"Do you have a purse?"
Translation:¿Usted tiene una cartera?
132 Comments
For anyone curious;
Tu - Tienes Usted - Tiene
With usted, you say tiene. With tu, you say tienes. Both "Usted tiene una cartera" and "Tu tienes una cartera" are both correct. Since there is no context to this sentence, we cannot tell whether the speaker is speaking formally or familiarly, which allows both translations to be correct.
(Off-topic: I just realized that I'm speaking like a school article... why am I like this ;-; )
If you are asking somebody for their purse, it will typically be a formal question. Usted is formal, unlike tu.
We're asking to take the purse? I thought we were asking if a purse existed in their possession
I agree, we are asking if they have a purse. I thought when we asked a question it would be someone we know, thus the Tu form; i.e., tienes. I do not see where we are asking FOR their purse.
287
Usually when they mark you wrong for a correct answer it is because they did not bother to program it as one of the possibilities. It is quite obvious that using either "Tú" or "Usted" should be acceptable translations.
For any uk learners- a purse is a handbag. Duo won't accept handbag but I'll report it in the hope that one day they will.
handbag in spanish is el bolso, not la cartera, so it won't be accepted either way.
Why in Spanish are feminine items maculine? Bolso and vestido are both masculine....makes no sense.
For "things" that are not biological organisms, it's important to distinguish the name of a thing from the thing itself. Spanish grammar gives each noun a gender and spelling; these are a function of the word's etymology.
in UK, a purse is a small container for money and you would put your purse in your (bigger) handbag.
July 28th 2019 Duolingo shows bolso as an acceptable translation 4 purse in this exercise.
Actually a purse in the UK is a purse - female version of wallet which is what cartera is a translation of
It says "You used the tú form 'tienes' instead of the él/ella/usted form 'tiene'." when technically they do use the word "you", it just isn't in the sentence. Could someone please explain?
- 287
In Mexico "cartera" generally means a wallet, not a purse, which is "bolso" or "bolsa". But Duo will mark you incorrect for saying wallet.
I said ' tiene usted .. ' which worked, I don't understand the grammar rules for switching the verb and subject when asking questions, I guess it's something you can just do and maybe sounds better when asking?
Someone correct me if im wrong, I'm not sure of any exact grammar rules but i have been thinking about it like this; in English you can often change the sentence structure and have the sentence remain the same. For example, "¿Usted tiene una cartera?" Would translate as, "Do you have a purse?" And "¿Tiene usted una cartera?" Would translate as "Do you have yourself a purse?" As you can see, both sentences will still translate to mean the same thing, so both are technically correct. Additionally, I have been told that when asking a question, you can change the sentence structure to give an additional audio cue (besides tonal inflection) that you are indeed asking a question instead of making a statement. "Usted tiene una cartera." Means you have a purse, but with tonal inflection it changes to, "Do you have a purse?" While, "Tiene usted una cartera" makes it far more clear it is a question and makes it less likely to be confused as a statement. Not such a big deal when talking about a purse, but take for example a reservation...it is a BIG difference whether or not you are being told you have one versus being asked. Like i said earlier though, I'm not sure of specific rules and I don't know if you can change sentence structures with any sentence and have it retain the same meaning or if it is only acceptable to do with questions in order to make the question more clear.
Maybe it's something like "Usted tiene… ?" - "DO you… ?" (asking if they possess it ) and "Tiene usted… ?" - "Do YOU… ?" (asking who possesses it)
I have the same question. Once I was told I was wrong for writing the verb first, followed by usted. Since then it's been accepted either way. Surely there is some rule about this. Also, it seems to be only "usted" which gets flipflopped with the verb. Can any pronoun do this?
Why in the world would tienes una cartera NOT be correct?? Duolino, you listening???
Should be tiene with "el or ella" (him, her, them). Tienes with "tu" (talking directly to someone)
- 287
There is no "tú" in this sentence. "Usted" is the polite word for "you" and is conjugated differently from tú.
