El cuórum permitió votar, pero dos vecinos se abstuvieron.

The required attendance allowed a vote, but two neighbours abstained.

Breakdown of El cuórum permitió votar, pero dos vecinos se abstuvieron.

• pero: but
• dos: two
• permitir: to allow
• el vecino: the neighbor

Questions & Answers about El cuórum permitió votar, pero dos vecinos se abstuvieron.

Why is it el cuórum? Is cuórum singular or plural?

Cuórum is a singular noun, so it takes el and a singular verb.

Even though a quorum is made up of several people, Spanish treats cuórum as one collective idea: the required number of people present.

So:

• el cuórum permitió... = singular
• not los cuórums permitieron... in this sentence

You may also see quórum or quorum, but cuórum is the fully adapted Spanish spelling.

Why is the verb permitió singular and not plural?

Because the subject is el cuórum, which is grammatically singular.

Spanish verb agreement follows the grammatical subject, not the number of people inside the concept.

So:

• El cuórum permitió votar.
• not El cuórum permitieron votar.

This is similar to English using a singular collective noun in some contexts.

What tense is permitió?

Permitió is the preterite of permitir.

It is used here because the sentence describes a completed action in the past: at some point, the quorum was reached, and that made voting possible.

Forms:

• permito = I allow
• permitía = I was allowing / used to allow
• permitió = he/she/it allowed

Here, the preterite fits because it refers to a specific event in a meeting.