Breakdown of También puedo recomendar a mis amigos que se unan a mí en el gimnasio.
el amigo
the friend
yo
I
en
at
mi
my
mí
me
también
also
el
the
a
to
que
that
poder
can
ellos
they
el gimnasio
the gym
recomendar
to recommend
se
themselves
unir
to join
Questions & Answers about También puedo recomendar a mis amigos que se unan a mí en el gimnasio.
Why does the sentence use 'que se unan' instead of something like 'que se unen'?
In Spanish, after recomendar (when suggesting that someone do something), you need to use the subjunctive mood. Hence, 'se unan' is the present subjunctive form of unirse, rather than 'se unen', which is the indicative form.
What is the function of the 'a' in 'recomendar a mis amigos'?
In Spanish, when the direct object refers to a specific person or people, you generally use the personal a. Since mis amigos are specific people, the sentence says 'recomendar a mis amigos'.
Could I say 'También puedo recomendar que mis amigos se unan a mí en el gimnasio' without 'a mis amigos' directly after 'recomendar'?
Yes, you could technically structure it that way, but it’s more natural in Spanish to specify a quién (to whom) you are making the recommendation earlier in the sentence. The version with 'También puedo recomendar a mis amigos que se unan...' feels more direct and clear.
Why do we say 'se unan a mí' instead of 'me unan'?
The verb unirse is a pronominal verb meaning to join. So you say 'se unan a mí' to express they join me. If you used 'me unan', it would change the meaning and sound unnatural, because unir typically requires a (to) when indicating who or what is being joined.
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