Basic word order: flexible SVO

Explication

Spanish word order is flexible but has a neutral default of subject-verb-object: Ana compró la casa, el equipo ganó el partido. From there, elements move fairly freely, and new or focused information tends to gravitate toward the end of the sentence.

Verb-before-subject is completely normal in several cases: with verbs of arrival or occurrence (llegó tu paquete, llamó tu hermano, falta una firma), after a fronted adverb or phrase (ayer vino el técnico), and in questions (¿qué dijo el cliente?).

Amid the freedom there are fixed points: no goes immediately before the verb, clitic (object) pronouns go right before the conjugated verb (me lo dio, not *dio me lo), a question word is followed by the verb then the subject, and descriptive adjectives default to after the noun.

Exemples

Règles liées

• Word order in questions: verb before subject
• Fronting and doubling for emphasis