Me gusta, me encanta, me duele — backwards from English
Literally: “ To me it is pleasing.” The thing liked is the grammatical subject — so the verb agrees with it , not with “I”.
Me gusta el café (singular subject → gusta). Me gustan los libros (plural subject → gustan).
This feels backwards from English but is completely normal in Spanish.
| Person | Pronoun | gustar (sing.) | gustar (pl.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| to me | me | Me gusta | Me gustan |
| to you (informal) | te | Te gusta | Te gustan |
| to him/her/you (formal) | le | Le gusta | Le gustan |
| to us | nos | Nos gusta | Nos gustan |
| to you all (Spain) | os | Os gusta | Os gustan |
| to them / you all (formal) | les | Les gusta | Les gustan |
Me gusta + infinitive : the activity acts as a singular subject.
Me gusta leer . Me gusta bailar . Me gusta cocinar .
Encantar is stronger than gustar — “to love” or “to adore” (things and activities, not people romantically). Same grammar pattern.
Interesar follows the same structure: the topic is the subject.
| Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| importar | to matter | No me importa. / ¿Os importa esperar? |
| doler | to hurt | Me duele la cabeza. / Me duelen los pies. |
| faltar | to lack / be missing | Faltan dos días. / Me falta dinero. |
| quedar | to suit / be left | Me queda bien. / ¿Cuánto queda? |
| molestar | to bother | Me molesta el ruido. |
| parecer | to seem | Me parece bien. / ¿Qué os parece? |
I like coffee →
I like books →
Do you all like Madrid? (Spain) →
I love paella →
Spanish history interests me →
Languages interest me →
It does not matter to me →
My head hurts →
I like reading →
To me I like, to her she likes →
You all love football (Spain) →
Are you all interested in coming? (Spain) →