Ask a Question

(Create a thread)
Go Back   Spanish language learning forums > Spanish & English Languages > Translations


"I'm having my <noun> <past-participled>"

 

If you need help translating a sentence or longer piece of text, use this forum. For translations or definitions of a single word or idiom, use the vocabulary forum.


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old October 11, 2017, 06:39 PM
jemenake jemenake is offline
Opal
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 18
jemenake is on a distinguished road
"I'm having my <noun> <past-participled>"

I tried to convey this very common English phraseology to my Spanish instructor, but I don't think I got him to understand what I was getting at.

In English, we say things like:
I'm having my teeth cleaned, Tuesday.
I had my car washed, yesterday.
I'm going to have him defrost the freezer
In each case, "have" doesn't connote possession of something as much as it connotes that someone else (usually unspecified) is going to perform some task on something you own, usually at your request.

Is there a similar construction in Spanish, other than, say "Se me van a limpiar los dientes" ("They are going to clean my teeth"), which doesn't quite convey, as well, that it is at your mandate.
Reply With Quote
   
Get rid of these ads by registering for a free Tomísimo account.
  #2  
Old October 11, 2017, 10:16 PM
poli's Avatar
poli poli is offline
rule 1: gravity
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: In and around New York
Posts: 7,810
Native Language: English
poli will become famous soon enoughpoli will become famous soon enough
Naturally you can say the same things in Spanish, but they are usually said in a more direct manner. For example a Spanish speaker would normally not say , I'm having my teeth cleaned Tuesday(voy a tener limpiado mis dientes martes ) Instead you would say something like voy (al dentista) para limpiar los dientes.

Technically you can use tener plus the past participle, but is sounds a bit odd or rarified. Native speakers my be able to clarify this, but perhaps you can use tener + past participle for special projects like el conservador del museo tuvo
su Rembrandt restaurado por expertos de Italia.
__________________
Me ayuda si corrige mis errores. Gracias.
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old October 12, 2017, 05:30 PM
AngelicaDeAlquezar's Avatar
AngelicaDeAlquezar AngelicaDeAlquezar is offline
Obsidiana
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Mexico City
Posts: 9,038
Native Language: Mexican Spanish
AngelicaDeAlquezar is on a distinguished road
Since Spanish doesn't use passive voice as often as English does, we don't express these ideas the same way. One alternative is to use the active voice with an impersonal "they":

- Me van a hacer (la) limpieza de los dientes el martes.
(I'm not using "me van a limpiar los dientes", because, for me, this doesn't convey the idea of having a professional to do this.)
- Me lavaron el coche ayer.

"I'm going to have him defrost the freezer" is different, because here there is a specific person who will do this job:
- (Él) me va a deshielar el congelador.

All of these sentences say that someone will do something for me;
Notice that we don't say "se me". "Se", when used as an impersonal, is always conjugated with third person singular, but here we have a "they", which is a plural.
Using an impersonal sentence with "se", one could say something like "se me va a lavar el coche", but although this is grammatically correct, the meaning is unclear, because there is some ambiguity with the statement that "the car is going to wash itself". Odd. Anyway, nobody talks like that.

However, as Poli rightly said, there are other active voice alternatives. Keep in mind that thinking in a foreign language is thinking about another culture, so a translation sometimes is rather an adaptation to how the other speaks:

- El martes voy al dentista a que me haga (la) limpieza.
- Llevé ayer el coche a lavar.
- Mañana va a venir el jardinero a cortar el pasto.
- Voy a llevar este traje a planchar. = Voy a llevar este traje a que lo planchen.



@Poli: Your restored Rembrandt example may be better expressed with "hacer" + infinitive: "el conservador del museo hizo restaurar el Rembrandt por expertos italianos". Or "el conservador del museo mandó restaurar el Rembrandt con expertos italianos".
In both cases, there is someone who orders a job to be done.
__________________
Ain't it wonderful to be alive when the Rock'n'Roll plays...
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old October 13, 2017, 11:35 AM
poli's Avatar
poli poli is offline
rule 1: gravity
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: In and around New York
Posts: 7,810
Native Language: English
poli will become famous soon enoughpoli will become famous soon enough
Thanks. That certainly sounds better. I need to save this entire thread. It's very helpful.
One additional question: is a que identical to para que in meaning?
__________________
Me ayuda si corrige mis errores. Gracias.

Last edited by poli; October 13, 2017 at 11:41 AM.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old October 14, 2017, 12:45 PM
AngelicaDeAlquezar's Avatar
AngelicaDeAlquezar AngelicaDeAlquezar is offline
Obsidiana
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Mexico City
Posts: 9,038
Native Language: Mexican Spanish
AngelicaDeAlquezar is on a distinguished road
Yes, Poli, I guess so. "Para que" underlines the purpose why I'm having that service done, although that makes a longer sentence, and it's less frequently used.
__________________
Ain't it wonderful to be alive when the Rock'n'Roll plays...
Reply With Quote
Reply

 

Link to this thread
URL: 
HTML Link: 
BB Code: 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Site Rules

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Using the past perfect in "I warmed up before you arrived." dp444 Practice & Homework 6 October 12, 2016 10:56 AM
"La" is for "a feminine person" or for "a feminine noun" in general? arnoldsg72 Grammar 8 November 12, 2014 07:25 PM
"Nuevo" - meaning change before and after the noun cb4 Grammar 1 August 23, 2014 03:28 PM
Is the noun "exposición" appropriate in this context? Yoodle15 Vocabulary 2 January 29, 2012 12:14 PM
Homework help regarding the words "tener", "venir", "preferir", and "querer" cwlcwlspanish Practice & Homework 8 October 08, 2011 06:20 PM


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 10:30 AM.

Forum powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.

X