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Just like any other language, Spanish has adopted many words from different languages and cultures. These words are known in Spanish as extranjerismos, a term that comes from the word extranjero (foreign). That said, let's take a look at some of the most common words in Spanish that come from other languages.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the Spanish language adopted several Arabic words. Let's see some of them:
Soy Miguel Ángel Herrera, alcalde de Genalguacil,
I'm Miguel Angel Herrera, mayor of Genalguacil,
Captions 2-3, Viajando con Fermín Genalguacil - Part 2
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el álgebra, que estudia las estructuras abstractas,
algebra, which studies abstract structures,
Captions 48-49, Carlos explica Vocabulario de las matemáticas - Part 1
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con media taza de azúcar
with half a cup of sugar,
Caption 25, Ana Carolina Ponche navideño
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aprendí a tocar la guitarra de una manera diferente
I learned to play the guitar in a different manner
Caption 55, Luis Guitarra Influencias musicales - Part 1
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saben a naranja.
taste like orange.
Caption 34, Ariana Cita médica
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If you hear the way Ariana pronounces the word naranja, you can notice the strong sound of the letter "j," which is a sound that the Spanish language took from the Arabic language.
Just like in the English language, Spanish has also adopted many words derived from French. Let's see some of the most popular ones:
hasta lo que hoy es conocido como el Bulevar donostiarra,
to what is known today as the "Bulevar donostiarra" [Donostiarra Boulevard]
Caption 28, Días festivos La Tamborrada de San Sebastián
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que Amalia se quedó con él y con el chofer, ¿sí?
because Amalia stayed with him and with the driver, right?
Caption 28, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 2 - Part 9
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unas estructuras de poder muy basadas en la élite, en la exclusión.
some power structures [that were] very based on the elite, on exclusion.
Caption 12, Los Tiempos de Pablo Escobar Capítulo 1 - Part 1
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Many words from various indigenous Latin American cultures were incorporated into the Spanish language after the arrival of the Spaniards to the Americas. The following are some of the most popular words:
Ellos jugaban con una pelota de caucho
They played with a rubber ball
Caption 85, Guillermo el chamán La cosmología de los mayas
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guitarra, cuatro, güiro, maraca, bongo,
guitar, cuatro, güiro, maraca, bongo [drum],
Caption 32, Sonido Babel La plena de Puerto Rico
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En los Andes se usa mucha papa y muchas cremas.
In the Andes, many potatoes are used and many creams.
Captions 75-76, Recetas de cocina Papa a la Huancaína
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¿Qué es realmente el tomate?
What really is the tomato?
Caption 30, Fermín Ensalada de tomate
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Many Italian words made their way into the Spanish language during the Renaissance. Let's check out two of them:
Tomo unos mates en el balcón
I have some servings of mate on the balcony
Caption 7, GoSpanish La rutina diaria de Sol
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basada en una novela de Paul van Loon
based on a novel by Paul van Loon
Caption 4, Europa Abierta Fucsia la pequeña bruja
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And last but not least, we have extranjerismos that come from the English language. Here a few:
que hagan un perímetro por dentro y por fuera del club, vaya.
that they should surround us inside and outside the club, come on.
Caption 13, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 5 - Part 12
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El fútbol es un deporte que fue inventado en Inglaterra
Soccer is a sport that was invented in England
Caption 8, Sergio El fútbol en España
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In this translation, we used the word "soccer" instead of "football." However, the Spanish word comes from the original British term "football."
La India Catalina era la líder de la tribu indígena que habitó en la ciudad, anteriormente llamada la Isla Calamarí.
India Catalina was the leader of the indigenous tribe who inhabited the city, previously called Calamari Island.
Captions 26-27, Viajando en Colombia Cartagena en coche - Part 3
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una ciudad cosmopolita, luminosa y que pone al servicio del turista una amplia variedad de infraestructuras.
a cosmopolitan, luminous city that puts at the service of the tourist a wide variety of infrastructures.
Captions 10-11, Málaga Semana Santa
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That's all for this lesson. We hope you enjoyed this list of foreign-influenced words in Spanish. Can you think of any additional extranjerismos in Spanish? Don't forget to let us know with your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!
Today's lesson will take us through some Spanish vocabulary that might come in handy to talk about el otoño (the autumn/fall) and some of the phenomena associated with esta estación (this season).
Let's start by taking a look at a quote from our Yabla Spanish library about el tiempo in autumn, which means "the weather" (rather than "the time") in this context:
Pero en primavera y en otoño, el tiempo es mucho mejor
But in spring and in fall, the weather is much better
Captions 16-17, Clara explica El tiempo - Part 1
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The fall season is typically characterized by more moderate temperaturas (temperatures) as well as viento (wind) and sometimes lluvia (rain) or niebla (fog) (although there might be some sol (sun) as well!). Let's look at these autumn weather words in context:
Pasame las llaves y llamá un taxi ante' que venga la lluvia.
Give me the keys and call a cab before the rain comes.
Caption 51, Yago 5 La ciudad - Part 9
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Ya está haciendo un poco de viento; ¿no te parece que hace frío? Sí, a pesar de que hace un hermoso sol.
It's a bit windy now; doesn't it seem like it's cold to you? Yes, in spite of the fact that it's beautifully sunny.
Captions 78-79, Sofy y Caro Entrevistar para un trabajo
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Ten cuidado cuando conduzcas hoy porque hay mucha niebla y no se puede ver bien.
Be careful when you drive today because there's a lot of fog, and you can't see well.
Captions 17-18, Clara explica El tiempo - Part 2
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The videos Clara explica el tiempo - Part 1 and Clara explica el tiempo- Part 2 (Clara Explains the Weather- Parts 1 and 2) as well as Aprendiendo con Karen- El tiempo (Learning with Karen- The Weather) can help you learn even more ways to talk about the weather in Spanish.
While some Spanish-speaking countries like Colombia and Ecuador have less climatic variation due to their proximity to the equator, others experience the autumn season in different months than North America. For example, fall in countries like Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, etc. takes place from approximately marzo a junio (March to June), while Spain experiences the fall in the same months as in the United States: septiembre a diciembre (September through December), as demonstrated in this video about the months and seasons in Spanish by El Aula Azul:
En septiembre, empieza el otoño. En octubre, caen las hojas.
In September, the fall begins. In October, the leaves fall.
Captions 22-23, El Aula Azul Estaciones y Meses
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And that brings us to las hojas (the leaves), which, along with their tendency to change colors, dry up, and fall off trees in the autumn, are arguably the most frequently-employed symbol of the fall season.
What other objects are associated with the fall? Let's take a look at a few:
¡Soy un espantapájaros!
I'm a scarecrow!
Caption 95, 75 minutos Gangas para ricos - Part 15
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¿Cuánto puede costar una cesta así en el mercado?
How much can a basket like this cost at the market?
Caption 121, 75 minutos Del campo a la mesa - Part 11
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¿Adivináis qué animal come esta paja y este heno?
Can you guess what animal eats this straw and this hay?
Caption 6, Amaya Donkey Dreamland
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Ahora, vamos con nuestro siguiente diseño de calabaza.
Now, we go on to our next pumpkin design.
Caption 64, Manos a la obra Papel picado para Día de muertos
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What other foods do we associate with the autumn season?
Es época de quinoa, de la cosecha, de las arvejas tiernas, del maíz, que también ya acabamos de cosechar.
It's the season for quinoa, the harvest, sweet peas, corn, which we also just finished harvesting.
Captions 27-28, Otavalo Proyecto familiar Kawsaymi - Part 2
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Si hay un olor típico en el otoño es el de las castañas asadas.
If there is a typical smell in autumn, it's that of the roasted chestnuts.
Caption 24, 75 minutos Del campo a la mesa - Part 1
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Las manzanas puedes hacer dulce de manzana, pie de manzana, torta de manzana,
[With] apples you can make apple jam, apple pie, apple cake,
Caption 19, Otavalo Conozcamos el Mundo de las Frutas con Julia
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And speaking of apples, they can also be used to make sidra (cider) of both the alcoholic and non-alchoholic variety:
y la bebida más típica es la sidra de manzana.
and the most typical drink is hard apple cider.
Caption 57, Viajando con Fermín La Feria de Santo Tomás
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In this video, Fermín tells us in this about the Feria de Santo Tomás (Saint Tomas Fair), which takes place on the last day of autumn, December 21st, and is thought to be the first day of the Christmas season.
To continue on the theme of fiestas (holidays), let's talk about the Spanish terms for some fall celebrations in both the United States and Latin America:
Y en el interior le decimos, eh... Día de Muertos. Eh... Quizás tenga un poco de relación en la fecha con el Halloween de Estados Unidos,
And in [places] inside the country we call it, um... Day of the Dead. Um... Perhaps it's a little bit related with the United States's Halloween in respect to date,
Captions 69-70, Yabla en Yucatán Don Salo - Part 2
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And, in addition to Halloween and the Day of the Dead, we have, in November, the important North American holiday of Thanksgiving, which is called el Día de Acción de Gracias in Spanish.
Let's conclude today's lesson with a quick-reference review of the words we have learned:
el otoño (the autumn/fall)
la estación (the season)
el tiempo (the weather)
la temperatura (the temperture)
la lluvia (the rain)
el viento (the wind)
la niebla (the fog)
el sol (the sun)
hacer sol (to be sunny)
hacer viento (to be windy)
hacer frío (to be cold)
marzo (March)
abril (April)
mayo (May)
junio (June)
septiembre (September)
octubre (October)
noviembre (November)
diciembre (December)
las hojas (the leaves)
el espantapájaros (the scarecrow)
la cesta (the basket)
la paja (the straw)
el heno (the hay)
la calabaza (the pumpkin)
la quinoa (the quinoa)
la cosecha (the harvest)
cosechar (to harvest)
el maíz (the corn)
las castañas asadas (the roasted chestnuts)
la manzana (the apple)
la fiesta (the holiday)
el Día de Muertos/el Día de los Muertos (The Day of the Dead)
el Día de Acción de Gracias (Thanksgiving)
And that brings us to the end of our lesson on useful Spanish vocabulary for the autumn season. We hope you've enjoyed it, and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.
How do you say the names of the planets in Spanish? We'll start off today's lesson by telling you how and then follow up with some simple astronomical vocabulary.
The names of the planets in Spanish are as follows:
1. Mercurio = Mercury
2. Venus = Venus
3. La Tierra = (the) Earth
4. Marte = Mars
5. Júpiter = Jupiter
6. Saturno = Saturn
7. Urano = Uranus
8. Neptuno = Neptune
Now that you know what the planets are called in Spanish, let's take a look at a few examples from our Yabla Spanish library where their names are mentioned:
El planeta Marte alguna vez tuvo ríos, lagos y mares.
The planet Mars once had rivers, lakes, and seas.
Caption 6, Yabla informa - Noticias con Cleer
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The clip you just heard is from a news segment by Yabla's Cleer which delves into the mystery of what happened to the water on Mars. Let's see another clip that mentions the name of a planet, this time from a song:
Planeta Mercurio y el año de la serpiente
Planet Mercury and the year of the snake
Signo patente tatuado y en mi frente
Obvious sign, tatooed and on my forehead
Captions 10-11, Ana Tijoux - 1977
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We shouldn't neglect to mention that, as you may know, what was formerly considered to be the ninth planet, Pluto, was reclassified as a "dwarf planet" in 2006. The name for Pluto in Spanish is Plutón.
Gracias por la clase y por aclararme que yo no vivo ni en Plutón ni en la luna,
Thanks for the class and for clarifying to me that I don't live either on Pluto or on the moon,
Caption 55, Conversaciones con Luis - Astrología
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And, speaking of the moon, we thought you might be interested in learning how to say "the moon," "the sun," and some other basic vocabulary related to our solar system:
1. la luna = the moon
2. el sol = the sun
3. la estrella = the star
4. el planeta = the planet
5. la galaxia = the galaxy
6. la Vía Láctea = the Milky Way
7. el cometa = the comet
8. el agujero negro/el hoyo negro = the black hole
9. la nave espacial = the spaceship
10. la constelación = the constellation
11. el sistema solar = the solar system
12. la teoría del Big Bang = the Big Bang theory
13. el eclipse = the eclipse
14. la astronomía = astronomy
15. el telescopio = the telescope
Now, let's take a look at a several of these terms in action:
eh... finalmente viene el universo, que es la Vía Láctea.
um... finally comes the universe, which is the Milky Way.
Caption 31, Guillermo el chamán - Los rituales
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Se le llama Las Siete Luminarias porque hay siete volcanes
It's called The Seven Luminaries because there are seven volcanoes
que forman la Osa Mayor, que es la constelación de la Osa Mayor.
which make up Ursa Major, which is the Ursa Major constellation.
Captions 13-14, Guillermo el chamán - La tecnología maya
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Lo que no sabemos, es de qué planeta son estos niños.
What we don't know is from what planet these kids are.
Son del planeta Tierra.
They are from planet Earth.
Captions 5-6, Salvando el planeta Palabra - Llegada - Part 3
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La nave rusa Soyuz ha despegado desde el centro espacial europeo de Kourou
The Russian spaceship Soyuz has taken off from the European space center in Kourou
Caption 3, Europa Abierta - Galileo vs. GPS
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Note that la nave can be used as a shorter way to say "the spaceship" in lieu of la nave espacial. The clip in which this video is found deals with the history of the European space program, in case you are interested in checking it out!
