CONTENTS

The following Help Topics are available:

Verbs

Articles

Nouns

Pronouns

Adjectives

Adverbs

Prepositions

Conjunctions

Relative Forms

Interjections

Syntax

The Clock And The Calendar

Cardinal and Ordinal Numbers

Punctuation

Abbreviations Commonly Used

Glossary

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SUMMARY OF TENSES

Spanish verbs have fourteen tenses, seven simple and seven compound.  The changes that a verb undergoes in different tenses and moods are accomplished by use of endings and auxiliaries.  Their systematic arrangement is called conjugation.

Verbs are divided into three classes according to their infinitive endings:

-ar	-er	-ir

jugar	vender	vivir

to play	to sell	to live

The -er and -ir forms differ in four ways:

[1]  infinitive

[2]  first person plural, present indicative

[3]  second person plural, present indicative

[4]  second person plural, imperative

Spanish	English

Simple Tenses Indicative

Presente:	Present:	Present Continuous:

Yo juego	I play / I do play	I am playing

Pretérito:	Simple Past:

Yo jugué	I played / I did play

Imperfecto:	Imperfect:	Past Continuous:

Yo jugaba	I played / I used to play	I was playing

Futuro:	Future:	Future Continuous:

Yo jugaré	I will / shall play	I will be playing

I am going to play

Condicional Simple:	Conditional:	Conditional Continuous:

Yo jugaría	I would play	I would be playing

Compound Tenses Indicative

Pretérito Perfecto:	Present Perfect:	Present Perfect Continuous:

Yo he jugado	I have played	I have been playing

Pretérito Anterior:	Past Anterior:

Yo hube jugado	I had played

Pluscuamperfecto:	Past Perfect:	Past Perfect Continuous:

Yo había jugado	I had played	I had been playing

Futuro Perfecto:	Future Perfect:

Yo habré jugado	I shall have played

I will have played

Condicional Compuesto:	Conditional Perfect:

Yo habría jugado	I would have played

Simple Tenses Subjunctive

Presente:	Present Subjunctive:

Yo juegue	[that] I may play

Imperfecto:	Imperfect Subjunctive:

Yo jugara	[that] I might play

or

Yo jugase

Compound Tenses Subjunctive

Pretérito Perfecto:	Past Subjunctive:

Yo haya jugado	[that] I may have played

Pluscuamperfecto:	Past Perfect Subjunctive:

Yo hubiera jugado	[that] I might have played

or

Yo hubiese jugado

Related Topics:

Contents

Verbs


ESTAR, SER, IR, & TENER

Conjugations

The Spanish estar, ser, ir, and tener are commonly used irregular verbs.  They are conjugated as follows:

ESTAR (to be)

Present / Present Continuous	Present Perfect / Present Perfect Continuous

(I am)	(I have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  estoy	1.  he estado

2.  estás	2.  has estado

3.  está	3.  ha estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estamos	1.  hemos estado

2.  estáis	2.  habéis estado

3.  están	3.  han estado

Simple Past	Past Anterior

(I was)	(I had been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  estuve	1.  hube estado

2.  estuviste	2.  hubiste estado

3.  estuvo	3.  hubo estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estuvimos	1.  hubimos estado

2.  estuvisteis	2.  hubisteis estado

3.  estuvieron	3.  hubieron estado

Imperfect / Past Continuous	Past Perfect / Past Perfect Continuous

(I was / I used to)	(I had been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  estaba	1.  había estado

2.  estabas	2.  habías estado

3.  estaba	3.  había estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estábamos	1.  habíamos estado

2.  estabais	2.  habíais estado

3.  estaban	3.  habían estado

Future / Future Continuous	Future Perfect

(I will be / am going to be)	(I will have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  estaré	1.  habré estado

2.  estarás	2.  habrás estado

3.  estará	3.  habrá estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estaremos	1.  habremos estado

2.  estaréis	2.  habréis estado

3.  estarán	3.  habrán estado

Conditional / Conditional Continuous	Conditional Perfect

(I would be)	(I would have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  estaría	1.  habría estado

2.  estarías	2.  habrías estado

3.  estaría	3.  habría estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estaríamos	1.  habríamos estado

2.  estaríais	2.  habríais estado

3.  estarían	3.  habrían estado

Present Subjunctive	Past Subjunctive

(that I may be)	(that I may have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  esté	1.  haya estado

2.  estés	2.  hayas estado

3.  esté	3.  haya estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estemos	1.  hayamos estado

2.  estéis	2.  hayáis estado

3.  estén	3.  hayan estado

Imperfect Subjunctive	Past Perfect Subjunctive

(that I might be)	(that I might have  been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  estuviera	1.  hubiera estado

2.  estuvieras	2.  hubieras estado

3.  estuviera	3.  hubiera estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estuviéramos	1.  hubiéramos estado

2.  estuvierais	2.  hubierais estado

3.  estuvieran	3.  hubieran estado

or

Singular:	Singular:

1.  estuviese	1.  hubiese estado

2.  estuvieses	2.  hubieses estado

3.  estuviese	3.  hubiese estado

Plural:	Plural:

1.  estuviésemos	1.  hubiésemos estado

2.  estuvieseis	2.  hubieseis estado

3.  estuviesen	3.  hubiesen estado

SER (to be)

Present / Present Continuous	Present Perfect / Present Perfect Continuous

(I am)	(I have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  soy	1.  he sido

2.  eres	2.  has sido

3.  es	3.  ha sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  somos	1.  hemos sido

2.  sois	2.  habéis sido

3.  son	3.  han sido

Simple Past	Past Anterior

(I was)	(I had been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  fui	1.  hube sido

2.  fuiste	2.  hubiste sido

3.  fue	3.  hubo sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  fuimos	1.  hubimos sido

2.  fuisteis	2.  hubisteis sido

3.  fueron	3.  hubieron sido

Imperfect / Past Continuous	Past Perfect / Past Perfect Continuous

(I was / I used to)	(I had been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  era	1.  había sido

2.  eras	2.  habías sido

3.  era	3.  había sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  éramos	1.  habíamos sido

2.  erais	2.  habíais sido

3.  eran	3.  habían sido

Future / Future Continuous	Future Perfect

(I will be / am going to be)	(I will have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  seré	1.  habré sido

2.  serás	2.  habrás sido

3.  será	3.  habrá sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  seremos	1.  habremos sido

2.  seréis	2.  habréis sido

3.  serán	3.  habrán sido

Conditional / Conditional Continuous	Conditional Perfect

(I would be)	(I would have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  sería	1.  habría sido

2.  serías	2.  habrías sido

3.  sería	3.  habría sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  seríamos	1.  habríamos sido

2.  seríais	2.  habríais sido

3.  serían	3.  habrían sido

Present Subjunctive	Past Subjunctive

(that I may be)	(that I may have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  sea	1.  haya sido

2.  seas	2.  hayas sido

3.  sea	3.  haya sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  seamos	1.  hayamos sido

2.  seáis	2.  hayáis sido

3.  sean	3.  hayan sido

Imperfect Subjunctive	Past Perfect Subjunctive

(that I might be)	(that I might have been)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  fuera	1.  hubiera sido

2.  fueras	2.  hubieras sido

3.  fuera	3.  hubiera sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  fuéramos	1.  hubiéramos sido

2.  fuerais	2.  hubierais sido

3.  fueran	3.  hubieran sido

or

Singular:	Singular:

1.  fuese	1.  hubiese sido

2.  fueses	2.  hubieses sido

3.  fuese	3.  hubiese sido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  fuésemos	1.  hubiésemos sido

2.  fueseis	2.  hubieseis sido

3.  fuesen	3.  hubiesen sido

IR (to go)

Present / Present Continuous	Present Perfect / Present Perfect Continuous

(I go / I am going))	(I have gone)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  voy	1.  he ido

2.  vas	2.  has ido

3.  va	3.  ha ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  vamos	1.  hemos ido

2.  vais	2.  habéis ido

3.  van	3.  han ido

Simple Past	Past Anterior

(I went)	(I had gone)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  fui	1.  hube ido

2.  fuiste	2.  hubiste ido

3.  fue	3.  hubo ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  fuimos	1.  hubimos ido

2.  fuisteis	2.  hubisteis ido

3.  fueron	3.  hubieron ido

Imperfect / Past Continuous	Past Perfect / Past Perfect Continuous

(I went / I used to go)	(I had gone)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  iba	1.  había ido

2.  ibas	2.  habías ido

3.  iba	3.  había ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  íbamos	1.  habíamos ido

2.  ibais	2.  habíais ido

3.  iban	3.  habían ido

Future / Future Continuous	Future Perfect

(I will go / I am going to go)	(I will have gone)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  iré	1.  habré ido

2.  irás	2.  habrás ido

3.  irá	3.  habrá ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  iremos	1.  habremos ido

2.  iréis	2.  habréis ido

3.  irán	3.  habrán ido

Conditional / Conditional Continuous	Conditional Perfect

(I would go)	(I would have gone)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  iría	1.  habría ido

2.  irías	2.  habrías ido

3.  iría	3.  habría ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  iríamos	1.  habríamos ido

2.  iríais	2.  habríais ido

3.  irían	3.  habrían ido

Present Subjunctive	Past Subjunctive

(that I may go)	(that I may have gone)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  vaya	1.  haya ido

2.  vayas	2.  hayas ido

3.  vaya	3.  haya ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  vayamos	1.  hayamos ido

