Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Me gusta la chaqueta gris porque tiene muchos bolsillos. - I like the gray jacket because it has many pockets.

In Spanish, the verb gustar works like “to please.” The thing you like (la chaqueta gris) is the grammatical subject, and me is the indirect object pronoun (“to me”). So me gusta la chaqueta literally means “the jacket is pleasing to me.” You don’t say yo gusto because yo would be the subject (I), which isn’t how gustar is structured.

Could I emphasize “me” by saying a mí me gusta la chaqueta gris?

Yes. Adding a mí clarifies or emphasizes who likes the jacket: a mí (to me) me gusta la chaqueta gris. It’s optional and used for emphasis or contrast.

Why is gustar used in the third person singular (gusta), even though I’m talking about myself?

Because the verb gustar agrees with the subject (la chaqueta gris), which is singular. The indirect object pronoun me shows the person (the “me” part), but the verb form matches la chaqueta gris, so it’s gusta, not gustan (which you’d use if the subject were plural, e.g. me gustan las chaquetas).

Why does gris come after chaqueta, and why doesn’t it change to grises?

In Spanish, most adjectives follow the noun. Color adjectives almost always go after. Chaqueta is singular, so the matching adjective is gris (no plural). If you had las chaquetas, you’d say grises.

Why is it muchos bolsillos and not bolsillos muchos or mucho bolsillo?

Quantifiers like muchos (many) come before the noun and must agree in gender and number. Bolsillos is masculine plural, so you use muchos. Mucho (singular) or bolsillos muchos (wrong order) don’t follow Spanish agreement rules.

Why do we use tiene (to have) instead of something like es (is) to talk about pockets?

In Spanish, possession is expressed with tener. La chaqueta tiene muchos bolsillos means “the jacket has many pockets.” Es muchos bolsillos or está muchos bolsillos would be incorrect, since ser/estar describe identity, qualities, or location, not possession.

Why is porque one word here, and not por qué?

Porque (one word, no accent) means “because” (giving a reason). Por qué (two words, with accent) means “why?” in questions. Here you give a reason, so it’s porque.

Do I need a comma before porque?

Generally, no. Spanish doesn’t use a comma before porque when it links a cause. So it’s correct as Me gusta la chaqueta gris porque tiene muchos bolsillos without a comma. You’d only insert one if you wanted a dramatic pause.

Since chaqueta ends with -a, why do we use la and is it always feminine?

Most Spanish nouns ending in -a are feminine, so you use la (definite article for feminine singular). There are exceptions, but chaqueta is one of the standard feminine nouns.

How would I change this sentence to talk about all gray jackets in general?

You’d make everything plural:
Me gustan las chaquetas grises porque tienen muchos bolsillos.
Note gustan (plural), las chaquetas (plural), grises, and tienen (plural).