Question 1

Why is corriendo used after continúa instead of the infinitive correr?

Accepted Answer

In Spanish, to express that someone "continues doing" an action, you use the verbs seguir or continuar followed by the gerund (the -ando or -iendo form). So, continúa corriendo translates to "continues running." Unlike in English where you might say "continues to run," Spanish strictly requires the gerund here.

Question 2

Could I say siente cansado instead of siente el cansancio?

Accepted Answer

Not exactly! If you want to use the adjective cansado (tired), you must use the reflexive verb sentirse: el atleta se siente cansado. Because this sentence uses the non-reflexive verb siente, it has to be followed by a noun. That is why it uses el cansancio (the fatigue or the tiredness).

Question 3

Why is it el atleta when the word ends in an "-a"?

Accepted Answer

Nouns ending in -eta or -ista that refer to people (like atleta, turista, or dentista) have the exact same spelling for both masculine and feminine. The article is what reveals the gender. El atleta refers to a male athlete, while la atleta would refer to a female athlete.

Question 4

Why does continúa have an accent mark on the "u"?

Accepted Answer

The verb continuar gets an accent mark on the "u" in most present tense forms (yo continúo, tú continúas, él continúa, ellos continúan). The written accent breaks the natural blending of the "u" and the "a" into a single syllable, forcing you to stress the "u" when speaking.

El atleta siente el cansancio, pero continúa corriendo el kilómetro.

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