2.  vayáis	2.  hayáis ido

3.  vayan	3.  hayan ido

Imperfect Subjunctive	Past Perfect Subjunctive

(that I might go)	(that I might have gone)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  fuera	1.  hubiera ido

2.  fueras	2.  hubieras ido

3.  fuera	3.  hubiera ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  fuéramos	1.  hubiéramos ido

2.  fuerais	2.  hubierais ido

3.  fueran	3.  hubieran ido

or

Singular:	Singular:

1.  fuese	1.  hubiese ido

2.  fueses	2.  hubieses ido

3.  fuese	3.  hubiese ido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  fuésemos	1.  hubiésemos ido

2.  fueseis	2.  hubieseis ido

3.  fuesen	3.  hubiesen ido

TENER (to have)

Present / Present Continuous	Present Perfect / Present Perfect Continuous

(I have)	(I have had)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tengo	1.  he tenido

2.  tienes	2.  has tenido

3.  tiene	3.  ha tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  tenemos	1.  hemos tenido

2.  tenéis	2.  habéis tenido

3.  tienen	3.  han tenido

Simple Past	Past Anterior

(I had)	(I had had)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tuve	1.  hube tenido

2.  tuviste	2.  hubiste tenido

3.  tuvo	3.  hubo tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  tuvimos	1.  hubimos tenido

2.  tuvisteis	2.  hubisteis tenido

3.  tuvieron	3.  hubieron tenido

Imperfect / Past Continuous	Past Perfect / Past Perfect Continuous

(I had / I used to have)	(I had had)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tenía	1.  había tenido

2.  tenías	2.  habías tenido

3.  tenía	3.  había tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  teníamos	1.  habíamos tenido

2.  teníais	2.  habíais tenido

3.  tenían	3.  habían tenido

Future / Future Continuous	Future Perfect

(I will have / am going to have)	(I will have had)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tendré	1.  habré tenido

2.  tendrás	2.  habrás tenido

3.  tendrá	3.  habrá tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  tendremos	1.  habremos tenido

2.  tendréis	2.  habréis tenido

3.  tendrán	3.  habrán tenido

Conditional / Conditional Continuous	Conditional Perfect

(I would have)	(I would have had)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tendría	1.  habría tenido

2.  tendriás	2.  habrías tenido

3.  tendría	3.  habría tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  tendríamos	1.  habríamos tenido

2.  tendríais	2.  habríais tenido

3.  tendrían	3.  habrían tenido

Present Subjunctive	Past Subjunctive

(that I may have)	(that I may have had)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tenga	1.  haya tenido

2.  tengas	2.  hayas tenido

3.  tenga	3.  haya tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  tengamos	1.  hayamos tenido

2.  tengáis	2.  hayáis tenido

3.  tengan	3.  hayan tenido

Imperfect Subjunctive	Past Perfect Subjunctive

(that I might have)	(that I might have had)

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tuviera	1.  hubiera tenido

2.  tuvieras	2.  hubieras tenido

3.  tuviera	3.  hubiera tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  tuviéramos	1.  hubiéramos tenido

2.  tuvierais	2.  hubierais tenido

3.  tuvieran	3.  hubieran tenido

or

Singular:	Singular:

1.  tuviese	1.  hubiese tenido

2.  tuvieses	2.  hubieses tenido

3.  tuviese	3.  hubiese tenido

Plural:	Plural:

1.  tuviésemos	1.  hubiésemos tenido

2.  tuvieseis	2.  hubieseis tenido

3.  tuviesen	3.  hubiesen tenido

Related Topics:

Contents

Verbs


PRESENT TENSE

The Spanish Present Tense (Presente de Indicativo) is formed by changing the infinitive

-ar / -er / -ir to the following endings:

-ar verbs	-er verbs	-ir verbs

yo	-o	-o	-o

tú	-as	-es	-es

él/ella, usted	-a	-e	-e

nosotros/as	-amos	-emos	-imos

vosotros/as	-áis	-éis	-ís

ellos/as, ustedes	-an	-en	-en

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hablo	I speak

Tú hablas	You speak [familiar]

Ud. habla	You speak [formal]

Él/ella habla	He/she/it speaks

Nosotros/as hablamos	We speak

Vosotros/as habláis	You speak [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablan	You speak [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablan	They speak

Irregular verbs:

Yo doy	I give

Tú das	You give [familiar]

Ud. da	You give [formal]

Él/ella da	He/she/ it gives

Nosotros/as damos	We give

Vosotros/as dais	You give [familiar pl.]

Uds. dan	You give [formal pl.]

Ellos/as dan	They give

USAGE:

The Present Tense is equivalent to the English Simple Present + Present Continuous (Present Indicative).  It is used to state:

1.	A general fact that is permanently true:

El sol es la estrella más cercana a la tierra.

The sun is the closest star to the earth.

Dos por dos son cuatro.

Two times two equals four.

2.	A present action or state of being:

Yo trabajo en la oficina.

I work in the office.

3.	An action that will occur in the near future:

Me voy a las tres.

They will be leaving at three o'clock.

4.	An habitual action within a specified period of time.

Estudio español todos los sábados.

I study Spanish every Saturday.

5.	The English Present Continuous (most of the time):

Yo leo las instrucciones.

I am reading the instructions.

6.	A sentiment that may extend indefinitely into the past or the future (called the

universal present):

Dios es misericordioso.

God is merciful.

7.	Using hace, an action that occurred in the past and continues up to the present time:

Hace dos meses que vivo en esta casa.

I have been living in this house for two months.

8.	With por poco (almost or nearly):

¡Por poco me matan!

They nearly killed me!

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Simple Past Tense

Imperfect Tense

Future Tense

Present Subjunctive

Present Perfect Tense


PAST TENSE
SIMPLE PAST TENSE

The Simple Past Tense (Pretérito) of regular verbs is formed by changing the infinitive

-ar / -er / -ir to the following endings:

-ar verbs	-er / -ir verbs

yo	-é	-í

tú	-aste	-iste

él/ella, usted	-ó	-ió

nosotros/as	-amos	-imos

vosotros/as	-asteis	-isteis

ellos/as, ustedes	-aron	-ieron

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hablé	I spoke

Tú hablaste	You spoke [familiar]

Ud. habló	You spoke [formal]

Él/ella habló	He/she/it spoke

Nosotros/as hablamos	We spoke

Vosotros/as hablasteis	You spoke [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablaron	You spoke [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablaron	They spoke

Irregular verbs:

Yo di	I gave

Tú diste	You gave [familiar]

Ud. dio	You gave [formal]

Él/ella dio	He/she/it gave

Nosotros/as dimos	We gave

Vosotros/as disteis	You gave [familiar pl.]

Uds. dieron	You gave [formal pl.]

Ellos/as dieron	They gave

USAGE:

The Simple Past Tense is equivalent to the English Simple Past.  It is used to describe:

1.	An action completed in the past:

Ayer compré un vestido nuevo.

Yesterday I bought a new dress.

Debra fue al gimnasio la semana pasada.

Debra went to the gymnasium last week.

2.	An action completed within a definite period of time:

Estudié en la universidad entre 1981 y 1985.

I studied at the university between 1981 and 1985.

Viví en Estados Unidos durante tres años.

I lived in the United States for three years.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Present Tense

Imperfect Tense

Imperfect Subjunctive

Past Perfect Tense

Past Anterior Tense

Past Subjunctive


IMPERFECT TENSE

The Imperfect Tense (Imperfecto de Indicativo) is formed by changing the infinitive -ar / -er / -ir

to the following endings:

-ar verbs	-er / -ir verbs

yo	-aba	-ía

tú	-abas	-ías

él/ella, usted	-aba	-ía

nosotros/as	-ábamos	-íamos

vosotros/as	-abais	-íais

ellos/as, ustedes	-aban	-ían

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hablaba	I was speaking

Tú hablabas	You were speaking [familiar]

Ud. hablaba	You were speaking [formal]

Él/ella hablaba	He/she/it was speaking

Nosotros/as hablábamos	We were speaking

Vosotros/as hablabais	You were speaking [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablaban	You were speaking [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablaban	They spoke

Irregular verbs:

Yo iba	I went (used to go)

Tú ibas	You went (used to go) [familiar]

Ud. iba	You went (used to go) [formal]

Él/ella iba	He/she/it went (used to go)

Nosotros/as íbamos	We went (used to go)

Vosotros/as ibais	You went (used to go)[familiar pl.]

Uds. iban	You went (used to go)[formal pl.]

Ellos/as iban	They went (used to go)

USAGE:

The Imperfect Tense is equivalent to the English was or were + present participle (-ing)

(or used to + infinitive).  It is used to describe:

1.	An habitual or continuous action in the past:

Cuando estudiábamos inglés, íbamos a la biblioteca todas las tardes.

When we studied English,  we went to the library every afternoon.

2.	Two different actions occurring simultaneously (in the past):

Él corría con el perro mientras su hermano preparaba el almuerzo.

He ran with the dog while his brother prepared the lunch.

3.	An action occurring in the past that was interrupted by another action:

Estaban comiendo cuando alguien llamó a la puerta.

They were eating when somebody knocked the door.

4.	A completed action that preceded another past action.  This is equivalent to the English

had been + present participle.

Hacía una hora que esperaba cuando mis amigos llegaron.

