Learn Spanish (Latin America): Llevo los zapatos a que los lustren con ese betún. - I take the shoes to have them polished with that shoe polish.

Llevo los zapatos a que los lustren con ese betún.

I take the shoes to have them polished with that shoe polish.

Breakdown of Llevo los zapatos a que los lustren con ese betún.

Questions & Answers about Llevo los zapatos a que los lustren con ese betún.

Why do we use a que here instead of para que to express purpose?

After verbs of motion like llevar (to take), ir (to go), or venir (to come), Spanish often uses a que instead of para que to introduce a purpose clause. Both are grammatically correct, but a que is the more natural and common choice when movement is involved.

Why is lustrar in the subjunctive form (lustren)?

Purpose clauses introduced by a que (just like para que) always require the subjunctive. This is because the action of polishing the shoes is the goal of the trip, not an established reality that has already happened.

The translation says "to have them polished." Why doesn't the Spanish sentence use a passive structure?

In Spanish, it is very common to use the third-person plural (the "they" form) to express an impersonal action where the specific person doing the work doesn't matter. So, a que los lustren literally means "so that they polish them," which is the most natural way to express the English idea of "having something done" by a service worker.

Could I attach the pronoun los to the end of the verb, like a que lústrenlos?