The Verb "Gustar": Do You Like?

How to say "To Like" something in Spanish is tricky. But once you understand how it works, it makes more sense.

“To Like” in Spanish is “Gustar,” but the use of this verb is very different compared with other verbs. GUSTAR is part of a group of verbs called “Verbos con Objeto Indirecto” (Verbs with Indirect Objects). Why are they different in comparison to other verbs? Let’s take a look.

Firstly, these verbs need a pronoun. The Indirect Object pronouns are the following:

(A mí) Me

(A vos) Te

(A tí) Te

(A él/Ella) Le

(A nosotros-as) Nos

(A ustedes/ellos-as) Les

You have to conjugate “Gustar” according to what you like. The thing you like is the Subject.

For example Las Manzanas: (ellas) gustaN. El Vino: (él) gusta.

So, if we want to say, “I like wine,” we say:

Me gusta el vino.

You will notice this can be a little strange and get confusing.  The best way to think about it is to realize that “Gustar” is directly translated as “is pleasing to.” So when you say, “Me gusta el vino,” you are saying, “Wine is pleasing to me.” The wine is creating an action that affects me. It will be much easier to understand if you think of it this way. The object is doing an action to you. The objects are “pleasing to you.”

“I like apples” = Me gustan las manzanas. “Apples are pleasing to me.”

If you want to say you like something that is a verb, you will use Gustar in singular and the verb in Infinitive.

Me gusta bailar tango. (I like to dance tango/To dance tango is pleasing to me.)

Me gusta estudiar español. (I like to study Spanish/To study Spanish is pleasing to me.) Let’s take a look again at the indirect pronouns:

(A mí) Me

(A vos) Te

(A tí) Te

(A él/ella) Le

(A nosotros-as) nos

(A ustedes/ellos-as) Les

You are probably asking, “What are those things in the parenthesis? (A mí, etc.). These are useful for three reasons:

1. When speaking about a third person, we don’t know whom we are speaking. So, we need to be very specific:

   A Juan le gusta la carne. A mis amigos les gusta salir. (Juan likes meat.)/(My friends like to go out.)

2. The question: Who likes… in Spanish is ¿A quién le gusta… el tango? (Who likes tango?)

   So, we have to answer: A mí me gusta (I like)/ A nosotros nos gusta (We like)/ A Adriana Varela le gusta. (Adriana Varela likes it.)

3. When we agree with someone about liking something, if it is positive, we have to say “A mí también” (me too) or “ A mí tampoco” (me neither) when this is negative.

For example:

“Me gusta el fútbol”(+) (I like football)

“A mí también” (+) (Me Too)

“A mí no” (-) (I don’t) or

“No me gusta el fútbol” (-) (I don’t like football)

“A mí tampoco” (-) (Me either)

“A mí sí” (+) (I do)

***(With common verbs you say “yo también”, “ yo tampoco” instead of “a mí”)

Other Verbs used like GUSTAR

1. INTERESAR (I´m interested in):

Me interesa la cultura de Buenos Aires/ Me interesan los problemas sociales. (I´m interested in the culture of Buenos Aires)/ (I´m interested in the social problems.)

1. ENCANTAR (To love):

Me encanta el mate/ Me encantan las calles de San Telmo. (I love mate.)/(I love the streets of San Telmo.)

1. MOLESTAR (To Bother/Annoy):

Me molesta el subte lleno por la mañana/ Me molesta la caca de perro en las calles. (The crowded subway in the morning bothers me.)/ (The dog poop on the street bothers me.)

Practices Exercises (For Paid Subscribers Only)

Complete the next sentences with “gustar”, “encantar”, “interesar” or “molestar.”