I had been waiting for an hour when my friends arrived.

5.	Past conditions including mental, emotional, or physical states as well as age, weather, and 	time:

Él la amaba mucho.

He loved her very much.

Hacía mal tiempo.

The weather was bad.

Eran las ocho de la mañana.

It was eight o'clock in the morning.

Él se casó cuando tenía treinta años.

He married when he was thirty years old.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Simple Past Tense

Imperfect Subjunctive

Past Perfect Tense

Past Subjunctive


FUTURE TENSE

The Future Tense (Futuro) is formed by adding the following endings to the entire infinitive:

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	-é

tú	-ás

él/ella, usted	-á

nosotros/as	-emos

vosotros/as	-éis

ellos/as, ustedes	-án

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hablaré	I will speak

Tú hablarás	You will speak [familiar]

Ud. hablará	You will speak [formal]

Él/ella hablará	He/she/it will speak

Nosotros/as hablaremos	We will speak

Vosotros/as hablaréis	You will speak [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablarán	You will speak [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablarán	They will speak

Irregular verbs:

Yo diré	I will go

Tú dirás	You will go [familiar]

Ud. dirá	You will go [formal]

Él/ella dirá	He/she/it will to go

Nosotros/as diremos	We will go

Vosotros/as diréis	You will go [familiar pl.]

Uds. dirán	You will go [formal pl.]

Ellos/as dirán	They will go

VERBS WITH AN IRREGULAR STEM

Verbs with an irregular stem in the Future Tense use the same stem in the Conditional:

INFINITIVE	FUTURE	CONDITIONAL

caber	cabré	cabría

decir	diré	diría

haber	habré	habría

hacer	haré	haría

poder	podré	podría

poner	pondré	pondría

querer	querré	querría

saber	sabré	sabría

tener	tendré	tendría

valer	valdré	valdría

venir	vendré	vendría

USAGE:

The Future Tense is equivalent to the English Future Tense using will or shall.  It is used to describe:

1.	An action that will take place at a future time:

Ella terminará el proyecto en marzo.

She will finish the project in March.

2.	Present intent or determination:

Leeré el contrato hoy.

I will read the contract today.

3.	Present probability:

Ya estarán allí.

They are probably already there.

4.    Wonderment:

¿Dónde estarán?

I wonder where they are.

FUTURE ACTION USING ir + a + infinitive

The conjugated form of ir + a + infinitive expresses a future action.  This is an alternate Future Tense and its colloquial English equivalent is going to + infinitive:

Voy a visitar a mis padres el mes que viene.

I am going to visit my parents next month.

Él va a nadar en la competición el jueves.

He is going to swim in the competition on Thursday.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Future Perfect Tense


PRESENT CONDITIONAL
CONDITIONAL TENSE

The Conditional Tense (Condicional Simple) of regular and irregular verbs is formed by adding the following endings to the entire infinitive:

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	-ía

tú	-ías

él/ella, usted	-ía

nosotros/as	-íamos

vosotros/as	-íais

ellos/as, ustedes	-ían

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hablaría	I would speak

Tú hablarías	You would speak [familiar]

Ud. hablaría	You would speak [formal]

Él/ella hablaría	He/she/it would speak

Nosotros/as hablaríamos	We would speak

Vosotros/as hablaríais	You would speak [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablarían	You would speak [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablarían	They would speak

Irregular verbs:

Yo diría	I would say

Tú dirías	You would say [familiar]

Ud. diría	You would say [formal]

Él/ella diría	He/she/it would say

Nosotros/as diríamos	We would say

Vosotros/as diríais	You would say [familiar pl.]

Uds. dirían	You would say [formal pl.]

Ellos/as dirían	They would say

VERBS WITH AN IRREGULAR STEM

Verbs with an irregular stem in the Future Tense use the same stem in the Conditional:

INFINITIVE	FUTURE	CONDITIONAL

caber	cabré	cabría

decir	diré	diría

haber	habré	habría

hacer	haré	haría

poder	podré	podría

poner	pondré	pondría

querer	querré	querría

saber	sabré	sabría

tener	tendré	tendría

valer	valdré	valdría

venir	vendré	vendría

USAGE:

The Present Conditional is equivalent to the English construction would + infinitive.  It is used to describe:

1.	A future action with respect to the past:

Me avisaron que él vendría el viernes.

They advised me he would come on Friday.

2.	Contrary-to-fact sentences:

Si tuviera dinero, viajaría a Madrid.

If I had money, I would travel to Madrid.

Si yo fuera usted, no lo haría.

If I were you, I would not do it.

3.	Probability in past time:

Serían las cuatro cuando empezó.

It was probably four o'clock when it started.

Sería Antonio quien lo grabó.

It was probably Antonio who recorded it.

4.    Conjecture regarding the past:

¿Quién sería?

I wonder who that was.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Present Tense

Future Perfect Tense

Conditional Perfect Tense

Clauses


PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE

The Present Subjunctive (Presente de Subjuntivo) is formed by dropping the -o ending of the 1st person singular of the Present Indicative and adding the following endings:

-ar verbs	-er / -ir verbs

yo	-e	-a

tú	-es	-as

él/ella, usted	-e	-a

nosotros/as	-emos	-amos

vosotros/as	-éis	-áis

ellos/as, ustedes	-en	-an

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hable	that I may speak

Tú hables	that you may speak [familiar]

Ud. hable	that you may speak [formal]

Él/ella hable	that he/she/it may speak

Nosotros/as hablemos	that we may speak

Vosotros/as habléis	that you may speak [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablen	that you may speak [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablen	that they may speak

Irregular verbs:

Yo ponga	that I may put

Tú pongas	that you may put [familiar]

Ud. ponga	that you may put [formal]

Él/ella ponga	that he/she/it may put

Nosotros/as pongamos	that we may put

Vosotros/as pongáis	that you may put [familiar pl.]

Uds. pongan	that you may put [formal pl.]

Ellos/as pongan	that they may put

Six verbs are irregular in the Present Subjunctive, that is to say, they do not follow the 	above-mentioned rule:

dar	to give

estar	to be

haber	to have (aux.)

ir	to go

saber	to know

ser	to be

USAGE:

The Indicative is used to state a fact, whereas the Present Subjunctive is used to express uncertainty, possibility, a feeling, or a wish.

The Spanish Present Subjunctive has an English equivalent, but it is often neglected (i.e., if I were to go vs. if I was to go).

The subjunctive must be used in subordinate clauses in which there is a change of subject and when there is doubt in the mind of the speaker or writer as to the absolute truth or future outcome of the action described.

If the verb in the main clause is in the Present, Future, or Present Perfect Tense, or the Imperative Form, then the Present Subjunctive is used in the subordinate clause.

The subjunctive is used:

1.	In subordinate clauses, following verbs of desire, command, emotion, doubt, and uncertainty.

Quiero que tú vayas.	[change of subject]

I want you to go.

Verbs of Emotion

esperar	to hope

temer	to fear

alegrarse	to be glad

estar contento de	to be pleased

sentir	to be sorry, to regret

Verbs of Doubt, Uncertainty, or Denial

no creer	not to believe, not to think

dudar	to doubt

negar	to deny

no pensar	not to think

Verbs of Command or Desire

pedir	to ask

decir	to tell [someone to do something]

querer	to want

preferir	to prefer

mandar	to order

necesitar	to need

sugerir	to suggest

2.	In subordinate clauses, following an impersonal expression

Es importante que los niños coman verduras.

It is important that the children eat vegetables.

Impersonal Expressions

es importante	it's important

es imposible	it's impossible

es una lástima	it's a pity

es necesario	it's necessary

es posible	it's possible

es preciso	it's necessary

es probable	it's probable, likely

es raro	it's unusual, strange

es urgente	it's urgent

3.	In subordinate clauses, after negative impersonal expressions.  The subjunctive is not used

in subordinate clauses after affirmative impersonal expressions of fact.

Negative -- Subjunctive	Affirmative -- Indicative

no es verdad	it's not true	es verdad	it's true

no es cierto	it's not certain	es cierto	it's certain

no es evidente	it's not evident	es evidente	it's evident

no es claro	it's not clear	es claro	it's clear

no es seguro	it's not sure	es seguro	it's sure

No es verdad que Inés se vaya.	Es verdad que Inés se va.

It's not true that Inez is going.	It's true that Inez is going.

4.	In subordinate clauses, when the noun modified by the subordinate clause does not refer to a 	specific person or thing.

Quiero hablar con alguien que conozca bien las computadoras.

I want to speak with someone who knows computers well.

Ella desea comprar un carro que sea bueno.

She wishes to buy a good car.

5.	In subordinate clauses that modify words formed by adding -quiera (cuando, donde, quien).

cualquiera	whichever

cuandoquiera	whenever

comoquiera	however

dondequiera	wherever

quienquiera	whoever

Quienquiera que vaya será bienvenido.

Whoever goes, it will be welcome.

Dondequiera que te encuentres, llámame.

Wherever you find yourself, call me.

6.	In subordinate clauses that modify a negative antecedent.

No hay nadie que lo haga mejor.

There is no one who does it better.

Ella no come nada que tenga azúcar.

