Mis amigos y yo compramos unos libros interesantes en la ciudad.

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Breakdown of Mis amigos y yo compramos unos libros interesantes en la ciudad.

• el libro: the book
• en: in
• y: and
• comprar: to buy
• mis: my
• interesante: interesting
• la ciudad: the city
• unos: some

Questions & Answers about Mis amigos y yo compramos unos libros interesantes en la ciudad.

Why is the verb compramos the same for both present tense ("we buy") and past tense ("we bought")?

In Spanish, the first-person plural form of the verb (nosotros / nosotras form) is spelled the same in the present indicative and the preterite for -ar verbs: compramos can mean "we buy" or "we bought." The context or additional time markers (like ayer for yesterday) help you know which tense is meant.

Why do we say Mis amigos y yo instead of Yo y mis amigos or just Nosotros?

It’s common in Spanish to place other people before yourself in a list to show politeness, hence Mis amigos y yo. Using nosotros is also correct and more concise, but saying Mis amigos y yo gives more emphasis on who exactly is included in "we."

Why is the article unos used before libros interesantes?

Unos is an indefinite article that roughly translates to "some" in English. It indicates an unspecified quantity (more than one but not a large or specifically defined number). It also suggests that these books are not previously mentioned or known.

Why does interesantes end in -es?

Since libros is masculine and plural, any matching adjective must also be masculine and plural. Adjectives that end in -e have the same form for masculine and feminine, so to make it plural, you add -s. Hence interesantes rather than interesante or interesanta.

What does en la ciudad convey in this sentence?

En la ciudad simply specifies that the action of buying the books took place in the city, rather than in a smaller town, countryside, or online. "En" generally translates to "in" or "on," indicating the location where something happens.