- 287
Because "usted" is the polite word for "you" and is conjugated differently from "tú", the familiar word for "you".
Sometimes I do think they are messing with our heads, or trying to 'catch us out' in a way: After all, they do not make clear if this is friendly/casual or formal... but I guess we are supposed to assume it is formal unless otherwise indicated. I don't know...…..
Why is it 'tiene' not 'tienes'? The conjugation of the infinite verb 'tener' in the you form is tienes not tiene
Not enough information to know it was formal so informal SHOULD be accepted!!
It wants you to use the formal "Usted" and "tiene" without giving you any indication therof. How about starting with a Señor or Señora next time?
I understand it's another way to say it, but it's confusing when the rule for using Usted is formal. What's so formal about asking about a purse?!?
Why is this question supposed to be formal ? I could be asking this of a friend.
why are you using usted rather than tu' but at the end of the day both are correct.?
- 287
Because "usted"is a more formal, polite use of the word "you", and "tu" is used more with friends and family. When to use each one may vary greatly from one country to another.
En castellano, la forma interrogativa, también comienza con la forma verbal. Abre y cierra con signos de interrogación. Desarrolladores de la app, corrijan ese crazo horror.
Is the sentence structured like "usted tiene una cartera?" because SVO (subject, verb object) order or because it's just like that? Like, the subject would be you, the verb would be tiene, and the object would be cartera.... right?
So I guess if anyone's struggling with the sentence structure just think of that? I'm not sure, someone tell me if I'm wrong.
I am getting confused about when to use tengo and tiene. I thought tengo is have and tiene is has.
I have : Yo tengo You have: tu tienes (accent over the u that I can't do with this keyboard) He/she/they: tiene So, depends on who is speaking or being spoken to. Yo tengo tortillas (I have tortillas), tu tienes tortillas (you have tortillas), el/ella/usted tiene tortilla (he/she/they have tortillas.
Why use TIENE instead of TIENES if you ask:"Do YOU..."? Is it because it is used in a formal setting?
- 215
I don't think it's that cut and dry. There are plenty of people I know that I address formally.
- 102
It is my opinion that Dou is incorrect, because if you are using the polite form, you would start a sentence with Sir or Madame, not 'do' as in this case.
There is no sir or madame in this sentence. Neither is required to make it polite.
"You" is in the second person singular, why tiene and not tienes? I thought tiene is used when referring to third person singular. I'm puzzled.
The you here is usted, which uses 3rd person conjugations, despite carrying a 2nd person meaning.
I am confused too?? Why didnt tienes una cartera work? And when am i to use usted?
It confuses me when there are two correct answers. Why don't they say "another option is"? It confuses me when they do they this.
the english sentence does not disti guish between Usted and Tù, so EITHER answer should be accepted (tienes or usted tiene). 20/7/2019
It doesn't specify whether it the formal or informal 'you' so how is this wrong? Everything was right except i chose to use tú instead of usted and there doesn't seem to be an issue other times when i use them interchangeably.
Why does usted change the verb to tiene (el/ella) rather than the tu tienes (you)? I understand that usted is formal you and tu is informal.
Very discouraging and confusing when answers are marked incorrect without giving an explanation
How are you supposed to know when it's formal/informal? I have to guess when to use usted or tu.
What the heck does 'tienes un portamonedas' even mean? I put 'tienes un cartera' and it was wrong...
Shouldn't it be, usted tienes Because tener is the verb and it goes:
I : tengo You(s) : tienes He/she/it : tiene We : tenemos You(pl) : tenéis They : tienen ???????
No, usted uses the same conjugations as él and ella, so tiene is correct.
Ustedes also shares conjugations with ellos and ellas, so it uses tienen.
Does that help?
Why can't we say, "Tu tienes una cartera?"
Please, someone tell me if that is correct.
I think tu is informal with tienes and usted is formal w/ tiene. Hope i helped
It does not mention about formal case or not ? why does it use "usted" ?
And to add to Daniel's correction, "tienes" assumes an informal relationship that is not always appropriate.