She does not eat anything that contains sugar.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Present Tense

Past Subjunctive

Clauses

Negation


IMPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE

The Imperfect Subjunctive (Imperfecto de Subjuntivo) is formed by dropping the -ron ending of the 3rd person plural of the Simple Past (Pretérito) and adding the following endings:

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

or

yo	-ra	-se

tú	-ras	-ses

él/ella, usted	-ra	-se

nosotros/as	-ramos	-semos

vosotros/as	-rais	-seis

ellos/as, ustedes	-ran	-sen

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hablara	that I might speak

Tú hablaras	that you might speak [familiar]

Ud. hablara	that you might speak [formal]

Él/ella hablara	that he/she/it might speak

Nosotros/as habláramos	that we might speak

Vosotros/as hablarais	that you might speak [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablaran	that you might speak [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablaran	that they might speak

or

Yo hablase	that I might speak

Tú hablases	that you might speak [familiar]

Ud. hablase	that you might speak [formal]

Él/ella hablase	that he/she/it might speak

Nosotros/as hablásemos	that we might speak

Vosotros/as hablaseis	that you might speak [familiar pl.]

Uds. hablasen	that you might speak [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hablasen	that they might speak

Irregular verbs:

Yo diera	that I might give

Tú dieras	that you might give [familiar]

Ud. diera	that you might give [formal]

Él/ella diera	that he/she/it might give

Nosotros/as diéramos	that we might give

Vosotros/as dierais	that you might give [familiar pl.]

Uds. dieran	that you might give) [formal pl.]

Ellos/as dieran	that they might give

Note the accent over the a or e of the first person plural stem of all Imperfect

Subjunctives, both regular and irregular.

IRREGULAR PAST STEMS

Verbs with an irregular stem in the Past use that stem to form the Imperfect Subjunctive.

Infinitive	Irregular Stem	Imperfect Subjunctive

andar	to walk	anduv-	anduviera	anduviese

caber	to fit	cup-	cupiera	cupiese

dar	to give	d-	diera	diese

estar	to be	estuv-	estuviera	estuviese

haber	to have (aux)	hub-	hubiera	hubiese

hacer	to do	hic-	hiciera	hiciese

poder	to be able	pud-	pudiera	pudiese

poner	to put	pus-	pusiera	pusiese

querer	to want	quis-	quisiera	quisiese

saber	to know	sup-	supiera	supiese

tener	to have	tuv-	tuviera	tuviese

venir	to come	vin-	viniera	viniese

Ir  and ser have the same irregular forms in the Imperfect Subjunctive:

ir	to go	fue-	fuera	fuese

ser	to be	fue-	fuera	fuese

STEM-CHANGING VERBS

Stem-changing verbs ending in -ir add -iera or -iese to the irregular third person Simple Past stem.

sentir	to regret, feel	sint-	sintiera	sintiese

morir	to die	mur-	muriera	muriese

pedir	to ask for	pid-	pidiera	pidiese

IRREGULAR PAST STEMS ENDING IN j

Verbs with irregular third person Simple Past stems ending in j add -era or -ese.

decir	to say	dij-	dijera	dijese

traducir	to translate	traduj-	tradujera	tradujese

traer	to bring	traj-	trajera	trajese

IRREGULAR PAST STEMS ENDING IN y

Verbs with irregular third person Simple Past stems ending in y add -era or -ese.

caer	to fall	cay-	cayera	cayese

creer	to believe	crey-	creyera	creyese

huir	to flee	huy-	huyera	huyese

leer	to read	ley-	leyera	leyese

oir	to hear	oy-	oyera	oyese

USAGE:

The Imperfect Subjunctive expresses uncertainty, possibility, a feeling, or a wish, as does the Present Subjunctive.

The subjunctive must be used in subordinate clauses in which there is a change of subject and when there is doubt in the mind of the speaker or writer as to the absolute truth or future fulfillment of his statement.

If the verb in the main clause is in the Imperfect Indicative, Simple Past, Conditional, or Past Perfect, the Imperfect Subjunctive is used in the subordinate clause.

The Subjunctive is used:

1.	In subordinate clauses that follow verbs of desire, command, emotion, doubt, and

uncertainty.

Temieron que él lo hiciese.	[change of subject]

They feared that he might do it.

Ella quería que yo lo hiciera.

She wanted me to do it.

2.	In subordinate clauses that follow an impersonal expression.

Era importante que ellos escucharan los detalles.

It was important that they listened to the details.

3.	In subordinate clauses when the noun modified by the subordinate clause does not refer to

a specific person or thing.

Yo quería hablar con alguien que conociera bien esa ciudad.

I wanted to speak with someone who knew  that city well.

4.	After the subordinating conjunction "como si," to express a contrary-to-fact condition.

"Como si" always takes the Imperfect Subjunctive.

Habla como si me conociese.

He speaks as if he knew me.

Caminan como si estuvieran cansados.

They walk as though they were tired.

5.	In subordinate clauses, with the following conjunctions:

a no ser que	unless

a menos que	unless

con tal (de) que	provided that

en caso de que	in case

antes de que	before

a fin de que	so that, for the purpose of

para que	so that, in order that

sin que	without

como si	as if

6.	In subordinate clauses containing the following conjunctions relating to time, when the action  	in the subordinate clause has not yet taken place.

antes de que	before

cuando	when

hasta que	until

después (de) que	after

siempre que	whenever

luego que	as soon as

en cuanto	as soon as

tan pronto como	as soon as

así que	so that

a que	until	(used after aguardar and esperar [to wait until] 	and after venir [to come in order that])

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Imperfect Tense

Past Subjunctive

Past Perfect Subjunctive


COMPOUND TENSES

The Compound Tenses of all verbs are formed from the various tenses of the conjugated auxiliary verb haber (to have) plus the past participle of the main verb.  Compound verbs are not separated into their component parts by the inclusion of other words.

¿Han venido ellos?	Have they come?

¿Has visto...?	Have you seen...?

Hemos dicho siempre...	We have always said...

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Present Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Tense

Future Perfect Tense

Conditional Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Subjunctive


PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

The Present Perfect Tense (Pretérito Perfecto de Indicativo) is formed with the Present Tense of the auxiliary haber (to have) + past participle of the main verb.  Used with haber, the past participle remains unchanged in form.  Only the auxiliary is conjugated.

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	he	+ past participle

tú	has	+ past participle

él/ella, usted	ha	+ past participle

nosotros/as	hemos	+ past participle

vosotros/as	habéis	+ past participle

ellos/as, ustedes	han	+ past participle

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo he hablado	I have spoken

Tú has hablado	you have spoken [familiar]

Ud. ha hablado	you have spoken [formal]

Él/ella ha hablado	he/she/it has spoken

Nosotros/as hemos hablado	we have spoken

Vosotros/as habéis hablado	you have spoken [familiar pl.]

Uds. han hablado	you have spoken [formal pl.]

Ellos/as han hablado	they have spoken

Irregular verbs:

Yo he dicho	I have said

Tú has dicho	you have said [familiar]

Ud. ha dicho	you have said [formal]

Él/ella ha dicho	he/she/it has said

Nosotros/as hemos dicho	we have said

Vosotros/as habéis dicho	you have said [familiar pl.]

Uds. han dicho	you have said [formal pl.]

Ellos/as han dicho	they have said

USAGE:

The Present Perfect Tense is used to express a simple action or state of affairs.  It refers to an indefinite time in the past or a time in the past that is closely related to the present.

¿Ha comido Ud.?	Have you eaten?

Han ido a la playa.	They have gone to the beach.

¿Has leído la noticia?	Have you read the news?

He comprado muchos libros.	I have bought a lot of books.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Present Tense

Past Perfect Tense

Future Perfect Tense

Conditional Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Subjunctive

Passive Voice


PAST PERFECT TENSE

The Past Perfect Tense (Pluscuamperfecto de Indicativo) is formed with the Simple Past Tense of the auxiliary haber (to have) + past participle of the main verb.  Used with haber, the past participle remains unchanged in form.  Only the auxiliary is conjugated.

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	había	+ past participle

tú	habías	+ past participle

él/ella, usted	había	+ past participle

nosotros/as	habíamos	+ past participle

vosotros/as	habíais	+ past participle

ellos/as, ustedes	habían	+ past participle

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo había hablado	I had spoken

Tú habías hablado	you had spoken [familiar]

Ud. había hablado	you had spoken [formal]

Él/ella había hablado	he/she/it had spoken

Nosotros/as habíamos hablado	we had spoken

Vosotros/as habíais hablado	you had spoken [familiar pl.]

Uds. habían hablado	you had spoken [formal pl.]

Ellos/as habían hablado	they had spoken

Irregular verbs:

Yo había dicho	I had said

Tú habías dicho	you had said [familiar]

Ud. había dicho	you had said [formal]

Él/ella había dicho	he/she/it said gone

Nosotros/as habíamos dicho	we had said

Vosotros/as habíais dicho	you had said [familiar pl.]

Uds. habían dicho	you had said [formal pl.]

Ellos/as habían dicho	they had said

USAGE:

The Spanish Past Perfect Tense is used to express an action that occurred in the past before another past action.  The other past action is usually expressed in the Simple Past Tense.

No había escrito la carta.

He had not written the letter.

¿Habías ido a Portugal?

Had you gone to Portugal?

Había estudiado la lección.

He had studied the lesson.

Cuando llegó al estudio, ya habíamos rodado la película.