That's alll for today. We hope you've enjoyed this lesson on basic astronomical terms in Spanish, and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.
How do we talk about our emotions in Spanish? Although there are many different ways, this lesson will focus on three main categories of words that are typically used to express the whole range of emotions in Spanish while covering some of the major emotions in Spanish we might wish to talk about.
The three main word categories for talking about our emotions in Spanish are adjectives, reflexive verbs, and nouns. Let's take a closer look at some tendencies of each of these three parts of speech when describing emotions in Spanish.
Remember that adjectives modify, or describe, nouns, and to name a few simple ones in Spanish, we could take contento/a(s) (happy), triste(s) (sad), and enojado/a(s) (angry). As always, such emotional adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in terms of number and gender. You will note that the adjectives that describe emotions in Spanish are commonly used in conjunction with particular verbs, such as estar (to be), sentir (to feel), ponerse (to become/get), or quedarse (to become/get), to name a few. So, "Estoy contento," for example, would mean: "I'm happy."
Reflexive verbs in Spanish actually convey the action of feeling a certain emotion in and of themselves. As an example, since enojarse means "to get angry," one could say simply "Me enojé" (I got angry) in lieu of using an adjective/verb combination like "Me puse enojado," which conveys the same thing.
As a third option, nouns like tristeza (sadness) are additionally employed to talk about emotions in Spanish. Among others, one common manner of doing so is with the word "Qué..." in fixed expressions like, "¡Qué tristeza!" which literally means, "What sadness!" (but would be more commonly expressed in English with an expression like "How sad!"). Verbs like sentir (to feel) or tener (to have) are also commonly used with such emotional nouns in sentences such as "Siento mucha alegría" ("I feel really happy," or, more literally, "I feel a lot of happiness").
Adjectives:
Adjectives that mean "happy" include feliz/felices, contento/a(s), and alegre(s). Let's take a look at some examples of these words in context along with some of the aforementioned verbs:
pues, que yo creo que él sí quiere formalizar algo conmigo y yo estoy muy feliz.
well, I think that he does want to formalize something with me, and I'm very happy.
Captions 40-41, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 5 - Part 9
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y, pues, me siento muy contento de que lo... lo pude lograr.
and well, I feel very happy that I... I was able to achieve it.
Caption 27, Rueda de la muerte Parte 1
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Y estoy alegre, alegre de que no sea cierto.
And I'm happy, happy it's not true.
Caption 31, Chus recita poemas Neruda y Pizarnik
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Remember that the verb estar is used to talk about emotions in Spanish rather than the verb ser because emotions tend to be temporary rather than permanent. That said, if someone (or something) permanently embodies a particular emotional attribute (e.g. a "happy person"), the verb ser can be used because this emotion becomes a trait, as in the following example:
La Vela se caracteriza además por ser un pueblo alegre,
La Vela is also characterized as being a happy town,
Captions 16-17, Estado Falcón Locos de la Vela - Part 1
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Reflexive Verbs:
Moving on to the verb category, a common reflexive verb that expresses the idea of "cheering up" or "getting" or "being happy" or "glad" is alegrarse. Let's see some examples of this verb:
Qué bien; me alegro de que estén aquí.
How great; I'm glad you're here.
Caption 42, Club 10 Capítulo 1 - Part 2
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A tal punto que yo me alegré mucho, mucho, cuando supe que ibas a pasar veinticinco años en la cárcel.
To the point that I felt very happy, very, when I found out you were going to spend twenty-five years in prison.
Captions 56-57, Yago 14 La peruana - Part 1
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Nouns:
Lastly, we will deal with the corresponding nouns that mean "happiness" or "joy": (la) alegría and (la) felicidad.
Ay, bueno, Don Ramiro, de verdad, qué alegría escuchar eso.
Oh, well, Mister Ramiro, really, what a joy to hear that.
Caption 33, Tu Voz Estéreo Laura - Part 10
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While "what a joy" was translated a bit more literally here, it could also be a rough equivalent of "how great" (to hear that) or, of course, "I'm so happy" (to hear that). Let's look at one more example:
Hasta el sábado, amiga. ¡Qué felicidad!
See you Saturday, my friend. [I'm] so happy!
Caption 83, Cleer y Lida Conversación telefónica - Part 1
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Again, while "What happiness!" would be the literal translation of "¡Qué felicidad!" in English, you will note that this and many of our other examples of expressions with the word "Qué" plus an emotional noun have been translated slightly differently to reflect what an English speaker might say in a similar situation.
Adjectives:
"Excitement" might be looked upon as an extension of happiness, and adjectives like emocionado/a(s) (excited) or entusiasmado/a(s) (excited/enthusiastic) express this in Spanish:
Estoy tan emocionado de volver a verte.
I am so excited to see you again.
Caption 53, Yago 11 Prisión - Part 3
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Ehm... Mi amor, estás muy entusiasmado con todo esto. -Mmm.
Um... My love, you're very enthusiastic about all this. -Mmm.
Caption 7, Yago 10 Enfrentamientos - Part 4
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Reflexive Verbs:
As you might have guessed, the verbs for "to be/get excited" are emocionarse and entusiasmarse:
Ya me emocioné.
I already got excited.
Caption 22, Alan x el mundo Mi playa favorita de México! - Part 1
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¿Por qué no entusiasmarnos más?
Why not get more excited?
Caption 14, Natalia de Ecuador Consejos: haciendo amigos como adultos
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Nouns:
Although the noun (la) emoción can indeed mean "emotion," it can also mean "excitement":
Entonces... -¡Qué emoción! Qué emoción, y después... ¡oh!, ¿sí?
So... -How exciting! How exciting, and afterward... oh, really?
Captions 31-32, Clase Aula Azul La segunda condicional - Part 2
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That said, while emocionado/a(s), emocionarse, and "¡Qué emoción!" can also be used to talk about "being moved" with emotion, context should usually let you know the speaker's intention.
Adjectives:
Triste(s) is undoubtedly the most common adjective that means "sad" in Spanish:
nos dimos cuenta [de] que mi barco estaba partido. Candelario se puso triste.
we realized my boat was split. Candelario got sad.
Captions 43-44, Guillermina y Candelario El Gran Rescate
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Reflexive Verbs:
The reflexive verb entristecerse, on the other hand, means "to get" (or "feel" or "be" or "become," etc.) "sad":
La alumna se entristeció mucho al saber que se había fallecido su maestro.
The student became really sad when she found out that her teacher had passed away.
Nouns:
The noun (la) tristeza literally means "sadness," but is utilized along with "Qué" to say, "How sad":
Qué tristeza, ¿no? Terrible.
How sad, right? Terrible.
Caption 5, Tu Voz Estéreo Feliz Navidad - Part 19
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Adjectives:
While there are a lot of adjectives that mean "angry" or "mad" in Spanish, the two most common standard (rather than slang) ones are probably enojado/a(s) and enfadado/a(s). Let's take a look:
¿Qué te pasa? ¿Estás enojado conmigo? No, no estoy enojado, estoy cansado. Estoy cansado, ¿OK?
What's going on with you? Are you mad at me? No, I'm not mad, I'm tired. I'm tired, OK?
Captions 42-43, Muñeca Brava 48 - Soluciones - Part 3
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Estamos muy enfadadas. Estoy muy enfadada.
We are very angry. I am very angry.
Captions 30-31, El Aula Azul Estados de ánimo
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Reflexive Verbs:
By extension, verbs that mean "to get mad" or "angry" include enojarse and enfadarse, although there are many more:
Se enojó muchísimo con el viejo
She got really angry with my old man
Caption 86, Muñeca Brava 2 Venganza - Part 6
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No me enfadé con él, ni le insulté,
I didn't get mad at him, nor did I insult him,
Captions 78-79, Cortometraje Beta - Part 1
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Nouns:
There are a lot of nouns that refer to anger in Spanish, and we bet you guessed two of them: (el) enojo and (el) enfado. Others include (la) ira, (la) rabia, and (la) bronca. Although it is not as common to hear these words in expressions with "Qué..." as some of the other nouns we have talked about, we can give you some examples of how a couple of these words are used to express anger in captions from our Yabla Spanish library:
Lo que yo sentía en ese momento era algo mucho más profundo que un enfado.
What I felt at that moment was something way deeper than anger.
Caption 81, Cortometraje Beta - Part 1
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porque claro, alguna vez siento mucha rabia y no me gusta sentir tanta rabia
because of course, sometimes I feel a lot of rage and I don't like feeling so much rage
Captions 42-43, Escribiendo un libro Algunos consejos sobre cómo comenzar - Part 1
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For a lot of additional standard and slangy manners of talking about anger, feel free to refer to this lesson on expressing feelings of tiredness or anger in Spanish.
Adjectives:
Let's start with the adjective that means "surprised": sorprendido/a(s).
Profesores, la verdad es que me he quedado sorprendida;
Professors, the truth is that I have been surprised;
Caption 19, Alumnos extranjeros del Tec de Monterrey
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Reflexive Verbs:
The reflexive verb that means "to be" or "to get surprised" is sorprenderse:
Es que... me sorprendí, querida. -¿Por qué?
It's just that... I was surprised, dear. -Why?
Caption 65, Muñeca Brava 18 - La Apuesta - Part 11
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Nouns:
And finally, the noun (la) sorpresa can be used with "Qué" to say "How surprising" or "What a surprise":
Qué sorpresa. -Qué... Vale, qué lindo verte.
What a surprise. -What... Vale, how nice to see you.
Caption 15, Español para principiantes Saludos y encuentros
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Adjectives:
The common Spanish adjectives decepcionado/a(s) and desilusionado/s(s) both mean "disappointed":
Mi novia está desilusionado conmigo por haberle mentido.
My girlfriend is disappointed in me for having lied to her.
No. Estoy decepcionada. ¿De mí? ¿Y por qué estás decepcionada?
No. I'm disappointed. In me? And why are you disappointed?
Captions 61-63, Muñeca Brava 41 La Fiesta - Part 6
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Reflexive Verbs:
Naturally, the verbs decepcionarse and desilusionarse mean "to get" or "be disappointed." Let's take a look at them in context:
Me decepcioné mucho cuando suspendí el examen.
I was really disappointed when I failed the test.
Nada. Tengo qué sé yo, miedo a desilusionarme, va.
Nothing. I have, I don't know, a fear of being disappointed, well.
Caption 38, Muñeca Brava 39 Verdades - Part 5
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Nouns:
So, of course, "Qué desilusión" or "Qué decepción" would be "How disappointing" or "What a disappointment":
Qué decepción.
What a disappointment.
Caption 82, Los casos de Yabla Problemas de convivencia - Part 3
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Digo, personalmente no, no, no fue una desilusión porque viste, que cuando sos chico las pérdidas son diferentes.
I mean, personally it wasn't a disappointment because you know, when you are a kid, losses are different.
Captions 48-49, Biografía Natalia Oreiro - Part 2
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Let's conclude today's lesson by talking about some more of what might be considered sentimientos negativos (negative feelings) in Spanish: worry, anxiety, and stress.
Adjectives:
Adjectives like preocupado/a(s)(worried), estresado/a(s) ("stressed" or "stressed out"), ansioso/a(s) (anxious), or nervioso/a(s), which often means "restless," "anxious," etc. in addition to "nervous," can be used to describe those unpleasant sensations in Spanish. Let's look at some examples:
Entonces, cuando usted sufra una infección fuerte o esté preocupado o estresado,
So, when you get a strong infection or are worried or stressed,
Captions 35-36, Los médicos explican Consulta con el médico: herpes
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Le noto un poco nervioso, ¿le pasa algo? -No, no, no...
I notice you're a bit on edge, is something wrong with you? -No, no, no...
Caption 9, Muñeca Brava 33 El partido - Part 6
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¿Hay algún pensamiento o algo que le mantenga a usted ansioso o desde cuándo... o algo que haya desencadenado todos estos problemas?
Is there some thought or something that keeps you anxious or from which... or something that has triggered all these problems?
Captions 32-33, Los médicos explican Diagnóstico: nervios y estrés
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Reflexive Verbs:
The reflexive verb preocuparse means "to worry," while estresarse means "to stress" or "get stressed out," etc.:
¿De verdad se preocupa por mi seguridad? Claro que sí me preocupo.
Do you really worry about my safety? Of course I worry.
Captions 36-37, Muñeca Brava 48 - Soluciones - Part 3
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un día tengo que pagar uno, otro día otro, y eso, la... la gente se estresa.
one day I have to pay one, another day another one, and that... people get stressed out.
Caption 67, Cuentas claras Sobreviviendo enero - Part 2
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Nouns:
The corresponding nouns for the verbs and adjectives we have talked about are: (la) preocupación (worry), (el) estrés (stress), (los) nervios (nerves), and (la) ansiedad (anxiety), which can be used in sentences in infinite ways to describe these nerve-wracking sensations. For example, we might say "¡Qué nervios!" or "¡Qué estrés!" to say something like "I'm so nervous/anxious!" or "How stressful!"/"I'm so stressed out!" Let's look at some additional examples of these nouns with the verbs tener (to have) and sentir (to feel):
Últimamente tengo mucho estrés y estar un poco en la naturaleza es muy bueno.
