Breakdown of A fuerza de modelar la arcilla, aprendí a usar el torno.
aprender
to learn
a
to
usar
to use
de
of
Questions & Answers about A fuerza de modelar la arcilla, aprendí a usar el torno.
What does a fuerza de mean here?
A fuerza de is an idiomatic expression meaning by dint of, through repeated effort, by constantly doing something, or as a result of doing something over and over.
So in this sentence, it suggests that the speaker learned by spending a lot of time shaping clay repeatedly.
A few rough English equivalents are:
- By working with clay so much...
- Through constant clay modelling...
- By repeatedly shaping clay...
It often gives the idea of persistence, repetition, or even sheer effort.
Why is it modelar after de, and not a conjugated verb like modelo or modelaba?
What exactly does modelar la arcilla mean?