When he arrived at the studio, we had already shot the film.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Simple Past Tense

Imperfect Tense

Present Perfect Tense

Future Perfect Tense

Conditional Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Subjunctive

Passive Voice


PAST ANTERIOR TENSE

The Past Anterior (Pretérito Anterior) is formed with the Simple Past Tense of the auxiliary haber (to have) + past participle of the main verb.  Used with haber, the past participle remains unchanged in form.  Only the auxiliary is conjugated.

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	hube	+ past participle

tú	hubiste	+ past participle

él/ella, usted	hubo	+ past participle

nosotros/as	hubimos	+ past participle

vosotros/as	hubisteis	+ past participle

ellos/as, ustedes	hubieron	+ past participle

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hube hablado	I had spoken

Tú hubiste hablado	you had spoken [familiar]

Ud. hubo hablado	you had spoken [formal]

Él/ella hubo hablado	he/she/it had spoken

Nosotros/as hubimos hablado	we had spoken

Vosotros/as hubisteis hablado	you had spoken [familiar pl.]

Uds. hubieron hablado	you had spoken [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hubieron hablado	they had spoken

Irregular verbs:

Yo hube dicho	I had said

Tú hubiste dicho	you had said [familiar]

Ud. hubo dicho	you had said [formal]

Él/ella hubo dicho	he/she/it had said

Nosotros/as hubimos dicho	we had said

Vosotros/as hubisteis dicho	you had said [familiar pl.]

Uds. hubieron dicho	you had said [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hubieron dicho	they had said

USAGE:

The Past Anterior Tense expresses a simple action or state of affairs that occurred in the past from the point of view of the past.  This tense is used in literary style and only when introduced by subordinating conjunctions relating to time.  In conversation, either the Simple Past Tense or the Past Perfect Tense is preferred.

The Past Anterior is used after certain conjunctions relating to time:

apenas	no sooner than, as soon as

apenas si	scarcely, hardly

cuando	when, though, even though

después que	after

en cuanto	as soon as, while

luego que	as soon as

Luego que hubo salido...

As soon as he had left...

Rafaél continuó manejando después que hubo estudiado el mapa.

Rafael continued driving after he had studied the map.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Simple Past Tense

Present Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Tense

Passive Voice

Declarative Sentences

Adverbs and Adverbial Phrases

Clauses


FUTURE PERFECT TENSE

The Future Perfect (Futuro Perfecto) is formed with the Future Tense of haber (to have) + past participle of the main verb.  Used with haber, the past participle remains unchanged in form.  Only the auxiliary is conjugated.  In Spanish and English, the Future Perfect is used to express the fact that one action will happen before another one which is projected to be completed in the future.

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	habré	+ past participle

tú	habrás	+ past participle

él/ella, usted	habrá	+ past participle

nosotros/as	habremos	+ past participle

vosotros/as	habréis	+ past participle

ellos/as, ustedes	habrán	+ past participle

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo habré hablado	I will have spoken

Tú habrás hablado	you will have spoken [familiar]

Ud. habrá hablado	you will have spoken [formal]

Él/ella habrá hablado	he/she/it will have spoken

Nosotros/as habremos hablado	we will have spoken

Vosotros/as habréis hablado	you will have spoken [familiar pl.]

Uds. habrán hablado	you will have spoken [formal pl.]

Ellos/as habrán hablado	they will have spoken

Irregular verbs:

Yo habré dicho	I will have said

Tú habrás dicho	you will have said [familiar]

Ud. habrá dicho	you will have said [formal]

Él/ella habrá dicho	he/she/it will have said

Nosotros/as habremos dicho	we will have said

Vosotros/as habréis dicho	you will have said [familiar pl.]

Uds. habrán dicho	you will have said [formal pl.]

Ellos/as habrán dicho	they will have said

Note the written accent occurs in both Future and Future Perfect Tenses over all final

strong vowels except for the first person plural (habremos).

USAGE:

The Future Perfect Tense is used to express a simple action or state of affairs in the past from the point of view of the future.

The Future Perfect also expresses probability or conjecture regarding recent past time:

Mercedes habrá salido.

Mercedes has probably left.

Habrá estado enfermo.

He must have been ill.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Future Tense

Passive Voice


PRESENT PERFECT CONDITIONAL
CONDITIONAL PERFECT

The Conditional Perfect (Condicional Compuesto) is formed with the Conditional of the auxiliary haber (to have) + past participle of the main verb.  Used with haber, the past participle remains unchanged in form.  Only the auxiliary is conjugated.

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	habría	+ past participle

tú	habrías	+ past participle

él/ella, usted	habría	+ past participle

nosotros/as	habríamos	+ past participle

vosotros/as	habríais	+ past participle

ellos/as, ustedes	habrían	+ past participle

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo habría hablado	I would have spoken

Tú habrías hablado	you would have spoken [familiar]

Ud. habría hablado	you would have spoken [formal]

Él/ella habría hablado	he/she/it would have spoken

Nosotros/as habríamos hablado	we would have spoken

Vosotros/as habríais hablado	you would have spoken [familiar pl.]

Uds. habrían hablado	you would have spoken [formal pl.]

Ellos/as habrían hablado	they would have spoken

Irregular verbs:

Yo habría dicho	I would have said

Tú habrías dicho	you would have said [familiar]

Ud. habría dicho	you would have said [formal]

Él/ella habría dicho	he/she/it would have said

Nosotros/as habríamos dicho	we would have said

Vosotros/as habríais dicho	you would have said [familiar pl.]

Uds. habrían dicho	you would have said [formal pl.]

Ellos/as habrían dicho	they would have said

USAGE:

The Conditional Perfect is used to express an action that would have occurred if something else had been possible.

Manuel habría llamado a las seis, pero no fue posible.

Manuel would have called at six o'clock, but it was not possible.

Habríamos salido más tarde si hubiéramos sabido que la tienda cerraba a las ocho.

We would have left later if we had known (that) the store closed at eight oclock.

The Conditional Perfect also expresses probability or conjecture about the past:

Habrían preferido quedarse en casa.

They probably would have preferred to stay at home.

¿Quién habría sido?

Who could that have been?

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Conditional Tense

Present Perfect Tense

Passive Voice

Clauses


PAST SUBJUNCTIVE

The Past Subjunctive (Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo) is formed with the Present Subjunctive of the auxiliary haber (to have) + past participle of the main verb.  Used with haber, the past

participle remains unchanged in form.  Only the auxiliary is conjugated.

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	haya	+ past participle

tú	hayas	+ past participle

él/ella, usted	haya	+ past participle

nosotros/as	hayamos	+ past participle

vosotros/as	hayáis	+ past participle

ellos/as, ustedes	hayan	+ past participle

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo haya hablado	that I may have spoken

Tú hayas hablado	that you may have spoken [familiar]

Ud. haya hablado	that you may have spoken [formal]

Él/ella haya hablado	that he/she may have spoken

Nosotros/as hayamos hablado	that we may have spoken

Vosotros/as hayáis hablado	that you may have spoken [familiar pl.]

Uds. hayan hablado	that you may have spoken [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hayan hablado	that they may have spoken

Irregular verbs:

Yo haya dicho	that I may have said

Tú hayas dicho	that you may have said [familiar]

Ud. haya dicho	that you may have said [formal]

Él/ella haya dicho	that he/she may have said

Nosotros/as hayamos dicho	that we may have said

Vosotros/as hayáis dicho	that you may have said [familiar pl.]

Uds. hayan dicho	that you may have said [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hayan dicho	that they may have said

USAGE:

The Past Subjunctive of the auxiliary verb haber is used in a subordinate clause when the verb in the main clause is in the Present, Future, or Present Perfect Tense and the action in the subordinate clause has already taken place.

The Indicative is used to state a fact, and the Subjunctive is used to express uncertainty, possibility, a feeling, or a wish.

The Subjunctive must be used in subordinate clauses in which there is a change of subject and when there is doubt in the mind of the speaker or writer as to the absolute truth or outcome of the situation his statement describes.

Me alegro que María haya venido.

I am happy that Maria has come.

No creo que ellos hayan salido todavía.

I don't believe they have left yet.

Espero que el taxi no se haya ido.

I hope the taxi has not departed.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Simple Past Tense

Present Subjunctive

Past Perfect Subjunctive


PAST PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE

The Past Perfect Subjunctive is formed with the Imperfect Subjunctive of the auxiliary haber

(to have) + past participle of the main verb.  Used with haber, the past participle remains

unchanged in form.  Only the auxiliary is conjugated.

-ar / -er / -ir verbs

yo	hubiera	+ past participle

tú	hubieras	+ past participle

él/ella, usted	hubiera	+ past participle

nosotros/as	hubiéramos	+ past participle

vosotros/as	hubierais	+ past participle

ellos/as	hubieran	+ past participle

EXAMPLES:

Regular verbs:

Yo hubiera hablado	that I might have spoken

Tú hubieras hablado	that you might have spoken [familiar]

Ud. hubiera hablado	that you might have spoken [formal]

Él/ella hubiera hablado	that he/she might have spoken

Nosotros/as hubiéramos hablado	that we might have spoken

Vosotros/as hubierais hablado	that you might have spoken [familiar pl.]

Uds. hubieran hablado	that you might have spoken [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hubieran hablado	that they might have spoken

Irregular verbs:

Yo hubiera dicho	that I might have said

Tú hubieras dicho	that you might have said [familiar]

Ud. hubiera dicho	that you might have said [formal]

Él/ella hubiera dicho	that he/she might have said

Nosotros/as hubiéramos dicho	that we might have said

Vosotros/as hubierais dicho	that you might have said [familiar pl.]

