(In answer to a query about possessive adjectives and their use with the parts of the body.)
What you
may read about possessive adjectives (poss ads) not being used with
parts of the body is not strictly true; they can be used. However, when a
Spanish speaker talks about parts of the body, he/she doesn't usually construct
the sentence the same as in English. Look at these eg's:
Your body is
beautiful - Tienes un cuerpo precioso (literally - You've got a beautiful
body)
My hands are cold - Tengo las manos frías (lit.- I've got the hands
cold ie. I've got cold hands)
My leg hurts - Me duele la pierna
Now, you CAN say 'Tu cuerpo es precioso', it's not grammatically wrong
but the other forms are usually more natural. 'El cuerpo de usted' is
possible. (Though a Spanish girlfriend would prefer you didn't call her
'usted'!)
What many grammar books point out is the use of personal or
reflexive pronouns when referring to possession and parts of the body. Look at
that 3rd eg. again:
'Me duele la pierna' - the reflexive 'me' means that
a possessive adjective here is unnecessary. literally - 'It hurts me the leg'. So, 'Me duele MI
pierna' sounds strange because we are unnecessarily making two references to
possession: 'It hurts me my leg.'
With the verb 'doler' the reflexive is
usual:
'le duele la cabeza' - 'his/her head hurts' or 'he/she's got a
headache'
'¿te duele una muela?' Does your tooth hurt?
'nos duelen
las espaldas' - 'our backs hurt'
Also, when one person does something to
another's part of the body, the case is similar:
'Le ha dado en la
cabeza' - 'He/she hit him/her on the head'
Note, too that in English we
usually avoid the possessive adjectives in these circumstances as they are
unnecessary and redundant.