Love-Spanish.com: 01/08/2012

Friday, 31 August 2012

Is The Underground Running At That Time?

SCENARIO

Imagine you are talking to a relative, a friend or colleague. Maybe you are planning to go out in the evening. Perhaps facing the possibility of returning home quite late, the other person is uncertain about the availability of public transport at a specific time. At some point, the other person says to you something like: "is the underground running at that time?"

In Spanish, the other person could say:

¿A esa hora funciona el metro?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say whether or not the underground will be in operation at a specific time. Your reply depends on whether you want to say that you:

Believe the underground is working;
Believe the underground is not working;
Know the underground is working;
Know the underground is not working;
Don't know if the underground is working;

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

Sí, creo que el metro funciona hasta la una y media de la mañana (yes, I believe the underground runs until 1:30AM).
No, creo que el metro no funciona a esa hora (no, I believe the underground is not running at that time).
Sí, el metro funciona hasta la una y media de la mañana (yes, the underground runs until 1:30AM).
No, el metro no funciona a esa hora (no, the underground is not running at that time).
No sé si el metro funciona a esa hora (I don't know if the underground is running at that time).

Now you should practise answering the question:

¿A esa hora funciona el metro?

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:

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Thursday, 30 August 2012

Tell Me, Are Those Lessons Worthwhile?

SCENARIO

Imagine you are talking to a relative, a friend or a colleague. Perhaps the other person knows you are studying Spanish and that you have recently booked some half an hour lessons. The other person wants to know your opinion about how beneficial you think those lessons are and says to you something like: "tell me, are those lessons worthwhile?".

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

Dime, ¿te valen la pena esas clases?

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

Dígame, ¿a (usted) le valen la pena esas clases?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say how beneficial you think something is. When giving your opinion on something like this, 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 your opinion. Perhaps you want express your opinion as:

Statements of fact-like information;
Statements of value judgement;

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

Sí, me vale la pena ir a esas clases de español (yes, for me, it is worthwhile taking those Spanish lessons);
Sí, esas clases me valen la pena (yes, for me, those lessons are worthwhile);
En realidad, casi no me valen la pena esas clases (the reality is that for me, those lessons are almost pointless;
Vale la pena que el profe me ayude (my teacher's help is worthwhile);
No me vale la pena que las clases duren mucho más* (for me, it is not worthwhile making the lessons last much longer);

Now you should practise further replying to someone who says to you:

Dime, ¿te valen la pena esas clases?

*Please see grammar below

Grammar-Subjunctive

Please note these are typical examples of the use of subjunctive mood. As a general rule, the subjunctive mood should be used in expressions of value judgement such as:

"For me, it is worthwhile/ not worthwhile/ pointless that something happens”
"For me, it is worthwhile/ not worthwhile/ pointless that something is in a particular way”
"For me, it is worthwhile/ not worthwhile/ pointless that someone – other than I does something”
"For me, it is worthwhile/ not worthwhile/ pointless that someone – other than I is in a particular way”

In order to express this in Spanish, you could use:

"(me) vale la pena que <subjuntivo>..."
"no (me) vale la pena que <subjuntivo>..."

An example of this is the reply above:

"Vale la pena que el profe me ayude".

Some other examples of expressions of this type in Spanish are:

No vale la pena que llueva (it is pointless that it rains);
No vale la pena que me cuentes mentiras (it is not worthwhile telling me lies);
No vale la pena que Pedro me llame (it is not worthwhile Pedro calling me);
Vale la pena que viajemos juntos (it is worthwhile us travelling together);
No me vale la pena que hagáis eso (for me, it is not worthwhile you doing that);
No vale la pena que Pedro y María vayan a Nueva York (it is not worthwhile Pedro and María going to New York);

Now you should practise this use of the subjunctive with some more sentences of your own

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Wednesday, 29 August 2012

Vaca

Today's WOTD is: "vaca" = cow

In Spanish, the noun "vaca" is a feminine noun of Latin origin which means cow. The masculine noun is “toro”, which refers to the English term bull.

A Spanish word often associated with the noun “vaca” is “ternera”, which means calf/ veal. For more on the word “ternera”, visit WOTD "ternera" .

Some commonly used expressions containing the words "vaca" are:

Carne de vaca (beef);
Filete de vaca (fillet steak);
Estar como una vaca (to be very fat);
Manteca de vaca (butter – from cows milk);
Ponerse como una vaca (to get very fat);
Uva de teta de vaca (a grape variety);
Vaca loca (mad cow);
Vacas flacas (lean years/ lean time periods);
Vacas gordas (boom years/ boom time periods);
Vaca lechera (dairy cow);
Vaca marina (manatee);
Vaca sagrada (sacred cow);

Some examples of the use of the word "vaca" are:

Hoy tenemos carne de vaca (today we have beef);
Hoy tenemos filete de vaca con patatas fritas (today we have fillet steak with chips);
Ana está como una vaca (Ana is very fat);
En la nevera hay manteca de vaca (there is butter in the fridge);
Pedro se ha puesto como una vaca (Pedro has got very fat);
La enefermedad de las vacas locas (mad cow disease);
Estamos en época de vacas flacas (we are going through a lean period);
Estamos en época de vacas gordas (we are going through a boom period);
Tengo una vaca lechera (I have a dairy milk cow – title of a popular song!);

Love-Spanish.com loves the word "vaca" in the YouTube clip: LA VACA LECHERA

For more on the word "vaca", visit: Wordreference.com/es/en/ Vaca

*NB 'Click' on the speaker icon next to the word “vaca” in the link to hear the word pronounced.

