¿LO SABÍAS?
As you’ll see in the first example above, in Spanish you say ver a alguien. For more on this use of a, see here.
In English, to talk about the future we often say I’m going to. Spanish works the same way. To say that you’re going to do something, put voy a (I’m going to) or vamos a (we’re going to) before the verb. voy and vamos come from the verb ir. For more information on ir, see here.
I’m going to…
| Voy a telefonearle. | I’m going to phone him. |
| Voy a decirle que no puedo ir. | I’m going to tell him I can’t come. |
| Vamos a decirles que vengan un poco más tarde. | We’re going to tell them to come a little later. |
When organizing things with people you know, you can use ¿Qué te parece si…? (Will it be all right if…?) to ask if something suits them. parece comes from the verb parecer (to seem).
Will it be all right…?
| ¿Qué te parece si cenamos a las nueve? | Will it be all right if we have dinner at nine? |
| ¿Qué te parece si te llamo la semana que viene? | Will it be all right if I phone you next week? |
| ¿Qué os parece si nos vemos más tarde? | How about meeting up later? |
To ask somebody if they would prefer you to do something, use prefieres or prefiere (depending on whether you speak to them as tú or usted) with que and the verb in the subjunctive. For more information on the subjunctive, see here.
Would you rather…?
| ¿Prefieres que quedemos en el centro? | Would you rather we met in town? |
| ¿Prefieres que quedemos otro día? | Would you rather we met another time? |
| ¿Prefieres que pase a recogerte? | Would you rather I came to collect you? |
Would it be better to…?
| ¿Es mejor invitar también a las parejas? | Would it be better to invite partners as well? |
| ¿Es mejor avisarte antes de pasar por allí? | Would it be better to let you know before dropping in? |
| ¿Es mejor llamarte por la noche? | Is it better to ring you in the evening? |
Are we agreed…?
| ¿Estamos de acuerdo sobre la fecha? | Are we agreed on the date? |
| ¿Estamos de acuerdo en dónde nos encontraremos? | Are we agreed on where to meet? |
| ¡De acuerdo! | Agreed! |
¿LO SABÍAS?
¡Vale! is used to accept or to agree: ¿Vamos juntos? – ¡Vale! (Shall we go together? – OK!).
To say that you have to do something in Spanish, you can use tengo que (I have to) followed by the infinitive.
I have to…
| Tengo que hacer una llamada. | I have to make a phone call. |
| Esta noche tengo que quedarme en casa. | I have to stay in tonight. |
| Tenemos que estar allí a las ocho en punto. | We have to be there at eight o’ clock sharp. |
To say that you have to do something in Spanish, you can also use debo (I must) and then the infinitive. debo comes from the verb deber. For more information on deber, see here.
I must…
| Esta noche debo irme temprano. | I must leave early tonight. |
| Debo decirle que no puedo ir. | I must tell her that I can’t come. |
| No debes llegar tarde. | You mustn’t be late. |
To say that you should do something, use debería (I should) and then the infinitive.
I should…
| Debería llamar a Ana. | I should call Ana. |
| Debería irme ya. | I should be going now. |
| Deberías venir a visitarnos. | You should come and visit us. |
¿LO SABÍAS?
As you’ll see in the first example above, in Spanish you say llamar a alguien for to call somebody. For more on this use of a, see here.
These are some of the questions you are likely to be asked by people you meet, and some of the comments they might make.
| ¿Es la primera vez que vienes a España? | Is this the first time that you’ve been to Spain? |
| ¿Cuánto tiempo hace que estudias español? | How long have you been learning Spanish? |
| ¿Te estás enterando de la conversación? | Are you following the conversation? |
| Habla usted muy bien español. | Your Spanish is very good. |
| ¿Hablo demasiado rápido? | Am I speaking too fast? |
| ¿Prefiere que hable en inglés? | Would you prefer it if I spoke English? |
| ¿Quiere que repita lo que he dicho? | Shall I repeat what I said? |
| ¿Quiere que hable más despacio? | Do you want me to speak more slowly? |
| Me puedes tutear. | You can call me tú. |
| ¿Nos tuteamos? | Shall we call each other tú? |
| ¿Cuánto tiempo vas a estar en Madrid? | How long are you staying in Madrid? |
| ¿Te gusta Sevilla? | How do you like Seville? |
| ¿Vienes por aquí a menudo? | Do you come here often? |
| ¿Estás aquí con amigos? | Are you here with friends? |
| ¿Estás casado? | Are you married? |
• When you want to talk to people that you either don’t know at all, or don’t know very well, the way to say you is usted. Nowadays, younger people in Spain tend not to