Quiero cuidar el planeta cada día.

I want to take care of the planet every day.

Breakdown of Quiero cuidar el planeta cada día.

• yo: I
• querer: to want
• el día: the day
• cada: each
• el planeta: the planet
• cuidar: to care for

Questions & Answers about Quiero cuidar el planeta cada día.

Why is it Quiero cuidar and not Quiero a cuidar (like English “want to care”)?

In Spanish you normally use verb + infinitive directly, without a preposition like a:

• Querer + infinitivo = to want to do something
  
  • Quiero cuidar… = I want to take care (of)…
  • Quiero comer. = I want to eat.

So you never say quiero a cuidar. The a is not needed here.

Why do we say el planeta and not just planeta?

In Spanish, singular countable nouns almost always need an article (el, la, un, una) unless there is a special reason not to use one.

When you talk about something in general, Spanish often uses the definite article:

• El perro es un buen amigo. = Dogs are good friends.
• El planeta here means the planet (in general).

You can’t say Quiero cuidar planeta; it sounds incomplete. It has to be Quiero cuidar el planeta.

Could I say Quiero cuidar del planeta instead of cuidar el planeta?

Yes, cuidar del planeta is possible, and people do say it, especially in more formal or written language.

• cuidar algo – direct object, very common and neutral
  
  • Cuidar el planeta, Cuidar el medio ambiente
• cuidar de algo – also means to take care of, but can sound a bit more like “look after / be responsible for” and is sometimes a bit more formal.

In everyday speech in Spain, cuidar el planeta is very natural and probably the most typical version.

Why not cuidar al planeta? When do we use a?

Spanish uses the personal a before direct objects that are:

• specific people, or
• personified animals (and occasionally personified things in poetry).

Examples:

• Quiero cuidar a mis hijos.
• Cuidamos a nuestro perro.

But el planeta is an inanimate thing in normal usage, so there is no personal a:

• ✅ Quiero cuidar el planeta.
• ❌ Quiero cuidar al planeta. (sounds strange unless it’s very poetic personification)

What’s the difference between cada día and todos los días?

Both normally translate as “every day.”

• cada día – literally each day; can feel slightly more emphatic or a bit more “careful” in tone.
• todos los días – literally all the days; extremely common and very neutral.

In this sentence you could say either:

• Quiero cuidar el planeta cada día.
• Quiero cuidar el planeta todos los días.

Meaning is essentially the same.

Can I move cada día to a different place in the sentence?

Yes. Adverbs of frequency are quite flexible. Common options:

• Quiero cuidar el planeta cada día. – very natural and neutral.
• Cada día quiero cuidar el planeta. – emphasizes every day a bit more.
• Quiero, cada día, cuidar el planeta. – possible in writing for stylistic effect; less common in speech.
• Quiero cada día cuidar el planeta. – grammatically correct but sounds more literary/unusual in everyday talk.

For normal spoken Spanish, the first two are the best choices.

Why is it quiero and not quiera? When do we use the subjunctive after querer?

Here quiero is present indicative of querer (I want), and it’s followed by an infinitive because the subject is the same:

• Yo quiero cuidar el planeta. (I want I to take care.)

Pattern:

• Querer + infinitivo when the subject is the same:
  
  • Quiero cuidar el planeta.
  • Queremos ayudar.

We use subjunctive with querer que… when the subject changes:

• Quiero que cuidemos el planeta. = I want us to take care of the planet.
• Quieren que sus hijos lo cuiden. = They want their children to take care of it.

So quiera would appear in a different context, not here.

What exactly does cuidar mean? Is it always “to take care of”?

Cuidar basically means to take care of / look after / care for / protect. It’s widely used:

• Cuidar a los niños – to look after the children
• Cuidar a un enfermo – to care for a sick person
• Cuidar mi salud – to take care of my health
• Cuidar el medio ambiente / el planeta – to protect / take care of the environment / planet

Context decides whether English uses take care of, look after, protect, care for, etc., but in Spanish cuidar covers all of those ideas.

Could I say Me quiero cuidar el planeta? How does cuidarse work?

No, Me quiero cuidar el planeta is incorrect.

• cuidar (non‑reflexive) = take care of something/someone else
  
  • Quiero cuidar el planeta.
• cuidarse (reflexive) = take care of oneself / look after oneself
  
  • Quiero cuidarme. = I want to take care of myself.

You can’t mix them as me quiero cuidar el planeta. That sounds like “I want to take myself care the planet,” which doesn’t work grammatically in Spanish.

How do you pronounce quiero cuidar el planeta in Spain?

Key points for a Spain accent (standard peninsular):

• quiero – [ˈkje.ɾo]

  • qu = like English k before ie
  • ie = roughly “yeh”
  • r (single) = quick tap, like the American English tt in butter (when pronounced quickly).

• cuidar – [kwiˈðar]

  • cui = “kwee”
  • d between vowels (-da-) is soft, like a mix between English d and th in this.

• el planeta – [el plaˈne.ta]

  • Stress on -ne-: pla‑NE‑ta
  • All vowels are short and clear, not diphthongized as in English.

Rough syllable division: quie-ro cui-dar el pla-ne-ta, with the main stresses on QUIE, DAR, and NE.

Is this sentence more formal, informal, or neutral in Spain?

Quiero cuidar el planeta cada día. is neutral and perfectly fine in almost any context:

• In casual conversation
• In schoolwork or presentations
• On posters, campaigns, etc.

To make it softer or more polite you might hear Me gustaría cuidar el planeta cada día (I would like to…), but Quiero cuidar el planeta cada día is already perfectly acceptable and natural.