Inklingo

gustan

GOOS-tahn/ˈɡus.tan/

gustan means they are pleasing to in Spanish (The literal meaning, used to say 'someone likes' multiple things.).

they are pleasing to

Also: to like (plural things)
VerbA1Regular ar
A cheerful young person smiling happily at three brightly colored butterflies flying near them, illustrating the concept of liking multiple things.
infinitivegustar
gerundgustando
past Participlegustado

📝 In Action

Me gustan los gatos.

A1

I like cats.

¿Te gustan las verduras?

A1

Do you like vegetables?

A mis amigos les gustan los videojuegos.

A2

My friends like video games.

Nos gustan las mañanas tranquilas.

B1

We like quiet mornings.

Word Connections

Synonyms

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • Me gustan muchoI like them a lot
  • No me gustan para nadaI don't like them at all

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedgusta
yogusto
gustas
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustan
nosotrosgustamos
vosotrosgustáis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedgustaba
yogustaba
gustabas
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustaban
nosotrosgustábamos
vosotrosgustabais

preterite

él/ella/ustedgustó
yogusté
gustaste
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustaron
nosotrosgustamos
vosotrosgustasteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedguste
yoguste
gustes
ellos/ellas/ustedesgusten
nosotrosgustemos
vosotrosgustéis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedgustara
yogustara
gustaras
ellos/ellas/ustedesgustaran
nosotrosgustáramos
vosotrosgustarais

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: gustan

Question 1 of 1

How do you correctly say 'She likes the flowers' in Spanish?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family
🎵 Rhymes
asustanajustan
📚 Etymology

Comes from the Latin word 'gustāre', which means 'to taste'. The idea is that things you like have a good 'taste' to you, so they are pleasing.

First recorded: Around the 12th century

Cognates (Related words)

Italian: gustareFrench: goûterPortuguese: gostar

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I use 'gustan' for plural things? Why doesn't the verb match the person?

Because 'gustar' doesn't mean 'to like' directly. It means 'to be pleasing to'. So, when you say 'Me gustan los libros', you're really saying 'The books are pleasing to me'. The books are doing the 'pleasing', so the verb matches them.

Can I just say 'Gustan los deportes' without 'me', 'te', or 'le'?

Not usually. A sentence with 'gustan' almost always needs a word like 'me', 'te', 'le', etc., to say *who* finds the things pleasing. Without it, we don't know who likes the sports!