Uds. hubieran dicho	that you might have said [formal pl.]

Ellos/as hubieran dicho	that they might have said

USAGE:

The Past Perfect Subjunctive is used in a subordinate clause when the verb in the main clause is in a past tense (see Summary of Tenses) and the action in the subordinate clause has already taken place.

The Indicative is used to state a fact, and the Subjunctive is used to express uncertainty, possibility, a feeling, or a wish.

The Subjunctive must be used in subordinate clauses in which there is a change of subject and when there is doubt in the mind of the speaker or writer as to the absolute truth or outcome of the situation his statement describes.

Si me hubiera tocado la lotería, habría comprado un descapotable.

If I had won the lottery, I would have bought a convertible.

El jefe dudó que los empleados hubieran llegado a tiempo.

The boss doubted that the employees had arrived on time.

Era maravilloso que María hubiera aprobado el examen.

It was wonderful that Maria had passed the test.

Related Topics:

Simple Past Tense

Imperfect Tense

Imperfect Subjunctive

Past Perfect Tense

Passive Voice


PASSIVE VOICE

The Active Voice is a construction in which the subject performs the action described by the

verb.  In the Passive Voice, the subject receives the action of the verb.  The person or entity

performing the action is called the agent.  The Passive Voice always involves an action that is

being done to the subject.

Active Voice:	La universidad concederá una beca.

The university will grant a scholarship.

Passive Voice:	Una beca será concedida por la universidad.

A scholarship will be granted by the university.

In Spanish the Passive Voice construction parallels that of English.  The past participle agrees with the subject in gender and number.

Subject	+ ser	+ Past Participle	+ por	+ Agent

La canción	fue	escrita	por	Mario Gareña.

The song       was	   written	by	Mario Gareña.

When the agent is not mentioned but strongly implied, the true Passive may be used:

La iglesia fue construida en 1852.

The church was built in 1852.

Maritza será enviada a Miami.

Maritza will be sent to Miami.

The impersonal they may be used as an alternate to the true Passive Voice:

Dicen que el vivir es caro hoy día.

It is said (they say) that living is expensive these days.

Le dieron un nuevo trabajo a José.

Joe was given (they gave Joe) a new job.

A reflexive verb construction is often used in place of true Passive when the doer of the action is not stated.

Se vendió la casa hace un año.

The house was sold one year ago.

Se han dado muchas ofertas para estos objetos antiguos.

Many offers have been given for these antiques.

Verbs other than ser that are sometimes joined with the past participle in the formation of the Reflexive are:

quedar(se)

hallarse

encontrarse

verse

irse

Queda explicado en la página 12.

It is explained on page 12.

Se vio obligado a mentir.

She was forced to lie.

Van incluídas muchas explicaciones en el libro.

Many explanations are included in the book.

USAGE:

Passive Voice creates a sense of objectivity and is therefore often employed in journalistic and other factual or technical writing.

EXAMPLE:

Los que quieren poner freno a la educación bilingüe no se han percatado aún

que el bilingüismo es una de las más preciadas características del mundo

moderno, vale decir, de las sociedades multiculturales.

Those who want to put the brakes on bilingual education have not yet realized

that bilingualism is one of the most precious characteristics of the modern world,

that is, of multicultural societies.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Present Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Tense

Reflexive Verbs


REFLEXIVE VERBS

A reflexive verb adds reflexive pronouns to the regular form of the verb . In the reflexive construction the subject

does the action to itself, therefore, the reflexive pronoun agrees with the subject.  Here are some of the most common:

aburrirse	to be bored, grow tired, grow weary

acercarse	to approach, draw near

acordarse	to remember

acostarse	to go to bed, lie down

alegrarse	to be glad, rejoice

apresurarse	to hasten, hurry, rush

aprovecharse	to take advantage, avail oneself

apurarse	to fret, grieve, worry

bañarse	to bathe oneself, take a bath

burlarse	to make fun of, ridicule

caerse	to fall, fall down, tumble

callarse	to be silent, keep quiet

cansarse	to become tired, weary, get tired

casarse	to get married

desayunarse	to breakfast, have breakfast (Amer.)

despedirse	to take leave of, to say good-bye to

despertarse	to wake up oneself

encontrarse	to find oneself (in a place or situation)

equivocarse	to be mistaken

esforzarse	to endeavor, do, make an effort

irse	to leave

lavarse	to wash oneself

levantarse	to get up, rise

limpiarse	to clean oneself

llamarse	to be called, to be named

marcharse	to go away, to leave

mirarse	to look at oneself, to look at each other

peinarse	to comb oneself

ponerse	to put on (clothes)

quedarse	to stay, remain

quitarse	to take off

sentarse	to sit down

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Passive Voice

Imperative Form


IMPERATIVE FORM

The Spanish Imperative Form is used to give a command or make a suggestion.

FORMAL COMMANDS

The third person singular and plural forms of the Present Subjunctive are used with usted and ustedes in formal or polite commands.  Note that the affirmative and negative forms of formal commands are the same.

REGULAR VERBS:

Aff. Sing.	 Neg. Sing.	Aff. Pl.	Neg. Pl.

abra Ud.	no abra Ud.	abran Uds.	no abran Uds.

coma Ud.	no coma Ud.	coman Uds.	no coman Uds.

compre Ud.	no compre Ud.	compren Uds.	no compren Uds.

hable Ud.	no hable Ud.	hablen Uds.	no hablen Uds.

venda Ud.	no venda Ud.	vendan Uds.	no vendan Uds.

IRREGULAR VERBS:

Verbs with an irregular Present Subjunctive form also use this form in the Imperative.  Some 	of the more common irregular formal command forms include:

Infinitive	Singular	Plural

dar	to give	dé usted	den ustedes

decir	to say	diga usted	digan ustedes

estar	to be	esté usted	estén ustedes

hacer	to do	haga usted	hagan ustedes

ir	to go	vaya usted	vayan ustedes

oír	to hear	oiga usted	oigan ustedes

poner	to put	ponga usted	pongan ustedes

saber	to know	sepa usted	sepan ustedes

salir	to leave	salga usted	salgan ustedes

ser	to be	sea usted	sean ustedes

venir	to come	vuelva usted	vuelvan ustedes

NOTE:  There are written accents over dé, esté, and estén.

STEM-CHANGING VERBS

Infinitive	Singular	Plural

cerrar (ie)	to close	cierre usted	cierren ustedes

contar (ue)	to count	cuente usted	cuenten ustedes

dormir (ue)	to sleep	duerma usted	duerman ustedes

pedir (i)	to request	pida usted	pidan ustedes

volver (e)	to return	venga usted	vengan ustedes

STEM-CHANGING VERBS

Infinitive	Singular	Plural

buscar (qu)	to look for	busque usted	busquen ustedes

coger (j)	to pick up	coja usted	cojan ustedes

empezar (ce)	to begin	empiece usted	empiecen ustedes

llegar (u)	to arrive	llegue usted	lleguen ustedes

seguir (i)	to follow	siga usted	sigan ustedes

INFORMAL OR FAMILIAR COMMANDS

The third person singular form of the Present Tense is used with tú in familiar or informal commands.  The plural affirmative vosotros (-as) command is formed by replacing the final r of the infinitive with d.  Both the singular and the plural negative familiar command forms are the same as the Present Subjunctive forms.

REGULAR VERBS:

Aff. Sing.	Neg. Sing.	Aff. Pl.	Neg. Pl.

abre	no abras	abrid	no abráis

come	no comas	comed	no comáis

compra	no compres	comprad	no compréis

escribe	no escribas	escribid	no escribáis

habla	no hables	hablad	no habléis

vende	no vendas	vended	no vendáis

NOTE:  The pronouns tú and vosotros(-as) are generally not used with familiar command

forms.  They are used only for emphasis.

IRREGULAR VERBS:

There are nine verbs with an irregular affirmative singular form.  The remaining three

command forms of these verbs are regular.

Affirmative	Negative	Affirmative	Negative

Infinitive	Singular	Singular	Plural	Plural

decir	to say	di	no digas	decid	no digáis

hacer	to do	haz	no hagas	haced	no hagáis

ir	to go	ve	no vayas	id	no vayáis

poner	to put	pon	no pongas	poned	no pongáis

salir	to leave	sal	no salgas	salid	no salgáis

ser	to be	sé	no seas	sed	no seáis

tener	to have	ten	no tengas	tened	no tengáis

valer	to be worth	val	no valgas	valed	no valgáis

venir	to come	ven	no vengas	venid	no vengáis

REFLEXIVE VERBS

Reflexive verbs have the same command forms as other verbs except for the placement of the reflexive pronoun.  In affirmative commands in the tú, usted, and ustedes forms, the reflexive pronoun is attached to the end of the verb.

Tú	párate	stand up	[you, familiar singular]

Ud.	párese	stand up	[you, formal singular]

Él/ella	párese	stand up

Uds.	párense	stand up	[you, formal pl.]

Nosotros/as	parémonos	stand up	[let us stand up]

Vosotros/as	paraos	stand up	[you, familiar pl.]

Ellos/as	párense	stand up

Tú	siéntate	sit down	[you, familiar singular]

Ud.	siéntese	sit down	[you, formal singular]

Él/ella	siéntese	sit down

Uds.	siéntense	sit down	[you, formal pl.]

