Es común quejarse cuando las cosas se ponen difíciles, pero siempre hay soluciones.

to be

Breakdown of Es común quejarse cuando las cosas se ponen difíciles, pero siempre hay soluciones.

• cuando: when
• las: the
• difícil: difficult

Questions & Answers about Es común quejarse cuando las cosas se ponen difíciles, pero siempre hay soluciones.

Why does the sentence use the reflexive form quejarse instead of quejar?

In Spanish, the verb quejarse is reflexive, meaning it is used with the pronoun se to indicate that the subject is performing the action on itself. Essentially, quejarse translates more accurately to "to complain" (literally "to complain oneself") rather than using a plain verb form that doesn't reflect who is doing the complaining.

What is the function of se ponen here, and why not just say están difíciles?

The verb poner (in its reflexive form ponerse) conveys a change of state or condition. In this context, se ponen difíciles suggests that the things become difficult over time (a change from not-difficult to difficult). If you used están difíciles, it would sound more static, simply stating that they "are difficult" without highlighting the transition.

Why do we say las cosas instead of just cosas?

Using las before cosas makes the statement more specific, referring to "the things" in general life contexts that become challenging. In Spanish, it's common to use definite articles (el, la, los, las) where English might omit them. Saying las cosas can sound more natural in Spanish because it treats these "things" as a general category of situations or events.

Could pero siempre hay soluciones be translated literally as "but always there are solutions"?