Breakdown of ¡Qué raro que la campana no suene antes del pregón!
no
no / not
qué
what
que
that (relative pronoun, conjunction)
raro
strange
sonar
to ring / to sound (a certain way)
antes de
before (+ noun / infinitive)
la campana
the bell
el pregón
the opening speech
Questions & Answers about ¡Qué raro que la campana no suene antes del pregón!
Why is suene in the subjunctive here instead of the indicative suena?
The structure ¡Qué [adjective] que... expresses an evaluation or emotional reaction to an event. In Spanish, expressing an opinion or emotion about a fact in a connected clause triggers the subjunctive. Therefore, the verb sonar becomes suene.
Why does the verb sonar change to suene rather than just sone?
Sonar is an o-to-ue stem-changing verb. In the present subjunctive, these verbs keep their stem changes in the same forms as they do in the present indicative (everywhere except nosotros and vosotros). So, the o changes to ue, giving us suene.
Can I use tocar instead of sonar for a bell ringing?
What exactly is a pregón?
A pregón is a very common cultural term in Spain. It refers to the official opening speech, address, or public proclamation that kicks off a local festival or celebration (such as a town's patron saint festivities).
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