Breakdown of Pinto la pared verde con cuidado.
yo
I
con
with
verde
green
pintar
to paint
el cuidado
the care
la pared
the wall
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Spanish grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Pinto la pared verde con cuidado.
Why is there no subject pronoun yo in the sentence?
Spanish is a “pro-drop” language, which means the verb ending alone tells you who the subject is. Here pinto ends in ‑o, so we know it’s first person singular (“I”). You can add yo for emphasis (“Yo pinto la pared verde con cuidado”), but in most cases it’s dropped.
Why is pinto in the simple present tense instead of a present progressive form like estoy pintando?
In Spanish the simple present (pinto) can describe both habitual actions (“I paint regularly”) and actions happening right now (“I’m painting”). If you want to stress the ongoing aspect, you can use the progressive: Estoy pintando la pared verde con cuidado. Both are correct; the simple present is just more neutral.
Why do we say la pared instead of just pared, and why is the article la used here?
Spanish generally requires a definite article before a specific, countable noun. Pared is feminine and singular, so it takes la. In English we say “I paint the wall,” and in Spanish you must reflect that with la.
Why does the adjective verde come after the noun instead of before it? Can I say la verde pared?
The normal order in Spanish is noun + adjective: la pared verde. Placing verde before (la verde pared) is grammatically possible but sounds poetic or very marked—it’s not used in everyday speech.
Why doesn’t verde change to verda to agree with pared?
Adjectives ending in -e (and most ending in consonants) are invariable for gender in Spanish. Whether the noun is masculine or feminine, singular or plural, verde stays verde.
What’s the difference between saying con cuidado and using the adverb cuidadosamente?
Both mean “carefully.” Con cuidado is a prepositional phrase literally “with care” and is very common in everyday speech. Cuidadosamente is the single-word adverb form and can sound a bit more formal or written. Otherwise they’re interchangeable.
Can I change the position of con cuidado in the sentence? For example, Con cuidado pinto la pared verde or Pinto con cuidado la pared verde?
Yes. Spanish word order is flexible. Default is Verb–Object–Adverbial (Pinto la pared verde con cuidado), but you can front the adverbial (Con cuidado pinto la pared verde) or put it between verb and object (Pinto con cuidado la pared verde) for emphasis or style.
Should there be a preposition a before la pared? In English we sometimes say “I’m painting to the wall.”
No. In Spanish the preposition a before a direct object is only used for people or personified animals (the “personal a”). Pared is inanimate, so you simply say pinto la pared without a.