Result clauses give the outcome with a linker, such as de modo que, or with tan … que. An adjective and an adverb take tan; a noun and a verb take tanto; que opens the result: Es tan alto que no cabe. Estudia tanto que no duerme.
No information at the current level. This view starts at B2: choose B2 or a higher level.
No information at the current level. This view starts at B2: choose B2 or a higher level.
CheatsheetB2–C2
| Point | Rule | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Between sentences | a linker introduces the result: de modo que, por lo tanto | Perdí el tren, de modo que llegué tarde. | I missed the train, so I arrived late. | B2 |
| With an adjective or adverb | tan before an adjective or adverb, then que | Es tan alto que no cabe en la cama. | He is so tall that he doesn't fit in the bed. | B2 |
| With a noun | tanto agrees with the noun | Tenía tantas dudas que no pudo decidir. | She had so many doubts that she couldn't decide. | B2 |
| With a verb | tanto goes after the verb and does not change | Estudia tanto que no tiene tiempo para nada. | She studies so much that she has no time for anything. | B2 |
| Mood | indicative for the result, subjunctive for the purpose | Perdí el tren, de modo que llegué tarde. / Habla de modo que te entiendan. | I missed the train, so I arrived late. / Speak so that they understand you. | B2 |
| Educated register | luego, así pues and consecuentemente join two sentences | No hay billetes; así pues, iremos en tren. | There are no tickets; so we'll go by train. | C1 |
| Subjunctive | de ahí que takes the subjunctive | El puente está cerrado; de ahí que haya tanto tráfico. | The bridge is closed; that's why there is so much traffic. | C1 |
| Educated intensifier | tal goes before the noun, with no article | Tenía tal prisa que olvidó las llaves. | He was in such a hurry that he forgot his keys. | C1 |
| Enough to | como para takes an infinitive after lo bastante or tanto | Eres lo bastante mayor como para decidir solo. | You are old enough to decide on your own. | C1 |
| Literary register | de suerte que allows the indicative and the subjunctive | Habló de tal suerte que nadie dudó de él. | He spoke in such a way that nobody doubted him. | C2 |
| Colloquial | una de … que intensifies a plural noun | Había una de coches que no se podía cruzar. | There were so many cars that you couldn't cross. | C2 |
| Trap | tan announces the result; muy only intensifies | Está tan cansado que se duerme de pie. | He is so tired that he falls asleep standing up. | B2 |
OverviewB2
- A result clause states the outcome of what was just said. Hacía frío, de modo que cerramos las ventanas.It was cold, so we closed the windows.
- A linker joins two sentences, or tan and tanto announce a clause with que. Llovía tanto que nos quedamos en casa.It rained so much that we stayed at home.
- The basic result linkers, por eso and así que: Linkers.
Result between two sentencesB2
| Linker | Register | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| de manera que / de modo que / de forma que | neutral | Perdí el tren, de modo que llegué tarde. | I missed the train, so I arrived late. | B2 |
| con lo que / por lo que | neutral | Había demasiada gente, por lo que decidimos no entrar. | There were too many people, so we decided not to go in. | B2 |
| por (lo) tanto | neutral | Los vuelos están llenos. Por lo tanto, iremos en tren. | The flights are full. Therefore, we'll go by train. | B2 |
| en consecuencia / por consiguiente | formal | No hubo acuerdo. Por consiguiente, se aplazó la votación. | There was no agreement. Consequently, the vote was postponed. | B2 |
| (y) así / de este modo | neutral | Ahorramos cada mes y así podremos viajar. / Practica a diario; de este modo aprenderás más rápido. | We save every month, and that way we will be able to travel. / Practise every day; this way you'll learn faster. | B2 |
- por lo tanto, en consecuencia and por consiguiente begin a sentence after a full stop or a semicolon, with a comma after them.
- With the indicative, de modo que expresses a result; with the subjunctive, a purpose. Perdí el tren, de modo que llegué tarde. / Habla de modo que te entiendan.I missed the train, so I arrived late. / Speak so that they understand you.
