Breakdown of Ese profesor es muy sabio, y lo escucho con atención.
ser
to be
yo
I
con
with
muy
very
y
and
ese
that
escuchar
to listen
la atención
the attention
el profesor
the professor
lo
him
sabio
wise
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Questions & Answers about Ese profesor es muy sabio, y lo escucho con atención.
Why is ese profesor used instead of este profesor or aquel profesor?
ese is a demonstrative adjective meaning “that” referring to something not too far from the speaker or listener. este (“this”) indicates closeness to the speaker, and aquel (“that over there”) indicates greater distance. Use ese profesor when you and your listener know which teacher you mean but he isn’t right next to you.
Why isn’t there an article like el before profesor in ese profesor?
A demonstrative adjective such as ese already functions as a determiner in Spanish, so you don’t need (and shouldn’t use) another article. Saying el ese profesor or ese el profesor is redundant and ungrammatical.
What nuance does sabio carry compared to inteligente or listo?
sabio means “wise,” implying deep knowledge often gained through experience or age. inteligente focuses on intellectual ability or IQ, and listo means “clever” or “quick‐witted.” A sabio often has judgment and life lessons beyond mere cleverness.
Why is muy placed before sabio, and could I say sabio muy?
In Spanish, adverbs like muy (very) almost always precede adjectives. Putting muy after the adjective (sabio muy) is ungrammatical and would sound odd to native speakers.
Why is the direct object pronoun lo used in lo escucho and not le?
The verb escuchar takes a direct object, so you use direct‐object pronouns (lo, la, los, las). lo matches profesor (masculine singular). le is for indirect objects, but some speakers in Spain use le for people (leísmo), which isn’t standard in Latin America.
What’s the difference between escuchar and oír?
oír means “to hear” (passively perceiving sound), while escuchar means “to listen (to),” implying intention and focus. You oís music when it’s playing, but you escuchas a lecture with attention.
What does con atención mean, and can I use atentamente instead?
con atención literally means “with attention,” i.e., attentively or carefully. atentamente also means “attentively,” but it’s more common in formal written style (e.g., letter closings). In spoken Spanish, escuchar con atención is the typical phrase.
Why is the sentence in the present tense, and could I choose another tense?
Using the present tense (es, escucho) expresses a general fact or habitual action: this teacher is always wise, and I always listen attentively. If you want to describe a past event, you could say Ese profesor fue muy sabio y lo escuché con atención.