Gusta vs Gustan (With Table)

Spanish is one of the widely spoken Romance languages. The Spanish language developed from Vulgar Latin. It was brought to the Iberian Peninsula by the Romans. Even though Spanish is an interesting and important language, people with a different native language find the usage of verbs quite confusing. For example, words like Gusta and Gustan are the verb forms of the word Gustar. Continue reading to learn the Gusta vs Gustan.

Comparison Table: Gusta vs Gustan

Criteria	Gusta	Gustan
Verb	Spanish verb derived from the main verb ‘Gustar’.	Spanish verb derived from the main verb ‘Gustar’.
Object	It is used in a sentence with singular objects.	It is used in a sentence with an object which is in plural form.
Indirect object dependency	It does not depend on the indirect object.	It does not depend on the indirect object.
Pronoun dependency	It does not depend on the pronouns of a sentence.	It does not depend on the pronouns of a sentence.
Meaning in Spanish	In Spanish, it means ‘pleasing to’.	In Spanish translation, it means ‘pleasing to’.

In Spanish, the verb Gustar means ‘like’ in English. ‘Me gusta’ means I like, ‘le gusta’ means they like, etc. In this way, the verb gusta is used in several ways. It is used to refer to the liking of he, you, they, me, etc.

Gustan on the other hand is used when the noun is plural. When one is said to like cars, books, houses, etc, the verb Gustan is preferred over Gusta.

So the difference between the two is: Gusta is used when the subject is singular in form, Gustan is used when the subject is in plural form.

About Gusta

In Spanish, Gusta is a verb. The word Gusta means ‘to like’ in English translation. It is formed from the main Spanish verb ‘Gustar’. This verb is used only when the subject of the sentence is in the singular form. Only when there is one subject in the sentence, can this verb be used.

Let’s look at some of these examples:

1) Spanish: Me gusta esta flor
English:  I like this flower.

2) Spanish: Me gusta Este libro
English: I like this book.

The word Gusta can be used irrespective of the presence of an indirect object. If the main object is singular in form and the indirect object is plural in form, gusta can still be used. In Spanish, the person speaking the statement will be considered as an indirect object.

Let us look at some more examples for a better understanding:

1) Spanish: Nos gusta ese libro
Nos: indirect object, libro: main subject.
English: We like that book.

2) Spanish: Me gusta ese pez
Me: indirect object, pez: main subject.
English: I like that fish.

Based on the first example, the verb gusta is used even when the indirect object (we) is plural in form. Keeping in mind the singularity of the main subject (the book), gusta is used in the sentence.

In the second example, gusta is used in the presence of the indirect object as well as the main object, both of which are singular.

The verb gusta is not dependent on the pronouns of the sentence either. As long as the subject is a single object, gusta can be used with pronouns such as me, te, nos (I, you, we), etc.

About Gustan

Just like Gusta, Gustan is a verb derived from the Spanish verb Gustar. It means ‘to like’ in English translation. When the subject in the sentence is plural, i.e. it is more than one object, Gustan is used.

Let us look at some of the examples:

1) Spanish: Me gustan estas flores
English: I like these flowers.

2) Spanish: Me gustan estos libros
English: I like these books.

Just like the verb Gusta, the usage of Gustan is also not dependent on the indirect object. If the main subject is in a plural form, the indirect object is a single or singular object, the verb gustan can be easily used. The person who is saying the sentence or statement will always be considered as the indirect object.

Consider these examples:

1) Spanish: Me gustan esos bolígrafos
Me: indirect object, bolígrafos: main subject
English: I like those pens.

2) Spanish: Les gustan estos edificios
Les: indirect object, edificios: main subject
English: They like these buildings.

In the examples stated above, the first one has a single person as the indirect object. It also has the pens in a plural form which makes it suitable for the use of Gustan.

In the second example, the main subject in the sentence is ‘buildings’ which is in plural form. The indirect object in the sentence is also in a plural form which is in this case ‘they’. These conditions make it suitable for the use of Gustan.

Gustan is not dependent on the pronouns of a sentence. For example, just like it was mentioned in gusta, gustan is also used for me, te, nos (i, you, we), if the subject is in plural form, i.e there is more than one object present in the sentence.

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Difference Between Gusta and Gustan

1) Verb

Both Gusta and Gustan are Spanish verbs. These have originated from the main verb Gustar.

2) Object

Gusta is used in a sentence when the object is singular in form. Gustan is used when the object in the sentence is plural in form.

3) Indirect object dependence

Neither Gusta nor Gustan is dependent on the indirect object.

4) Pronouns dependency

Both the terms gusta and gustan are not dependent on the pronouns used in a sentence.

5) Meaning in Spanish

Both these words are said to mean ‘to like’. But in Spanish, it is translated to ‘pleasing to’. This adds a positive effect to the sentence as well.

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Summary

Twix lovers have made various observations and assumptions over the years that have not been Gustan and Gusta are a part of the main verb ‘Gustar’. The verbs are not dependent on the indirect subject or the pronouns of a sentence. The use of the verbs is dependent on the main subject of a sentence. Spanish is such a beautiful language to learn, their culture and cuisine are worth exploring too.