Breakdown of El equipo quiere ganar la carrera.
querer
to want
el equipo
the team
ganar
to win
la carrera
the race
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Questions & Answers about El equipo quiere ganar la carrera.
Why is quiere in the third-person singular form and not quieren?
Because el equipo is grammatically a singular noun in Spanish (even though it refers to a group of people). Verbs agree with the grammatical number of their subjects, so you use third-person singular quiere (not plural quieren).
Why are there definite articles el and la before equipo and carrera?
Spanish typically uses definite articles with common nouns more often than English does. Here, el equipo refers to “the team” (a specific team in context) and la carrera means “the race” (that specific contest). If you spoke of “a race” in general, you’d say una carrera.
Can equipo ever mean “equipment,” and how do I know which meaning is intended?
Yes, equipo can mean either “team” or “equipment.” You decide by context:
- Sports context + verb “to win” → “team.”
- Talking about tools or gear → “equipment.”
Why is there no preposition between quiere and ganar (e.g., not quiere de ganar)?
In Spanish, verbs of volition like querer (to want) are followed directly by an infinitive verb. You simply say querer + ganar. No preposition is needed.
Could I say El equipo quiere ganar una carrera instead?
Yes. Changing la to una shifts the meaning from “the (specific) race” to “a (any) race.” Use una when you mean “any race,” not a particular one.
Why isn’t there a personal “a” before el equipo since it’s animate?
The personal a marks direct objects that are people (or personified beings). Here, el equipo is the subject of the sentence, not the direct object. No a is needed for subjects.
How do you pronounce quiere?
Phonetically it’s [ˈkje.ɾe]. You can think of it as “KYEH-reh,” with a clear kye sound at the start and a tapped r in the second syllable.
What’s the difference between querer + infinitive and desear + infinitive?
Both mean “to want” or “to wish,” but:
- querer is more common and colloquial in everyday speech.
- desear is slightly more formal or literary, often implying a stronger or more polite wish.