Nosotros/as	sentémonos	sit down	[let us stand up]

Vosotros/as	sentaos	sit down	[you, familiar pl.]

Ellos/as	siéntense	sit down

In the vosotros/as form, the d is dropped and the reflexive pronoun is added.  The only exception is irse, which retains the d.

paraos	Exception:  idos

sentaos

In negative commands, the reflexive pronoun precedes the verb.

no te pares	no se pare	no os pareis	no se paren

no te sientes	no se siente	no os senteis	no se sienten

Related Topic:

Summary of Tenses


Participles

In English, there are two different participle forms, present (-ing)  and past participle (-ed in regular forms).  In Spanish, there is the equivalent to present participle, which is called gerund (gerundio), and just one participle (participio), which is the equivalent to past participle.

Present Participle

In Spanish, the present participle or gerundio is formed as follows:

ar - bailar, drop the ending ar, and add ando: bailando / dancing.

er - beber, drop the ending er, and add iendo: bebiendo / drinking.

ir - escribir, drop the ending ir, and add iendo: escribiendo / writing.

In Spanish, the more common use of  present participle or gerundio is to form the Progressive Tenses.  These tenses are formed by using estar plus the present participle of the main verb that we are using.

El perro está ladrando.

The dog is barking.

Ella estuvo llorando toda la noche.

She was crying the whole night.

Mis amigos estaban cantando cuando llegaron mis padres.

My friends were singing, when my parents came.

The present participle is also used:

1.  To express clearly an action in the past.

La madre salió corriendo / The mother left running.

2. To express the English use of by and present participle.

Estudiando, apruebas seguro / By studying, you pass the exam for sure.

3. To form the Perfect Participle:  habiendo comido / having eaten

Past Participle

In Spanish, a past participle is regularly formed as follows:

ar - bailar, drop the ending ar, and add ado: bailado / danced.

er - beber, drop the ending er, and add ido: bebido / drunk.

ir - escribir, drop the ending ir, and add ido: escribido / written.

The past participle is used:

1. To form compund tenses.

Ella ha comido / She has eaten.

2. To form the Perfect Infinitive.

Haber comido / to have eaten.

3. To express the passive voice with ser.

Las joyas fueron robadas por un ladrón experto.

The jewels were stolen by an expert thief.

4. To form the Perfect Participle.

Habiendo comido / having eaten.

5. To modify a noun as an adjective.

Un coche usado / A used car.

6. To express the result of an action with estar and quedar.

La ventana está cerrada / The window is closed.

Related Topics:

Contents

Verbs


DEFINITE ARTICLE

The Definite Article in Spanish (equivalent to the English the) is inflected as follows:

SINGULAR	PLURAL

Masculine	Feminine	Masculine	Feminine

_________________________________________	_________________________________________

el	las	los	las

FEMININE NOUNS & STRESSED "a"

If a feminine noun begins with the sound of stressed a (written a or ha), the singular definite article that precedes it is el.

el hacha	the axe

el águila	the eagle

el alma	the soul

CONTRACTIONS

The definite article is frequently combined with certain prepositions to yield the following contractions:

a	+	el	=	al

de	+	el	=	del

a	=	personal "a", to, at.

de	=	out of, because of, on, in, made of, about, on, than, from, through, out of,

because

OMISSION OF DEFINITE ARTICLE

1.	With the use of some, any, a certain quantity or number of, etc., before a noun, the definite

article is not used.

Las granjeros producen trigo.

The farmers produce wheat, too.

2.	The trend is to omit the definite article after familiar verbs such as saber (to know),

aprender (to learn), and enseñar (to teach).

El profesor sabe japonés.

The professor knows Japanese.

OMISSION OF DEFINITE ARTICLE WITH NOUN

The definite article is frequently omitted in factual discussions, e.g., in textbooks.

Aquí se halla Teherán, capital de Irán.

Here is Teheran, the capital of Iran.

TITLES

The definite article is used with certain titles, including the following:

el señor	el capitán	el doctor	el rey

la señora	el general	la doctora	la reina

la señorita	la generala	el conde	el profesor

TITLES & SPEAKING

In speaking to an individual, the definite article is never used with the person's title:

Don	Mr.	Fray	friar	San	Saint

Doña	Mrs.	Sor	sister	Santo	Saint

Santa	Saint

NOTE:  San is a shortened form of Santo, used before all masculine names of saints,

except Tomás, Tomé, Toribio, and Domingo, which take Santo.

NAMES OF LANGUAGES

The definite article is used with unmodified names of languages, except after en, de (with some exceptions), and hablar.  After the verbs comprender, estudiar, aprender, leer, oír, saber, and escribir, the article may be used or omitted.

¿Habla usted español?

Do you speak Spanish?

¿Habla bien el francés?

Does he speak French well?

Fue escrito en alemán.

It was written in German.

El alemán es difícil.

German is difficult.

NAMES OF COUNTRIES & CITIES

The definite article is used with names of certain countries and cities:

la Argentina	el Japón

el Brasil	la República de Panamá

el Canadá	el Paraguay

la China	el Perú

el Ecuador	el Salvador

la India	el Uruguay

el Cairo	la Habana

MODIFIED & UNMODIFIED NAMES OF COUNTRIES & CITIES

Names of countries not modified by adjectives usually take no definite article.

En Brasil hay muchas plantas raras.

In Brazil there are many rare plants.

Names of countries and cities modified by an adjective are accompanied by the definite article.

Mi hermana vive en el viejo San Juan.

My sister lives in old San Juan.

Related Topics:

Indefinite Article

Neuter Article

Gender


INDEFINITE ARTICLE

The indefinite article in Spanish (equivalent to the English a / an / one) is declined as follows:

SINGULAR	PLURAL

Masculine	Feminine	Masculine	Feminine

___________________________________	_________________________________________

un	una	unos	unas

FEMININE NOUNS & STRESSED "a"

If a feminine noun begins with the sound of stressed a (written a or ha), the singular indefinite article that precedes it is un.

un hacha	an / one axe

un águila	an / one eagle

un alma	a / one soul

PLURAL UNOS / UNAS

The plurals unos and unas have the meanings some, a few, a pair of, about.

¿Deseas comer unas uvas?

Do you wish to eat some grapes?

Unos ojos muy hermosos.

A fine pair of eyes.

Dista de aquí unas cien millas.

It is about one hundred miles from here.

OTHER / CERTAIN

Otro is never accompanied by the indefinite article.  Cierto is ordinarily not.

Voy a comprar otro carro.

I am going to buy another car.

Todo esto pasó en cierto pueblo andaluz.

All this happened in a certain Andalusian village.

THE SAID / THE AFORESAID

El tal and la tal have the meaning of the said, the aforesaid, that.  Un, una, + tal means

a certain and is used only with the name of a person.

El tal niño era alto y flaco.

The aforesaid boy was tall and thin.

El tal D. Vázquez es arquitecto.

That Don Vazquez is an arquitect.

Un tal Reyes ha hecho el descubrimiento.

A certain Reyes has made the discovery.

OCCUPATION / RACE / NATIONALITY / SOCIAL STATUS /

RELIGIOUS OR POLITICAL BELIEFS

If the speaker intends to classify the subject according to occupation, race, nationality, social status, religious or political beliefs, the indefinite article is omitted.

Antonio no es español, es boliviano.	Es abogada.

Anthony is not Spanish (a Spaniard) he is Bolivian.	She is a lawyer.

Ser católico o protestante.	Soy ingeniero.

To be a Catholic or a Protestant.	I am an engineer.

La cólera es mala consejera.

Anger is a poor counselor.

INDEFINITE ARTICLE FOR EMPHASIS

When some feeling is expressed by the speaker (e.g., admiration, disgust) the indefinite article is used.

Era un espía doble.

He was a double agent.

¡Es usted un artista!

You are an artist!

Es un cobarde.

He is a coward.

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Neuter Article

Gender


NEUTER ARTICLE

Lo, the neuter article in Spanish (equivalent to the English the / that / what / which), is combined with adjectives (including past participles), adverbs, and prepositional phrases to form a kind of neuter noun.  The translation of lo varies with the context.

lo que	what, which, a thing which, how (much)

lo dicho	what was said

lo convenido	what was agreed on

a lo lejos	in the distance

lo de menos	the least important part of it

lo de siempre	the customary thing

lo del	all about (that matter)

lo alto	the top

lo más bonito	the prettiest part

lo más cómico	the most comical

La profesora preguntó a los estudiantes lo que (or qué) habían hecho.

The professor asked her students what they had done.

La joven no sabe lo que la quieren sus padres.

The young girl doesn't know how much her parents love her.

Hay que mezclar lo salado y lo dulce.

One must combine the salty and the sweet.

No hay nada de lo dicho (or lo convenido)

What was agreed upon is called off.

Lo de menos era el trabajo.

The least important part of it was the work.

Sucedió lo de siempre.

The customary thing happened.

Quiere saber lo de la entrevista.

He wants to know all about the interview.

Lo + ADJECTIVES / ADVERBS

Lo + inflected adjective or adverb + que is equivalent to the English how.

¡Lo agrias que están estas naranjas!

How sour these oranges are!

Lo + Ser / Estar

Lo is used with ser and estar to repeat the idea of a previous adjective or noun:

Ud. debe (de) estar muy cansado.	Lo estoy.

You must be very tired.	I am (tired).

