Breakdown of Lo que nos entusiasma es la ilusión del viaje.
ser
to be
del
of the / from the / about the (topic)
nos
to us / ourselves / us (direct object)
el viaje
the trip
lo que
what (that which)
entusiasmar
to excite
la ilusión
the thrill
Questions & Answers about Lo que nos entusiasma es la ilusión del viaje.
Why do we use lo que at the start of the sentence instead of qué?
In Spanish statements, lo que translates to "what" in the sense of "the thing that." You only use qué with an accent for direct or indirect questions and exclamations. In this pseudo-cleft structure, lo que groups the first part of the sentence into a single topic so we can emphasize exactly what is causing the excitement.
How does entusiasmar work here? Why is it nos entusiasma instead of nos entusiasmamos?
Entusiasmar functions exactly like the verb gustar. The subject doing the action is the abstract idea introduced by lo que (the thing that), which is grammatically singular. Therefore, the verb is conjugated in the third-person singular (entusiasma). The pronoun nos simply shows who is receiving that feeling of excitement.
Is ilusión a false friend? Why is it translated as "thrill" instead of "illusion"?
Yes, it is a very common false friend! While it can occasionally mean a deceptive visual trick, in everyday Spanish (especially in Spain) ilusión means hope, excitement, anticipation, or thrill. A highly common phrase to remember at the B2 level is me hace ilusión, meaning "I am really looking forward to it" or "it excites me."
If the focus of the sentence were plural, would the verb es change?
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