Question 1

Why is there a no before come when the sentence already uses ni... ni (neither... nor)?

Accepted Answer

In Spanish, if negative words like ni... ni come after the verb, you must also make the verb itself negative by putting no in front of it. While English avoids double negatives, Spanish requires them here. If the sentence started with the negative words (e.g., Ni lácteos ni nueces come el niño), you would drop the no, but that order is less common.

Question 2

Is por eso exactly the same as 'so' in English?

Accepted Answer

Yes, in this context it works perfectly as 'so'. Literally, por eso means 'for that [reason]' or 'that is why'. You could also use así que (so) here, but por eso does a great job highlighting the cause-and-effect relationship between the allergy and his diet.

Question 3

Why is nueces spelled with a 'c' instead of a 'z'?

Accepted Answer

The singular form is nuez (nut or walnut). In Spanish spelling, whenever a word ends in -z, that z changes to a c before adding the plural ending -es. You also see this in words like lápiz becoming lápices (pencils) or luz becoming luces (lights).

Question 4

Can lácteos just mean 'dairy' by itself, or do I need to say 'productos lácteos'?

Accepted Answer

You can use it by itself! While lácteo can be an adjective (as in productos lácteos), it is very commonly used as a standalone plural noun, los lácteos, to mean 'dairy' or 'dairy products'.

El niño tiene una alergia, por eso no come ni lácteos ni nueces.

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