A mi hermano le cuesta madrugar porque es perezoso por la mañana.

A mi hermano marks the person affected by the action: my brother.

With verbs like costar, Spanish often uses this pattern:

• A + person + indirect object pronoun + verb

So:

• A mi hermano le cuesta...
• literally something like: To my brother, it is difficult...

This structure is very common in Spanish with verbs such as gustar, interesar, molestar, costar, etc.

This is called indirect object doubling, and it is very common in Spanish.

In this sentence:

• A mi hermano = clarifies who we are talking about
• le = the indirect object pronoun that the verb normally uses

So Spanish prefers:

• A mi hermano le cuesta madrugar

rather than just:

• A mi hermano cuesta madrugar ✘

The le is not optional here in normal Spanish.

Here costar means to be difficult for someone or to take effort.

So le cuesta madrugar means:

• getting up early is difficult for him
• he finds it hard to get up early

This is different from the other common meaning of costar, which is to cost in the sense of price:

• El libro cuesta diez euros = The book costs ten euros

Because after costar, Spanish often uses an infinitive to say what is difficult.

Structure:

• A alguien le cuesta + infinitive

Examples:

• Me cuesta estudiar = Studying is hard for me
• Le cuesta levantarse temprano = It’s hard for him/her to get up early
• A mi hermano le cuesta madrugar = My brother finds it hard to get up early

So madrugar is the action that is difficult.

Madrugar means to get up very early or to wake up early, often earlier than one would like.

It is a very common Spanish verb and is more specific than just levantarse temprano in some contexts.

Nuance:

• levantarse temprano = to get up early
• madrugar = to rise early, often with the idea that it is notably early

So le cuesta madrugar sounds very natural in Spanish.

Because porque is the conjunction meaning because.

In this sentence:

• porque es perezoso por la mañana = because he is lazy in the morning

Compare:

• porque = because
• por qué = why

Examples:

• No vino porque estaba cansado = He didn’t come because he was tired
• ¿Por qué no vino? = Why didn’t he come?

So here porque is correct because the sentence is giving a reason.

This is about ser vs estar.

• ser is usually used for qualities seen as more characteristic or defining
• estar is usually used for temporary states or conditions

In es perezoso por la mañana, the speaker is presenting laziness in the morning as a more typical trait or habitual quality.

So it suggests something like:

• he’s a lazy person in the morning
• he tends to be lazy in the morning

If you said está perezoso, it would sound more like a temporary state:

• he’s feeling lazy today / right now

Both can be possible in some contexts, but es perezoso por la mañana sounds more natural for a habitual pattern.

Por la mañana is the normal expression for in the morning.

Spanish commonly uses:

• por la mañana = in the morning
• por la tarde = in the afternoon / evening
• por la noche = at night / in the evening

So:

• es perezoso por la mañana = he is lazy in the morning

This is simply the standard idiomatic way to express time of day here.

Because Spanish normally uses the definite article in these fixed time expressions:

• por la mañana
• por la tarde
• por la noche

You should learn them as complete chunks.

So:

• por la mañana ✔
• por mañana ✘ in this meaning

Be careful: para mañana means for tomorrow, which is something different.

Yes. Spanish word order is more flexible than English.

The most neutral version is:

• A mi hermano le cuesta madrugar porque es perezoso por la mañana.

But you could also hear:

• Le cuesta madrugar a mi hermano porque es perezoso por la mañana.

This version puts the focus a bit more on le cuesta madrugar first, and then identifies a mi hermano.

Still, the original sentence is the most straightforward and learner-friendly order.

Because perezoso agrees with mi hermano, which is masculine singular.

Agreement:

• mi hermano es perezoso
• mi hermana es perezosa

If the subject were plural:

• mis hermanos son perezosos
• mis hermanas son perezosas

So the adjective changes to match the person being described.

Yes. If the context is clear, you could simply say:

• Le cuesta madrugar porque es perezoso por la mañana.

Here le already means to him.

However, adding A mi hermano makes it clearer and more explicit, especially if you are introducing the person or contrasting him with someone else.

For example:

• A mi hermano le cuesta madrugar, pero a mi hermana no.

No. Por la mañana limits the idea to that time of day.

So the sentence does not necessarily mean your brother is generally lazy. It means that in the morning he is lazy, sluggish, or unmotivated.

That extra phrase is important because it narrows the description:

• es perezoso = he is lazy
• es perezoso por la mañana = he is lazy in the morning

So the speaker is talking about a specific part of the day, not his whole personality in every situation.