Gusta vs Gustan
Though Spanish is a very important language that is also very interesting, those having English as their native language may find the use of verbs somewhat confusing. This is best illustrated in the case of Gusta and Gustan that are verb forms of the verb gustar that roughly translates into like in English. This article attempts to make clear the use of these two verb forms in Spanish language.
Gustar is the verb in Spanish language that means to like. In the present tense and singular form, it is me gusta to tell others what you like. Me gusta means I like, te gusta means you like, le gusta is used for they like, and nos gusta is used for we like. If you want to say that you like the house, you have to make use of gusta in the sentence in the following way.
A mi me gusta la casa.
In a similar manner, gusta has to be used in all sentences where there is a reference to the liking of he, me, you, they, we etc.
Gustan is used when the noun is in the plural. Thus, when one likes many houses, books, cars, or other objects, it is the verb form gustan that is preferred over gusta.
The use of gusta and gustan can be attributed to the way sentence is constructed in Spanish rather than anything else. You simply say I like this or that in English whereas, in Spanish, it is more like the thing is pleasing to me rather than I like this thing.
If you like fruit, you would say I like fruit in Spanish as Me gusta la fruta. The verb form is used for most other objects. However, you have to use gustan when more than a single thing or person is liked such as when you like rabbits, movies, action movies, and so on. Take a look at the following sentences.
• Me gustan las clases
• Me gustan los libros.
If you want to say you don’t like it, you say No me gusta. But it becomes No me gustan when you want to say you don’t like them.
What is the difference between Gusta and Gustan?
• The verb gustar takes on verb form gusta when the subject of the sentence is in singular but becomes gustan when the subject is in the plural.
• Me gusta and me gustan both indicate one’s liking for something, but have to be used depending upon whether the subject is singular or plural.