Spanish Phrase
Hay un montón de cosas que hacen que vaya lento.
Meaning
Literally, ‘There are a lot of things that make it go slow.’ It is used to explain why a process, device, or situation is progressing slowly, pointing to multiple contributing factors.
When to use
Use this sentence when you want to give a general, slightly informal explanation for a slowdown—whether it’s a computer, a project at work, traffic, bureaucracy, or even a personal habit.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Hayunmontóndecosasquehacenquevayalento
Hay (existential ‘there is/are’)
Hay is the impersonal form of haber used to state the existence of something. It does not change with number or gender.
un montón de + noun
A colloquial way to say ‘a lot of’. It works with both singular and plural nouns and is interchangeable with ‘muchas’ in informal speech.
que hacen que + subjunctive
The construction ‘hacer que + subjunctive’ expresses causation. The verb after ‘que’ must be in the subjunctive because the clause is dependent on a cause‑effect relationship.
vaya (subjunctive of ir)
Vaya is the present subjunctive of ir (to go). Here it means ‘go’ in the sense of ‘move/operate’, not ‘go’ as a destination.
lento as a predicative adjective
Lento functions as a predicative adjective describing the speed of the subject; it does not need an adverbial ending.
🗨In Conversation
¿Por qué el proyecto sigue sin avanzar?
Why is the project still not moving forward?
Hay un montón de cosas que hacen que vaya lento.
There are a lot of things that make it go slow.
✕Common Mistakes
Hay un montón de cosas que hacen que va lento.
The verb must be in the subjunctive after ‘hacer que’, so ‘vaya’ is correct, not the indicative ‘va’.
Hay mucho cosas que hacen que vaya lento.
‘Mucho’ is an adjective and cannot modify ‘cosas’; you need the plural form ‘muchas’.
Hay un montón de cosas que hacen que vaya lenta.
‘Lento’ agrees with the implied subject (the process, the device), which is masculine or neuter; ‘lenta’ would be incorrect unless the noun is feminine.
↔Alternatives
Hay muchas cosas que lo hacen lento.
There are many things that make it slow.
Hay un sinfín de factores que ralentizan el proceso.
There is an endless list of factors that slow the process down.
Son muchas las causas que lo hacen ir despacio.
There are many causes that make it go slowly.
Cultural Tip
‘Un montón de’ is very common in everyday conversation across Spanish‑speaking countries, but in formal writing you might prefer ‘muchas’ or ‘numerosos’. Also, remember that the subjunctive after ‘hacer que’ is mandatory; using the indicative (…que va lento) is considered a grammatical error.