Breakdown of Guardo las frutas frescas en la nevera después de comprarlas en el mercado.
en
in
después de
after
la fruta
the fruit
fresco
fresh
el mercado
the market
comprar
to buy
guardar
to store
la nevera
the fridge
Questions & Answers about Guardo las frutas frescas en la nevera después de comprarlas en el mercado.
Why is las frutas plural and feminine?
Because in Spanish, fruta is a feminine noun (la fruta), and here it’s plural (las frutas). You simply match the article (las) and the adjective (frescas) in gender and number with frutas.
Why use frescas instead of fresco?
In Spanish, adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun they modify. Since frutas is plural and feminine, we use the feminine plural form frescas rather than the masculine singular fresco.
Why do we say en la nevera and not en el refrigerador?
In Spain, people often say la nevera to refer to the refrigerator. It’s a regional preference. Both la nevera and el frigorífico are common in Spain, while el refrigerador is more common in Latin America.
Why is después de comprarlas used instead of something like después de que las compro?
In Spanish, when you use después de followed by a verb, that verb typically stays in the infinitive form. Here, comprar remains in the infinitive with the pronoun las attached at the end (to indicate “them,” referring to las frutas). If you wanted a full clause, you could say después de que las compro, but that slightly changes the structure and timing of the actions; después de comprarlas is a more direct way to say “after buying them.”
Why do we attach las to comprar in comprarlas?
In Spanish, object pronouns can attach to the end of infinitives. Since we’re talking about las frutas, the direct object pronoun las (“them”) is added directly onto the infinitive comprar. This avoids repeating the noun, making the sentence more concise.
Why is there no article before mercado?
When talking about going to or buying something at a place like a market, native speakers of Spanish often omit the article if it’s a general reference (like “going to school,” “going to class”). You could still say en el mercado, and that’s also perfectly correct; it just adds a bit more specificity. Both forms are common.
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