Lately, I've been really stressed out, and it's great to be in nature a bit.
Captions 68-69, Cleer y Lida Picnic
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Siento ansiedad, la necesidad de contar quién soy
I feel anxiety, the need to tell who I am
Caption 2, Monsieur Periné Mi libertad
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You will note that while the literal translation of the first example would be "I have a lot of stress," "I've been really stressed out" may be the more likely equivalent for English speakers in this context. On the other hand, while the translator opted for the more literal "I feel anxiety" in the second example, "I feel anxious" would also be a viable option in English. For additional insight into how to discuss anxiety and stress in Spanish, we recommend the video Diagnóstico: nervios y estrés (Diagnosis: Nerves and Stress) from our series Los médicos explican (The Doctors Explain).
We have covered a multitude of emotions in Spanish, and videos like this one from our Curso de español [Spanish Course] series about Expresiones de sentimientos [Expressions of Feelings] and this one on Estados de Ánimo [Moods] by El Aula Azul can help you to express many more. And while most of the feelings we have talked about are pretty clearly negative or positive, the video Ni bien ni mal [Neither Good nor Bad] can help us to talk about some of those so-so emotions in Spanish. Are there any other feelings or emotions you'd like to learn to speak about in Spanish? Don't forget to let us know in your suggestions and comments.
In a previous lesson, we talked about short form possessive adjectives in Spanish: words like mi (my), tu (your), and nuestro (our), etc. that are placed in front of a noun to indicate ownership. The focus of this lesson will be long form possessive adjectives in Spanish, which, while similar in meaning, are different in terms of their form and placement.
While short form Spanish possessive adjectives always go before the noun they modify, long form possessive adjectives in Spanish come after the noun they describe. Furthermore, while some of the short form Spanish possessive adjectives remain the same whether a noun is masculine or feminine, long form Spanish possessive adjectives always change form for singular/plural and masculine/feminine in all of their forms. And finally, while short form possessive adjectives in Spanish never go with an article, long form Spanish possessive adjectives are often accompanied by a noun's definite or indefinite article.
Let's take a look at the long form Spanish possessive adjectives, their possible meanings, and how they correspond to the personal pronouns in Spanish. You will note that the long form Spanish possessive adjectives for nosotros/as and vosotros/as are the exact same as their short form equivalents.
Yo: mío, mío, míos, mías (my, mine, of mine)
Tú: tuyo, tuya, tuyos, tuyas (your, yours, of yours)
Él/ella/usted: suyo, suya, suyos, suyas (his, of his, her, hers, of hers, your, yours, of yours, its)
Nosotros/nosotras: nuestro, nuestros, nuestra, nuestras (our, ours, of ours)
Vosotros/vosotras: vuestro, vuestros, vuestra, vuestras ((plural informal) your, yours, of yours)
Ellos/ellas/ustedes: suyo, suya, suyos, suyas (their, theirs, of theirs, (plural) your, yours, of yours)
You may have noticed that, in comparison to short form Spanish possessive adjectives, there are more possible translations for long form possessive adjectives in Spanish, which will vary according to their context.
Let's take a look at the many translations of long form possessive adjectives in Spanish via a plethora of examples from Yabla's Spanish video library.
Este sombrero es mío. Estos sombreros son míos.
This hat is mine. These hats are mine.
Captions 10-11, Clase Aula Azul La posesión - Part 2
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Esta botella es mía. Estas botellas son mías.
This bottle is mine. These bottles are mine.
Captions 15-16, Clase Aula Azul La posesión - Part 2
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We chose these two examples to illustrate that, as we mentioned, long form Spanish possessive adjectives always agree with the nouns they modify in terms of both number and gender. As with short form Spanish possessive adjectives, the number/gender of the person or entity that "owns" is insignificant. Additionally, you will note that the translation for these Spanish possessive adjectives here is "mine." Let's look at an example where their translation is slightly different:
Y han venido unos amigos míos desde Mallorca, aquí hasta Málaga,
And some friends of mine have come here to Malaga from Mallorca
Caption 15, Amaya Voluntarios
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Not only do we see an alternative translation for the long form Spanish possessive adjective míos (of mine), we see that long form Spanish possessive can be accompanied an article, in this case, the indefinite article unos.
Now, let's look at some translations for the long form Spanish possessive adjective tuyo and its variants:
¿Es tuya esta mochila?
Is this backpack yours?
Caption 6, Conversaciones en el parque Cap. 3: ¿De quién es esta mochila?
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Así que, ¿no soy hijo tuyo?
So, I'm not your son?
Caption 68, Muñeca Brava 7 El poema - Part 2
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The interesting thing about this second example is that the long form Spanish possessive adjective tuyo has been translated as "your" instead of "yours" or "of yours," which is identical to the translation for the equivalent short form Spanish possessive adjective (tu). Hence, the same English sentence could have been written with the short form possessive adjective in Spanish, as follows:
Así que, ¿no soy tu hijo?
So, I'm not your son?
So, we see that there are cases in which we could choose to use either the long or short form Spanish possessive adjective to express the exact same idea in English, although the long form is, perhaps, the slightly less common/more literary manner of doing so.
As we saw in Part 1 of this lesson about short form Spanish possessive adjectives in regards to su and sus, this particular set of long form possessive adjectives can be confusing because they correspond with a lot of personal pronouns (él, ella, usted, ellos, ellas, and ustedes) and thus have a multitude of different translations, which we listed above. Context should usually help you to determine the meaning of these long form possessive adjectives in Spanish. Let's take a look:
Estos sombreros son suyos.
These hats are hers.
Caption 31, Clase Aula Azul La posesión - Part 2
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While this example seems pretty simple at first glance, since the masculine plural form of the Spanish possessive adjective was chosen to agree with the noun it modifies (sombreros) rather than its corresponding personal pronoun (ella), this very same sentence could also mean "These hats are his," "These hats are yours" (one person or multiple people), or "These hats are theirs" (all males, all females, or a mixed group). So, let's hope that the text or conversation has given you some previous clues as to who the hats belong to and/or who is being spoken about (it usually does!). Let's see another example:
Efectivamente, era el rostro suyo
Indeed, it was his face
Caption 35, Aprendiendo con Carlos El microrrelato - Part 3
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What can we discern here? First, because the previous sentences in this flash fiction story by Carlos refer to the maestro de ceremonias, we know that "his" was the correct translation choice for suyo in this context. Second, remember that since the translation for the short form possessive adjective in Spanish su in English can also be "his," the very same idea could also have been conveyed with the sentence: "Efectivamente, era su rostro." Finally, we will reiterate that, although with short form possessive Spanish adjectives, the article is never used (it's simply su rostro), with the long form, they can be, as in the case of el rostro suyo. That said, this is a personal choice, and one might also omit the article and write simply "era rostro suyo" with no change in meaning. Let's look at one more variation of this long form Spanish possessive adjective.
Y también me gustó mucho la novela suya, eh, "Amor y pico"; me encantó.
And I also liked your soap opera a lot, um, "Love and Fortune;" I loved it.
Caption 41, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 2 - Part 1
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Here, since the speaker is consistently addressing a female actress with usted (formal "you") and talking to her about a soap opera she did, it is obvious that "your" is the intended meaning of the long form Spanish possessive adjective suya, which agrees in number and gender with the noun it modifies (la novela) and that, furthermore, the speaker chose to include that noun's definite article (la). We bet you're getting the hang of this by now!
Let's start off with some very simple examples:
Este sombrero es nuestro. Estos sombreros son nuestros. Esta botella es nuestra. Estas botellas son nuestras.
This hat is ours. These hats are ours. This bottle is ours. These bottles are ours.
Captions 35-38, Clase Aula Azul La posesión - Part 2
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Now, let's move on to a bit tougher one:
Padre nuestro, vamos a bendecir el alimento que vamos a comer.
Father of ours [or "Our Father], let's bless the food that we are going to eat.
Caption 55, Lecciones con Carolina Adjetivos posesivos - Part 1
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Through these clips, we can see not only the number/gender agreement we have been speaking about, but also some different translations for the long form Spanish possessive adjective forms of nuestro.
Let's conclude our lesson by looking at some clips of the long form Spanish possessive adjectives vuestro, etc.:
Esta botella es vuestra. Estas botellas son vuestras.
This bottle is yours [plural]. These bottles are yours [plural].
Captions 41-42, Clase Aula Azul La posesión - Part 2
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¿Y el embutido es vuestro?
And, the sausage is yours?
Caption 57, 75 minutos Del campo a la mesa - Part 4
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In lieu of this translation, this last sentence might also have been translated as "And is the sausage yours?" or even "And is it your sausage?"
We hope that this lesson has helped you to understand long form Spanish possessive adjectives and how they are different from short form possessive adjectives in Spanish. As an additional source for learning about long form possessive adjectives in Spanish, we additionally recommend the lesson Clase Aula Azul- La posesión- Part 2, and no se olviden de dejarnos los comentarios y sugerencias tuyos (don't forget to leave us your comments and suggestions).
What are possessive adjectives in Spanish? Most simply put, possessive adjectives in Spanish are the Spanish equivalents of words like "my," "your," "his, "mine," etc. that indicate ownership or possession. There are two types of Spanish possessive adjectives: long form and short form. In the first part of this lesson, we will deal with how to use short form possessive adjectives in Spanish.
Let's take a look at the short form Spanish possessive adjectives and how they correspond to the personal pronouns in Spanish:
Yo: mi, mis (my)
Tú: tu, tus (your)
Él/ella/usted: su, sus (his, her, its, your)
Nosotros/nosotras: nuestro, nuestros, nuestra, nuestras (our)
Vosotros/vosotras: vuestro, vuestros, vuestra, vuestras (plural informal "your")
Ellos/ellas/ustedes: su, sus (their/plural "your")
What did you notice at first glance? Allow us to point out a couple of our observations:
1. The Spanish possessive adjectives that correspond to nosotros/nosotras (masculine and feminine "we") and vosotros/vosotras (masculine and feminine plural, informal "you") look a bit more complicated because there are more forms, four rather than two. This is because the forms of these Spanish possessive adjectives are affected by the genders of the nouns they modify, whereas the others are not.
2. The words su and sus in Spanish correspond to a lot of personal pronouns (él, ella, usted, ellos, ellas, and ustedes) and can thus mean a lot of different things ("his," "her," "its," singular and plural "your," and "their"). We'll help you to learn to distinguish their meanings in context.
3. Regardless of whether a personal pronoun is singular (e.g. yo, tú, etc.) or plural (e.g. ellos, ustedes, etc.), they all have singular and plural possessive adjective forms. This is because, whether a Spanish possessive adjective is singular or plural or masculine or feminine has nothing to do with the number or gender of the personal pronoun it is associated with and everything to do with the number and gender of the noun it modifies.
Keeping these points in mind, let's take a closer look at each of the possessive adjectives in Spanish, as well as some examples from our Yabla Spanish video library.
Generally speaking, Spanish adjectives agree with the noun they modify in terms of number and gender. That said, the "good news" about the Spanish possessive adjectives for "my," mi and mis, is that they remain the same regardless of a noun's gender. For both masculine and feminine nouns, then, the singular form mi should be used for singular nouns, while the plural form mis should accompany plural nouns. Let's look:
A mi lado, tengo a mi amigo, Xavi,
Beside me, I have my friend, Xavi,
Caption 3, Carlos y Xavi Diferencia de pronunciación entre España y Colombia - Part 1
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nos encontramos con mi amiga, la rana.
we ran into my friend, the frog.
Caption 18, Guillermina y Candelario Una Amiga muy Presumida - Part 1
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Hoy os voy a hablar de mis amigos felinos, que también son mis vecinos.
Today, I'm going to talk to you about my feline friends who are also my neighbors.
Captions 3-4, Fermín y los gatos Mis gatas vecinas
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Los viernes, juego al fútbol con mis amigas.
On Fridays, I play soccer with my friends.
Caption 21, Ariana Mi Semana
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As you can see, the singular Spanish possessive adjective mi is used for both the masculine and feminine forms of the noun amigo/a, while the plural Spanish possessive adjective mis is used for the plural masculine and feminine nouns, amigos and amigas. Pretty simple, right?
The short form Spanish possessive adjectives tu and tus, which mean "your" when addressing someone informally, are similarly simplistic: tu is utilized for singular nouns, while tus is used for plural nouns, regardless of gender. Let's see some examples with tu and tus:
¿Qué es lo que más te gusta de tu casa?
What is it that you like the most about your house?
Caption 48, Cleer y Lida Juego de preguntas y respuestas - Part 1
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Déjame saber en tus comentarios
Let me know in your comments
Caption 59, Ana Carolina Conjugaciones verbales
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Although the noun casa is feminine, the same Spanish possessive adjective, tu, would also be used for masculine singular nouns (tu coche = your car, etc.). In turn, while the word tus appears with the masculine plural noun comentarios in this example, the very same possessive adjective would be used for feminine plural nouns, e.g. tus manzanas (your apples).
