Friday, 30 October 2015

Tell Me, Who Would Probably Not Be Able To Attend?

Introduction


This post is about verb conjugation -the imperfect tense, subjunctive mood of irregular verb poder.





SCENARIO


Imagine you are taking to a relative, friend or colleague about an event which took place yesterday. It is not clear who was able and wasn't able to attend. At some point, the other person says: "tell me, who would probably not be able to attend?".

In Spanish, the other person could choose to be less formal and say:
Dime, ¿quién era probable que no pudiera asistir?

On the other hand, he/ she could choose to be more formal and say:
Dígame, ¿quién era probable que no pudiera asistir?


OUR TIP

Making a sentence which answers that question should be straightforward, but remember:


  • Make sure that you conjugate your verb correctly
  • Choose between formal or familiar options to suit the occasion -see examples below.

Typical answers could be:
  • Probablemente yo no pudiera* asistir (I would probably not be able to attend)
  • Probablemente tú pudieras* asistir, ¿no? (you -familiar would probably be able to attend, wouldn't you?)
  • Probablemente usted pudiera* asistir, ¿no? (you -formal would probably be able to attend, wouldn't you?)
  • Probablemente Pedro no pudiera* asistir (Pedro would probably not be able to attend)
  • Probablemente María no pudiera* asistir (Maria would probably not be able to attend)
  • Probablemente mis amigos y yo no pudiéramos* asistir (my friends and I would probably not be able to attend)
  • Probablemente vosotros pudierais* asistir, ¿no? (you people -familiar/ plural would probably be able to attend, wouldn't you?)
  • Probablemente ustedes pudieran* asistir, ¿no? (you people -formal/ plural would probably be able to attend, wouldn't you?)
  • Probablemente Pedro y María no pudieran* asistir (Pedro and María would probably not be able to attend)

Now you should practise replying to someone who says to you:
Dime, ¿quién era probable que no pudiera asistir?

*Please see grammar topic below, Verbs

Verbs
A verb is a 'doing' word which conveys:
  • What action takes place in a sentence
  • Who does that action
  • When that action occurs.
In addition, the verb may also convey the mood or feelings of the speaker toward the action which takes place. The verb may, for example, indicate whether the speaker is stating a fact, expressing a wish or indeed giving an order.

Irregular Verbs
Verb: poder
The Spanish verb poder is irregular* in some tenses, as shown in the table below:

Tense
Mood
Regular
Irregular
Present
Indicative

Imperfect
Indicative

Preterite
Indicative

Future
Indicative

Conditional
Indicative

Perfect
Indicative

Pluperfect
Indicative

Future Perfect
Indicative

Conditional Perfect
Indicative

Present
Subjunctive

Imperfect
Subjunctive

Perfect
Subjunctive

Pluperfect
Subjunctive


* NB:
  • Conjugate tenses in the regular column the same as other regular verbs ending in -er
  • The imperfect tense conjugation/ subjunctive mood is shown below

Subjunctive Mood/ Imperfect Tense - Conjugation
    Verb: poder
Subject
PODER
(TO BE ABLE)
I
Yo
PUDIERA o
PUDIESE
You
PUDIERAS o
PUDIESES
You Usted*

PUDIERA o
PUDIESE
He Él
She
Ella
We
Nosotros
PUDIÉRAMOS o
PUDIÉSEMOS
You
Vosotros**
PUDIERAIS o
PUDIESEIS
You
Ustedes***
PUDIERAN o
PUDIESEN
They
Ellos
They
Ellas

*NB More courteous/ polite form of 'you'
**NB 'You' plural
*** NB More courteous/ polite form of 'you' plural

Verb Conjugation Notes
It is worth remembering once more that in its basic form (infinitive), a Spanish verb is just a general 'doing' word. In that form, a verb simply indicates an action and nothing else. If we want a verb to be more specific about the action in a sentence, we need to conjugate it. It is only when conjugated that the verb indicates:
  • Who does the action
  • When the action takes place
  • The mood/ attitude of the speaker towards the action

The conjugation tables above refer to using conjugation to establish who does the action. What follows below are some notes on establishing when the action takes place and the mood/ attitude of the speaker towards the action.

Subjunctive Mood
The use of subjunctive mood is disappearing English. Nowadays is often viewed as an old and unfashionable form of the language.

In contrast, the use of subjunctive mood is very much alive and in everyday use in Spanish. This widespread use of subjunctive mood tends to be the bane of many a learner of Spanish from the English speaking world.

The concept of subjunctive mood is perhaps best illustrated by contrasting its use against the use of indicative mood with examples in English. The following are a couple of examples which should serve that purpose:
  • Indicative mood (“Peter eats an apple”).- Indicative mood is commonly used to make statements of facts or positive beliefs such as this one. As can be seen in the sample sentence (in quotes above), the speaker makes a clear and unambiguous statement of a fact (Peter eats an apple).
  • Subjunctive mood (“Peter would eat an apple if he were hungry”).- In contrast with indicative mood, subjunctive mood is commonly used to make statements indicating hypothetical or non-fact actions. As can be seen in the sample sentence (in quotes), in this case the speaker sees the action of eating an apple as something hypothetical, something which may or may not happen (Peter would eat an apple... if he were hungry).
Verb Tenses
Verb tenses relate to setting the time period (when) during which the action of the verb takes place. Basic times (periods) for Spanish verb actions are:
  • The past (before now)
  • The present (now)
  • The future (after now)
Each Spanish verb tense corresponds to one of those basic time periods. In other words choosing a verb tense places the action of the verb in one of those basic periods and determines when the action takes place.


