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El perro siente tanto terror que está desesperado.

El perro siente tanto terror que está desesperado.
The dog feels so much terror that it is desperate.
From Lesson 330:So and such that expressions (tan... que, tanto... que)·Spanish (Spain)

Questions & Answers about El perro siente tanto terror que está desesperado.

Why do we use tanto here instead of tan?
In Spanish, you use tanto (and its forms tanta, tantos, tantas) before a noun to mean so much or so many. Since terror is a masculine singular noun, we use tanto. You would only use tan (meaning so) before an adjective or an adverb, like in tan desesperado (so desperate).
Could I say tiene tanto terror instead of siente tanto terror?
Yes, you could. While Spanish usually uses the verb tener (to have) for basic emotions like fear, such as in tener miedo (to be afraid), the verb sentir (to feel) is very commonly used with intense words like terror or pánico to emphasize the strong physical or emotional feeling.
Why is the verb sentir conjugated as siente here?
The verb sentir is a stem-changing verb in the present tense. The letter e in the stem changes to ie for I, you, he/she/it, and they forms. Since the subject is el perro (he/it), it becomes siente.
Why do we use está for está desesperado rather than es?
We use está (from the verb estar) because being desperate is a temporary emotional state or reaction that the dog is experiencing right now due to the terror. If you used es (from the verb ser), it would change the meaning to describe the dog's permanent personality, implying it is a naturally hopeless or exasperating animal.

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