In contrast to mi/s and tu/s, the Spanish possessive adjectives for "our" do change in accordance with both a noun's number and gender. Let's take a look at the masculine/feminine and singular/plural forms of the nouns hijo (boy), hija (girl), etc. with their corresponding forms of the Spanish possessive adjective nuestro:
Nuestro hijo (our son)
Nuestros hijos (our sons)
Nuestra hija (our daughter)
Nuestras hijas (our daughters)
As you can see, this Spanish possessive adjective takes the ending -o for masculine singular nouns, -os for masculine plural nouns, -a for feminine singular nouns, and -as for feminine plural nouns. Let's view a couple of examples from Yabla's video library:
Para nuestro primer experimento utilizaremos algo que jamás creíamos que podría faltar en nuestros hogares:
For our first experiment, we'll use something we never thought could be lacking in our homes:
Captions 11-13, Ana Carolina Gérmenes
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¿Qué había sucedido con nuestra amistad, mmm? ¿Desde cuándo la mujer empezó a gobernar nuestras vidas?
What had happened to our friendship, hmm? Since when did women start to govern our lives?
Captions 17-18, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 8 - Part 3
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We can see in these examples all four versions of the Spanish possessive adjective for "we," all of which agree with the nouns they modify in terms of both number and gender.
If you take the Spanish possessive adjectives for "we" (nosotros, etc.) and replace the "n" with a "v," you have the possessive adjectives in Spanish that mean "your" when addressing more than one person in a less formal situation. This form corresponds to the Spanish personal pronouns vosotros/as, which are primarily used in Spain. Let's take a look:
Vuestro hijo (your son)
Vuestros hijos (your sons)
Vuestra hija (your daughter)
Vuestras hijas (your daughters)
Let's examine a couple of video excerpts:
y además podéis aprovechar para dar vuestra opinión
and you can also take the opportunity to give your opinion
Caption 36, La cocina de María Tortilla de patatas
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Pero antes vamos a ver a vuestros amigos,
But beforehand we're going to see your friends,
Caption 63, Animales en familia Un día en Bioparc: Microchip para Nacahué - Part 2
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The "good news," once again, about su in Spanish and sus in Spanish is that there are only two forms, singular and plural, that modify both masculine and feminine nouns. The "bad news," though, at least in terms of their initial challenge for native English speakers, is that these possessive adjectives in Spanish can mean many different things depending on their contexts. Having said that, let's take a look at su in Spanish and sus in Spanish, which can mean either "his," "her," "its," "your" (in the case of either one or more than one person), or "their."
His:
Es su coche (It's his car).
Son sus coches. (They are his cars).
Es su motocicleta (It's his motorcycle).
Son sus motocicletas. (They are his motorcycles).
Her:
Es su coche (It's her car).
Son sus coches (They are her cars).
Es su motocicleta (It's her motorcycle).
Son sus motocicletas (They are her motorcycles).
Your (formal, one person):
Es su coche (It's your car).
Es su motocicleta (It's your motorcycle).
Son sus coches (They are your cars).
Son sus motocicletas (They are your motorcycles).
Your (more than one person):
Es su coche (It's your (guys') car).
Es su motocicleta (It's your (guys') motorcycle).
Son sus coches (They are your (guys') cars).
Son sus motocicletas (They are your (guys') motorcycles).
Their:
Es su coche (It's their car).
Es su motocicleta (It's their motorcycle).
Son sus coches (They are their cars).
Son sus motocicletas (They are their motorcycles).
Wait, what?! You might notice that the four sentences under each English possessive adjective category are all the same! And yet, their translations are totally different. So, how would we decipher the intended meaning of su in Spanish or sus in Spanish when these two possessives in Spanish can mean so many things? As always, context is key! Let's take a look at some examples to illuminate this:
El artista más importante es Gaudí. Hoy voy a visitar una de sus obras más conocidas, la Sagrada Familia.
The most important artist is Gaudi. Today I'm going to visit one of his most well-known works, the Sagrada Familia [Sacred Family].
Captions 45-47, Ariana España
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Since the previous sentence mentions the artist Gaudi, it is pretty obvious that sus in this context means "his," referring to "his works." And, just to reiterate, the plural form sus must be used here since obras is a plural noun, in spite of the fact that Gaudi is just one person since one person can own more than one thing, while more than one person can own just one thing (think nuestra casa). Let's take a look at a couple of additional examples of su/s in Spanish:
por ejemplo, para que usted practique con su novia, Cata.
for example for you to practice with your girlfriend, Cata.
Caption 17, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 2 - Part 6
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Here, the word usted tips us off that the speaker means "your girlfriend," as su in Spanish can mean "your" in the formal style of address. And, even in the absence of that explicit word, were someone to generally address you with the usted form, you would take for granted that they meant "you" when utilizing su in Spanish or sus in Spanish. Let's see one more:
Desde sus inicios, el Centro Hispano de Todos los Santos se ha dedicado a sembrar esperanza.
Since its beginnings, the Centro Hispano de Todos los Santos [All Saints Hispanic Center] has been dedicated to sowing hope.
Captions 1-2, Transformación Estética
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In this example, sus in Spanish has been translated as "its" since the inicios "belong to" an inanimate object: the All Saints Hispanic Center.
Although context can usually provide us with good clues about the meaning of su in Spanish or sus in Spanish, there are ambiguous cases that may require clarification. In a story or conversation involving both males and females, for example, a reference to su casa might cause confusion as to whose house it actually is. In such cases, it might be preferable to, in lieu of a Spanish possessive adjective, employ the preposition de ("of" or "belonging to") plus a personal pronoun (ella, usted, etc.) for the sake of clarity, as in the following example:
no es un problema de la gente de la ciudad, es un problema personal de usted conmigo.
it's not a problem of the people of the city, it's your personal problem with me.
Caption 15, Yago 7 Encuentros - Part 1
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Since, had the speaker said su problema personal, that could theoretically refer to either la gente de la ciudad (and thus be translated as "their personal problem with me") or the person to whom he is speaking, it was a safer bet to go with de usted.
We hope that this lesson has helped you to better understand how to use possessive adjectives in Spanish in their short form. For more information on short form possessive adjectives in Spanish, be sure to check out Adjetivos posesivos- Part 2 from the series Lecciones con Carolina, which deals with agreement, as well as this useful lesson from El Aula Azul entitled La posesión- Part 1. And, as always, no se olviden de dejarnos sus sugerencias y comentarios (don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments).
In this lesson, we will talk about the diaeresis or dieresis in Spanish. But, do you know what a diaeresis is to begin with? Let's take a look at the following clip:
El pueblo de Izamal fue un importante centro urbano maya en la antigüedad.
The town of Izamal was an important Mayan urban center in ancient times.
Caption 26, Mérida y sus alrededores Izamal Pueblo Mágico
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Did you find the dieresis in that clip? If not, please keep reading this lesson, as we are going to tell you how to use the dieresis in Spanish.
In English, a diaeresis is a mark placed over a vowel to indicate that the vowel is emphasized or pronounced separately from the other vowels (as in "naïve" or "Brontë"). In Spanish, a diaeresis is represented by the same symbol (two little dots above a letter). That said, we will now highlight the word that has the diaeresis in the previous clip:
El pueblo de Izamal fue un importante centro urbano maya en la antigüedad.
The town of Izamal was an important Mayan urban center in ancient times.
Caption 26, Mérida y sus alrededores Izamal Pueblo Mágico
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However, as using a dieresis in Spanish is slightly different than in English, let's learn the golden rule for employing this unique symbol.
The rule is quite simple: a diaeresis must be placed over the vowel "u" to indicate that said vowel must be pronounced in words that have the combinations -gue and -gui (since in most Spanish words with these letter combinations, the "u" is silent). For example, in words like guerra (war) and guerilla (guerrilla), the gue- is pronounced more like the English word "gay," while in words like guía (guide) and guisante (pea), gui- sounds like "ghee." The addition of the diaeresis, on the other hand, would transform the sound of the letters gue- to "gway" and -gui to "gwee." Let's take a look at a couple of examples:
todos bastante negativos, humillación, vergüenza, dolor,
all quite negative, humiliation, shame, pain,
Caption 55, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 8 - Part 3
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Los pingüinos se parecen a las gallinas
Penguins are like chickens
Caption 24, Guillermina y Candelario Nuestro Amigo Pinguino
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Additionally, please keep in mind that the diaeresis must be used in words that are written in capital letters. Also, if you are wondering how to spell diaeresis in Spanish, it is written as follows: diéresis (an esdrújula word with the graphic accent on the third-to-last syllable).
Are there a lot of Spanish words that require a diaeresis? Although there are not that many, let's take a look at some of the most common palabras con diéresis (words with a diaeresis) in Spanish.
Me muevo mucho entre la ambigüedad.
I move a lot within ambiguity.
Caption 12, María Marí Su pasión por su arte - Part 2
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Justo encima del diccionario bilingüe
Right above the bilingual dictionary,
Caption 5, Tutoriales de Yabla Características adicionales Yabla
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Más bien. ¿Quién se piensa que me trajo, la cigüeña de París?
Of course. Who do you think brought me, the stork from Paris?
Caption 16, Muñeca Brava 48 - Soluciones - Part 8
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o sea, programas de inmersión lingüística en Barcelona.
I mean, language immersion programs, in Barcelona.
Caption 10, Escuela BCNLIP Presentación de la directora - Part 2
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Mírelo tan sinvergüenza.
Look at how shameless he is.
Caption 27, Los casos de Yabla Problemas de convivencia - Part 2
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And that's all for today. We hope that this lesson has helped you to understand how to use the dieresis in Spanish. By the way, do you know more palabras con diéresis? Let us know, and don't forget to send us your suggestions and comments. ¡Hasta la próxima!
Do you know how to say years in Spanish? In English, we know that 1985 is written nineteen eighty-five. What about in Spanish? Let's take a look at some of the rules you need to know for writing years in Spanish correctly. In addition, make sure you listen carefully to the clips in this lesson so you know how to pronounce years in Spanish as well.
If you want to know how to say years in Spanish, you will need to know how to say the cardinal numbers in Spanish from 1 to 1,000. There's just no way around this.
Do you want to refresh the numbers from 1 to 100? If you do, please check out the following lesson:
Now, let's recall the hundreds. For the numbers from 1 to 199, you will need to use the word "ciento." Let's check out some examples:
Madrid AB ciento treinta y cinco con destino Nueva York, John F. Kennedy.
Madrid AB one hundred thirty-five to New York, John F. Kennedy."
Captions 32-33, Raquel Avisos de Megafonía
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Cuenta con una vista privilegiada de toda la ciudad de alrededor de ciento ochenta grados.
It has an extraordinary one-hundred-eighty-degree view of the whole city.
Caption 65, Quito El Panecillo
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For the numbers from 200 to 999, you will need to use the multiples of 100. Let's review them:
doscientos (two hundred)
trescientos (three hundred)
cuatrocientos (four hundred)
quinientos (five hundred)
seiscientos (six hundred)
setecientos (seven hundred)
ochocientos (eight hundred)
novecientos (nine hundred)
And, of course, let's not forget about mil (one thousand)!
Now that we have reviewed these numbers, let's see how to write and pronounce some historical years in Spanish.
Cristóbal Colón descubrió América en mil cuatrocientos noventa y dos.
Christopher Columbus discovered America in fourteen ninety-two.
Caption 34, Carlos explica El pretérito Cap. 1: Perfecto simple o Indefinido
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Mil seiscientos noventa y siete, invasión francesa a Cartagena,
Sixteen ninety-seven, French invasion of Cartagena,
Caption 12, Cartagena de Indias Fuerte de San Felipe de Barajas
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El ingenio más antiguo de Europa, que data del año mil setecientos veintiocho,
The oldest factory in Europe, which dates back to the year seventeen hundred twenty-eight,
Captions 36-37, Viajando con Fermín Frigiliana, Málaga
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The twentieth century was one of the most defining centuries in the history of humankind. For this reason, we often refer to years that belong to that century. If you want to write and pronounce those years in Spanish, you will need to use the following formula:
mil + novecientos + the number
Let's take a look at some of them.
y fue construida en el año mil novecientos.
and was built in nineteen hundred.
Caption 77, Viajando con Fermín Mijas Pueblo
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Fue realizado en mil novecientos veintidós
It was made in nineteen twenty-two
Caption 37, Marisa en Madrid Parque de El Retiro
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En mil novecientos ochenta y cinco, sucedieron muchas cosas buenas.
In nineteen eighty-five, many good things happened.
Caption 2, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 1 - Part 2
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If you want to know how to write years in Spanish after the year 2000, you need to use the following simple formula:
dos + mil + the number
Let's look at some nore examples to see just how easy it is to say these years in Spanish.
y murió hace algunos años en el dos mil dos.
and died some years ago in two thousand two.
Caption 9, San Sebastián Peine del viento
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En dos mil trece, recibió más de cuatro millones de visitantes,
In two thousand thirteen, it received more than four million visitors,
Captions 6-7, Marisa en Madrid Parque de El Retiro
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Y este dos mil veinte, que es un año bisiesto,
And this two thousand twenty, which is a leap year,
Caption 7, El coronavirus Introducción y vocabulario
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As you can see, it is not too difficult to say years in Spanish, right? We hope you enjoyed this lesson, and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!
