Me da ternura ver a mi sobrina dormida con su muñeco cuando ya no oye la radio.

Me da ternura literally means it gives me tenderness, but in natural English it means it makes me feel tenderness / affection or I find it adorable.

This is a very common Spanish pattern:

• Me da miedo = It scares me
• Me da vergüenza = It embarrasses me
• Me da pena = It makes me feel sad / sorry
• Me da ternura = It makes me feel tenderness / affection

So the structure is:

• me = to me
• da = gives
• ternura = tenderness, affectionate feeling

Spanish often uses this kind of expression where English would use an adjective or a different verb.

Ternura is the feeling of tenderness, affection, or warm emotional softness you feel when something is sweet, innocent, or touching.

In this sentence, it suggests something like:

• I find it adorable
• It melts my heart
• It fills me with tenderness

It is stronger and more emotional than just saying something is nice or cute.

This is the personal a.

In Spanish, when the direct object is a specific person, you usually put a before it:

• Veo a mi hermana
• Conozco a Juan
• Oigo a los niños

So:

• ver a mi sobrina = to see my niece

Even though English does not use anything here, Spanish normally does with people.

Dormida is a past participle used like an adjective here, and it agrees with mi sobrina.

So:

• mi sobrina dormida = my niece asleep

This describes her state.

By contrast, durmiendo is the gerund:

• mi sobrina durmiendo = my niece sleeping

That focuses more on the action in progress.

In this sentence, dormida sounds very natural because the image is of her being asleep. It is almost like saying:

• to see my niece asleep with her doll

Because it agrees with mi sobrina, which is feminine singular.

Agreement works like this:

• sobrino dormido = nephew asleep
• sobrina dormida = niece asleep
• niños dormidos = children asleep
• niñas dormidas = girls asleep

Even though dormido/dormida comes from a verb, here it behaves like an adjective.

Con su muñeco means with her doll / toy.

A few useful details:

• con = with
• su = his, her, your, its, their
• muñeco = doll, toy figure, sometimes a stuffed toy depending on context

Since the sentence already mentions mi sobrina, su muñeco will normally be understood as her doll/toy.

Su is the normal possessive determiner before a noun:

• su muñeco = her doll

You would use el suyo more when the noun is omitted:

• Este muñeco es suyo = This doll is hers

And su propio muñeco adds emphasis:

• her own doll

So in this sentence, su muñeco is the simplest and most natural form.

The subject is understood to be mi sobrina.

Spanish often leaves subjects unstated when they are clear from context. So:

• cuando ya no oye la radio

means:

• when she no longer hears/listens to the radio

The verb form oye can mean he/she/it hears or you (formal) hear, but here the context clearly points to mi sobrina.

Both are possible, but they are not exactly the same.

• oír = to hear
• escuchar = to listen

In practice, Spanish sometimes uses oír la radio and escuchar la radio, and both can sound natural depending on context.

Here, ya no oye la radio suggests that once she has fallen asleep, she no longer hears the radio. That fits the image very well.

If you said ya no escucha la radio, it would focus a bit more on no longer listening to it.

So:

• oír la radio = hear the radio
• escuchar la radio = listen to the radio

Both are common, but oye here emphasizes that she is asleep and no longer perceiving the sound.

Ya no means no longer / not anymore.

Examples:

• Ya no vive aquí = He/She no longer lives here
• Ya no estudio francés = I don’t study French anymore
• Ya no oye la radio = She no longer hears the radio

So ya adds the idea of a change from an earlier situation. Before, the radio could still be heard; now that is no longer the case.

Here it can be understood mainly as when, referring to the moment or stage at which she no longer hears the radio.

So the idea is something like:

• seeing my niece asleep with her doll once she has stopped hearing the radio

Depending on context, cuando can also sometimes feel like whenever, but in this sentence it most naturally points to a specific situation or recurring moment tied to her falling asleep.

A simple breakdown is:

• Me da ternura = It makes me feel tenderness / I find it adorable
• ver a mi sobrina dormida con su muñeco = to see my niece asleep with her doll
• cuando ya no oye la radio = when she no longer hears the radio

So the full structure is:

• [Main clause] Me da ternura...
• [Infinitive phrase acting like the thing that causes the emotion] ver a mi sobrina dormida...
• [Time clause] cuando ya no oye la radio

In other words, the thing that gives the speaker that feeling is seeing the niece asleep with her doll at that moment.

Because the sentence is built around the idea what gives me tenderness is seeing...

So:

• Me da ternura ver... = Seeing ... makes me feel tenderness

The infinitive ver works like a noun-like idea here, similar to English seeing.

Compare:

• Me da ternura verla dormir = Seeing her sleep makes me feel tenderness
• Veo a mi sobrina dormida = I see my niece asleep

The first talks about the emotional effect of the act of seeing; the second just states what you see.

Yes. Me enternece ver a mi sobrina... is possible and means something like Seeing my niece... moves me tenderly / makes me feel affectionate.

But there is a slight difference in tone:

• Me da ternura is very common, direct, and conversational
• Me enternece is also natural, but it can feel a bit more literary or expressive depending on context

So both work, but me da ternura is especially common in everyday speech.

Good question. Both words exist:

• muñeca often refers to a doll, especially a girl doll
• muñeco can refer to a doll, toy figure, puppet, or little toy character, and sometimes even a cuddly toy depending on context

In real usage, the exact English translation can depend on what kind of toy is meant. So muñeco here could be:

• doll
• toy
• stuffed figure

The context tells you it is a comforting toy she sleeps with.

Because cuando ya no oye la radio is an integrated subordinate clause that directly completes the idea. In normal Spanish punctuation, you usually do not put a comma before this kind of essential time clause.

So:

• Me da ternura ver a mi sobrina dormida con su muñeco cuando ya no oye la radio.

looks natural without a comma.

A comma could change the rhythm or suggest a more parenthetical reading, which is not needed here.