Question 1

Why is it cuyas (feminine plural) when it refers to los pioneros (masculine plural)?

Accepted Answer

Unlike English "whose", the Spanish word for "whose" (cuyo, cuya, cuyos, cuyas) must agree in gender and number with the thing being possessed, not the owner! Here, it matches biografías (feminine plural), rather than the masculine pioneers.

Question 2

Could I say "de quienes" instead of cuyas?

Accepted Answer

You could reword it to something like las biografías de quienes (the biographies of whom), but cuyas biografías is the most direct and natural way to express "whose biographies".

Question 3

Why does "on Monday" translate to el lunes without a word for "on"?

Accepted Answer

In Spanish, you never use a preposition like "on" or "en" for days of the week. You just use the definite article (el or los). So, "on Monday" is simply el lunes.

Question 4

Why is it fueron valientes (preterite) instead of eran valientes (imperfect)?

Accepted Answer

Using the preterite (fueron) treats their bravery as a completed historical fact, summarizing their lives as one finished event. If you used the imperfect (eran), you would be setting the scene or describing what they were generally like back then. Both work here, but fueron feels more like a conclusive summary of their legacy.

Los pioneros, cuyas biografías leí el lunes, fueron valientes.

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