Intensity: tan… que, tanto… queB2–C2
| Pattern | Register | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| tan + adjective or adverb + que | neutral | Es tan alto que no cabe en la cama. / Corre tan rápido que nadie lo alcanza. | He is so tall that he doesn't fit in the bed. / He runs so fast that nobody catches him. | B2 |
| tanto / tanta / tantos / tantas + noun + que | neutral | Tenía tantas dudas que no pudo decidir. | She had so many doubts that she couldn't decide. | B2 |
| verb + tanto que | neutral | Estudia tanto que no tiene tiempo para nada. | She studies so much that she has no time for anything. | B2 |
| de tal modo que / de tal manera que / de tal forma que | neutral | Habla de tal manera que nadie lo entiende. | He speaks in such a way that nobody understands him. | B2 |
| unfinished sentence: the result is left unsaid | colloquial | Es que grita de una manera… | It's just that he shouts in such a way… | B2 |
| tal + noun + que | formal | Tenía tal prisa que olvidó las llaves. | He was in such a hurry that he forgot his keys. | C1 |
| es tal + possessive and noun + que | formal | Es tal su timidez que no habla en público. | His shyness is such that he doesn't speak in public. | C1 |
| cada + noun + que | colloquial | Dice cada tontería que da vergüenza ajena. | He says such silly things that it makes you cringe. | C1 |
| de un + adjective + que | colloquial | Es de un tacaño que no invita ni a un café. | He is so stingy that he won't even buy you a coffee. | C1 |
| si + verb + adjective + que | colloquial | ¡Si será despistado que se olvidó de su propia boda! | He is so absent-minded that he forgot his own wedding! | C1 |
| de un / de una + noun + tal + que | literary | Era de una amabilidad tal que todos la querían. | She was so kind that everybody loved her. | C2 |
| así + verb + noun + que | literary | Así fue su enfado que nadie se atrevió a hablar. | So great was his anger that nobody dared to speak. | C2 |
| una de + plural noun + que | colloquial | Había una de coches que no se podía cruzar. | There were so many cars that you couldn't cross. | C2 |
| clause + como que + clause | colloquial | Hace un calor como que no se puede ni respirar. | It's so hot that you can't even breathe. | C2 |
| de + el / la / los / las + noun + que + verb | colloquial | No podía hablar de la risa que tenía. | She couldn't speak, she was laughing so much. | C2 |
- After an affirmative statement, tan … que and tanto … que take the indicative. Corre tan rápido que nadie lo alcanza.He runs so fast that nobody catches him.
Result between sentences: educated registerC1–C2
| Linker | Mood | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| luego | indicative | Las luces están apagadas; luego no hay nadie. | The lights are off; therefore nobody is there. | C1 |
| pues / así pues | indicative | Dices que no te interesa; pues no insistiré. / No hay billetes; así pues, iremos en tren. | You say you're not interested; well then, I won't insist. / There are no tickets; so we'll go by train. | C1 |
| de ahí que | subjunctive | El puente está cerrado; de ahí que haya tanto tráfico. | The bridge is closed; that's why there is so much traffic. | C1 |
| de ahí + noun | — | Tiene mucho miedo; de ahí su silencio. | He is very afraid; hence his silence. | C1 |
| consecuentemente / consiguientemente | indicative | Pagó tarde; consecuentemente, le cobraron un recargo. | He paid late; consequently, he was charged a surcharge. | C1 |
| de suerte que / de tal suerte que | indicative or subjunctive | Habló de tal suerte que nadie dudó de él. / Organizó la fiesta de suerte que todos se divirtieran. | He spoke in such a way that nobody doubted him. / She organised the party so that everyone would have fun. | C2 |
| conque | indicative or imperative | Ya no tengo dinero, conque no podré ir. / Ya hemos hablado bastante, conque vete a dormir. | I have no money left, so I won't be able to go. / We've talked enough, so go to sleep. | C2 |
| hasta tal punto que / a tal extremo que | indicative | Se enfadó hasta tal punto que no nos habló en una semana. | He got so angry that he didn't speak to us for a week. | C2 |
- C2conque is colloquial and curt.
- More on the subjunctive: Subjunctive for Wishes, Doubt and Opinions.
