# No me gustó que me tocara así



## josera--

Dear friends:
I have read this sentence in an English book: 
"I didn't like him touching me like this".

The question is:
Is it correct this other sentence?:
"I didn't like that he touched me like this"
Thanks in advance.


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## the MASTER

No, your second example is not correct. It is a direct translation from the Spanish construction and is not used in modern English.


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## aztlaniano

No veo mal la segunda frase (ni la primera). Para la segunda se podría poner al final "...me this way", para no repetir "like that".
En ambos casos me parece más lógical "like that" (en lugar de "like _this_", salvo que quien habla esté indicando el lugar del cuerpo en cuestión.


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## josera--

Thank you very much. Another question, please: It would be correct, for example, in 1940? Or perhaps, last century?
Thanks again.


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## Pinairun

Deberías abrir otro hilo, por favor, es una consulta diferente.

Muchas gracias


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## josera--

What a good appreciation, Aztlaniano!! OK; In this case he was referring to his arm, because somebody took hold of his arm. So, "like this".


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## josera--

Pinairun, me refiero a lo mismo, en relación con la segunda alternativa y la indicación por parte de "the MASTER"; preguntaba cuánto de antigua resultaba la frase expresándola de aquella forma. Entiendo que si abro otro hilo, tendría el mismo título... Es decir, es evidente que en español también tenemos frases anticuadas, pero no es lo mismo una frase anticuada que el "español antiguo", por ejemplo el estilo literario con el que se escribió "el Quijote".


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## aztlaniano

josera-- said:


> Thank you very much. Another question, please: It would be correct, for example, in 1940? Or perhaps, last century?.


For my money, it's correct now.
I didn't like it that he touched me this/that way.


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## josera--

Thank you very much, Aztlaniano. But now, you have added "it":
I didn't *like it that* he touched me this/that way. 
Is it correct without "it"?: "I didn't *like that* he touched me this/that way"
Thank you again.
Regards.


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## Pinairun

josera-- said:


> Pinairun, me refiero a lo mismo, en relación con la segunda alternativa y la indicación por parte de "the MASTER"; preguntaba cuánto de antigua resultaba la frase expresándola de aquella forma. Entiendo que si abro otro hilo, tendría el mismo título... Es decir, es evidente que en español también tenemos frases anticuadas, pero no es lo mismo una frase anticuada que el "español antiguo", por ejemplo el estilo literario con el que se escribió "el Quijote".


 

Tienes razón. Había interpretado mal tu pregunta. Te ruego me disculpes.


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## Mariposa3939

the MASTER said:


> No, your second example is not correct. It is a direct translation from the Spanish construction and is not used in modern English.


 "
Actually the second example is grammatically correct, it's just not used in everyday language. More often English speakers restructure sentences, they become common usage and are accepted as correct. 

The first example is grammatically incorrect but more a accepted form.

The second example is grammatically correct, however, too formal, and only occasionally used and accepted.


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## Mariposa3939

josera-- said:


> Thank you very much, Aztlaniano. But now, you have added "it":
> I didn't *like it that* he touched me this/that way.
> Is it correct without "it"?: "I didn't *like that* he touched me this/that way"
> Thank you again.
> Regards.


 
Either is fine. I use either in my everday conversation, they both work and sound acceptable.


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## the MASTER

Sorry. but I just don't think that it sounds like good English. Put it into the present tense, for example.
"I don't like that he touches me like this".
I would correct a student for using this construction.


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## aztlaniano

the MASTER said:


> Sorry. but I just don't think that it sounds like good English. Put it into the present tense, for example.
> "I don't like that he touches me like this".
> I would correct a student for using this construction.


 
By that token, these phrases would be considered incorrect as well:

_she doesn't like that he smokes_ and ends by saying how he will deal with his *...*
www.lyricsmode.com/meanings

she doesn't like that he does it, but it happens anyway. Fiction Rated: T - English - Romance/General *...*
www.fanfiction.net/anime/Itazura_na_Kiss

He doesn't like that she has to stop what she is doing to check her blood sugar or get a shot. 
www.jdrfnightofhope.org/youth_ambassadors.html 

she doesn’t like that he is always saying she’s wrong. *...*
www.tvfunspot.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-941.html

he doesn’t like that she wants to go home, and he tells Brittaney that she has been causing a lot of problems. *...*
www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090111-ENTERTAIN-90111008


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## the MASTER

They all sound odd to me - very archaic .... I AM a native speaker .... BUT maybe we've encountered a difference between UK and US usage ...?


