Love-Spanish.com: Tell Me, Will You Have That Finished For Tomorrow?

SCENARIO

Imagine you are talking to a relative, a friend or a colleague. Maybe you are both studying Spanish together. Perhaps you have some work to hand in and intimated that you expect to have it finished very soon. The other person wants to establish how soon and says to you something like: "tell me, will you have that finished for tomorrow?".

In Spanish, he/ she could choose to be less formal and say to you:

Dime, ¿tendrás eso acabado para mañana?

On the other hand, he/ she could choose to be more formal and say to you:

Dígame, ¿tendrá (usted) eso acabado para mañana?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say whether or not you expect to meet that deadline. When you say what you are expecting to do, you DO NOT need to be concerned about the level of formality in the other person's question. Your main concern should be about communicating whether or not you expect to meet the deadline. Perhaps what you want to say is that you:

Expect to meet the deadline in the question;
Expect to miss that deadline;
Expect to miss that deadline, but meet another one;
Are not sure about meeting that deadline

Here are some examples of what you could say and practise the use of “para”:

Sí, espero tenerlo acabado para mañana* (yes, I expect to have it finished by tomorrow);
No, no espero tenerlo acabado para mañana* (no, I don't expect to have it finished by tomorrow);
No, no espero tenerlo acabado para mañana, espero tenerlo acabado para el martes* (no, I don't expect to have it finished by tomorrow, I expect to have it finished by Tuesday);
No sé si voy a tenerlo acabado para mañana* (I don't know whether I will have it finished by tomorrow);

Now you should practise further the use of “para” by replying to someone who says to you:

Dime, ¿tendrás eso acabado para mañana?

*Please see grammar below

Grammar-”PARA”

The use of “para” and “por” often causes some confusion amongst learners of Spanish. This blog posts deals with the uses of “para”. A separate series of blog posts is dedicated to the uses of “por”.

In this post we look at a number of situations in which “para” is commonly used. “Para” is commonly used in the following cases:

1. Objective

In Spanish, “para” is often used before an infinitive used to express the objective of the action of a verb. In such cases, the meaning of “para” is something like “in order to... “.

For example:

Estudio español para poder hablarlo (I study Spanish in order to be able to speak it);
Tienes que comer menos para adelgazar (you have to eat less in order to loose weight);
Pedro va al gimnasio para mantenerse en forma (Pedro goes to the gym in order to keep fit);

2. Purpose

In Spanish, “para” is often used with verbs such as “ser”/ “estar” to express the purpose of something.

For example:

Este lápiz es para escribir (this pencil is for writing);
Estamos para ayudar (we are here to help);
La copa es para el vino (the glass is for the wine);

3. Direction/ Destination

In Spanish, “para” is often used with verbs such as “ir”/ “venir”/ “salir” and similar verbs and before the name of a place. In such cases, “para” means something like “towards“/ “for” and identifies a direction or destination.

For example:

El autobús va para Madrid (the bus is going to/ towards Madrid);
¿Venís para Barcelona? (are you coming to Barcelona?);
Pedro salió para Vigo (Pedro departed for Vigo);

4. Intended Recipient

In Spanish, “para” is often before the name of a person or object to indicate the intended recipient of something. In such cases, “para” means something like “for“.

For example:

El regalo es para mi madre (the present is for my mother);
¿Compraste ese libro para Pedro? (did you buy that book for Pedro?);
Antonio me dio una camisa para ti (Antonio gave me a shirt for you);

5. Deadline

In Spanish, “para” is often used before a time expression to indicate a deadline for some action. In such cases, “para” means something like “for“/ “by”.

For example:

Los deberes de español son para mañana (my Spanish homework is due tomorrow);
Entregaré este trabajo para el viernes (I will hand in this work by Friday);
Pagaré la matrícula para el día quince (I will pay the registration fee by the 15^th);

6. Contrasting

In Spanish, “para” is often used to contrast some characteristic of an individual against the same characteristic of a group the individual belongs to. In such cases the meaning of “para” is something like “for“/ “compared with others... “.

For example:

Para un perro Pluto no ladra nada (for a dog Pluto does not bark at all);
Para tu edad te ves muy bien (for your age you look really well);
Para esa marca vuestro coche está muy bien (for that make, your car is very nice);

7. Readiness/ Disposition

In Spanish, “para” is often used with verb “estar” and followed by an infinitive to express an action which is about to occur. In this case, “estar para” means something like “to be just about to... “

For example:

Estámos para subir al avión (we are about to board the plane);
Estuve para quedarme en casa (I was just about to stay at home);
Estoy para salir de un momento a otro (I am just about to leave);

8. Duration

In Spanish, “para” is often used with verb “tener” and followed by the name of period of time to express what is remaining of an activity.

For example:

En este proyecto tenemos para un mes (this project will take us a month/ we have a month left to finish it);
Pedro tiene para rato* (Pedro is expected to remain where he is for a while);
Con esta lección de español tengo para un par de días (this Spanish lesson will take me a couple of days/ I should have finished it in a couple of days);

*NB Please note idiom “tener para rato”

9. Idiomatic Expressions

“Para” is used in many idiomatic expressions, such as:

Para eso... (for that...)*
- Example: ¿Para eso quieres que vaya? (you want me to go just for that?);
¿Para qué... ? (what for... ?)
- Example: ¿Para qué estudias español? (what are you studying Spanish for?);
Para qué... (so that...)
- Example: Estudio españal para que mis amigos españoles me puedan entender (I study Spanish so that my Spanish friends can understand me);

*NB Often used to pour scorn on something/ to indicate that something is not worth the bother.

Now you should practice the uses of “para” with some examples of your own.

This is another Free online Spanish lesson from Love-Spanish.com. We conduct Spanish lessons online on a wide range of topics using the latest video conferencing facilities. Online lessons are the ideal way to improve listening and speaking skills. For more details on our lessons online and how to book them, please visit:

Love-Spanish.com/ Lessons-Online

For more Free Spanish:

Visit: Love-Spanish.com

Google+:Google+ Love-Spanish

Twitter: @LoveSpanish_com

Facebook: Facebook.com/ Love.Spanish