Breakdown of No quiero que el mutante tenga orejotas.
no
no, not
tener
to have
querer
to want
que
that / than
Questions & Answers about No quiero que el mutante tenga orejotas.
How did we get orejotas from the word for ear, and what does the -ota suffix add?
The base word is oreja (ear). We drop the final vowel and add the feminine plural augmentative suffix -otas. While you could just say orejas grandes, adding -ote or -ota often gives a slightly comical, clumsy, or disproportionate feeling, which fits perfectly when talking about a mutant's giant ears.
Why use the subjunctive tenga instead of the normal present tense tiene?
The phrase No quiero que (I don't want that) expresses a desire or wish about someone else. In Spanish, verbs expressing wishes or influence require the verb in the second part of the sentence to be in the subjunctive mood. That is why we use tenga.
Why is there no word for 'some' before orejotas? Could we say tenga unas orejotas?
Is the word mutante always masculine?