Question 1

The current lesson is about dropping the suffix -mente when combining adverbs. How would we change this sentence to express that the work requires acting skillfully and precisely?

Accepted Answer

You would use the adverbs hábilmente and precisamente. When joining a series of adverbs with y, only the final one keeps the -mente suffix, making the phrase hábil y precisamente. Notice that hábil keeps its written accent mark when the suffix is dropped!

Question 2

I remember learning that we drop the article for professions. Why do we use un in un relojero muy hábil?

Accepted Answer

It is true that you drop the article after the verb ser when simply stating a profession (like él es relojero). However, in this sentence, relojero is the direct object of requiere, not a description of identity. Furthermore, whenever a profession is modified by an adjective phrase like muy hábil, you must include the article anyway.

Question 3

Why is it mucha precisión instead of mucho precisión?

Accepted Answer

The word mucho acts as an adjective here meaning a lot of, so it must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies. Nouns ending in -sión or -ción are almost always feminine, so you must use the feminine form mucha.

Question 4

Why does hábil have a written accent mark?

Accepted Answer

Words that have their natural spoken stress on the second-to-last syllable only get a written accent if they end in a consonant other than n or s. Since hábil ends in l, it requires the tilde to show where the stress falls.

El trabajo requiere un relojero muy hábil y mucha precisión.

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