What are reflexive verbs in Spanish? A reflexive verb is a verb in which the subject (person or thing that completes the action) and object (person or thing that receives the action) are one and the same. In other words, the action "reflects back" onto the subject, or entails something one does to or for him or herself. It is no wonder then, that many of the things we "do to ourselves" in our daily routines (e.g. shaving ourselves, washing ourselves, etc.) fall into the category of reflexive Spanish verbs.
How can we recognize Spanish reflexive verbs? The main way to distinguish reflexive verbs in Spanish is by the fact that they all end in the pronoun se in their infinitive form. To take a very simple example, while the verb hablar means "to talk," hablarse is a reflexive verb meaning "to talk to oneself." However, the translations for reflexive verbs in Spanish aren't always so straightforward.
As we often say just "I shave" or "I wash" in lieu of "I shave/wash myself," the English translations of Spanish reflexive verbs won't always include pronouns like "myself," "yourself," etc. In other cases, the meanings of verbs like parecer (to seem) completely change in their reflexive forms (parecerse means "to look like"). And so, as there are a lot more reflexive verbs in Spanish than in English, many of which may not "seem" reflexive, with increased exposure to Spanish, we will learn which English concepts are expressed with Spanish reflexive verbs.
To conjugate reflexive verbs in Spanish, we must memorize the reflexive pronouns that correspond to each personal pronoun: yo (I), tú (you), etc.. Reflexive pronouns are most often placed before the verb, which is conjugated "as usual" (in the same way as its non-reflexive form). To demonstrate this, let's take a look at the reflexive pronouns and the simple present conjugation of the regular verb despertar (to wake up). We will then show you the conjugation of its reflexive form (despertarse).
| Personal Pronoun | Reflexive Pronoun | Despertar | Despertarse |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | me | despierto | me despierto |
| tú | te | despiertas | te despiertas |
| él, ella, usted | se | despierta | se despierta |
| nosotros/as | nos | despertamos | nos despertamos |
| vosotros/as | os | despertáis | os despertáis |
| ellos/as, ustedes | se | despiertan | se despiertan |
Now that you know the Spanish reflexive pronouns and how to conjugate reflexive Spanish verbs, let's take a look at some examples of reflexive verbs in Spanish for describing things that many of us do on a daily basis, with lots of instances from our Yabla video library as always! Here is our list of Spanish reflexive verbs for your daily routine:
The Spanish reflexive verb despertarse means "to wake up":
y por la mañana me despierto entre seis y cuarenta y cinco a siete y cuarto.
and in the morning I wake up between six forty-five and seven fifteen.
Caption 62, Los médicos explican - Diagnóstico: nervios y estrés
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After waking up, the next step might be levantarse ("to get up" or "get out of bed"):
Se levanta muy temprano.
She gets up very early.
Caption 51, El Aula Azul - Las Profesiones
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In other contexts, the reflexive Spanish verb levantarse could also mean, among other things, "to stand up" or "get up," as from a seat, or even "to rise up against," as in a rebellion.
The Spanish noun baño means "bath," and the verb bañarse can mean "to take a bath" as well. However, as bañarse can also be the more general "to bathe," a person might even use this verb to express the fact that they are taking a shower! Let's look at an example of this reflexive Spanish verb:
Uno se baña todos los días, mijita.
One bathes every day, my girl.
Caption 41, Muñeca Brava - 33 El partido
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On the other hand, if a person at the beach expresses their desire to bañarse, rather than wanting to wash the sand off of themselves, they are letting you know they would like to take a dip! The Spanish reflexive verb bañarse can also mean "to go swimming," a translation that often comes as a surprise to English speakers:
No hay muchas olas grandes como en Atacames.
There aren't many big waves like in Atacames.
Es más tranquilo para bañarse.
It's more peaceful to go swimming.
Captions 62-63, Pipo - Un paseo por la playa de Atacames
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In the morning, at night, or after the beach, indeed, one might need to ducharse (to take a shower):
¿Qué está haciendo Silvia?
What is Silvia doing?
Silvia se está duchando.
Silvia is taking a shower.
Captions 11-12, El Aula Azul - Actividades diarias: En casa con Silvia
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Note that, in this example, the verb ducharse is conjugated in the present progressive tense. As with the present indicative and all other tenses, verbs are conjugated in the exact same way as they would be were they non-reflexive, with the addition of the appropriate reflexive pronoun.
The reflexive verb in Spanish lavarse generally means "to wash (oneself)." Let's look at an example:
Por ejemplo, "Yo me lavo".
For example, "Yo me lavo" [I wash myself].
La acción recae sobre la persona
The action falls back upon the person
que realiza la acción.
who carries out the action.
Pero, "Yo lavo los platos".
But, "Yo lavo los platos" [I wash the dishes].
Captions 45-48, Lecciones con Carolina - Verbos reflexivos
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In this informative video about Spanish reflexive verbs, Yabla fan favorite Carolina explains the difference between reflexive and non-reflexive verbs, in this case the verbs lavar (to wash) and lavarse (to wash oneself). Let's look at an additional example:
Yo me lavo las manos. Tú te lavas las manos.
I wash my hands. You wash your hands.
Captions 19-20, Fundamentos del Español - 9 - Verbos Reflexivos
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Unlike in English, where we express the idea of washing one's hands or some other body part with a possessive pronoun (my, your, etc.), this is not the case in Spanish. Instead, we use the definite article for the noun in question, manos (hands), in this case, las (the). Because the reflexive pronoun already indicates that the action is something we do to ourselves, it would be redundant in Spanish to say: Yo me lavo mis manos. As the correct way to express this is "Yo me lavo las manos," it might help you to remember the literal but non-sensical translation: "I wash myself the hands."
That said, let's move on to something else that's expressed with the notion of "washing" in Spanish: lavarse los dientes (to brush one's teeth).
Lavarse los dientes (literally "to wash one's teeth") is one of saying "to brush one's teeth" in Spanish:
Después, ehm... suelo lavarme los dientes en el baño,
After that, um... I usually brush my teeth in the bathroom,
Caption 3, El Aula Azul - Actividades Diarias
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Different countries, regions, or individuals might instead use cepillarse los dientes, which also means "to brush one's teeth." Let's check out an example in the preterite tense:
Se cepilló los dientes,
He brushed his teeth,
Caption 20, Aprendiendo con Carlos - El microrrelato
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By extension, the noun el cepillo means "the brush," and we might have a cepillo de dientes (toothbrush) as well as a cepillo de pelo/cabello (hair brush), as in the following caption:
Sí... -¿Qué necesitamos para ir allí?
Yes... -What do we need to go there?
El cepillo de dientes.
A toothbrush.
El cepillo del pelo.
A hair brush.
Captions 49-51, Un Viaje a Mallorca - Planificando el viaje
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So, you've probably surmised by now that the verb cepillarse el pelo/cabello means "to brush one's hair."
The verb peinarse can mean "to comb one's hair" with a comb (un peine), "to brush one's hair," or "to do" or "style" one's hair in general:
Por eso paró en la playa
That's why she stopped on the beach
para mirarse en el espejo y peinarse.
to look at herself in the mirror and comb her hair.
Captions 21-22, Guillermina y Candelario - Mi Amiga la Sirena
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Afeitarse is the verb for "to shave" (oneself, of course)!
Vos sabés lo que es todas las mañanas...
Do you know what it's like every morning...
mirarse en el espejo cuando uno se afeita
to look at oneself in the mirror when one's shaving,
Captions 30-31, Muñeca Brava - 8 Trampas
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The next step in one's morning routine might be maquillarse (to put on makeup):
Aquí, siempre me maquillo para mis conciertos.
Here, I always put on makeup for my concerts.
Caption 47, Ariana - Mi Casa
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Alternatively, one might say Aquí, siempre me pinto para mis conciertos, as pintarse (literally "to paint oneself") also means "to put on makeup."
Vestirse is the way to say "to get dressed" in Spanish.
Yo salgo y... y te vistes.
I'll leave and... and you get dressed.
Caption 30, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 2
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Another way to say this might be ponerse la ropa (to put on one's clothes).
Although sacarse la ropa is one manner of saying "to get undressed" or "take off one's clothes," there are many other examples of reflexive verbs in Spanish that mean the same thing, including: quitarse la ropa, desvestirse, and desnudarse. Let's look at a couple of examples:
Si "Libertinaje" te saca...
If "Libertinaje" takes off your.....
te invita a sacarte la ropa,
invites you to take off your clothes,
Captions 4-5, Bersuit Vergarabat - EPK
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Y se desnuda poco a poco y se convierte en tu piel
And she gets naked little by little and she becomes your skin
Caption 6, Reik - Inolvidable
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As you can see, the more literal "to get naked" might be an alternate translation for desnudarse.
We're finally getting to the end of our daily routine, when it's time for us to acostarnos (go to bed):
Tranquilícese, vaya a acostarse y deje de pensar en imposibles.
Calm down, go to bed, and stop thinking about impossible things.
Caption 31, Muñeca Brava - 48 - Soluciones
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And finally, once in bed, it's time to fall asleep! While the non-reflexive dormir means "to sleep," dormirse means "to fall asleep."
Me dormí pensando en ti; pensando en ti, me desperté
I fell asleep thinking about you; thinking about you, I woke up
Caption 10, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa
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Of course, this is just a partial list of reflexive verbs in Spanish that might be applicable to our daily routines. There are a lot more common reflexive verbs in Spanish that describe things one might do on a daily basis, including secarse (to dry oneself off), sentarse (to sit down), sentirse (to feel), emocionarse (to get excited), encontrarse con alguien (to meet with someone), acordarse de (to remember), olvidarse (to forget), sonreírse (to smile), reírse (to laugh), despedirse (to say goodbye), irse (to leave), and many, many more!
For additional information on Spanish reflexive verbs, check out this video from the series Fundamentos del Español. And don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.
Are you familiar with the body parts in Spanish? Do you know how to say words like "hands," "legs," or "face" in Spanish? Let's see how to write and pronounce las partes del cuerpo en español (the parts of the body in Spanish), from head to toe!
Inclina tu cabeza hacia atrás,
Tilt your head back;
Caption 19, Bienestar con Elizabeth - Rehabilitación vestibular
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Pelo is a very common word for "hair." However, keep in mind that pelo can refer to any kind of body hair, while the word cabello only refers to the hair on one's head.
Vale, pero los dos tenemos el pelo negro, vale, muy bien, perfecto.
OK, but we both have black hair, OK, very good, perfect.
Caption 12, Clase Aula Azul - El verbo parecer
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Para mi cabello, aquí tengo mi cepillo de cabello
For my hair, I have here my hair brush
Caption 27, Ana Carolina - Artículos de aseo personal
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Keep in mind that the Spanish word for the inner ear is el oído while the external ear (what you actually see) is called la oreja.
Las orejas son partes del cuerpo
The ears are parts of the body
que se encuentran en cada lateral de la cabeza
that are found on each side of the head
y que forman la parte exterior del oído.
and that form the external part of the inner ear.
Captions 53-55, Clara explica - El cuerpo
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Some of the most often used parts of the body in Spanish are placed in our face. Let's take a look.
There are two words for face in Spanish: la cara and el rostro. However, while cara is mostly used to talk about the physical part of the body, rostro is often used to talk in a sort of poetic, abstract way about someone's face. Let's see how to pronounce both words:
Esa mañana, al lavarse la cara,
That morning, while washing his face,
Caption 15, Aprendiendo con Carlos - El microrrelato
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Pinto mi rostro de mascarada
I paint my face in masquerade
Caption 20, Alejandra Guzmán - Porque no estás aquí
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Dio un suspiro y un golpe en la frente,
She let out a sigh and banged her forehead,
Caption 55, Cleer - Rafael Pombo y "Pastorcita"
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Me encantaría tener los ojos azules.
I would love to have blue eyes.
Caption 34, Clara explica - El cuerpo
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Ahora voy a delinear las cejas con un lápiz color café.
Now I am going to line the eyebrows with a brown-colored pencil.
Caption 53, Maquillaje - Con Cata y Cleer
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Después tenemos las pestañas.
Then we have the eyelashes.
Caption 21, Marta de Madrid - El cuerpo - La cabeza
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Cuando una mujer hablaba de mis mejillas,
When a woman talked about my cheeks,
Caption 23, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 3
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que podía tener sangre por la nariz.
that he might have a bloody nose.
Caption 15, Juan Sánchez - Personajes
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Esta... esta boca quiere decir que está como un poco...
This... this mouth wants to say that it's like a bit...
Caption 67, Bucaramanga, Colombia - Pintor callejero
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Tanto te quise besar que me duelen los labios
I wanted to kiss you so much that my lips hurt
Caption 2, Shakira - Sale el Sol
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para que los dientes estén más fuertes
so that the teeth become stronger
Caption 61, Los médicos explican - Consejos: dientes de niños
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Esta letra la pronuncias poniendo la lengua junto al paladar
You pronounce this letter by putting the tongue next to the palate
Caption 61, Ana Carolina - Mejorando la pronunciación
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Después tenemos la barbilla.
Then we have the chin.
