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Mi profesora no solo corrige mis errores, sino que además me explica la diferencia con paciencia.

Mi profesora no solo corrige mis errores, sino que además me explica la diferencia con paciencia.
My teacher not only corrects my mistakes, but also explains the difference to me patiently.
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Questions & Answers about Mi profesora no solo corrige mis errores, sino que además me explica la diferencia con paciencia.

Why is it mi profesora and not mi profesor? Does profesora mean something different from profesor?

Spanish nouns that refer to people usually have a masculine and a feminine form:

  • el profesor = male teacher
  • la profesora = female teacher

With a possessive, you still keep the gender of the noun:

  • mi profesor = my (male) teacher
  • mi profesora = my (female) teacher

So mi profesora tells you the teacher is female. The possessive mi does not change for gender, only for number:

  • mi profesora / mi profesor (singular)
  • mis profesoras / mis profesores (plural)

In Spain, profesor/profesora is the standard word for a teacher (school, high school, language classes, etc.). Maestro/maestra is more associated with primary school, and in many contexts sounds a bit marked or old‑fashioned in Peninsular Spanish, though it is very normal in much of Latin America.

How does no solo … sino que work? Is it just not only … but also?

Yes, no solo … sino que … is the usual way to express not only … but also ….

Structure:

  • no solo
    • first statement
  • sino que
    • second statement (often with además, también, etc.)

In your sentence:

  • no solo corrige mis errores
    = not only does she correct my mistakes

  • sino que además me explica la diferencia con paciencia
    = but she also explains the difference to me patiently

Key points:

  • no solo must come in front of what is being contrasted.
  • sino que introduces the second, additional part that reinforces or completes the idea, not something opposite or incompatible.
Why is it sino que and not just sino?

Spanish distinguishes between sino and sino que:

  1. sino

    • noun, adjective, or short phrase (no verb directly after):

    • No quiero té, sino café.
      (I do not want tea, but coffee instead.)
    • No es alto, sino bajo.
      (He is not tall but short.)

  2. sino que

    • a conjugated verb:

    • No solo corrige mis errores, sino que además me explica la diferencia.
    • No vino Juan, sino que vino María.

In your sentence, the second part has a verb (me explica), so the standard form is sino que.

Could we leave out que and say … sino además me explica …?

Spoken Spanish sometimes drops que in casual speech, and you might hear:

  • No solo corrige mis errores, sino además me explica la diferencia.

However:

  • The most natural and standard written form is sino que además me explica ….
  • In careful writing and in most teaching contexts, sino que is preferred when a verb follows.

So it is better to keep que here, especially as a learner.

What is the role of además here? Is it necessary? Could I use también instead?

además adds the idea of on top of that / furthermore / as well.

  • sino que me explica la diferencia
    = but instead she explains the difference (neutral)

  • sino que además me explica la diferencia
    = but on top of that she also explains the difference (stronger sense of addition)

You can often replace además with también:

  • … sino que también me explica la diferencia …

Differences in feel:

  • también = also, too (more neutral, very common)
  • además = besides, moreover, on top of that (slightly more emphatic)

Here, both are correct. además makes the extra help sound a bit more generous.

Why is there a comma before sino que in Spanish?

In Spanish, when you have a no solo … sino que … structure that connects two clauses, it is very common (and usually recommended) to place a comma before sino que:

  • Mi profesora no solo corrige mis errores, sino que además me explica la diferencia.

This comma marks a clear pause between the two contrasted parts of the sentence, which are both full clauses.

If sino is joining shorter elements without full clauses, you may or may not see a comma, depending on length and style:

  • No quiero té sino café.
  • No es azul sino verde.

But with two full statements, the comma before sino que is standard and makes the sentence easier to read.

Why is corrige spelled with g and not correge? What tense is it?

corrige is the 3rd person singular of the verb corregir (to correct) in the present indicative:

  • yo corrijo
  • tú corriges
  • él/ella/usted corrige
  • nosotros corregimos
  • vosotros corregís
  • ellos/ellas/ustedes corrigen

corregir is a spelling‑change verb: in some forms, the g becomes j (corrijo) to keep the same sound before o, but with e you keep g (corrige).

So:

  • It is corregir, corrige, corregimos, etc.
  • correge is simply wrong spelling.
Could I say mi profesora no corrige solo mis errores? Does that mean the same thing?

mi profesora no corrige solo mis errores is grammatically possible, but the meaning shifts.