Enough to: como paraC1
| Pattern | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| lo bastante / suficientemente + adjective + como para + infinitive | Eres lo bastante mayor como para decidir solo. | You are old enough to decide on your own. | C1 |
| tanto + como para + infinitive | Ahorró tanto como para comprarse una moto. | He saved enough to buy himself a motorbike. | C1 |
| no + tan + adjective + como para + infinitive | No soy tan ingenuo como para creerlo. | I'm not naive enough to believe it. | C1 |
| demasiado + adjective + como para / para + infinitive | Estaba demasiado cansado como para seguir. / Estaba demasiado cansado para seguir. | He was too tired to go on. / He was too tired to go on. | C1 |
| como para que + subjunctive | La mesa es lo bastante grande como para que cenemos todos. | The table is big enough for all of us to have dinner. | C1 |
- With the same subject, use the infinitive; with a different subject, como para que and the subjunctive.
Exclamatory and unfinished result clausesC1–C2
| Pattern | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| cómo + verb + que + clause | ¡Cómo llovía que no se veía nada! | It was raining so hard that you couldn't see anything! | C1 |
| cuánto + future for a guess + que + clause | ¡Cuánto habrá estudiado que sacó la nota más alta! | He must have studied so much that he got the highest mark! | C1 |
| tan or tanto, without the clause with que | ¡Llovía tanto…! / Es tan cuidadoso… | It rained so much…! / He is so careful… | C1 |
| after a negative order, the result takes the subjunctive or the indicative | No lo escondas tanto que luego no lo encuentres. / No lo escondas tanto que luego no lo encuentras. | Don't hide it so well that you can't find it later. / Don't hide it so well that you can't find it later. | C1 |
| el / la / los / las + noun + que + verb | ¡La cara que puso! | What a face he pulled! | C2 |
| lo + adjective + que + conditional for a guess + que + clause | ¡Lo cansado que estaría que se quedó dormido en el autobús! | He must have been so tired that he fell asleep on the bus! | C2 |
| lo que + conditional for a guess + que + clause | ¡Lo que gritaría que se quedó afónica! | She must have shouted so much that she lost her voice! | C2 |
| the clause with que follows a full stop | Lo admiraba. Tanto, que copiaba hasta su forma de hablar. | She admired him. So much that she copied even his way of speaking. | C2 |
| a tal punto / a tal extremo + verb + noun + que | A tal punto llegó su enfado que rompió el plato. | His anger reached such a point that he broke the plate. | C2 |
Compare: tan… que and tan… comoB2
| Result | Equality | |
|---|---|---|
| the intensity leads to a result: que | the intensity matches another: como | B2 |
| Estaba tan nervioso que no podía hablar.He was so nervous that he couldn't speak. | Estaba tan nervioso como su hermano.He was as nervous as his brother. | B2 |
| Come tanto que se pone enfermo.He eats so much that he gets ill. | Come tanto como su hermano.He eats as much as his brother. | B2 |
- The comparison of equality: Comparatives and Superlatives.
Typical errorsB2–C2
| Wrong | Right | Rule | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estoy muy cansado que me duermo. | Estoy tan cansado que me duermo. | tan announces the clause with que; muy only intensifies | B2 |
| Tiene tan dudas que no decide. | Tiene tantas dudas que no decide. | tanto agrees with the noun | B2 |
| Es tanto alto que no cabe. | Es tan alto que no cabe. | tan goes before an adjective and an adverb | B2 |
| Perdí el tren, de modo que llegara tarde. | Perdí el tren, de modo que llegué tarde. | a real result takes the indicative; the subjunctive gives a purpose | B2 |
| Corre tan rápido que nadie lo alcance. | Corre tan rápido que nadie lo alcanza. | after an affirmative statement, tan … que takes the indicative | B2 |
| El puente está cerrado; de ahí que hay mucho tráfico. | El puente está cerrado; de ahí que haya mucho tráfico. | de ahí que takes the subjunctive | C1 |
| Es suficiente listo como para entenderlo. | Es lo bastante listo como para entenderlo. | suficiente goes with a noun; before an adjective use suficientemente or lo bastante | C1 |
| Hay tal ruido de que no puedo dormir. | Hay tal ruido que no puedo dormir. | tal takes que with no de | C1 |
| Ya es tarde, con que vete a dormir. | Ya es tarde, conque vete a dormir. | conque as a result linker is written as one word | C2 |