Breakdown of Ayer el mecánico del taller me mostró las herramientas que usa para arreglar la rueda.
usar
to use
de
of
que
that
me
me
para
for
arreglar
to fix
ayer
yesterday
mostrar
to show
la rueda
the wheel
el mecánico
the mechanic
el taller
the workshop
la herramienta
the tool
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Questions & Answers about Ayer el mecánico del taller me mostró las herramientas que usa para arreglar la rueda.
Why is del used in mecánico del taller? Could we say mecánico de el taller?
del is simply the contraction of de + el. In Spanish, whenever de is followed by the masculine singular article el, you must contract them into del. Saying de el taller is ungrammatical (except when El is part of a proper name, e.g. El Salvador).
Why is the pronoun me used in me mostró? Is it a direct object or an indirect object?
In mostrar, las herramientas is the direct object (what is shown) and me is the indirect object (to whom it is shown). So El mecánico me mostró las herramientas literally means “The mechanic showed the tools to me.”
Why does me appear before mostró? Could we attach it after the verb like mostróme?
In simple past (pretérito), object pronouns must precede the conjugated verb. You cannot attach them (“enclitic”) to a preterite form. Thus me mostró is correct. You would only attach a pronoun to an infinitive (e.g. mostrarme) or a gerund (e.g. mostrándome).
Why is the relative clause que usa in the present tense, even though the main verb mostró is in the past?
That relative clause expresses a habitual or general truth: “the tools that he uses (in general) to fix the wheel.” Spanish uses the present tense for habits. If you wanted to emphasize that he was using them right then, you could say que estaba usando, but for a regular action the simple present (usa) is preferred.
In las herramientas que usa, why is usa singular when herramientas is plural?
The subject of usa is el mecánico, not las herramientas. The clause means “the tools that he (the mechanic) uses.” Since “he” is singular, the verb stays singular.
Could we replace usar with utilizar (e.g. las herramientas que utiliza)?
Yes. usar and utilizar are near-synonyms. Usar is more colloquial; utilizar can sound a bit more formal or technical. Either fits here without changing the meaning.
What is the role of para before arreglar la rueda? Could we drop it?
para introduces purpose: “in order to fix the wheel.” Without para, the infinitive arreglar would lack that “in-order-to” sense. You need para when you want to state why something is done.
Why is the definite article las used before herramientas? Could it be omitted?
Here we talk about a specific set of tools the mechanic showed you, so we use the definite article las. If you speak of tools in general, you can omit it: Necesito herramientas (“I need tools”). But when referring to known or previously mentioned items, Spanish often keeps the article.
Should there be a comma before que usa? Why isn’t it las herramientas, que usa, para arreglar…?
No comma is used because that que-clause is restrictive—it specifies exactly which tools (the ones he uses). In Spanish, you don’t set off restrictive clauses with commas. Commas appear only with nonrestrictive clauses (extra, non-essential information).