Caption 70, Marta de Madrid - El cuerpo - La cabeza
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Vas a bajar el mentón hacia tu cuello
You're going to lower your chin toward your neck,
Caption 28, Bienestar con Elizabeth - Relajación
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La cabeza es la parte superior del cuerpo
The head is the top part of the body
que está situada sobre el cuello
that is situated on the neck
Captions 49-50, Clara explica - El cuerpo
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y a Chibchacum lo puso a cargar la Tierra en sus hombros.
and forced Chibchacum to carry the Earth on his shoulders.
Caption 57, Aprendiendo con Carlos - América precolombina - El mito de Bochica
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Esta que tengo en mis brazos se llama Poeska.
This one I have in my arms is named Poeska.
Caption 21, Fermín y los gatos - Mi gata Poeska
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Vamos a mover codos,
We're going to move [our] elbows,
que normalmente no movemos esta articulación.
as we don't normally move this joint.
Captions 15-16, Bienestar con Elizabeth - Activar las articulaciones
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Of all the names of body parts in Spanish, this is probably the most unique. The word muñeca indeed means not only "wrist" but "doll" as well, so keep that in mind when you need to remember how to say "wrist" in Spanish.
sufren mucha lesión en codos, en muñecas y en hombros.
they suffer a lot of injuries on [their] elbows, wrists and shoulders.
Caption 28, Adícora, Venezuela - Los fisioterapeutas
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los voy a colocar en mis manos,
I'm going to place them in my hands,
Caption 30, Ana Carolina - Gérmenes
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Tiene agujeros donde se colocan los dedos,
It has holes where you place your fingers,
Caption 38, Karla e Isabel - Instrumentos musicales
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Si tienes unas piernas fuertes y ganas de andar,
If you have some strong legs and feel like walking,
Caption 102, Blanca - Cómo moverse en Barcelona
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¡Vamos! Doble sus rodillas.
Let's go! Bend your knees.
Caption 24, Extr@: Extra en español - Ep. 3 - Sam aprende a ligar
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unos zapatos para los pies del bebé.
some shoes for the baby's feet.
Caption 35, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 4: Regalos para un nuevo bebé
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También, este... son frecuentes en lesionarse [sic] mucho las articulaciones metatarsianas
Also, um... they frequently hurt their metatarsal joints a lot,
que son los dedos del pie,
which are the toes,
Captions 25-26, Adícora, Venezuela - Los fisioterapeutas
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And with this last term, we have come to the end of this lesson about Spanish body parts. We encourage you to practice the names of all of these partes del cuerpo, and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!
Let's talk about the Spanish conjugation of regular verbs. In particular, let's see how to form the preterite conjugation of regular verbs ending in -ar, -er, and -ir. But first, let's review the main idea behind the preterite tense in Spanish.
In very simple terms, when we talk about the Spanish preterite tense, we are talking about the simple past, in other words, a completed action that took place at a determined point in the past. Let's look at an example from the series where our friend Carlos talks about this tense:
Ayer trabajé hasta las ocho de la noche.
Yesterday I worked until eight at night.
Caption 30, Carlos explica - El pretérito Cap. 1: Perfecto simple o Indefinido
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In this example, trabajé is the preterite conjugation of the regular verb trabajar for the first-person singular yo (I). Note that the only change necessary to form the preterite in this example is removing the -ar ending of the infinitive verb and replacing it with the ending -é.
There are a couple of things we want to mention about the conjugations you will find throughout this tutorial.
1. While usted (the formal, second-person singular "you") does not appear in our conjugation lists, keep in mind that when using that pronoun, the verb is conjugated in the exact same way as verbs in the third-person singular forms with él (he) and ella (she). Let's take a look at this in action with the preterite conjugation of the verb hablar (to speak/talk):
Usted habló de Fabio Sirenio.
You talked about Fabio Sirenio.
Caption 83, Yago - 7 Encuentros - Part 14
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Entonces él habló con...
So, he spoke with...
con los pescadores y los pescadores aceptaron.
with the fishermen and the fishermen accepted.
Caption 17, Instinto de conservación - Parque Tayrona
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2. In order to offer a more simplistic verb conjugation snapshot, in this article, we only employ the masculine versions of the plural forms nosotros (we), vosotros (you), and ellos (they). That said, keep in mind that the conjugations are the same for the feminine forms nosotras, vosotras, and ellas.
3. Just like usted, ustedes (the standard second person plural "you" in Latin America and the formal second person plural in Spain) does not appear among the conjugations shared here. However, keep in mind that the conjugations of verbs with "ustedes" are the exact same as the third-person plural forms utilized with ellos and ellas (they). Let's look at an example of this with the preterite conjugation of the verb cantar (to sing):
Ustedes cantaron muy bien (You guys sang very well).
Ellos/Ellas cantaron muy bien (They sang very well).
Having said all this, let's explore the preterite conjugations of some regular verbs in Spanish.
Let's take a look at the preterite conjugation of the verb hablar (to speak).
Yo hablé (I spoke).
Tú hablaste (You spoke).
Él/Ella habló (He/She spoke).
Nosotros hablamos (We spoke).*
Vosotros hablasteis (You spoke).
Ellos hablaron (They spoke).
* It's important to note that because the verb conjugation for the first person plural "nosotros" (we) is the same for both the simple present and simple past tenses, the speaker's intention must be determined by context as follows:
Nosotros estudiamos mucho todos los días (We study a lot every day).
Ayer nosotros estudiamos mucho (Yesterday, we studied a lot).
Example 1.: The verb comprar (to buy)
¡Y compraste melones en vez de limones!*
And you bought melons instead of lemons!
Caption 16, Extr@: Extra en español - Ep. 2: Sam va de compras
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* Remember that pronouns are frequently omitted in Spanish. Thus, in the example above and without changing the meaning, one could say: "¡Y tú compraste melones en vez de limones!" However, despite the fact that the speaker does not use the pronoun here, the -aste verb ending lets the listener know that the person referred to is "tú" (you).
Example 2.: The verb escuchar (to listen/hear)
La canción que escuchamos
The song that we heard
introduce la quinta parte del primer episodio.
introduces the fifth part of the first episode.
Caption 54, Carlos comenta - Los Años Maravillosos - La década de los 80 y música
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Let's take a look at the preterite conjugation of the regular verb comer (to eat).
Yo comí (I ate).
Tú comiste (You ate).
Él/Ella comió (He/She ate).
Nosotros comimos (We ate).
Vosotros comisteis (You ate).
Ellos comieron (They ate).
Example 1.: The verb aprender (to learn)
...y aprendí que los pulpos pueden cambiar de color.
...and I learned that octopi can change color.
Caption 45, Guillermina y Candelario - La Señora Pulpo
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Example 2.: The verb vender (to sell)
Creo que vendimos unos quinientos dólares en unas...
I think we sold about five hundred dollars (worth) in about...
tres horas, dos horas.
three hours, two hours.
Captions 25-26, Un café con Julia - Año nuevo
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Let's take a look at the preterite conjugation of the verb vivir (to live).
Yo viví (I lived).
Tú viviste (You lived).
Él/Ella vivió (He/She lived).
Nosotros vivimos (We lived).
Vosotros vivisteis (You lived).
Ellos vivieron (They lived).
Example 1.: The verb escribir (to write)
¿Por qué dices eso?
Why do you say that?
Porque una vez me escribiste
Because once you wrote to me
contándome que te casabas en Nueva York.
telling me that you were getting married in New York.
Captions 61-62, Yago - 6 Mentiras - Part 5
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Example 2.: The verb abrir (to open)
Primero, Lisa Bernal abrió la herida.
First, Lisa Bernal opened the wound.
Caption 61, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 6 - Part 4
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And with this example, we have reached the end of this lesson. But before we go, a little homework for you: go ahead and choose some other regular verbs and practice the Spanish conjugation of the preterite tense. Sooner or later, you will be able to master those preterite endings! We hope you enjoyed this lesson, and don't forget to leave us your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!
Do you know how to say goodbye in Spanish? Believe it or not, there are many different ways to say goodbye in Spanish.
In this lesson, we will review some of the standard terms you can use as well as other alternative ways of saying goodbye in Spanish slang. Let's take a look.
If you want to know the most standard way of saying goodbye in Spanish, adiós is your go-to term. Let's hear how to pronounce it:
Adiós. -Adiós.
Goodbye. -Goodbye.
Caption 50, Cita médica - La cita médica de Cleer
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Bueno, mucho gusto, Ana. -Mucho gusto.
Well, nice to meet you, Ana. -Nice to meet you.
Adiós. -Adiós.
Goodbye. -Goodbye.
Captions 67-68, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 3: ¿De quién es esta mochila?
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The preposition hasta (usually translated as "until" or "even" in English) is quite useful when we want to say bye to someone. While the following expressions are not as literal as adiós, people use them often when they want to say goodbye in Spanish. The idea here is, "Let's meet at some point in the future." Let's take a look:
Así que, ¡nos vemos muy pronto!
So, see you very soon!
¡Hasta luego!
See you later!
Captions 83-84, Amaya - Mi burro Pepe
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¡Adiós, amigos de Yabla, hasta pronto!
Bye, friends of Yabla, see you soon!
Caption 51, Ariana - España
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Gracias por su atención y hasta la próxima.
Thank you for your attention, and see you next time.
Hasta luego.
See you later.
Captions 74-75, Carlos explica - Las preposiciones 'por' y 'para'
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Hasta mañana, Ivo. -Chau, mi amor. -Chau.
See you tomorrow, Ivo. -Bye, my love. -Bye.
Chau, papá. -Chau.
Bye, dad. -Bye.
Captions 79-80, Muñeca Brava - 43 La reunión
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Bueno, os esperamos por Madrid.
Well, we await you in Madrid.
¡Hasta la vista!
So long!
Captions 91-92, Marisa en Madrid - Parque de El Retiro
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Are you wondering how to say bye in Spanish in the shortest possible way? Look no further. These slang terms, taken from the standard Italian manner of saying goodbye (ciao), are the words you're looking for. Let's see how to pronounce chao and chau:
Bueno... Nos vemos en la casa, chao.
OK... See you at home, bye.
Caption 53, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 9
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...porque ahora tengo un compromiso. Claro.
...because now I have an appointment. [Is that] clear?
Chau, Andrea. -Chau.
Bye, Andrea. -Bye.
Captions 21-22, Muñeca Brava - 2 Venganza
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Ha sido un placer estar con vosotros.
It has been a pleasure being with you.
Nos vemos. Un saludo.
See you. A greeting.
Captions 34-35, Azotea Del Círculo de Bellas Artes - Andrés nos enseña una nueva perspectiva
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Sobres, cuídate.
OK, take care.
Caption 7, El Puesto de Frutas de Javier - Haciendo una ensalada de frutas
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Solamente quería saber si usted estaba vivo todavía.
I just wanted to know if you were still alive.
Suerte, Magoo.
Good luck, Magoo.
Captions 36-37, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 1
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Do you know how to use the preposition con (most commonly translated as "with") in Spanish? Let's explore some of the various ways of using this preposition correctly.
Like its English counterpart, the first use of the preposition con that most likely comes to mind is to introduce the concept of accompaniment by someone or something. We can find this use in the name of some of our series such as Aprendiendo con Carlos, Paseando con Karen, and also in the words of Ester from El Aula Azul:
Quédate con nosotros hoy
Stay with us today,
y aprende algo nuevo en nuestra clase.
and learn something new in our class.
Captions 4-5, Clase Aula Azul - Información con subjuntivo e indicativo
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The way con is used here is no different from the way we use "with" to describe accompaniment in English. However, it is worth mentioning that stranded prepositions (prepositions separated from their objects and often placed at the end of the sentence) do not occur in Spanish. Thus, a question like the one below must place the preposition con next to its object quién at the beginning of the sentence, as opposed to the manner in which "who" and "with" can be separated in informal English.
¿Y con quién vives en Alemania?
And who do you live with in Germany?
Caption 21, La rutina diaria - La mañana
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The preposition con can also be employed to introduce the means or tools used to do an activity or achieve something.
Hazlo primero con lápiz y después con plumón.
Do it first in pencil and then with a marker.
Caption 17, Manos a la obra - Separadores de libros: Pikachu
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Y os puedo asegurar que
And I can assure you that,
con paciencia y con disciplina se consigue todo.
with patience and discipline, one can achieve anything.
Caption 73, Fermín y los gatos - Mi gata Bimba
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We also use the preposition con in Spanish to introduce the way something is done or how it should be done:
¡Por acá, Guillermina, con cuidado!
Through here, Guillermina, carefully!
Caption 30, Guillermina y Candelario - Una película de terror
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Notice that the word cuidado can also appear before con in phrases such as the following:
Cuidado con el perro.
Beware of the dog.
Or, as Karen warns us in her video:
Mucho cuidado con lo que escribes.
[Be] very careful with what you write.
Caption 38, Aprendiendo con Karen - Útiles escolares
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When the preposition con is followed by an infinitive, it can function as a gerund (the -ing form of a verb, which functions as a noun):
Con decir perdón es suficiente.
Saying you're sorry is enough.
Caption 20, Muñeca Brava - 47 Esperanzas
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Con is also the dependent preposition (preposition that depends upon or must follow a particular noun, verb, or adjective) after certain verbs such as terminar (to put an end to something), bastar (to be enough or suffice) or comparar (to compare), to name a few.
