Siento el movimiento del tren.

I feel the movement of the train.

Breakdown of Siento el movimiento del tren.

• yo: I
• de: of
• sentir: to feel
• el tren: the train
• el movimiento: the movement

Questions & Answers about Siento el movimiento del tren.

What does siento mean here, and is it expressing a physical or an emotional feeling?

In Spanish, sentir can express both physical sensations and emotions. In Siento el movimiento del tren, it’s a physical sense: you’re literally feeling the train’s motion in your body.

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Why do we include the definite article el before movimiento? Can it be omitted?

Spanish often uses the definite article with abstract or general nouns.
• Including el in el movimiento makes it “the movement,” referring to a specific sensation.
• You could omit the article in very abrupt or exclamatory contexts (¡Siento movimiento!), but in normal speech Siento el movimiento sounds more natural and precise.

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Why is there no preposition between siento and el movimiento? Does sentir take a direct object?

Yes. Sentir is a transitive verb in Spanish and directly takes a noun as its object. The structure is simply sentir + [direct object], so no preposition is needed.

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What is del in del tren, and why do we use it?

Del is the contraction of de + el, meaning “of the.” You need de to link movimiento to tren, so movimiento del tren literally means “movement of the train.”

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Could we say Siento el movimiento en el tren instead? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can.
• Siento el movimiento en el tren emphasizes the location of the sensation (“in the train”).
• Siento el movimiento del tren highlights the train as the source of the movement.
Both are correct; you just shift the focus from “where” you feel it to “what” is causing it.

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Can we replace sentir with notar or percibir? Would that change the meaning?

You can, but the nuance shifts slightly:

• Notar = “to notice” (more about realizing something mentally)
• Percibir = “to perceive” (more formal, sensory awareness)
• Sentir = direct physical or emotional feeling
  Thus, Siento el movimiento is the most natural way to express a bodily sensation of motion.

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Is there an alternative way to express this idea using a subordinate clause?

Yes. You could say Siento que el tren se mueve, literally “I feel that the train is moving.” This construction:
• uses que + a reflexive verb (moverse)
• focuses on the fact or event of the train moving rather than on the abstract movimiento itself
Both versions are correct and common.

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If you wanted to talk about “vibration” instead of “movement,” how would you say it?

Use the feminine noun vibración with its article:
Siento la vibración del tren.
Here, la agrees in gender with vibración, and you keep the same del tren (“of the train”) construction.