Gustar — saying what you like
A2Gustar doesn't translate as 'to like' — it means 'to be pleasing to'. So the grammar is reversed: the thing you like is the subject, and you become an indirect object (me, te, le…).
Gustar is famous for confusing learners, because it works backwards from English. It literally means 'to be pleasing'. So 'I like coffee' is expressed as 'Coffee is pleasing to me' → Me gusta el café.
The consequence: the thing being liked is the grammatical subject, so it controls the verb (singular gusta vs plural gustan). The person doing the liking is expressed with an indirect object pronoun (me, te, le, nos, os, les).
Once this 'flip' clicks, a whole family of verbs opens up — encantar (to love), interesar (to interest), molestar (to bother), doler (to hurt) all work exactly the same way.
Structure: (a + person) + me/te/le/nos/os/les + gusta + singular thing • gustan + plural things
gusta vs gustan — match the thing, not the person
The verb agrees with what is liked, because that is the real subject.
- One thing → gusta: Me gusta el chocolate.
- Several things → gustan: Me gustan los perros.
- An action (one or more verbs) → always gusta: Me gusta bailar. Me gusta leer y escribir.
- Me gusta la música. I like music. one thing → gusta
- Me gustan los libros de aventuras. I like adventure books. plural thing → gustan
- Me gusta nadar. I like to swim. an action → gusta (even though you might think plural)
The indirect object pronouns (who likes it)
- me = to me · te = to you (informal)
- le = to him / her / you (formal)
- nos = to us · os = to you all (Spain)
- les = to them / you all
- Nos gusta el cine. We like the cinema. nos = to us
- Les gustan las fiestas. They like parties. les + gustan (plural thing)
Adding 'a + person' for emphasis or clarity
You can put 'a mí', 'a ti', 'a Juan' etc. at the start. It's required to clarify the vague le/les (which could mean him, her, you, or them), and optional elsewhere for emphasis or contrast.
- A mí me gusta el té. (I like tea — emphatic 'I')
- A Juan le gusta el fútbol. (Juan likes football — clarifies le)
- A mí me gusta el rojo, pero a ti te gusta el azul. (I like red, but you like blue — contrast)
- A María le gusta cocinar. María likes to cook. a María clarifies who 'le' refers to
- A mí me gustan los gatos, pero a él le gustan los perros. I like cats, but he likes dogs. double structure for contrast
Stronger and related verbs
Same backwards structure, different shades of meaning. Note: with encantar you don't add 'muy' — the verb is already strong.
- encantar = to love / really like: Me encanta el chocolate.
- interesar = to interest: Me interesa la historia.
- molestar = to bother: Me molesta el ruido.
- doler = to hurt: Me duele la cabeza. (My head hurts.)
- Me encanta viajar. I love to travel. encantar = strong 'like'; no muy needed
- A mi madre le duelen los pies. My mother's feet hurt. plural body part → duelen
Common mistakes
- ✗ Yo gusto el café. ✓ Me gusta el café. You don't 'do' the liking; the coffee is pleasing to you.
- ✗ Me gusta los perros. ✓ Me gustan los perros. A plural thing needs gustan.
- ✗ Me gusto bailar. ✓ Me gusta bailar. An action takes the singular gusta.
- ✗ Me encanta mucho el chocolate. ✓ Me encanta el chocolate. encantar is already strong — don't add mucho/muy.