Question 1

Why is se volvió used here for 'became' instead of se hizo?

Accepted Answer

We use volverse to talk about involuntary or deep changes in someone's personality, behavior, or character. Because becoming eccentric (excéntrico) is a psychological shift rather than a deliberate career choice, volverse is the perfect fit. If he had deliberately become a monk, we would use se hizo.

Question 2

How does solía hablar translate to 'used to talk'?

Accepted Answer

The verb soler means to be in the habit of doing something. When used in the imperfect tense like solía, it is the most natural way to say 'used to' do something in the past. It is always followed directly by an infinitive verb, which is hablar in this sentence.

Question 3

Why does the sentence use hablar solo to mean 'talk to himself' instead of hablar a sí mismo?

Accepted Answer

While hablar a sí mismo is understood, hablar solo (literally 'to talk alone') is the most common idiom for talking to yourself in everyday Spanish. Remember that solo acts as an adjective here matching the subject, so a female hermit would hablar sola.

Question 4

Why does this sentence mix the imperfect tense (solía) and the preterite tense (se volvió)?

Accepted Answer

The imperfect solía is used to describe an ongoing background habit in the past. The preterite se volvió is used because his transformation into an eccentric person is being stated as a completed event or milestone that resulted from his time in the forest.

En el bosque, el ermitaño solía hablar solo y se volvió excéntrico.

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