Learn Spanish (Latin America): A pesar de que las olas son grandes, navegamos hacia la costa. - Even though the waves are big, we sail toward the coast.

A pesar de que las olas son grandes, navegamos hacia la costa.

Even though the waves are big, we sail toward the coast.

Breakdown of A pesar de que las olas son grandes, navegamos hacia la costa.

the (feminine plural)

hacia

towards

Questions & Answers about A pesar de que las olas son grandes, navegamos hacia la costa.

Why does this sentence use the indicative son instead of the subjunctive sean after a pesar de que?

With a pesar de que, you use the indicative mood when you are stating a known, established fact. The speaker is confirming that the waves are indeed big right now. If the speaker were talking about a hypothetical situation (like 'even if the waves are big tomorrow'), they would use the subjunctive sean.

Could I just say a pesar de las olas son grandes without the que?

No, you need the que when a conjugated verb (like son) follows. Use a pesar de (without que) only when it is followed directly by a noun or an infinitive verb. For example, you could say a pesar de las olas grandes (despite the big waves) but you must say a pesar de que las olas son grandes (despite the fact that the waves are big).

What is the exact difference between hacia and a in this context?

While both translate broadly to 'to' or 'toward', hacia specifically emphasizes the direction of movement ('toward the coast'). If you used a (navegamos a la costa), it would simply mean 'we sail to the coast', treating the coast as the final destination rather than just the direction you are heading.

Since navegamos is exactly the same in both the present and past tenses, how do we know which one it is here?