrast
- extra clarity
In this sentence, Jo helps set up the contrast with la meva filla:
- Jo prefereixo... però la meva filla vol...
What verb is prefereixo, and why does it end in -eixo?
Prefereixo is the 1st person singular present tense form of preferir.
- preferir = to prefer
- prefereixo = I prefer
This verb belongs to a group of Catalan verbs that often add -eix- in some present-tense forms.
Some present forms are:
- jo prefereixo = I prefer
- tu prefereixes = you prefer
- ell/ella prefereix = he/she prefers
- nosaltres preferim = we prefer
- vosaltres preferiu = you all prefer
- ells/elles prefereixen = they prefer
So the -eix- is just part of the normal conjugation pattern of this verb.