Gustar and Similar Verbs

Gustar is usually translated to like, but it does not work like the English verb. It really means "to be pleasing to". So when you say me gusta el chocolate, you are literally saying "chocolate is pleasing to me".

This flips the sentence around compared with English:

Spanish	Literal meaning	Natural English
Me gusta el fútbol.	Football is pleasing to me.	I like football.
Te gusta la playa.	The beach is pleasing to you.	You like the beach.

The person doing the liking is not the subject. The thing being liked is the subject, and the person is shown by a pronoun in front. That is why you say me gusta, never yo gusto.

Whenever you use gustar, ask "what is the pleasing thing?" — that thing controls the verb, and the person is just a pronoun in front.

Because the thing liked is the subject, the verb agrees with the thing, not the person. There are only two forms you need at GCSE:

• gusta — when the thing liked is singular or an infinitive (a verb).
• gustan — when the thing liked is plural.

Sentence	Thing liked	Form	English
Me gusta el café.	el café (singular)	gusta	I like coffee.
Me gustan los animales.	los animales (pl.)	gustan	I like animals.
Me gusta bailar.	bailar (a verb)	gusta	I like dancing.
Me gusta cantar y leer.	two verbs	gusta	I like singing and reading.

The last example matters: even a list of infinitives keeps the verb singular — you still use gusta.

• Me gustan las matemáticas. — I like maths. (plural noun)
• Te gusta el arte. — You like art. (singular noun)

The pronoun in front is an indirect object pronoun. It tells you to whom the thing is pleasing. Here is the full set:

Pronoun	To whom	Example	English
me	to me	Me gusta el cine.	I like the cinema.
te	to you	Te gusta el cine.	You like the cinema.
le	to him/her/you (usted)	Le gusta el cine.	He/She likes the cinema.
nos	to us	Nos gusta el cine.	We like the cinema.
os	to you (plural)	Os gusta el cine.	You (pl.) like the cinema.
les	to them/you (ustedes)	Les gusta el cine.	They like the cinema.

The pattern is object–verb–subject (OVS): the pronoun (object) comes first, then gusta/gustan, then the thing liked (subject). English does the reverse, which is why the construction feels back-to-front at first.

Me     gustan    los deportes.
(to me) (please)  (the sports)   = I like sports.

You can add a phrase starting with a at the front to emphasise who likes something or to make it clear. This is optional with me/te/nos/os but very common with le and les, which are otherwise ambiguous.

Added phrase	Sentence	English
A mí	A mí me gusta el chocolate.	I like chocolate. (emphasis)
A ti	A ti te gustan los perros.	You like dogs.
A María	A María le gusta leer.	María likes reading.
A mis padres	A mis padres les gusta viajar.	My parents like travelling.

Because le can mean to him, to her or to you (usted), the a phrase removes the doubt: A ella le gusta makes clear it is she who likes it. Note the pronoun (le/les) still stays in the sentence even when the a phrase is added.

To say what you would like, use the conditional gustaría with an infinitive. It is a polite, common way to express a wish or a plan.

• Me gustaría viajar por España. — I would like to travel around Spain.
• ¿Te gustaría venir a la fiesta? — Would you like to come to the party?
• Nos gustaría visitar el museo. — We would like to visit the museum.

The same OVS logic applies: the pronoun comes first, then gustaría, then the infinitive. Because an infinitive counts as singular, you use gustaría (not gustarían) even before a list of activities.

Me gusta bailar = I like dancing (I already do it). Me gustaría bailar = I would like to dance (a wish). Keep the two apart in your writing.

Several other verbs follow the exact same pattern: pronoun + verb + subject, with the verb agreeing with the thing. Learn them as a family.

Verb	Meaning	Singular example	Plural example
encantar	to love	Me encanta el arte.	Me encantan los libros.
interesar	to interest	Me interesa la historia.	Me interesan las ciencias.
molestar	to bother/annoy	Me molesta el ruido.	Me molestan los mosquitos.
doler	to hurt	Me duele la cabeza.	Me duelen los pies.
faltar	to be missing/lacking	Me falta dinero.	Me faltan dos euros.
quedar	to have left	Me queda un euro.	Me quedan cinco euros.

Worked glosses:

• Me encanta el chocolate. — I love chocolate. (do not add mucho — encantar already means to love)
• Me duelen las piernas. — My legs hurt. (doler is a stem-changing verb: duele, duelen)
• A mi hermano le interesan los videojuegos. — My brother is interested in video games.
• ¿Te molesta la música? — Does the music bother you?

1. Saying "yo gusto"

Gustar does not mean "I like" as an action you perform. The thing is the subject, so it is me gusta (it is pleasing to me), never yo gusto.

2. Making the verb agree with the person

The verb agrees with the thing liked, not with me/te/le. It is me gustan los libros, not me gusto los libros. A plural thing means gustan.

3. Using gustan before an infinitive

A verb counts as singular: me gusta nadar, not me gustan nadar, even in a list like me gusta nadar y correr.

4. Dropping le/les when there is an "a" phrase

A María gusta leer is wrong. The pronoun stays: A María le gusta leer. The a phrase adds clarity; it does not replace the pronoun.

5. Confusing "me gusta" and "me gustaría"

Me gusta is I like (something real now); me gustaría is I would like (a wish). Choose the conditional gustaría only when you mean would like.