  • no solo corrige mis errores:
    Focus on what she does. She does more than just correct errors; she also explains, etc.

  • no corrige solo mis errores:
    Focus more on which errors she corrects:
    She does not correct only my mistakes (maybe she corrects other people’s too).

So:

  • no solo corrige mis errores = not only does she correct my mistakes (but she also explains, etc.)
  • no corrige solo mis errores = she does not correct only my mistakes (she corrects others’ mistakes as well)

They are not equivalent, so for the meaning in your sentence, you need no solo corrige mis errores.

Why is it mis errores and not mis error? How does the possessive mi/mis work here?

errores is the plural of error:

  • singular: un error
  • plural: unos errores

The possessive adjective must agree in number (singular/plural) with the noun:

  • mi error = my mistake
  • mis errores = my mistakes

So:

  • mi
    • singular noun: mi profesora, mi error, mi libro
  • mis
    • plural noun: mis profesoras, mis errores, mis libros

mi/mis do not change for gender; only for number.

Could I say me corrige mis errores, since she corrects my errors for me?

You will hear me corrige mis errores in real speech, but it is not ideal from a traditional grammar point of view.

Reason:

  • mis errores is the direct object.
  • me would also be functioning as a direct object pronoun here if it referred to my errors.

Spanish normally allows doubling with indirect objects (e.g. me, te, le + a mí, a ti, a Juan), but not with direct objects in this way.

More standard options are:

  • Corrige mis errores. (She corrects my mistakes.)
  • Me corrige los errores. (She corrects the mistakes for me.)
  • Me corrige cuando cometo errores. (She corrects me when I make mistakes.)

So as a learner, avoid me corrige mis errores in careful speech or writing.

What is the function of me in me explica la diferencia? Is it the same as me in me corrige?

In me explica la diferencia, me is an indirect object pronoun: to me / for me.

Structure:

  • explicar algo a alguien
    = to explain something to someone

So:

  • la diferencia = direct object (what is explained)
  • me = indirect object (to whom it is explained)

Similarly, me corrige can be:

  • me = direct object (She corrects me)
    or
  • implied: me corrige los errores (She corrects my errors for me), where me is indirect object.

The position of me is fixed before the conjugated verb:

  • me explica, me corrige, me ayuda, not explica me or corrige me in standard usage (except in commands: explícame, corrígeme).
Why is it la diferencia and not el diferencia? Is there a rule for the gender of diferencia?

diferencia is a feminine noun, so it takes the feminine article la:

  • la diferencia
  • las diferencias

There is no general rule that lets you guess the gender of every noun, but many nouns ending in -a are feminine, and -encia / -encia nouns (like diferencia, experiencia, conciencia) are typically feminine.

So you have to learn it as la diferencia.

Why do we say con paciencia instead of using an adverb like pacientemente?

Both are correct:

  • con paciencia = literally with patience
  • pacientemente = patiently

Differences:

  • con paciencia is extremely common and sounds very natural and neutral.
  • pacientemente is more formal or literary, and used less often in everyday speech.

In many contexts, Spanish prefers con + noun instead of a derived -mente adverb, especially with qualities like paciencia, cuidado, cariño, atención:

  • Habla con calma. (rather than calmamente)
  • Lo hizo con cuidado.
  • Me trata con cariño.

So con paciencia is the most natural everyday choice here.

Can the position of además change? For example, could I say … sino que me explica además la diferencia …?

Yes, adverbs like además are fairly flexible in position, though some options sound more natural than others.

All of these are possible:

  • … sino que además me explica la diferencia … (very natural)
  • … sino que me explica además la diferencia … (also fine)
  • … sino que me explica la diferencia además … (possible, but sounds a bit heavier; the focus of además feels more on la diferencia)

The most neutral and common spot is where you have it:

  • sino que además me explica …

As a learner, it is safest to keep además early in the clause, right after sino que or before the verb.

Could I use pero instead of sino que here: Mi profesora no solo corrige mis errores, pero además me explica la diferencia?

In Spanish, no solo … sino (que) is the standard pair, not no solo … pero.

So:

  • ✔ Mi profesora no solo corrige mis errores, sino que además me explica la diferencia.
  • ✘ Mi profesora no solo corrige mis errores, pero además me explica la diferencia.

Use pero when you do not have the no solo structure:

  • Corrige mis errores, pero también me explica la diferencia.

So the pairings are:

  • no solo … sino (que)
  • … pero también …

but not no solo … pero.