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## Samdie

the MASTER said:


> Sorry. but I just don't think that it sounds like good English. Put it into the present tense, for example.
> "I don't like that he touches me like this".
> I would correct a student for using this construction.


The strikes me as nonsense. If the speaker is describing the reaction/feeling provoked by being touched (both the touching and the reaction occurred in the *past*) then the past tense is the appropriate one for both verbs i.e. "I didn't like that he touched me like that." It may be the case that the speaker *still* doesn't like being touched in that manner but that is a *different* statement and calls for different tenses. Perhaps many speakers would be more likely to make a general statement about such feelings (e.g. "I don't like being touched like that." or as in your example) rather than about some specific incident in the past but that is a matter of preference not correctness.


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## the MASTER

The normal, modern English construction of this type, when two different human subjects (names or pronouns) occur in the same sentence is:-

Subject_verb_direct object_infinitive/gerund. No matter what the tense.

E.g.
I like her touching me.
He doesn't want them to steal his car.
We hated him singing.
They didn't need everyone to come.


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## josera--

¡Qué dificil! Cada uno opina de forma distinta.
Nadie ha comentado nada acerca de lo que decía Mariposa3939. A mí me pareció una explicación muy buena.


Mariposa3939 said:


> "
> Actually the second example is grammatically correct, it's just not used in everyday language. More often English speakers restructure sentences, they become common usage and are accepted as correct.
> 
> The first example is grammatically incorrect but more a accepted form.
> 
> The second example is grammatically correct, however, too formal, and only occasionally used and accepted.


¿Qué opinais? 
¿Podría opinar algún experto en gramática inglesa?
Gracias a todos.


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## Mariposa3939

aztlaniano said:


> By that token, these phrases would be considered incorrect as well:
> 
> _she doesn't like that he smokes_ and ends by saying how he will deal with his *...*
> www.lyricsmode.com/meanings
> 
> she doesn't like that he does it, but it happens anyway. Fiction Rated: T - English - Romance/General *...*
> www.fanfiction.net/anime/Itazura_na_Kiss
> 
> He doesn't like that she has to stop what she is doing to check her blood sugar or get a shot.
> www.jdrfnightofhope.org/youth_ambassadors.html
> 
> she doesn’t like that he is always saying she’s wrong. *...*
> www.tvfunspot.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-941.html
> 
> he doesn’t like that she wants to go home, and he tells Brittaney that she has been causing a lot of problems. *...*
> www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090111-ENTERTAIN-90111008


 
I agree that these versions are grammatically incorrect, however in the area where I live it is the preferred usage. The people that I've known and speak to would rather use _he doesn't like that she wants to go home, _and would purposely _not _use the correct form, as it would sound too formal. 

I agree that there are differences between UK English and American English in that, at least in New England, people prefer colloquialisms and bad grammar, not only that would probably argue that it's grammatically correct.


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## TravelinTom

josera-- said:


> Dear friends:
> I have read this sentence in an English book:
> "I didn't like him touching me like this".
> 
> The question is:
> Is it correct this other sentence?:
> "I didn't like that he touched me like this"
> Thanks in advance.


 
Both are perfectly correct and all of your subsequent translations too!  I wish my Spanish were as good.  The "it" in the above post is understood and not necessary but neither is it incorrect.


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## AntieAnnie

I think that both sound ok. I would probably say "like that" rather than "like this" unless I were demonstrating to the listener how the person touched me. 

Although I seem to be in the minority, I would probably be more likely to use your second sentence (but changing "this" to "that") I didn't like that he touched me like THAT.


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## VivaReggaeton88

I didn't like that he touched me that way. 

La verdad es que los nativos de inglés no dirían la frase así; suena demasiado 'propiamente dicho' y no es natural.

I didn't like him touching me that way 

Así es como la diríamos, si fuéramos a decirla. Este tipo de frase, especialmente del significado que tiene acá, no se la diríamos a otra persona (como en esta frase). Es un poco incómodo jaja.


