Word
Como no amarres al guardia, va a gritar.
Meaning
If you do not tie up the guard, he is going to scream.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Questions & Answers about Como no amarres al guardia, va a gritar.
Why does this sentence use como instead of a regular conditional word, and why is amarres in the subjunctive?
When used with the subjunctive, como translates to 'if' and introduces a warning or a threat. The subjunctive mood here (amarres) signals that you are warning someone about a hypothetical situation that will have a bad outcome if it happens (or in this case, if it does not happen).
Could I just use the normal word for 'if' here instead of como?
Yes, you can use the standard word for 'if', which is si. However, si for likely future events takes the indicative mood. So, you would say Si no amarras al guardia. Using como plus the subjunctive just adds a stronger, slightly more colloquial tone of warning.
Why does guardia use the masculine article el (contracted here to al) when it ends in an -a?
Guardia is a word that changes meaning depending on its gender. El guardia refers to a specific male guard (and you would use la guardia for a specific female guard). If you use the feminine la guardia for a collective group, it refers to the guard as an institution, such as the police force or the military guard.
Why is there an al before guardia rather than just saying el guardia?