Breakdown of Quem me dera reservar o quarto mais caro do resort.
de
of / from / by (means of transport) / wearing (attire)
o quarto
the bedroom / the room
caro
expensive
mais
more
reservar
to reserve
o resort
the resort
quem me dera
I wish
Questions & Answers about Quem me dera reservar o quarto mais caro do resort.
What exactly does Quem me dera mean literally?
It is a fixed expression used to say "I wish" or "If only". Literally, it translates to "Who would give to me", where dera is a past tense form of dar (to give). You use it to express a strong desire or longing for something.
Why is reservar in the infinitive here? Doesn't expressing a wish usually require the subjunctive?
Because the person wishing and the person booking the room are the same ("I wish I could book"). When the subject doesn't change, Quem me dera is followed directly by the infinitive. If you wished for someone else to do it, you would use que plus the imperfect subjunctive, like Quem me dera que reservasses (I wish you would book).
How does o quarto mais caro translate to "the most expensive room"?
To say "the most" followed by an adjective in Portuguese, you use the definite article (o or a) + the noun + mais (more) + the adjective. So, o quarto mais caro is literally "the room more expensive".
Why does the sentence use do resort instead of no resort for "in the resort"?
In Portuguese, when linking a superlative like "the most expensive" to a specific place or group, you use the preposition de (of) rather than em (in). Since resort is a masculine noun borrowed from English, de combines with o to become do, literally meaning "of the resort".
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