Perdona, ________ antes fue una tontería.

andrew g.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Perdona, ________ antes fue una tontería.

With the above question, "lo de" was said to be the answer.  However, there is a conjugated verb in the clause afterward, "fue".  Why isn;t the correct answer "lo de que"?  With a conjugated verb, the explanation says to use "lo de que". 

Asked 5 years ago
InmaNative Spanish expert teacher in Kwiziq

Hola Andrew,

In this sentence, "lo de" is linked to an adverb, "antes", not the rest of the sentence after. We have a similar example in the lesson with "Lo de ayer, ¿es verdad? (What happened yesterday, is it true?)

With "Lo de que..." we need a whole subordinate clause that is linked to that "lo de que".  You will find two conjugated verbs, one for the subordinate and one for the main clause.

"Lo de que me caso con Cristina es broma." (That thing about me marrying Cristina is a joke.)

Here we are having two verbs, one linked to "lo de que" (me caso) and the main verb in the main clause "es". 

However we could say pretty much the same thing with "Lo de" but see how the structure changes:

"Lo de mi boda con Cristina es broma." (That thing about marrying Cristina is a joke.[boda means weeding]). This only needs one verb, "es".

Is this a bit clearer?

Let us know

Inma

andrew g.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Yes, I understand it.  Your excellent explanation is very clear and very much appreciated!

Perdona, ________ antes fue una tontería.

With the above question, "lo de" was said to be the answer.  However, there is a conjugated verb in the clause afterward, "fue".  Why isn;t the correct answer "lo de que"?  With a conjugated verb, the explanation says to use "lo de que". 

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