Impersonal They
When you do not know or do not care who did something, put the verb in the eles form and leave out the subject: Din que vai nevar (they say it is going to snow), Chamaron á porta (someone knocked at the door).
How It Works
How it works. Use the verb in the eles form and leave the subject out:
- Din que mañá vai chover. (They say it is going to rain tomorrow.)
- Chamaron á porta. (Someone knocked at the door.)
- Roubáronme a bicicleta. (My bike was stolen.)
One person or many. The plural does not mean that several people did it. Chamaron á porta is normal even when one person knocked. The plural simply leaves the doer unnamed.
Who is left out. The speaker and the listener are never part of it. Aquí venden pan means that the people who work here sell bread. For a general statement that can include everyone, use impersonal se: Aquí vívese ben (life is good here). See also a xente and un.
No eles. The construction depends on the missing subject, as with any dropped subject pronoun. Eles din que vai nevar is a correct sentence, but it means that the particular people you were talking about say so.
Where English uses a passive. English often says "was stolen" or "was operated on". Everyday Galician prefers this active plural: Roubáronme o móbil (my phone was stolen), Operárono onte (he had his operation yesterday).
Examples (6)
- Din que mañá vai nevar na montaña.
They say it is going to snow in the mountains tomorrow.
Word by Word: Say that tomorrow goes to-snow in-the mountain.
- Chamaron á porta e fun abrir.
Someone knocked at the door and I went to open it.
Word by Word: Called at-the door and went-I to-open.
The plural is normal even if only one person knocked.
- Roubáronme o móbil no autobús.
My phone was stolen on the bus.
Word by Word: Stole-me the mobile on-the bus.
- Abriron unha panadaría nova no barrio.
A new bakery has opened in the neighbourhood.
Word by Word: Opened a bakery new in-the neighbourhood.
- Na radio dixeron que a estrada está pechada.
They said on the radio that the road is closed.
Word by Word: On-the radio said that the road is closed.
- Chámante ao teléfono!
There is a phone call for you!
Word by Word: Call-you to-the phone!
Common Mistakes
Adding eles when you mean people in general.
Eles din que vai nevar.Din que vai nevar.Eles din que vai nevar is grammatical, but it means that specific people already mentioned say it. For the general "they say", leave the subject out.
Using a singular verb for an unknown doer.
Rouboume o móbil no autobús.Roubáronme o móbil no autobús.A singular verb with no subject points to a particular he or she that the listener already knows about. If you do not know who took your phone, use the plural.
How It Connects
Learn This First
A third-person plural verb can refer to unspecified people.
Related Patterns
- Impersonal se
The other main impersonal construction, which can include the speaker and listener in a general statement.
Level 3 - a xente / unImpersonal a Xente and Un
Other ways to talk about people in general without naming anyone.
Level 4 - dicir queReported Statements
Din que (they say that) is one of the most frequent uses of the impersonal plural.
Level 3 - Passive se
Another way to focus on what happened rather than on who did it.
Level 3
Practice Impersonal They in Bubblegum
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