Breakdown of La lluvia hizo que cancelaran el concierto.
que
that (relative pronoun, conjunction)
hacer
to do, to make
el concierto
the concert
la lluvia
the rain
cancelar
to cancel
Questions & Answers about La lluvia hizo que cancelaran el concierto.
Why is the subjunctive used here (cancelaran) instead of the infinitive (cancelar)?
In English, we use an infinitive to say made them cancel. But in Spanish, when one subject (la lluvia) causes a different subject (the organizers) to do something, you must use hacer que followed by the subjunctive. Because the main verb hizo is in the past tense, it triggers the past (imperfect) subjunctive cancelaran.
Could I just translate it literally and say La lluvia les hizo cancelar el concierto?
You will sometimes see hacer + infinitive with direct objects, especially for involuntary physical or emotional reactions like me hizo llorar (it made me cry). However, when an external force causes a deliberate action by a new subject, hacer que + subjunctive is the standard and most natural structure in Spanish.
Who exactly is the subject of cancelaran?
Could I use the other imperfect subjunctive ending and say cancelasen?
Yes, absolutely. In Spain, the -ra endings (cancelaran) and the -se endings (cancelasen) for the imperfect subjunctive are completely interchangeable. Using cancelasen in this sentence would sound just as natural to a native speaker.
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