Phrase · 🧲 Persuasion and rhetoric
¿Acaso no es eso lo que queríamos todos?
Isn't that what we all wanted?
C2rhetorical questionAudio · coming soon
Why every word is where it is
¿Acaso1adverbsurely (rhetorical)no1adverbnotesverbisser · present · 3rd sing.esopronounthateselo2determinerwhatel · definiteque2pronoun(that)queríamos3verbwe wantedquerer · imperfect · 1st pl.todos3pronounall (of us)todo · masc. · pl.?
- Acaso → es: acaso: rhetorical question
- lo → que: lo que: what
- todos → queríamos: todos: we all → queríamos
- eso → es: eso: subject of es
Why it's built this way
The notes match the numbers above.
- 1¿Acaso no…? expects a yes: it pushes the listener to admit the point. Rhetorical, not a real question.
- 2lo que = what, the thing that: neuter lo for an idea. Relative clauses I: que, quien, donde, lo que →
- 3Imperfect queríamos: what we wanted all along. todos at the end = we all. Imperfect: forms and uses →
Variations
- ¿No es eso lo que queríamos todos?
- ¿Acaso no queríamos todos exactamente eso?
- ¿O no era eso lo que queríamos?