Breakdown of El operario necesita la caja en la estantería; ¿adónde vas a trasladársela?
necesitar
to need
en
in / on / at
adónde
to where
ir
to go
a
to
la caja
box
la
it / her (direct object)
se
to him / to her / to them / to you (formal)
el operario
the operator
la estantería
the rack
trasladar
to move (transfer, relocate)
Questions & Answers about El operario necesita la caja en la estantería; ¿adónde vas a trasladársela?
Why are the pronouns attached to the end of trasladársela instead of coming before the verb?
When using an infinitive (like trasladar), you can attach the object pronouns directly to the end. Because the sentence uses the structure vas a trasladar, you actually have two choices: attach them at the end (vas a trasladársela) or put them before the conjugated verb (se la vas a trasladar). Both are perfectly correct and common.
What does the se in trasladársela mean here?
It means 'for him' (referring to the operator). Normally, the indirect object pronoun for 'him' is le. However, Spanish avoids putting le or les directly in front of lo, la, los, or las. When this happens, the first pronoun changes to se. So, what would be trasladarlela becomes the much easier-to-say trasladársela.
Why is there an accent mark on the a in trasladársela?
Adding two extra syllables (se and la) to the end of the infinitive trasladar changes where the word would naturally be stressed according to standard pronunciation rules. The original verb has its stress on the final syllable: tras-la-DAR. To force the spoken stress to stay on that exact same syllable after adding the pronouns, we must add a written accent mark: trasladársela.
Why does the sentence use adónde instead of just dónde?
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