Now you should practise the use of the imperfect tense of the irregular verb poder with some examples of your own.

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Thursday, 29 October 2015

Cubo

Today's word is: Cubo
Clase: sustantivo (noun)
Género: masculino (masculine)
Origen: latín (Latin)


In Spanish, “cubo” is a masculine noun of Latin origin which means bucket or pail and is used as in:
  • Un cubo de agua (a bucket of water)


The noun “cubo” may also mean cube, as in:
  • El cubo es una figura geométrica (a cube is a geometrical figure)
  • El cubo de 2 es 8 (the cube of 2 is 8)


The description word/ adjective “cúbico”/ “cúbica” is a related word meaning cubic, and used as in:
  • Ahorramos varios metros cúbicos de agua al año (we save several cubic metres of water per year)


The action word/ verb “cubicar” is also a related word meaning to cube or determine a volume, and is used as in:
  • Tuvieron que cubicar la piscina (they had to determine the volume of the pool)


Some Spanish expressions with the word “cubo” are:
  • Al cubo (cubed/ to the power of 3)
    • 2 al cubo es igual a 8 (2 to the power of 3 is equal to 8)
  • Cubo de la basura (rubbish bin/ trash can)


Love-Spanish.com loves the word "cubo" in the YouTube clip: CALO - El Cubo

For more on the word "cubo", visit: Wordreference.com/es/en/ Cubo

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

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Wednesday, 28 October 2015

Wednesday 28th Of October 2015

SCENARIO




Imagine that today, a relative, a friend or a work colleague asks you: "what is today's date?"

In Spanish, the other person could say:
¿Qué día es hoy?




Hoy es:



The question is an invitation for you to say today's date.



A quick look at your diary confirms that today is: Wednesday the 28th of October 2015. You could give today's date in Spanish by saying:




Hoy es miércoles veintiocho de octubre de dos mil quince





Notes:
  1. Today is = Hoy es
  2. Wednesday = miércoles
  3. The 28th = veintiocho
  4. Of October = de octubre
  5. 2015 = de dos mil quince
  6. In Spanish, we just say "28", instead of "the 28th"
  7. In Spanish we literally say: "of 2015"
  8. In Spanish we don't capitalise day of the week names, for example: miércoles
  9. In Spanish we don't capitalise month names, for example: octubre

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    Thursday, 22 October 2015

    At What Time Do You Have Breakfast?

    Introduction


    This post deals with talking about the timings of daily activities in general, and more specifically with indicating at what time you have breakfast.




    SCENARIO


    Imagine you are talking to a relative, a friend or colleague. Maybe you are talking about your daily habits. At some point, the other person says: "at what time do you have breakfast?"

    In Spanish, the other person could choose to be less formal and say:
    ¿A qué hora desayunas?

    Alternatively, he/ she could choose to be more formal and say:
    ¿A qué hora desayuna (usted)?


    OUR TIP

    The question is an invitation for you to state the time you have breakfast. When you state the time you have breakfast, you DO NOT need to be concerned about the level of formality in the other person's question. Perhaps what you want to say is that you have breakfast at:
    • A specific time
    • A specific time on specific days


    Here are some examples of how you could reply:
    • Desayuno a las siete (I have breakfast at seven)
    • Los lunes desayuno a las siete y media (on Mondays I have breakfast at half past seven)
    • Los viernes desayuno a las ocho (on Fridays I have breakfast at eight)
    • De lunes a viernes desayuno a las siete (Monday to Friday I have breakfast at seven)
    • Los sábados y domingos desayuno a las diez (on Saturdays and Sundays I have breakfast at ten)


    *Notes
    Please note the difference between the expressions of time used in these answers and typical expressions used in telling the time, such as:
    • Es la una (it is one o'clock)
    • Son las siete (it is seven o'clock)


    Please note also that if you wanted to indicate that you have breakfast at an unspecified time in the morning, you could just say:
    • Desayuno por la mañana (I have breakfast in the morning)

    Now you should practice answering the question:
    ¿A qué hora desayunas?

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    Monday, 19 October 2015

    Tonelada

    Today's word is: Tonelada
    Clase: sustantivo (noun)
    Género: femenino (feminine)
    Origen: francés (French)

    In Spanish, “tonelada” is a feminine noun of French origin which means tonne or ton and is used as in:
    • El precio por tonelada ha subido (the price per tonne/ ton has increased)

    In Spanish, the noun “tonelada” may also be used in a figurative sense, as in:
    • Ese diccionario pesa una tonelada (that dictionary weighs a tonne/ ton)


    Some Spanish expressions with the word “tonelada” are:
    • Tonelada de arqueo (unit of capacity = 2.83 cubic meters)
    • Tonelada métrica (metric tonne/ ton = 1000 kg)
    • Tonelada seca (dry tonne/ ton)

    Love-Spanish.com loves the word "tonelada" in the YouTube clip: Francisco "El Gallo" Elizalde -16Toneladas

    For more on the word "tonelada", visit: Wordreference.com/es/en/ Tonelada

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

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