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Tuesday, 28 August 2012

Are There Any Restaurants Still Open?

SCENARIO

Imagine you are with a relative, a friend or colleague. You are in a town in Spain and it is getting rather late at night. You both would like something to eat and the other person says to you something like: "are there any restaurants still open?"

In Spanish, the other person could say:

¿Quedan restaurantes abiertos?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say whether or not there are any restaurants still open in the vicinity of where you are. Your reply depends only on what you know about restaurants availability at this time. Perhaps you want to say that you:

Believe it to be so;
Know to be so;
Don't know whether or not that is the case;

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

Creo que quedan restaurantes abiertos por aquí (I believe there are restaurants still open around here).
Sí, quedan varios restaurantes abiertos por aquí (yes, there are several restaurants still open around here);
Sí, queda sólo un restaurante abierto por aquí (yes, there is one restaurant still open around here);
No, no quedan restaurantes abiertos por aquí (no, there aren't any restaurants still open around here);
No sé si quedan restaurantes abiertos por aquí (I don't know if there are any restaurants still open around here);

Now you should practise answering the question:

¿Quedan restaurantes abiertos?

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Monday, 27 August 2012

Tell Me, What Do You Think About The Spanish Class?

SCENARIO

Imagine you are talking to a relative, a friend or a colleague. Maybe you are comparing notes about the Spanish class you both attend. The other person wants to know your opinion about it and says to you something like: "tell me, what do you think about the Spanish class?".

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

Dime, ¿qué te parece la clase de español?

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

Dígame, ¿qué le parece a (usted) la clase de español?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to give your opinion about the Spanish lesson. When giving your opinion on something like this, 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 your opinion. Perhaps you want express your opinion as:

Statements of fact-like information;
Statements of value judgement;

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

Me parece que la clase de español es muy buena (I think the Spanish lesson is very good);
Me parece que la clase de español es muy instructiva (I think the Spanish lesson is very educational);
Bajo mi punto de vista la clase de español es muy interesante (in my view the Spanish lesson is very interesting);
Me parece bien que la clase sea los lunes* (I think it is good that the Spanish lesson is on Mondays);
Me parece muy bien que la clase sea por la noche* (I think it is good that the Sppanish lesson is in the evening);
No me parece bien que las clases cuesten tanto* (I don't think it is good that the Spanish lessons are so expensive);
Me parece muy mal que haya que pagar el curso entero por adelantado* (I think it is very bad that you have to pay all the fees upfront);

Now you should practise further replying to someone who says to you:

Dime, ¿qué te parece la clase de español?

*Please see grammar below

Grammar-Subjunctive

Please note these are typical examples of the use of subjunctive mood. As a rule, the subjunctive mood should be used in expressions of value judgement such as:

"I think it is good/ bad that something {has happened/ is happening/ will happen}”
"I think it is good/ bad that something {has been/ is/ will be} in a particular way”
"I think it is good/ bad that someone – other than I {has done/ is is doing/ will do} something”
"I think it is good/ bad that someone – other than I {has been/ is/ will be} in a particular way”

In order to express this in Spanish, you could use:

"me parece bien que <subjuntivo>..."
"no me parece bien que <subjuntivo>..."
"me parece mal que <subjuntivo>..."
"no me parece mal que <subjuntivo>..."
"¡qué bien que <subjuntivo>... !"

An example of this is the reply above:

"no me parece bien que las clases cuesten tanto".

Some other examples of expressions of this type in Spanish are:

Me parece bien que Pedro me llame (I think it is good that Pedro will call me);
No me parece bien que me hayas contado mentiras (I don't think it is good that you have told me lies);
Me parece bien que vayamos a poder viajar juntos (I think it is good that we are able to travel together)
No me parece mal que queráis eso (I don't think it is bad that you want that)
¡Qué bien que Pedro y María estén contentos (How good it is that Pedro and María are happy)

Now you should practise this use of the subjunctive with some more sentences of your own

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Sunday, 26 August 2012

Oveja

Today's WOTD is: "oveja" = sheep

In Spanish, the noun "oveja" is a feminine noun of Latin origin which means sheep. The Spanish noun “oveja” also means ewe. The masculine noun “carnero” refers to the male animal and means ram.

A Spanish word often associated with “oveja” is “redil”, which means pen or fold.

For more on the word “oveja”, visit WOTD "cordero"

Grammar.- Please note that, unlike its English counterpart, which is both singular and plural, the Spanish noun 'oveja' has a normal plural, 'ovejas'.

