Breakdown of No abras los cultivos por si los microorganismos se reproducen rápido.
no
no, not
rápido
fast
abrir
to open
por
for / by / through / in/during (part of the day)
si
if
el microorganismo
the microorganism
el cultivo
the culture (biological)
reproducirse
to reproduce
Questions & Answers about No abras los cultivos por si los microorganismos se reproducen rápido.
Why is it No abras and not No abre or No abres?
This is the negative imperative (command) for tú. In Spanish, negative informal commands always use the present subjunctive form. Because abrir is an -ir verb, its tú subjunctive form is abras.
Doesn't por si express a hypothetical situation? Why doesn't it trigger the subjunctive in se reproducen?
This is a great exception to remember! Even though por si (just in case) sets up a hypothetical scenario, it is almost always followed by the present indicative when talking about a real possibility in the present or future. You would generally only use the subjunctive after por si if you were using the past subjunctive for a highly unlikely or past hypothetical.
Is se reproducen an example of the passive reflexive structures we're studying in this lesson?
No, this is just a standard pronominal verb: reproducirse (to reproduce/multiply). The microorganisms are actively performing the action themselves. If this were a passive reflexive with a modal verb, it would look like se pueden abrir los cultivos (the cultures can be opened), where the plural subject receives the action.
Why does the sentence use the adjective rápido to describe a verb, instead of the adverb rápidamente?
In Spanish, it is very common in everyday speech to use certain adjectives like rápido, lento, or fuerte as adverbs. While rápidamente is completely correct and works exactly the same way, rápido sounds shorter and more natural in casual conversation.
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