Breakdown of Me da pena que la reseña sea terrible.
ser
to be
que
that (relative pronoun, conjunction)
me
to me / myself (reflexive) / me (direct object)
terrible
terrible
dar pena
to make (someone) sad, to arouse pity
la reseña
the review (overview, e.g., of a book or product)
Questions & Answers about Me da pena que la reseña sea terrible.
Since this lesson is about extreme prefixes, could I use one like super- or requete- with terrible in this sentence?
Because terrible is already an extreme adjective (meaning very bad), adding a prefix to make superterrible or requeteterrible is technically redundant. While you might hear it in highly informal, dramatic conversation in Spain, it is much more natural to attach these prefixes to a standard adjective. For example, you could apply the lesson by replacing terrible with supermala or requetemala.
Why do we use the subjunctive sea here instead of the indicative es?
The expression me da pena que (it makes me sad that) triggers the subjunctive. In Spanish, whenever the main clause expresses an emotion or value judgment and introduces a new subject in the dependent clause (changing from the unstated 'it' causing sadness to la reseña), the second verb must be in the subjunctive mood.
I've heard me da pena used to mean 'I am embarrassed'. Does it mean that here?
In Spain, dar pena almost exclusively means to cause sadness or pity, which fits the translation of this sentence perfectly. However, in many Latin American countries, it is indeed the standard way to say 'it embarrasses me' or 'it makes me shy'. To express embarrassment in Spain, you would instead use the phrase me da vergüenza.
Is reseña the standard word for an online customer review?
Yes! Whether it is a professional critique of a book or movie, or a customer rating on a restaurant website, reseña is the most accurate and common word to use in Spanish.
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