Some commonly used expressions containing the words "oveja" and “redil” are:

Cada oveja con su pareja (birds of a feather flock together);
Encomendar las ovejas al lobo (to put the wolf in charge of protecting the sheep);
Oveja descarriada (lost sheep);
Oveja negra (black sheep);
Un rebaño (de ovejas) (a flock of sheep);
Volver al redil (to return to the fold);

Some examples of the use of the word "oveja" are:

Lo que vas a hacer es como encomendar las ovejas al lobo (what you are going to do is like putting the wolf in charge of protecting the sheep);
Pedro es la oveja negra de la familia (Pedro is the black sheep of the family);
La batalla de Don Quijote contra un rebaño de ovejas (Don Quixote's battle with a flock of sheep);
La oveja descarriada vuelve al redil (the lost sheep returns to the fold);

Love-Spanish.com loves the word "oveja" in the YouTube clip: El pastor y la oveja desobediente

For more on the word "oveja", visit: Wordreference.com/es/en/ Oveja

*NB 'Click' on the speaker icon next to the word “oveja” in the link to hear the word pronounced.

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Saturday, 25 August 2012

Are There Any Seats Left On That Flight?

SCENARIO

Imagine you are talking to a relative, a friend or colleague. Maybe you have just bought flight tickets to go to Barcelona. The other person may now be considering taking the same flight, but is uncertain about seat availability. At some point, the other person says to you something like: "are there any seats left on that flight?"

In Spanish, the other person could say:

¿Quedan plazas en ese vuelo?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say whether or not there are any vacant seats on the flight in question. Your reply depends only on whether you:

Believe there are seats available;
Believe there are not seats available;
Don't know if there are seats available;

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

Sí, creo que quedan plazas en ese vuelo (yes, I believe there are seats available on that flight).
No, creo que no quedan plazas en ese vuelo (no, I don't believe there are seats available on that flight);
No sé si quedan plazas en ese vuelo (I don't know if there are seats available on that flight);

Now you should practise answering the question:

¿Quedan plazas en ese vuelo?

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Friday, 24 August 2012

Tell Me, What Surprises You About August 24th?

SCENARIO

Imagine you are talking to a relative, a friend or a colleague. You are talking about current events. You appear a bit surprised about what is happening around the world today. The other person wants to know what is puzzling you and says to you something like: "tell me, what surprises you about August 24^th?".

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

Dime, ¿qué te sorprende del veinticuatro de agosto?

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

Dígame, ¿a (usted) qué le sorprende del veinticuatro de agosto?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say what you find puzzling about something. When you say what surprises you about something like this, you should NOT need to be concerned about the level of formality in the other person's question. Your main concern should be about communicating what surprises you. Perhaps you want to express that in the form of:

Statements of fact-like information;
Statements displaying emotion - surprise;

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

Me sorprenden las fiestas de San Bartolomé (I am surprised by the St Bartholomew feast day events);
No me sorprende el calor que hace (I am not surprised by how hot it is)
No me sorprende nada (I am not surprised by anything);
Es raro que haga frío el veinticuatro de agosto (it is odd that is cold on the 24^th of August);
Es extraño que llueva el veinticuatro de agosto (it is strange that is raining on the 24^th of August);
¡Qué raro que haga frío el veinticuatro de agosto! (how odd that is cold on the 24^th of August!);
¡Qué extraño que llueva el veinticuatro de agosto! (how strange that is raining on the 24^th of August!);

Now you should practise further replying to someone who says to you:

Dime, ¿qué te sorprende del veinticuatro de agosto?

*Please see grammar below

Grammar-Subjunctive

Please note these are typical examples of the use of subjunctive mood. As a general rule, the subjunctive mood should be used when expressing surprise, as in:

"It surprises me that something {has happened/ is happening/ will happen}”
"It surprises me that something {has been/ is/ will will be} in a particular way”
"It surprises me that someone – other than I {has done/ is is doing/ will do} something”
"It surprises me that someone – other than I {has been/ is/ will will be} in a particular way”
"How strange that something {has happened/ is happening/ will happen}”
"How strange that something {has been/ is/ will will be} in a particular way”
"How strange that someone {has done/ is is doing/ will do} something”
"How strange that someone {has been/ is/ will will be} in a particular way

In order to express this in Spanish, you could use:

"me sorprende que <subjuntivo>..."
"no me sorprende que <subjuntivo>..."
"es raro que <subjuntivo>..."
"es extraño que <subjuntivo>..."
"¡qué raro que <subjuntivo>...!"
"¡qué extraño que <subjuntivo>...!"

An example of this is the reply above:

"Es raro que haga frío el veinticuatro de agosto (it is odd that is cold on the 24^th of August);".

Some other examples of expressions of this type in Spanish are:

Me sorprende que esté lloviendo (I am surprised that it is raining)
No me sorprende que me hayas contado mentiras (I am not surprised that you have told me lies)
Es raro que Pedro no me llame (it is odd that that Pedro doesn't call me)
Es extraño que no podamos viajar juntos (it is strange that we cannot travel together)
¡Que raro que queráis eso! (how odd that you want that)
¡Qué extraño que Pedro y María no llamen! (how strange that Pedro and María don't call)

Now you should practise this use of the subjunctive with some more sentences of your own

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