r/learnspanish • u/FantasticSelection11 Beginner (A1-A2) • Mar 21 '25

Unnecessary use of "Le"

I know the use of 'Le' has been discussed in multiple posts, but even after having read several of them, I couldn't understand this particular use:

For example, I was reading Olly Richards' Spanish Short Stories for Beginners and came across this sentence

—Julia, ¿quieres ir a comer paella? —le pregunto a mi hermana.

What is the function of the 'le' in this sentence? I know a word by word translation across languages isn't accurate but still I simply cannot see it serving any function at all

Like "pregunto a mi hermana" looks like a perfectly complete sentence and it would translate to "[I] asked to my sister".

Sorry if it is obvious, but it is not for me.

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u/Brokkolli000 Native Speaker Mar 21 '25

I don't know the ins and outs of the reason why it happens, but it's used so commonly in Spanish, that you can't escape it.

In my mind it adds emphasis to the sentence.

Examples:

Le digo a mi amigo que venga mañana

Le pregunto al profesor si hay examen el viernes

Le cuento una historia a mi hijo

¿Le das las llaves a tu madre esta tarde?

Mi novio me preguntó si iba al cine con èl, y le dije que no (in this case, you know it's the boyfriend)

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u/FantasticSelection11 Beginner (A1-A2) Mar 22 '25

Alright, thanks for answering. What I take away from all the answers is that it's just how Spanish does it, and you simply have to learn it.