Learn Spanish (Latin America): Recomiendo que usted lo apruebe.

Recomiendo que usted lo apruebe.

I recommend that you approve it.

Breakdown of Recomiendo que usted lo apruebe.

it / him (direct object)

recomendar

to recommend

Questions & Answers about Recomiendo que usted lo apruebe.

Why does the sentence use apruebe instead of aprueba?

The phrase Recomiendo que (I recommend that) triggers the subjunctive mood for the second verb. We use the subjunctive when giving advice, expressing wishes, or making recommendations. Because aprobar (to approve) is an -ar verb, its vowel swaps to an -e in the subjunctive.

Where does the "ue" in apruebe come from?

The infinitive of the verb is aprobar. Just like in the normal present tense (where we say yo apruebo or tú apruebas), this verb has a stem change from o to ue. The present subjunctive keeps this exact same stem change.

Why is the word usted included here? Doesn't the verb already tell us who is doing the approving?

Usually, yes! But in the present subjunctive, the verb forms for yo, él, ella, and usted are all exactly the same (apruebe). Because of this overlap, Spanish speakers often add the subject pronoun (like usted) to make it perfectly clear who they are talking about.

Why does lo come before the verb? Could I say "apruebelo"?