El fuego es peligroso; nunca lo dejes sin supervisión.

Fire is dangerous; never leave it unattended.

Breakdown of El fuego es peligroso; nunca lo dejes sin supervisión.

• ser: to be
• sin: without
• lo: it
• nunca: never

Questions & Answers about El fuego es peligroso; nunca lo dejes sin supervisión.

Why is a semicolon (;) used between peligroso and nunca instead of a period or comma?

A semicolon in Spanish (just like in English) links two closely related independent clauses without the full stop of a period, but with a stronger separation than a comma. Here:

• “El fuego es peligroso” is a complete thought.
• “Nunca lo dejes sin supervisión” is another.
  Using a semicolon emphasizes their connection (cause and effect) without breaking the flow too abruptly.

What does lo refer to in nunca lo dejes?

The pronoun lo is a masculine singular direct‐object pronoun that replaces el fuego. Instead of saying “nunca dejes el fuego”, the sentence uses “lo” to avoid repetition:

• “El fuego” → “lo”

Why is there no no in “nunca lo dejes”? Isn’t the negative imperative supposed to start with no?

In Spanish you can form negative commands either by:

1. Placing no before the verb: No lo dejes sin supervisión.
2. Using a negative adverb like nunca or jamás at the front: Nunca lo dejes sin supervisión.
   Both are correct. Here the speaker chose nunca to mean “never,” which already conveys the negative, so no is omitted.

Why is dejes in the present‐subjunctive form rather than the indicative or the infinitive?