Question 1

Why is the verb plural (se cruzan) if there is no specific group of people mentioned doing the crossing?

Accepted Answer

In the reflexive passive (pasiva refleja), the thing being acted upon becomes the grammatical subject of the sentence. Since Las calles (The streets) is plural, the verb must match it in the plural form, se cruzan. Even though people are the ones doing the crossing, grammatically, the streets are the subject.

Question 2

Could se cruzan also mean that the streets cross each other here?

Accepted Answer

Grammatically, yes. Se plus a plural verb can indicate a reciprocal action. However, context tells us this is a reflexive passive. While streets can physically intersect, adding en el semáforo (at the traffic light) makes it clear that we are talking about the action of pedestrians or cars crossing the streets.

Question 3

Could I say Las calles son cruzadas en el semáforo to mean the same thing?

Accepted Answer

You could, but it sounds very unnatural in everyday Spanish. The passive voice using ser plus a participle is mostly reserved for formal writing or journalism. In spoken and everyday written Spanish, the pasiva refleja is the standard way to express that an action is done to an object without specifying who did it.

Question 4

Could I use the impersonal se and say Se cruza las calles en el semáforo?

Accepted Answer

No, that would be a grammatical error. When the noun receiving the action is plural (las calles) and isn't a specific person, you must use the reflexive passive, which forces the verb to agree with the plural noun (se cruzan). The impersonal se with a fixed singular verb is used when there is no subject, but here las calles acts as the subject and dictates the verb form.

Las calles se cruzan en el semáforo.

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