Breakdown of Quiero que el niño friegue la vajilla hoy.
el niño
the boy / the child
hoy
today
querer
to want; to love (a person)
que
that (relative pronoun, conjunction)
fregar
to scrub, to wash (dishes)
la vajilla
the tableware, the dishes
Questions & Answers about Quiero que el niño friegue la vajilla hoy.
Why does fregar become friegue with an "ie"?
Fregar is a stem-changing verb where the e changes to ie. Just like in the present indicative (él friega), this stem change carries over into the present subjunctive for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted, and ellos/ellas/ustedes forms.
Why is there a "u" in friegue? Shouldn't it be friege?
The infinitive is fregar, which has a hard "g" sound (like in "go"). In Spanish, a g followed by an e makes a soft, breathy sound (like the "h" in "hello"). To keep the original hard "g" sound when we add the subjunctive -e ending, we have to insert a u, making it friegue.
Why do we need the subjunctive mood (friegue) here instead of the indicative (friega)?
The phrase quiero que (I want that...) expresses a desire or attempts to influence someone else's actions. When you have a verb of wishing followed by que and a new subject (changing from "I" to el niño), the second verb must be in the subjunctive.
In Spain, is it more common to use fregar or lavar for washing dishes?
What is the difference between la vajilla and los platos?
Los platos literally means "the plates," while la vajilla is a collective word meaning "the tableware," "the dishware," or "the dinner service." Both are perfectly natural to use when talking about doing the dishes.
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