Spanish language Q&A Forum

Hola Inma,

I can’t work out why whether the information is already known to the parties concerned, that the subjunctive is used [in the pretérito imperfecto].

Also why using the pretérito indefinido would indicate that the information is new information.

In other words what is the logic behind this when forming the subjunctive? I completely get the idea of a hypothetical idea requiring the subjunctive, but the aspect of whether the information is already familiar to the people concerned, is confusing me. Saludos. John

Once I was in a store here in Mexico and the clerk asked me if I wanted a “canastilla”.  I didn’t know what she meant until she brought me a plastic shopping basket.  My Mexican friends laughed when I said that I would have understood “canastita”.  I still don’t know a rule for when to use -illa.  I do know that “ventanilla” is the word for the small airplane window so I’m guessing that in general the “-illa” suffix is used for physically small things and not for any of the other uses.

 But the suffix -it@ is used a lot.  “Cafecito” is a common word and there are even restaurants that are named “El Cafecito”.  A Spanish teacher once told me that the Mexicans used to use diminutives in order to set themselves apart from the Conquistadores, who made demanding, forceful requests.