Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta. - From this angle, the mountain looks taller.

Desde = “from” with a clear starting point in space or time:
- desde este ángulo – from this angle
- desde aquí – from here
- desde la ventana – from the window
De is more general and is not the natural choice for this specific meaning of “from a point in space.”
- de = of, from (origin), about, made of, etc.
- Soy de México – I am from Mexico
- una taza de café – a cup of coffee

So:

✅ Natural: Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta.
❌ Odd / non‑standard: De este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta.

Use desde when you mean “from this place/angle/moment” as a starting point.

Can I put desde este ángulo at the end and say La montaña parece más alta desde este ángulo? Does the meaning change?

Yes, that word order is completely correct and very common:

Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta.
La montaña parece más alta desde este ángulo.

Both mean the same thing. The difference is just emphasis:

At the beginning: you set the context first, a bit more “discourse‑like” or formal:
- Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta. (Speaking “from this angle” as a starting frame.)
At the end: you sound slightly more neutral or conversational:
- La montaña parece más alta desde este ángulo.

In everyday speech, many people would naturally say it with the phrase at the end.

Why is it este ángulo and not esta ángulo? How do I know which demonstrative to use?

Ángulo is a masculine noun, so you must use the masculine demonstrative:

este ángulo – this angle
- este = masculine singular (“this” for something near the speaker)

Compare with feminine nouns:

esta montaña – this mountain
- esta = feminine singular

Quick guide to the basic demonstratives in Latin American Spanish:

Masculine:
- este (this), ese (that), aquel (that over there)
Feminine:
- esta (this), esa (that), aquella (that over there)

So you say:

este ángulo (masc.)
esta montaña (fem.)

Why is it más alta and not más alto? What is alta agreeing with?

The adjective alta is describing la montaña, which is feminine singular.

In Spanish, adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun they describe:

la montaña alta – the tall mountain (feminine singular)
las montañas altas – the tall mountains (feminine plural)
el edificio alto – the tall building (masculine singular)
los edificios altos – the tall buildings (masculine plural)

In the sentence:

la montaña → feminine, singular
so alta → feminine, singular

Even though ángulo (masculine) is also in the sentence, alta does not describe ángulo; it describes montaña. That’s why it’s más alta, not más alto.

What’s the difference between parece and se ve here? Can I say Desde este ángulo, la montaña se ve más alta?

Yes, you can say:

Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta.
Desde este ángulo, la montaña se ve más alta.

Both are correct but have a slightly different feel:

parecer = “to seem / to appear” (more general, can be visual or not)
- La montaña parece más alta. – The mountain seems/appears taller.
verse (se ve) = literally “to see itself,” used to mean “looks” (specifically visual appearance)
- La montaña se ve más alta. – The mountain looks taller.

In this kind of visual context (“from this angle”), they are often interchangeable.
Se ve sounds slightly more colloquial and explicitly visual; parece is a bit more neutral/general.

Why is it la montaña and not just montaña without the article?

Spanish uses definite articles much more often than English.

English can say: From this angle, mountain looks taller. (unnatural)
→ Actually we say “the mountain,” not “mountain.”
In Spanish, you almost always need the article with a singular, countable noun used like this.

So you say:

la montaña – the mountain

You would omit the article only in some specific patterns (headlines, labels, some set phrases, etc.), but here, in a normal sentence, la montaña is the natural form. Saying just montaña here would sound wrong.

Why is there a comma after Desde este ángulo? Is it required?

The comma is a standard punctuation choice because “Desde este ángulo” is an introductory phrase (a prepositional phrase setting the context).

Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta.

In Spanish, as in English, it is common to separate an introductory phrase from the main clause with a comma. It:

Makes the sentence easier to read.
Clearly separates the context (“from this angle”) from the main statement.

Is it absolutely mandatory? In very short sentences, some writers omit it, but the preferred and most correct-looking version includes the comma.

Why does más have an accent mark? What’s the difference between más and mas?

In this sentence, más means “more” and takes a written accent:

más alta – taller / more tall

The accent distinguishes it from mas (without accent), which is an old-fashioned or literary word meaning “but” (similar to pero):

Quise ir, mas no pude. – I wanted to go, but I couldn’t.

In everyday modern Spanish, mas = “but” is rare; you almost always see pero instead.

So:

más (with accent) = “more,” “most”
mas (without accent) = “but” (literary)

In más alta, you always need the accent.

Could I say something like Desde este lado or Desde este punto de vista instead of Desde este ángulo? Would it change the meaning?

Yes, you can use other expressions with slightly different nuances:

Desde este ángulo – from this angle (literally, physical viewpoint; also works metaphorically)
Desde este lado – from this side (more about physical side or position)
Desde este punto de vista – from this point of view (more figurative, “from this perspective/opinion”)

Examples:

Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta.
→ Focus on the physical viewing angle.
Desde este lado, la montaña parece más alta.
→ Emphasizes looking at it from this side rather than another.
Desde este punto de vista, la montaña parece más alta.
→ Could be literal, but often sounds more like a metaphorical or analytical point of view.

All are possible; choose based on whether you want a literal angle/side or a more figurative “point of view.”

Could I say Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más grande instead of más alta? Does that sound natural?

Yes, you can say:

Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más grande.

It’s grammatically correct and natural. The only difference is the type of comparison:

más alta – taller / higher (focusing on vertical height)
más grande – bigger / larger (more general size: height + width + volume, etc.)

Use más alta when you care specifically about height, and más grande when you mean overall size.

Is parece más alta comparing this mountain to another mountain, or to itself from another angle?

Spanish comparatives with más are flexible. Without extra context, “parece más alta” just means “it seems taller,” and the comparison is understood from context:

It could be compared to itself when seen from a different angle:
- Desde este ángulo, la montaña parece más alta (que desde el otro lado).
It could be compared to another mountain, if that’s clear in the conversation:
- Esta montaña parece más alta que la otra.

Because the sentence mentions “Desde este ángulo”, the most natural interpretation is:

The mountain seems taller than it does from other angles.

If you need to be explicit, you add que + [what you compare to]:

Parece más alta que antes. – It seems taller than before.
Parece más alta que la otra montaña. – It seems taller than the other mountain.

What form of the verb is parece? How is parecer conjugated?

Parecer is an -er verb.
Parece in the sentence is:

3rd person singular, present indicative:
- él / ella / usted parece – he/she/it seems, you (formal) seem

Conjugation of parecer in the present tense:

yo parezco – I seem
tú pareces – you seem (informal singular)
él / ella / usted parece – he/she/it seems; you (formal) seem
nosotros / nosotras parecemos – we seem
vosotros / vosotras parecéis (mainly Spain) – you all seem
ellos / ellas / ustedes parecen – they seem; you all seem

In la montaña parece más alta, la montaña is 3rd person singular, so you use parece.