Breakdown of Dicen que la criatura les roba el alma a las personas.
las
the (feminine plural)
a
to
la persona
person
que
that / than
les
to them / to you all
decir
to say, to tell
robar
to steal
el alma
the soul
la criatura
the creature
Questions & Answers about Dicen que la criatura les roba el alma a las personas.
Why isn't there an Ellos before Dicen?
The English translation says 'souls' (plural), so why does the Spanish use el alma (singular)?
In Spanish, when referring to body parts or personal items like a soul, you usually use the singular form if each person in the group only has one. Also, notice it is el alma, not la alma. Feminine words that start with a stressed 'a' sound take el in the singular to make them easier to pronounce, just like el agua.
Why is there a les before roba?
In Spanish, the verb robar (to steal) works by stealing a thing from someone, and that person is treated as the indirect object. The les tells us the action happens 'to/from them' and points directly to a las personas.
If we already say a las personas at the end, do we really need les?
Yes, it is required! In Spanish, the indirect object pronoun (like les) must almost always be included, even if you explicitly name the people receiving the action (a las personas) in the same sentence. The phrase a las personas is just there to clarify exactly who les refers to.
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