Breakdown of El anfitrión extravagante nos saludó con cortesía, como si nada hubiera pasado.
con
with
nos
to us
como
as / like (such as, similar to)
nada
nothing
haber
(auxiliary) have
si
if
saludar
to greet
el anfitrión
host
pasar
to happen
extravagante
eccentric (flamboyant, extravagant)
la cortesía
courtesy
Questions & Answers about El anfitrión extravagante nos saludó con cortesía, como si nada hubiera pasado.
Why do we use hubiera pasado here instead of the indicative había pasado?
The phrase como si (as if) always triggers the subjunctive in Spanish because it sets up a hypothetical or unreal comparison. To express "as if nothing had happened" (a hypothetical action completed in the past), you must use the past perfect subjunctive (hubiera pasado).
Could I say como si nada hubiese pasado instead?
Yes, hubiese pasado is the exact same tense and means the exact same thing. Both are grammatically correct, but the -ra endings (like hubiera) are much more commonly used in everyday Latin American Spanish than the -se endings (like hubiese).
Does extravagante mean the host spends a lot of money?
Not necessarily. While the English word "extravagant" usually refers to spending excessively, the Spanish extravagante is a partial false friend. It more commonly translates to eccentric, quirky, or odd.
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