A mi padre le encanta hablar de política.

Questions & Answers about A mi padre le encanta hablar de política.

Why do we need le if we already specify A mi padre?
With verbs of feeling like encantar and gustar, the person is the indirect object. Spanish grammar requires you to use the indirect object pronoun (le) with these verbs, even when you explicitly name the person (A mi padre) in the same sentence.
The English translation says 'talking', so why does the Spanish use the infinitive hablar instead of hablando?
English frequently uses the '-ing' form as a noun, like the name of an activity. Spanish never does this. When an action is treated as a noun, Spanish always uses the infinitive (the dictionary form), which is why we use hablar.
Since my father is the one who loves it, shouldn't the verb conjugate to match him?
No, because verbs like encantar work backwards compared to English; they literally mean 'to be enchanting to'. The grammatical subject of the sentence isn't your father, but the activity of talking (hablar). Since hablar counts as a single thing, the verb conjugates as encanta.
Why is there no article here, making it de política instead of de la política?
When you refer to general topics or fields of study directly after the preposition de, Spanish usually drops the definite article. So, hablar de política is the most natural way to phrase this idea.

Learn A mi padre le encanta hablar de política and more in Spanish

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free