Log inSign up

El cliente tiene un problema con el collar y se lo devuelve.

El cliente tiene un problema con el collar y se lo devuelve.
The customer has a problem with the necklace and returns it to him.
From Lesson 82:The 'se lo' rule (se lo, se la)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about El cliente tiene un problema con el collar y se lo devuelve.

Why does it say se lo devuelve instead of le lo devuelve?
In Spanish, you can't put le (to him/her) right before lo (it). Whenever a sentence needs both, the le changes to se to make it easier to pronounce. So, instead of the awkward-sounding le lo devuelve, we say se lo devuelve.
What exactly do se and lo stand for in this sentence?
lo (it) stands for the masculine noun el collar (the necklace). se (to him) refers to the person the customer is returning the necklace to (likely the shop owner or clerk).
I thought words ending in "-a" were feminine. Why is it un problema?
Although most words ending in "-a" are feminine, many words ending in "-ma" that come from Greek are masculine. El problema, el tema (the topic), and el clima (the weather) are common exceptions you'll need to memorize!
Why does the verb devuelve have a "ue" in it if the infinitive is devolver?
Devolver (to return an item) is a stem-changing verb. When you conjugate it for the "he/she/it" form, the o in the stem changes to ue, making it devuelve.

Learn El cliente tiene un problema con el collar y se lo devuelve and more in Spanish

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning Spanish →