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## aztlaniano

Mariposa3939 said:


> I agree that these versions are grammatically incorrect, however in the area where I live it is the preferred usage. I agree that there are differences between UK English and American English in that, at least in New England, .


Are you in the US then, Mariposa? In New England?
Your profile doesn't say where your English is from nor where you live now. If that is the case (that you are in New England), and what you say is true, it might explain why the construction sounds normal to me, since I spent 7 years in Cambridge, Massachusetts.


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## Ynez

> she doesn't like that he smokes
> 
> 
> she doesn’t like that he is always saying she’s wrong. ...




I have the feeling that this structure may be old in English, but I am not totally sure of it (maybe some of you could check some source). It could have disappeared in some areas. Why do I think that it could be old? Because I see it as grammatically logical. 

*she - not like - he - smoke* could express two different ideas, and in Spanish we have two ways to express them:

_1a. A ella no le gusta que él fume = She doesn't like him to smoke
1b. A ella no le gusta que él fuma = She doesn't like (it) that he smokes_

1a could go on like "when she is with him". 
1b could be more like "he is nearly perfect, but smokes, which she doesn't like"



_2a. A ella no le gusta que él siempre esté diciendo que ella está equivocada = She doesn't like him to be always saying (that) she is wrong

2b. A ella no le gusta que él siempre está diciendo que ella está equivocada = She doesn't like that he is always saying (that) she is wrong

_
2a. She would prefer him to shut up.
2b. That's something of him that she doesn't like. It is a fact that he says those things, which she dislikes very much.


I may be totally wrong, but I see a pattern there...


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## Ynez

As for the sample sentence:

_I didn't like that he touched me like this_

The way I would understand it is:

I didn't like the fact that he touched me like this.


Against my own theory, and to show that I understand the most important part is if it is  common or not, I must say that the translation in Spanish would not be normal (still possible):

_No me gustó que me tocó así._


_I didn't like him to touch me like this= No me gustó que me tocara así_


In Spanish this is MUCH more natural.


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## josera--

Ynez said:


> As for the sample sentence:
> 
> _I didn't like that he touched me like this_
> 
> The way I would understand it is:
> 
> I didn't like the fact that he touched me like this.
> 
> 
> Against my own theory, and to show that I understand the most important part is if it is common or not, I must say that the translation in Spanish would not be normal (still possible):
> 
> _No me gustó que me tocó así._
> 
> 
> _*I didn't like him to touch me like this= No me gustó que me tocara así*_
> 
> 
> In Spanish this is MUCH more natural.


 
Según un libro de gramática que he consultado, para poder traducir el subjuntivo español como "Infinitivo con to" en inglés, se deben utilizar verbos de voluntad que expresen mandato, ruego, permiso, deseo y similares, y sus contrarios: prohibición, oposición, contrariedad o repulsa. Según esta regla:

*I didn't like him to touch me like this= No me gustó que me tocara así --- INCORRECTO*
*I forbade him to touch me like this= Le prohibí que me tocara así --- CORRECTO*

Y analizando las respuestas anteriores, creo que se podría concluir diciendo:
*"no me gustó que me tocara así" = *
*= "I didn't like that he touched me like this" --- FORMAL*
*= "I didn't like him touching me like this" ------ COLOQUIAL*

¿Qué opinais? ¿Llevo razón? Gracias.


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## josera--

the MASTER said:


> Sorry. but I just don't think that it sounds like good English. Put it into the present tense, for example.
> "I don't like that he touches me like this".
> I would correct a student for using this construction.


 
"I don't like that he touches me like this".<-------------------------touch*es*? 

If I put it into the present tense, I think the correct sentence would be:
*"No me gusta que me toque así"=*
*"I don't like that he touch me like this".------FORMAL*
*"I don't like him touching me like this".-------COLLOQUIAL*

I'm reading a Grammar English book, and it says that *NEVER -s/-es* form is used with subjunctive. ONLY one form (INF without TO).

Nevertheless, The MASTER said that sentence was wrong because he says that only is correct the colloquial form, not because the use of the –s/-es form. For this reason I’ve sent this new post, because I think the sentence is wrong, but due to a different cause.

Am I right?
Thanks in advance.


