Unit 3: Introduction to the present tense and adjectives
3.3 Inversion of Subject in Declarative Sentences
Spanish very often inverts the order of subject (+ adj.) and verb for emphasis or style. Although in simple sentences, as those below, the subject should be apparent, in longer sentences, you may have to stop and study the sentence in order to be sure you have found it. This inversion does not typically cause any change in translation except, perhaps, emphasis.
| Es muy rápida la vida en la ciudad.
Es la vida en la ciudad muy rápida. |
Life in the city is very fast. |
| Es muy difícil el griego.
Es el griego muy difícil. |
Greek is very difficult. |
Both of these examples would be more frequently expressed as:
| La vida es muy rápida en la ciudad. | Life in the city is very fast. |
| El griego es muy difícil. | Greek is very difficult |
As in English, there is a great variety of placement for prepositional phrases. The first sentence could also be expressed as:
| En la ciudad la vida es muy rápida.
La vida en la ciudad es muy rápida. |
Life in the city is very fast. |
