Breakdown of La tentación de no estudiar es fuerte.
ser
to be
de
of
estudiar
to study
no
not
fuerte
strong
la tentación
the temptation
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Questions & Answers about La tentación de no estudiar es fuerte.
What does tentación mean?
tentación is a feminine noun that means temptation. It refers to the urge or desire to do something you know you shouldn’t.
Why is it de no estudiar and not para no estudiar?
With tentación, Spanish uses the preposition de plus an infinitive to express “the temptation to [do something].” You say la tentación de comer, la tentación de viajar, or here la tentación de no estudiar. Using para would imply purpose rather than the idea of being tempted.
Why is estudiar in the infinitive and not conjugated?
After a preposition like de, Spanish always uses the infinitive form of a verb. It acts like a noun phrase: de + infinitive. That’s why you see de no estudiar (the act of not studying) rather than a conjugated verb.
Why does the word no come before estudiar?
To negate an infinitive, no goes directly in front of the verb. No estudiar means “not to study.” You would never place no after the verb, so estudiar no would be incorrect.
Why is there an article la before tentación?
Spanish generally requires an article with singular, countable nouns when you refer to them in a general or specific sense. Here we’re talking about the specific idea of “the temptation,” so we use the definite article la. Omitting it sounds unnatural.
Why is the adjective fuerte used instead of an adverb like fuertemente?
Adjectives describe nouns; here fuerte describes the noun tentación (“a strong temptation”). Adverbs like fuertemente modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. Since we’re describing the strength of the temptation, we need the adjective fuerte.
Could we say La tentación de no estudiar es muy fuerte?
Yes. To intensify the adjective, you simply add muy before fuerte. So La tentación de no estudiar es muy fuerte means “The temptation not to study is very strong.”
How do you pronounce tentación, and which syllable is stressed?
Tentación is pronounced [ten-ta-SYON]. The accent mark on ó indicates that the stress falls on the last syllable: ten-ta-CIÓN.