Spanish language basics question?

Question

Hey, I only started learning yesterday from an app but Im a little
confused with one part.
It says that 'Soy nino' is 'I am a child'. But then 'Yo soy el nino' is 'I am a boy'.
I understand the 'el' but what does the 'Yo' part of it mean/add to the sentence?

Answer 1

"In English, we use personal subject pronouns out of necessity, for nearly all sentences without subject nouns would be incomplete without them. But in Spanish, such pronouns are used primarily for clarity or emphasis, since a verb alone can be a complete sentence."



"Because the verb form often indicates who the subject of a sentence is, one can properly leave out the subject pronoun, or put it at various places in the sentence. "Voy a la escuela", "yo voy a la escuela", "voy yo a la escuela", and "voy a la escuela yo" are all grammatically correct ways of saying "I am going to the school" (although the final option would be uncommon except if said for poetic effect). But the placement of the pronoun can make a difference in how the sentence is understood."



http://spanish.about.com/od/pronouns/a/subject_pron.htm



"Subject pronouns in Spanish are a lot like medicine — they're often essential, but their use should be avoided when they're not necessary."



"Overuse of subject pronouns — the equivalent of words such as "he," "she" and "they" — is common among English speakers learning Spanish. It's important to remember that in Spanish the verb forms often make subject pronouns unnecessary, and when that's the case the pronouns shouldn't be used unless there's a reason to."



For examples where you have to use subject pronouns, see : http://spanish.about.com/od/pronouns/a/subject_pronoun.htm

Answer 2

I don't know where you got a phrase like "Yo soy el niño." It doesn't stand on its own, and it doesn't mean "I am a boy." It means "I am the boy" and would need some kind of qualifier, such as "I am the boy who ..."



The others have already commented on how most Spanish speakers would not use 'yo' in that phrase unless for special emphasis.

Answer 3

I'll just add something to what others have said. There is something called yoismo in Spanish. This is when the speaker always says "yo" with the verb every time he needs it conjugated in the I form. Since its very easy to drop "yo" in most cases because the verb form makes it understood, to Spanish speakers after a time it can seem like the person is always bringing excess attention to themselves by always saying "Yo". So it's best to not over use "Yo".



Like Tener = To have. Tengo is the I present form. No other form has this exact pronunciation and form. So Tengo can only mean 'I have", Yo is not really necessary with this form in most cases.

Answer 4

Yo is the pronoun.



Since the verb is inflected, the person is easily understood without the pronoun. The pronoun is only used for emphasis.



e.g.

soy, soy which already means I am, is an inflection of ser.

Yo is the pronoun used for emphasis. Yo soy - I I am.



Yo soy niño.

Soy niño - I am boy

Answer 5

Actually, it should be, Soy varón. I am a male.



Soy niño. I am a boy.



Who was the boy who left his shoes here?

Yo soy el niño....que los dejó I am THE boy...who left them.



Used primarily as emphasis. Otherwise, personal pronouns should not be used.



personal pronouns

yo

tu

usted

el

ella

ellos

ellas

ustedes

nosotros