Terminar con mi noviazgo no parecía tan complicado.
Ending my relationship didn't seem so complicated.
Caption 61, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 8
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Y me basta con saber que estás allí
And it's enough to know that you're there
Caption 19, Franco De Vita - Mi sueño
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A pesar de que lo... la cultura azteca también
Although the... the Aztec culture also
tenía su preciosismo no se compara con los Mayas...
had its beauty, it can't be compared to the Mayans...
Captions 46-47, Antonio Vargas - Artista - ilustración
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Finally, the preposition con can additionally introduce a phrase that stands in contrast to the following clause, taking on a meaning similar to "although" or "despite."
Esta mujer aquí donde la ve,
This woman who stands here before you,
con lo simpática que parece, es como un general.
as nice as she seems, is like a general.
Captions 62-63, Los casos de Yabla - El perrito malcriado
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That's all for this lesson. We hope it has been clear for you and you can now use this preposition con más seguridad y precisión (with greater confidence and accuracy)! And, don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions!
Most of the time, we use the word nada in Spanish as an indefinite pronoun that can be translated as either "nothing" or "anything." In this lesson, we will examine how to use this word to mean one vs. the other. Let's take a look.
Before we jump into the "nothing" vs. "anything" uses of nada, it's important to state the following: When an adjective appears next to nada, the adjective must be masculine. Let's look at a few examples:
No es nada malo, es algo natural.
It's nothing bad, it's something natural.
Caption 12, La Cocaleros - Personas y políticas
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Tenemos que devolver a la madre y esperamos
We have to return it to the mother and hope
que la madre no encuentre nada raro en su cachorro.
that the mother doesn't find anything strange with her cub.
Captions 90-91, Animales en familia - Un día en Bioparc: Cachorro de leopardo
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Que haya jóvenes que realicen pequeños hurtos no es nada nuevo.
That there are young people who commit petty thefts is nothing new.
Caption 16, Los Reporteros - Crecen los robos en tiendas
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If nada comes after a verb, it must be expressed in a negative form with either no or some other negative element such as jamás/nunca (never) or nadie (nobody). Although such "double negatives" are incorrect in English (for example, you can't say "I don't have nothing"), in such cases in Spanish, nada becomes the positive "anything" in the English translation. Let's look at a couple of examples:
Juan no ha comido nada desde que llegó al aeropuerto.
Juan hasn't eaten anything since he arrived at the airport.
Caption 41, Carlos explica - El pretérito Cap 3: Perfecto compuesto II
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No, no como nada frito.
No, I don't eat anything fried.
Caption 40, Cata y Cleer - En el restaurante
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In the example above, you can see how the adjective frito is masculine (just to check whether you remember our aforementioned rule!).
Me encanta también cocinar.
I also love to cook.
Nunca me has hecho nada, ni un plato.
You have never made anything for me, not even one dish.
Captions 74-75, Cleer - Hobbies
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On the other hand, if nada goes before a verb, the verb does not need to be accompanied by a negative element. In this case, nada functions like the word "nothing" in English. Let's take a look:
Mi primo vive en una casucha en donde nada funciona bien.
My cousin lives in a "casucha" [awful house] where nothing works well.
Caption 54, Carlos explica - Diminutivos y Aumentativos Cap 2: Definiciones generales
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Nada me detendrá
Nothing will stop me
Caption 32, Ednita Nazario - Después De Ti
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Finally, keep in mind that when nada is used as a noun meaning "the void" or "nothingness," it is a feminine noun:
Era el frío de la nada
It was the cold of nothingness
Caption 41, Acercándonos a la Literatura - José Asunción Silva - "Nocturno III"
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Notice how in this case, the word nada is preceded by the definite female article "la."
That's all for this lesson. We invite you to keep these rules in mind, and don't forget to send us your suggestions and comments.
In this lesson, we will learn how to describe people in Spanish using the verb ser (to be). In particular, we'll focus on five different uses of the verb ser that you can use to identify and describe people. Let's take a look.
Eh... Luis, ella es mi mamá, mamá, él es Luis.
Um... Luis, this is my mom, Mom, this is Luis.
Y ella es mi abuela Carmen.
And this is my Grandma Carmen.
Captions 18-19, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 4
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It's worth mentioning that the example above shows a very common way to introduce people in Spanish.
Es un hombre que se dedica a lo que yo hago.
He's a man who devotes himself to what I do.
Caption 61, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 4
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Paul es estadounidense, de los Estados Unidos.
Paul is American, from the United States.
Caption 16, Carlos explica - Geografía y gentilicios
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Mi padre es arquitecto
My father is an architect
Caption 25, Leif - El Arquitecto Español y su Arte
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In particular, when we refer to essential traits, such as height, weight, and physical appearance.
Es bajo, es gordo.
He's short, he's fat.
Caption 33, El Aula Azul - Mis Primos
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Alguien que es delgado tiene poco peso.
Someone who is skinny doesn't weigh much.
Captions 32-33, Lecciones con Carolina - Adjetivos - Descripción de personas - Físico
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Carolina tiene treinta y cinco años
Carolina is thirty-five years old
pero parece que tiene veinte.
but she looks like she is twenty.
Es muy guapa.
She's very pretty.
Captions 2-4, El Aula Azul - Mis Primos
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Ellos son muy majos. Mi prima Marta es muy simpática.
They are very nice. My cousin Marta is very nice.
Caption 8, El Aula Azul - Mi familia
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Ricardo es muy... es muy tranquilo, ¿viste?
Ricardo is very... he's very calm, you know?
Caption 84, Biografía - Natalia Oreiro
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Porque mi mamá es una persona muy difícil.
Because my mom is a very difficult person.
-Eso a mí no me importa.
-That doesn't matter to me.
Caption 20, Yago - 10 Enfrentamientos
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That's it for today. Can you describe someone you know using the verb ser? We invite you to try it out and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!
Generally speaking, we use the present indicative in Spanish to talk about actions that are taking place at the moment (now). However, that's not the only use of it. Let's take a look at the following list so you can understand how to use the present indicative in Spanish.
Actions that are taking place right at the moment (now):
¿Dónde están las chicas?
Where are the girls?
¿Las chicas? -Ajá.
The girls? -Uh-huh.
Lola y Ana. -Uh...
Lola and Ana. -Uh...
Lola y Ana viven aquí.
Lola and Ana live here.
Captions 26-29, Extr@: Extra en español - Ep. 1 - La llegada de Sam
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In the above sentence, you can see how the verbs estar (to be) and vivir (to live) are conjugated in the present indicative for the third person plural (las chicas/Lola y Ana/ellas... están/viven).
You can also talk about actions that take place over time:
Trabajo en un colegio.
I work at a school.
Soy maestra de música y de ciencias.
I'm a music and science teacher.
Captions 6-7, Ariana - Mi Casa
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In this example, you can see the verbs trabajar (to work) and ser (to be) conjugated in the present indicative for the first person singular (yo trabajo/soy).
IMPORTANT! Remember that in Spanish it is very common to drop the pronouns from the sentences. As you can see in the sentence above, Ariana doesn't say "yo trabajo" but rather only "trabajo".
En agosto, vamos a la playa.
In August, we go to the beach.
En septiembre, empieza el otoño.
In September, the fall begins.
Captions 21-22, El Aula Azul - Estaciones y Meses
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In the example above, we can see the present indicative of the verb ir (to go) in the first person plural (nosotros vamos) and the present indicative of the verb empezar (to begin) in the third person singular (el otoño empieza).
La Laguna de San Pablo está a los pies del imponente
The San Pablo Lagoon is at the foot of the imposing
Volcán Imbabura.
Imbabura Volcano.
Caption 13, Otavalo - Un día en la ciudad de los lagos
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In the example above, Natalia uses the present indicative of the verb estar for the third person singular (está) to state a fact.
You can talk about daily activities and habitual actions using the present indicative:
De lunes a viernes, me levanto a las siete de la mañana.
From Monday to Friday, I get up at seven in the morning.
Caption 2, GoSpanish - La rutina diaria de Sol
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In the above clip, you can see how Sol uses the present indicative of the verb levantarse (yo me levanto) to express one of her habitual actions.
Dante y Mika vienen todos los días a trabajar conmigo
Dante and Mika come work with me every day
aquí al Refugio del Burrito.
here at the Little Donkey Shelter.
Caption 62, Rosa - La perrita Mika
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Similarly, Rosa uses the present indicative of the verb venir (to come) to describe something habitual. In this case, the verb is conjugated in the third person plural (Dante y Mika/ellos... vienen).
Did you know that the present indicative can be used for things happening in the near future? Let's see some examples.
Le prometo que termino de morfar y... y salgo a laburar. Va a ver.
I promise you that I'll finish eating and... and go out to work. You'll see.
Caption 63, Yago - 8 Descubrimiento
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In this sentence, the speaker is using the present indicative of the verb salir (to go out) in order to express an action that will take place in the near future. Once he's done with his lunch, he will go out to work. The verb is conjugated in the first person singular (yo salgo).
Bueno, pues entonces, no hay que pensarlo más.
OK, well then, we don't have to think about it anymore.
Mañana hablamos con el jefe y desde la oficina
Tomorrow we'll talk to the boss and from the office
Captions 11-12, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 2
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In the previous example, you can fully appreciate how the present indicative of the verb hablar (to talk) is used to indicate an action that will take place tomorrow! This may be a bit weird for English speakers but it is a very common formula used by Spanish speakers. The verb is conjugated in the first person plural (nosotros hablamos).
Finally, it is worth mentioning that in journalism and the academic field, some people like to use the present indicative when referring to historical facts. Let's see the following example:
El Imperio romano cae en el año 476
The Roman Empire falls in the year 476
And that's it for today. We hope this lesson helped you to understand how to use the present indicative in Spanish. And don't forget to send us your comments and questions.
Do you know how to say "those" or "that" in Spanish? Let's explore Spanish demonstrative adjectives. However, before doing that, let's start this lesson with an important definition.
Adjectives describe and modify nouns. We use demonstrative adjectives to determine which person or object, for example, we are referring to, taking its distance with respect to the speaker and/or listener into account. Let's first review our options in English:
- Near the speaker: "this" and "these."
- Near the listener OR far from both the speaker and the listener: "that" and "those."
While there are only four demonstrative adjectives in English, you will notice that there are many more in Spanish (twelve to be exact!). Why is that? One reason is that, because nouns in Spanish have a gender, demonstrative adjectives in Spanish are not only singular and plural but masculine and feminine as well.
In addition, Spanish has two different sets of demonstrative adjectives to differentiate between nouns that are close to the listener vs. nouns that are far from both the speaker and listener (roughly corresponding to the English concept of "over there" rather than just "there").
Let's take a closer look at the demonstrative adjectives in Spanish, using M to indicate "masculine" and F to indicate "feminine":
- Near the speaker: "this" (M: este, F: esta) and "these" (M: estos, F: estas).
- Near the listener: "that" (M: ese, F: esa) and "those" (M: esos, F: esas).
- Far from both the speaker and the listener: "that" (over there) (M: aquel, F: aquella) and "those" (over there) (M: aquellos, F: aquellas).
It is worth noting that, in addition to indicating further physical distance, aquel/aquella/aquellos/aquellas can also refer to metaphorical distance such as dates or events in the future or past.
Now that we know the demonstrative adjectives in Spanish, it's time to look at some examples. Let's watch and listen to the following clips:
Me gusta mucho este parque.
I really like this park.
Caption 9, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 5: Me gusta mucho este parque.
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Esta mochila es de Lucas.
This backpack is Lucas'.
Caption 59, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 3: ¿De quién es esta mochila?
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En la noche, utilizaremos estos vasos bajos para servir licor.
At night, we'll use these short glasses to serve liquor.
Caption 20, Ana Carolina - El comedor
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Estas cintas son las que estamos sacando recientemente;
These ribbons are the ones that we are coming out with recently;
son nuevos diseños.
they are new designs.
Caption 19, Comercio - Camisas tradicionales
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Oiga y ese carro, esa belleza ¿de dónde la sacó, hermano, ah?
Hey and that car, that beauty, where did you get it, brother, huh?
Caption 43, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 1
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¿Y esos otros tatuajes que tienes aquí, de qué son?
And those other tattoos you have here, what are they of?
Caption 67, Adícora, Venezuela - El tatuaje de Rosana
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Mire, Rubio, yo necesito que usted
Look, Rubio, I need you
le ponga vigilancia inmediata a esas dos mujeres, hermano.
to put those two women under immediate surveillance, brother.
Caption 52, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 4
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La terminación del piso sería, en el futuro, de roca...
The last part of the floor would be, in the future, made out of rock...
de roca rústrica [sic] a propósito traída de aquel cerro que está allá.
out of rustic rock brought specifically from that hill over there.
Captions 22-23, Edificio en Construcción - Hablando con los trabajadores
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Esas cifras ya nos dicen
Those numbers tell us
que aquellas civilizaciones prehistóricas
that those prehistoric civilizations
ya sabían mucho de cálculo.
already knew a lot about calculus.
Captions 27-29, Rosa - Los dólmenes de Antequera
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Sería, "Aquellos coches son de mi padre"
Would be, "Those cars are my father's"
o "Aquellas casas son de mi madre".
or "Those houses are my mother's."