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## juanito23

Ynez said:


> As for the sample sentence:
> 
> _I didn't like that he touched me like this_
> 
> The way I would understand it is:
> 
> I didn't like the fact that he touched me like this.
> 
> 
> Against my own theory, and to show that I understand the most important part is if it is common or not, I must say that the translation in Spanish would not be normal (still possible):
> 
> _No me gustó que me tocó así._
> 
> 
> _I didn't like him to touch me like this= No me gustó que me tocara así_
> 
> 
> In Spanish this is MUCH more natural.


 


¿Es natural usar el indicativo en este caso (No me gustó que me *tocó* así)?  Suena natural, pero no sabía si se podía decir así con "no me gustó".  Creía que sería "no me gustó que me tocara así" en los dos casos.

Favor de clarificármelo 

Gracias.


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## josera--

juanito23 said:


> ¿Es natural usar el indicativo en este caso (No me gustó que me *tocó* así)? Suena natural, pero no sabía si se podía decir así con "no me gustó". Creía que sería "no me gustó que me tocara así" en los dos casos.
> 
> Favor de clarificármelo
> 
> Gracias.


 
"No me gustó que me *tocó* así" es incorrecto, y suena antinatural. Lo correcto en español sería "No me gustó que me *tocara* así".

Y por favor, ¿podría alguien contestar a mis dos últimas intervenciones anteriores? Y así ya cerrar este tema.
Gracias.


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## juanito23

josera-- said:


> "I don't like that he touches me like this".<-------------------------touch*es*?
> 
> If I put it into the present tense, I think the correct sentence would be:
> *"No me gusta que me toque así"=*
> *"I don't like that he touch me like this".------FORMAL*
> *"I don't like him touching me like this".-------COLLOQUIAL*
> 
> I'm reading a Grammar English book, and it says that *NEVER -s/-es* form is used with subjunctive. ONLY one form (INF without TO).
> 
> Nevertheless, The MASTER said that sentence was wrong because he says that only is correct the colloquial form, not because the use of the –s/-es form. For this reason I’ve sent this new post, because I think the sentence is wrong, but due to a different cause.
> 
> Am I right?
> Thanks in advance.


 

Josera:

Esto sí es muy interesante. La gramática que has consultado lo ha dicho bien. Aunque en inglés las construcciones utlizando el subjuntivo no son tan específicas como en español, sería correcto decir, por ejemplo, "I would like that he leave immediately" (básicamente como en español).

Pero también se dice con mucha frecuencia, "I would like him to leave immediately", o "I would like for him to leave immediately". Creo que estas dos opciones son mas utilizadas. El subjuntivo en inglés, aunque existe, no lleva el énfasis que lleva en español. 

En inglés se dice: "I know that he *is going* to the party". Pero también se diría, "I doubt that he *is going* to the party". La forma verbal en inglés es la misma....con duda o con certidumbre. Pero como ya he dicho, algo como: "I would like that he *finish* his dinner" es completamente posible, y correcto, gramaticalmente. Es que creo que se va a oír con más frecuencia, "I want/would like him to finish his dinner".

Volviendo a tu última pregunta:

Creo que los dos ejemplos que ofreciste están bien. Claro que, como han dicho aquí, en inglés la forma coloquial es más común. No sé si esto pasa al espñol, pero me pregunto si hay una diferencia entre: "I don't like that he touch me that way" (que no me gusta que me toque así), y " I don't like that he touches me that way" (es que me toca así, y no me gusta).

Creo que en español se usaría el subjuntivo en los dos casos, pero que en inglés el segundo ejemplo puede ser un comentario de que esa persona me toca así, y no me gusta...."He touches me that way, and I don't like it".

A ver si esto te ayuda un poquito. Quizás 'hablemos' más.

Juanito


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## josera--

juanito23 said:


> Josera:
> 
> me pregunto si hay una diferencia entre: "I don't like that he touch me that way" (que no me gusta que me toque así), y " I don't like that he touches me that way" (es que me toca así, y no me gusta).
> 
> Creo que en español se usaría el subjuntivo en los dos casos, pero que en inglés el segundo ejemplo puede ser un comentario de que eas persona me toca así, y no me gusta...."He touches me that way, and I don't like it".


 
¡Gracias Juanito!  
No entiendo tu pregunta, porque yo considero que la frase "I don't like that he touch*es* me that way" es incorrecta, debido al uso de "touches" en lugar de "touch", según indica el libro de gramática que he consultado.
Saludos.


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