Breakdown of Tienes que lavar la pera antes de comerla.
comer
to eat; to have lunch
tener
to have
que
that (relative pronoun, conjunction)
la
it / her (f)
Questions & Answers about Tienes que lavar la pera antes de comerla.
Why do we use que after tienes?
The combination tener que followed by an infinitive verb (like lavar) is a set phrase that means "to have to" do something. Without que, the verb tener simply means to own or possess something.
Why does the sentence use the infinitive comer to mean "eating"?
In English, we usually say "before eating" using an -ing word. However, in Spanish, whenever a verb comes directly after a preposition like de (as in the phrase antes de), you must use the infinitive (the dictionary form of the verb).
What is the la at the end of comerla?
It is a direct object pronoun meaning "it". It refers back to la pera (the pear). Since pera is a feminine noun, we use the feminine pronoun la.
Why is la attached directly to the end of comer?
In Spanish, object pronouns like la are normally placed before a conjugated verb. However, when you are using an infinitive verb (like comer), the pronoun is attached directly to the end of it, creating one single word: comerla.