"Muito se tem pensado sobre essas regiões."
Translation:There has been much thought about those regions.
17 Comments
From what I know about Spanish, this is a passive construction, but it hasn't been introduced yet.
I'm native and I don't really remember what rule dictates the function of "se" in this sentence. I think that "se" compensates the absence of a subject... But this is a very common expression in Portuguese. Other examples, for clarify this:
"A lot has been done for a safer life" (Muito se tem feito para uma vida mais segura) "A lot has been said about technology" (Muito se tem falado sobre tecnologia)
Thinking about it, looks like it replaces "tem sido".
Muito tem sido pensado = muito se tem pensado
Muito tem sido falado = muito se tem falado
In both cases, the subject is "muito", and it seems to be another form of building passive voice sentences.
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I think muito is not the subject, it is an adverb. We call this se "índice da indeterminação do sujeito: Eles falam muito sobre estas regiões ( subject: eles). Falam muito sobre estas regiões (s: undetermined); Fala-se muito sobre estas regiões: subj. und.) Tem-se falado muito: subj. und. ( cf. Falam mal de você por aí > Fala-se mal de você > Muito se tem falado de você...Quem tem falado muito?) Thinking about, I now see: it is not passive voice, tem falado has a unknown subject, active)
Hmmm...It confuses me....
When I think about this alternative sentence, I actually believe it's a subject:
- Fala-se muito desta região
- Falam-se muitas coisas desta região
I think it's a case of grammar ambiguity... (does that exist?)
Muito is an adverb. No way it could get an article.
And if it were a noun, "the lot"?
You've piqued my curiosity. But, wouldn't it be: "Fala-se o muito desta região" if "muito" were used as a noun?
@Danmoller edited (since I couldn't reply directly): If muito is an adverb (which it is here, modifying the verb falar) then it can't be the subject.
What is the exact translation of "tem sido" ? I do not remember having learned it .
I listened about a dozen times to that audio, thinking what the hell is hajoys?
This is a very awkward English sentence. I think that "there" functions as the dummy subject and the real subject is "those regions".
Those regions have been much discussed/much talked about. (in less stilted English): Those regions have been discussed a lot.