Captions 35-36, Lecciones con Carolina - Adjetivos demostrativos
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Keep in mind, however, that in less formal Spanish, we tend to use ese, esa, esos, and esas much more than aquel, aquella, aquellos, aquellas.
That's all for today. Although there are many more demonstrative adjectives in Spanish than in English, learning to use them is relatively simple. We hope you enjoyed this lesson, and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!
Today's lesson will examine Yabla's "Top 12" picks for the most useful verbs for having a conversation in Spanish. This time, we'll focus on the meanings of those verbs as well as giving you a lot of simple, conversational examples from Yabla's Spanish video library. Additionally, we'll provide you with conjugation tables for the "Top 3" most useful Spanish tenses: the simple present, the imperfect (which describes ongoing or continuous past actions), and the preterite (which describes completed past actions).
In addition to the aforementioned links, you can consult this lesson entitled Spanish Verb Tenses Explained if you need to brush up on those tenses and more! Although memorizing all of these conjugations might seem a bit intimidating, it could really help your ability to converse in Spanish.
The fact that there are two verbs that mean "to be" in Spanish, ser and estar, can feel quite confusing for non-native speakers. Generally speaking, the verb ser is employed to describe more permanent characteristics. The acronym DOCTOR (description, occupation, condition, time, origin, relationship) is very useful for helping us to remember some of the many situations in which this verb is used. Let's take a look at how this verb is conjugated as well as some examples:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | soy | era | fui |
| Tú | eres | eras | fuiste |
| Él, ella, usted | es | era | fue |
| Nosotros, nosotras | somos | éramos | fuimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | sois | erais | fuisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | son | eran | fueron |
Soy profesor de fotografía.
I'm a photography teacher.
Caption 13, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos - Part 5
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Sus cuadros eran muy extraños.
His paintings were very strange.
Caption 25, El Aula Azul - Adivina personajes históricos
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También fuimos parte de todas estas, eh... mega empresas, pero...
We were also part of all these, um... mega companies, but...
Caption 22, Doctor Krápula - Entrevista
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Notably, although ser usually denotes permanence, while the preterite tense denotes that something had a definite ending point, the verb ser is used in the preterite to describe something that "was" in the past, but did come to a conclusive end.
The verb estar also means "to be" for traits that are variable/less permanent. The acronym PLACE (position, location, action, condition, emotion) might help you to remember some contexts in which the verb estar should be chosen. Let's take a look:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | estoy | estaba | estuve |
| Tú | estás | estabas | estuviste |
| Él, ella, usted | está | estaba | estuvo |
| Nosotros, nosotras | estamos | estábamos | estuvimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | estáis | estabais | estuvisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | están | estaban | estuverion |
Sí... Vale, entonces, estamos aquí.
Yes... OK, then, we're here.
Caption 6, Curso de español - Disculpe, ¿hay un cine por aquí?
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Un poquito y ajá, y estaba triste porque
A little bit, and uh-huh, and I was sad because
dejaba mi familia y eso y ya.
I was leaving my family and all that and that's it.
Caption 70, Cleer - Entrevista a Lila
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Los árabes estuvieron en España más de seiscientos años.
The Arabs were in Spain for more than six hundred years.
Caption 23, Rosa - Antequera, Málaga
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Be sure to check out this lesson if you want to learn more about the difference between ser and estar.
The verb tener means "to have" in Spanish. Let's take a closer look:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | tengo | tenía | tuve |
| Tú | tienes | tenías | tuviste |
| Él, ella, usted | tiene | tenía | tuvo |
| Nosotros, nosotras | tenemos | teníamos | tuvimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | tenéis | teníais | tuvisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | tienen | tenían | tuvieron |
¿Tienes plumones y tijeras?
You have markers and scissors?
Sí, tengo plumones y tijeras,
Yes, I have markers and scissors,
pero no tengo mi teléfono.
but I don't have my phone.
Captions 20-22, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 1: No tengo mi teléfono.
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Tenían mi mochila en la Oficina de Objetos Perdidos.
They had my backpack in the Lost and Found.
Caption 44, Raquel - Oficina de objetos perdidos
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La noche anterior a la rumba, tuve otro sueño.
The night before going out on the town, I had another dream.
Caption 1, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 7
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Additionally, we invite you to explore some of the many idiomatic expressions with the verb tener.
And, we'll just take a second to mention that if you throw in the word que after the verb tener plus a verb's infinitive ("to" form), you'll have the very useful Spanish construction tener que that means, "to have to" (do something):
Hoy tengo que trabajar.
Today I have to work.
Caption 74, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos - Part 14
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Tuvimos que trasladarnos a esta nueva ciudad.
We had to move to this new city.
Caption 39, Ciudad de Panamá - Denisse introduce la ciudad
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The Spanish verb hacer can mean either "to make" or "to do." But, not to fear— typically, the context will let you know quite clearly which meaning is intended.
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | hago | hacía | hice |
| Tú | haces | hacías | hiciste |
| Él, ella, usted | hace | hacía | hizo |
| Nosotros, nosotras | hacemos | hacíamos | hicimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | hacéis | hacíais | hicisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | hacen | hacían | hicieron |
Y ¿tú qué haces?
And what are you doing?
Caption 24, Guillermina y Candelario - Un pez mágico
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Y yo no hacía esto. Yo hago otro acto, que es con las motos.
And I didn't do this. I do another act, which is with motorcycles.
Caption 35, Rueda de la muerte - Parte 1
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También hizo alguna película.
He also made a movie.
Caption 28, El Aula Azul - Adivina personajes históricos
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The Spanish verb ir means "to go." Let's check out some of its conjugations and uses:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | voy | iba | fui |
| Tú | vas | ibas | fuiste |
| Él, ella, usted | va | iba | fue |
| Nosotros, nosotras | vamos | íbamos | fuimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | vais | ibais | fuisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | van | iban | fueron |
Voy a la piscina los lunes y los miércoles.
I go to the pool on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Caption 7, Ariana - Mi Semana
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Iba mucho con mi padre al campo.
I used to go with my father to the countryside a lot.
Caption 56, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 10
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¿Por qué fuiste al cine?
Why did you go to the movies?
Caption 48, Carlos explica - Las preposiciones 'por' y 'para'
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You might have noticed that the preterite form of the verb ir is conjugated in the exact same way as the verb ser. However, in most cases, context should help you to easily identify which verb is in use.
Another great "trick" to be aware of is that adding an a plus a verb's infinitive to the verb ir is a very simple way of expressing what we are "going to" do and is, thus, an alternative to the future tense. Let's take a look:
Vamos a hablar de mi familia, ¿sí?
We are going to talk about my family, OK?
Caption 2, Curso de español - Vamos a hablar de la familia
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Porque las chicas iban a salir, para no dejarte sola.
Because the girls were going to go out, so you wouldn't be alone.
Caption 11, Muñeca Brava - 18 - La Apuesta
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If we're going to talk about ir (to go), we'd better mention venir (to come)! Let's look:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | vengo | venía | vine |
| Tú | vienes | venías | viniste |
| Él, ella, usted | viene | venía | vino |
| Nosotros, nosotras | venimos | veníamos | vinimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | venís | veníais | vinisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | vienen | venían | vinieron |
Yo vengo del sur de España
I come from the South of Spain
Caption 10, Carolina - Acentos
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¿Qué venía después?
What came next?
Caption 23, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 8
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Los otros cisnes vinieron hacia él.
The other swans came toward him.
Caption 50, Cleer - El patito feo
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The Spanish verb decir means "to say" or "to tell."
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | digo | decía | dije |
| Tú | dices | decías | dijiste |
| Él, ella, usted | dice | decía | dijo |
| Nosotros, nosotras | decimos | decíamos | dijimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | decís | decíais | dijisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | dicen | decían | dijeron |
Yo digo que Playa Balandra es el paraíso oficial.
I say that Balandra Beach is the official paradise.
Caption 67, Alan x el mundo - Mi playa favorita de México!
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Pero siempre me decía: ¡Mira! Mira eso allá.
But he always used to tell me: Look! Look at that over there.
Caption 42, Federico Kauffman Doig - Arqueólogo
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Y la señorita me dijo algo completamente diferente.
And the lady told me something totally different.
Caption 45, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 5
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Since we often say or tell things "to" others, you will notice that the verb decir is quite typically accompanied by indirect object pronouns like me (to me), te (to you), etc. to indicate the person to whom something is said or told. You can learn more about this and other aspects of this verb in our lesson entitled The Spanish Verb Decir.
The verb poder means "to be able." It can be used alone to say simply "I can," "you could," etc. but is often used in conjunction with an infinitive verb to express what it is one "is able" to do. Let see it in action:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | puedo | podía | pude |
| Tú | puedes | podías | pudiste |
| Él, ella, usted | puede | podía | pudo |
| Nosotros, nosotras | podemos | podíamos | pudimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | podéis | podíais | pudisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | pueden | podían | pudieron |
¿Puedo ver el menú por favor?
Can I see the menu please?
Caption 12, Cata y Cleer - En el restaurante
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¿Por qué las cosas no podían ser sencillas?
Why couldn't things be easy?
Caption 31, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 10
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Gracias a su cola, pudieron volar.
Thanks to its tail, you were able to fly.
Caption 49, Guillermina y Candelario - Una aventura extrema
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To learn more about the verb poder and how it is used, we recommend the following lesson: The Verb Poder - Common Expressions.
This word means "to know," but, in its preterite form, can mean "to find out."
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | sé | sabía | supe |
| Tú | sabes | sabías | supiste |
| Él, ella, usted | sabe | sabía | supo |
| Nosotros, nosotras | sabemos | sabíamos | supimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | sabéis | sabíais | supisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | saben | sabían | supieron |
Pero no sé dónde!
But I don't know where!
Caption 28, NPS No puede ser - 1 - El concurso
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No sabía qué decirle.
I didn't know what to say to her.
Caption 12, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 1
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Nunca supe la verdad
I never found out the truth
Caption 2, Aleks Syntek - Intocable
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If we're going to converse in Spanish, we had better be able to say what we "want"! The verb querer can stand alone to express our desire for a particular thing or be used with an infinitive verb to say what we "want to do." Let's take a look:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | quiero | quería | quise |
| Tú | quieres | querías | quisiste |
| Él, ella, usted | quiere | quería | quiso |
| Nosotros, nosotras | queremos | queríamos | quisimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | queréis | queríais | quisisteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | quieren | querían | quisieron |
Porque realmente quiero mi propio baño.
Because I really want my own bathroom.
Caption 37, Cleer y Lida - Reservando una habitación
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Y algunos querían volver a su casa.
And some wanted to go back to their home.
Caption 13, Guillermina y Candelario - El mundo de los juguetes perdidos
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No me quiso decir su nombre.
She wouldn't tell me her name.
Caption 8, Yago - 14 La peruana
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Keep in mind that when the verb querer is used with no in the preterite, it can convey the idea that someone "wouldn't" do something or "refused to."
One more important aspect of the Spanish verb querer is that, when speaking about actions that we "want" others to do or that we "want" to happen, the subjunctive form of the verb that follows is required (vuelvas instead of vuelves in the following example):
Quiero que... que vuelvas a New York.
I want for... for you to come back to New York.
Caption 23, Yago - 11 Prisión
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The Spanish verb dar means "to give." Let's look at some of its forms and examples:
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | doy | daba | di |
| Tú | das | dabas | diste |
| Él, ella, usted | da | daba | dio |
| Nosotros, nosotras | damos | dábamos | dimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | dais | dabais | disteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | dan | daban | dieron |
Yo doy agua a mi gato.
I give water to my cat.
Caption 14, Lecciones con Carolina - Verbo - dar
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Adriana Espinel siempre daba unas respuestas tan profundas.
Adriana Espinel always gave such deep answers.
Caption 72, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 4
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Eh... Mi asistente me dio sus datos.
Um... My assistant gave me your information.
Caption 39, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 1
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Like the verb decir, the verb dar is often accompanied by indirect object pronouns to highlight the person to whom something is given.
And, to conclude our list of the Top 12 Spanish verbs for carrying on a conversation, we thought it would be a good idea to give you a verb to describe the things you observe!
| Personal Pronoun | Present | Imperfect | Preterite |
| Yo | veo | veía | vi |
| Tú | ves | veías | viste |
| Él, ella, usted | ve | veía | vio |
| Nosotros, nosotras | vemos | veíamos | vimos |
| Vosotros, vosotras | veis | veíais | visteis |
| Ellos, ellas, ustedes | ven | veían | vieron |
Eh... ¿Cómo veo la vida?
Um... How do I see life?
Caption 79, Adícora, Venezuela - El tatuaje de Rosana
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¡Pero veíamos serpientes por todos lados!
But we saw snakes everywhere!
Caption 41, Guillermina y Candelario - La Isla de las Serpientes
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Vimos una película.
We saw a movie.
Caption 14, Zulbani - Trip to Merida
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Although it was certainly tough to narrow down the top 12 useful verbs in Spanish for carrying on a conversation, we hope you've enjoyed this lesson and that it helps you to hold a lot of stimulating conversations! Let us know with your suggestions and comments if there are any other verbs or topics you'd like to learn more about.
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