Breakdown of Confirmar los detalles temprano evita problemas más tarde.
temprano
early
el problema
the problem
el detalle
the detail
confirmar
to confirm
evitar
to prevent
más tarde
later
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Spanish grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Confirmar los detalles temprano evita problemas más tarde.
Why is Confirmar at the beginning of the sentence, and is it acting like a verb or a noun?
Here Confirmar is the infinitive form of the verb, but it functions as a noun—it’s the subject of the sentence. In English you could think of it as “Confirming the details early…”
Do we need an article before Confirmar, like el confirmar?
No. When an infinitive refers to a general activity, Spanish omits the article. Confirmar los detalles means “confirming details” in general, so you don’t say el confirmar.
Why is it los detalles in plural? Could I say el detalle?
Most contexts involve checking multiple details, so you use the plural detalles with the article los. Using el detalle would imply you’re referring to one specific detail.
What role does temprano play, and can I move it in the sentence?
temprano is an adverb modifying the action confirmar (“early”). Spanish adverbs of time are flexible. You can also say:
- Confirmar temprano los detalles
- Temprano, confirmar los detalles evita…
but Confirmar los detalles temprano is perfectly natural.
What does más tarde mean, and why does más carry an accent?
más tarde means “later on” or “afterward.” The accent on más marks it as the comparative “more,” distinguishing it from the conjunction mas (“but”), which is rare today.
Why is there no que after evita, like in evita que tengas problemas?
Here evitar takes a direct noun object: evitar + problemas (“to prevent troubles”). If you want a subordinate clause you’d say evitar que + subjunctive, e.g. evita que tengas problemas, but that’s a different structure.
Why is problemas masculine when it ends in -a?
Some Spanish nouns ending in -a, like problema, derive from Greek and are exceptions—they’re masculine. So you have el problema, los problemas.
Could I use Al confirmar instead of starting directly with Confirmar?
Yes. Al confirmar los detalles temprano, evitas problemas más tarde. means “When you confirm details early, you avoid problems later.” It’s equally correct and emphasizes the timing.
Can I replace confirmar with revisar or verificar?
Absolutely. Revisar los detalles (“to review the details”) or verificar los detalles (“to verify the details”) are synonyms. Confirmar stresses making sure something is correct; revisar focuses on checking; verificar highlights confirming with evidence.