Breakdown of Esos adolescentes deciden encerrarse en el cuarto como si estuvieran enfermos.
en
in / on / at
estar
to be (location/state)
enfermo
sick
el cuarto
the room
decidir
to decide
esos
those (masculine)
como
as / like (such as, similar to)
el adolescente
teenager
si
if
encerrarse
to lock oneself in
Questions & Answers about Esos adolescentes deciden encerrarse en el cuarto como si estuvieran enfermos.
Why do we use the past subjunctive (estuvieran) here instead of the present subjunctive (estén) or the indicative (estaban)?
In Spanish, the phrase como si (as if) is always followed by the past subjunctive (also called the imperfect subjunctive), regardless of whether the main verb is in the present, past, or future. Even though they decide in the present, they act as if they were sick, which is a hypothetical situation requiring estuvieran.
Could I say deciden a encerrarse or deciden de encerrarse?
No, the verb decidir connects directly to a following infinitive without any preposition in between. You just say deciden encerrarse.
Why is the reflexive pronoun se attached to the end of encerrarse?
The base verb is encerrar (to lock up or to shut in). Adding the reflexive pronoun se makes it encerrarse, meaning to lock oneself in. Because it is an infinitive following the conjugated verb deciden, the pronoun can be attached directly to the end. You could also place it before the conjugated verb as se deciden encerrar, though attaching it to the infinitive is generally preferred here.
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