Los abuelos dan mucho cariño.

Questions & Answers about Los abuelos dan mucho cariño.

This lesson is about expressions like me da miedo. Why isn't there an indirect object pronoun like me or nos in this sentence?
In expressions like me da miedo (it scares me), the indirect object pronoun shows who is experiencing the involuntary feeling. In this sentence, dan mucho cariño is a general statement about grandparents giving affection to people in general, so no specific indirect object pronoun is needed. They are actively giving affection, rather than triggering a reaction.
Why do we need Los before abuelos if we're just saying "Grandparents" in general, not a specific set of grandparents?
In Spanish, when you make a general statement about an entire class or group of people, animals, or things, you almost always must use the definite article (el, la, los, or las). English drops the article for general statements, but Spanish requires it.
Why is it mucho cariño and not muy cariño?
Cariño (affection) is a noun. When you want to say "a lot of" before a noun, you use mucho, which changes to match the gender and number of the noun. Muy means "very" and is only used before adjectives or adverbs, not nouns.
Can cariño be used in other ways besides meaning "affection"?
Yes! Besides being the noun for "affection" or "care," cariño is very often used as a term of endearment, like "honey," "sweetheart," or "darling." You will frequently hear people say things like Hola, cariño to their partner or their child.

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