Parece buena oportunidad, pero no lo es.

It seems to be a good opportunity, but it isn't.

POSSESSION

Lo + masculine singular possessive pronoun form is used as a neuter noun meaning what is mine (yours, his, etc.), my (your, his, etc.) property, my (your, his, etc.) share:

Si le damos lo suyo, nos dejará en paz.

If we give him his share, he will leave us alone.

Lo mío, mío, y lo tuyo, de los dos.

What is mine (is) mine, and what is yours (belongs to us) both.

Related Topics:

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Gender

Plural Forms of Nouns

Descriptive Adjectives

Comparative and Superlative Forms

Adverbs


NEGATIVE STATEMENTS

NINGUNO / NINGÚN / NI

NINGUNO

The Spanish adjective Ninguno (equivalent to the English no / none / not any / not one / neither) is declined as follows:

SINGULAR

Masculine	Feminine

_________________________________________

ninguno	ninguna

NOTE:  The adjective ninguno has no plural form.

NINGÚN

Ninguno drops the final o when it modifies a masculine singular noun:

Ningún hombre entre ellos pudo levantar el peso.

Not a man among them could lift the weight.

NI

ni	not even

ni...ni	neither...nor

no...ni	neither...nor

ni bien	not quite, not altogether

ni que	as if

ni siquiera	not even, not a single

Ni chicha ni limonada.

Neither fish nor fowl.

¡Ni que fuera yo tan tonto!

As if I were fool enough!

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Neuter Article

Gender


GENDER

All Spanish nouns are either masculine or feminine.

MASCULINE / FEMININE NOUNS

Most nouns ending in o are masculine and most ending in a are feminine.

Masculine	English	Feminine	English

el carro	car	la blusa	blouse

el pollo	chicken	la camisa	shirt

el queso	cheese	la candela	candle

el sombrero	hat	la casa	house

el teléfono	telephone	la falda	skirt

el trabajo	work	la niña	girl

el templo	temple	la lotería	lottery / raffle

el maestro	teacher	la maestra	teacher

el muchacho	boy	la muchacha	girl

el dinero	money	la moneda	coin

EXCEPTIONS

A few nouns that end in o are feminine:

la mano	hand

la foto	photo	(abbreviation of la fotografía)

la radio	radio

Some nouns ending in a are masculine.  Some frequently used nouns belonging to this group are:

el cometa	comet	el día	day

el mapa	map	el planeta	planet

Many nouns ending in ma are masculine:

el clima	climate	el drama	drama

el sistema	system	el tema	theme / subject

el poema	poem	el idioma	language

el problema	problem	el teorema	theorem

However, the following common words ending in ma are always feminine:

la broma	joke	la forma	form

la cama	bed	la víctima	victim

Sometimes the o or a denoting a masculine or feminine noun is absent:

el bailarín	dancer	la bailarina	dancer

el rey	king	la reina	queen

el conde	count	la condesa	countess

el señor	gentleman	la señora	lady

el tigre	tiger	la tigresa	tigress

el león	lion	la leona	lioness

INFINITIVES AS NOUNS

Where the infinitive is used as a noun it is always masculine:

el viajar	traveling	el contribuir	contributing

el caminar	walking	el pensar	thinking

NOUNS ENDING IN -ción + -umbre

Nouns ending in -ción and -umbre are always feminine:

la acción	action	la costumbre	custom

la audición	audition	la cumbre	peak

la bendición	blessing	la legumbre	vegetable

la lección	lesson	la lumbre	fire

la constitución	constitution	la muchedumbre	crowd

la función	function	la pesadumbre	burden

la liberación	liberation	la podredumbre	rot

NOUNS ENDING IN -tad, -dad, + -tud

Nouns ending in -tad, -dad, and -tud are always feminine.  Note the correlation between Spanish -dad and English -ty:

la amistad	friendship	la libertad	liberty

la bondad	goodness	la maldad	wickedness

la caridad	charity	la plenitud	abundance

la ciudad	city	la sanidad	health

la comunidad	community	la santidad	holiness

la dificultad	difficulty	la movilidad	mobility

la exactitud	exactness	la soledad	solitude

la igualdad	equality	la universidad	university

la juventud	youth	la vanidad	vanity

NOUNS DENOTING PERSONS / ANIMALS

Nouns denoting persons or animals can be masculine or feminine and are formed by adding o or a to a common stem:

el abuelo	grandfather	la abuela	grandmother

el esposo	husband	la esposa	wife

el hermano	brother	la hermana	sister

el novio	bridegroom	la novia	bride

el primo	cousin	la prima	cousin

el gato	cat	la gata	cat

NOUNS DENOTING PROFESSION / SOCIAL POSITION

Nouns denoting a person's profession or social position often end in -ista, -ante, or -ente.  Gender is indicated by the article preceding the noun and the noun endings do not change:

el artista	artist	la artista	artist

el cantante	singer	la cantante	singer

el dentista	dentist	la dentista	dentist

el estudiante	student	la estudiante	student

el poeta	poet	la poeta	poet

el taxista	taxi driver	la taxista	taxi driver

NOUNS WITH COMMON STEM

Some nouns have a common stem to which o or a is added.  Note the meanings of common-stem nouns may not be related.

Related Pairs of Common-Stem Nouns:

el manzano	apple tree	la manzana	apple

el político	politician	la política	politics / policy

el músico	musician	la música	music

el pimiento	red / green pepper	la pimienta	black pepper

Unrelated Pairs of Common-Stem Nouns:

el puerto	port	la puerta	door

el caso	case	la casa	house

el cuento	story	la cuenta	bill

Gender for some common-stem nouns is indicated only by their articles.  Note the meanings of common-stem nouns may not be related.

el cura	priest	la cura	cure

el capital	capital (money)	la capital	capital city

el guía	guide	la guía	guidebook

el frente	military front	la frente	forehead

el orden	order / opposite of disorder	la orden	religious order / command

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Plural Forms of Nouns


PLURALS OF NOUNS
PLURAL FORMS OF NOUNS

The plural of a noun is formed by adding either -s or -es.  The formation of the plural can affect the spelling and accenting of the word.

NOUNS ENDING IN A VOWEL

Add -s to nouns ending in a vowel:

Singular	Plural

el gato	cat	los gatos	cats

la mano	hand	las manos	hands

la silla	chair	las sillas	chairs

el barco	boat / ship	los barcos	boats / ships

la tribu	tribe	las tribus	tribes

la fuente	fountain / spring	las fuentes	fountains / springs

el puente	bridge	los puentes	bridges

NOUNS ENDING IN AN ACCENTED VOWEL

Most nouns ending in a vowel end in o, a, or e.  Add -es to those few nouns that end in an accented vowel, for example:

tisú	lamé	tisúes

tabú	taboo	tabúes

carmesí	crimson	carmesíes

NOUNS ENDING IN A CONSONANT

Add -es to nouns ending in a consonant:

Singular	Plural

el automóvil	automobile	los automóviles	automobiles

el camión	truck	los camiones	trucks

el mes	month	los meses	months

el pintor	painter	los pintores	painters

la verdad	truth	las verdades	truths

NOUNS ENDING IN -n + -s

If a noun has more than one syllable, ends in an -n or an -s, and takes an accent on the last syllable, the accent is dropped in the plural:

Singular	Plural

el avión	airplane	los aviones	airplanes

la exhibición	exhibition	las exhibiciones	exhibitions

la misión	mission	las misiones	missions

la relación	relationship	las relaciones	relationships

el compás	beat / measure	los compases	beats / measures

If a noun has more than one syllable, ends in an -n, and takes no accent on its last syllable, the stressed syllable retains its stress.  A written accent is added in the plural:

Singular	Plural

el crimen	crime	los crímenes	crimes

el examen	examination	los exámenes	examinations

la orden	religious order / command	las órdenes	religious orders / commands

NOUNS ENDING IN -z

If a noun ends in -z, change the z to c and add -es to form the plural:

Singular	Plural

la cruz	cross	las cruces	crosses

la luz	light	las luces	lights

la vez	time, instance	las veces	times, instances

el lápiz	pencil	los lápices	pencils

el pez	fish	los peces	fish

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Gender


GROUP NOUNS

The masculine plural form can include both the female and male members of a group:

los padres	=	fathers / father + mother / fathers + mothers / parents

los niños	=	boys / boy + girl / boys + girls / children

los hijos	=	sons / son + daughter / sons + daughters

los reyes	=	kings / king + queen / kings + queens

los señores	=	gentlemen / Mr. and Mrs.

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Gender


COMPOUND NOUNS

The article preceding compound nouns changes from singular to plural to indicate a change in number, but the noun itself does not change its ending.  Compound nouns are always masculine.

Singular	Plural

el cumpleaños	birthday	los cumpleaños	birthdays

el lavaplatos	dishwasher	los lavaplatos	dishwashers

el paraguas	umbrella	los paraguas	umbrellas

el paracaídas	parachute	los paracaídas	parachutes

el parabrisas	windshield	los parabrisas	windshields

el rascacielos	skyscraper	los rascacielos	skyscrapers

el rompecabezas	jigsaw puzzle	los rompecabezas	jigsaw puzzles

el tocadiscos	record player	los tocadiscos	record players

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Gender


DIMINUTIVE AND AUGMENTATIVE FORMS

Adding a diminutive or augmentative ending to the noun stem changes the connotation of Spanish nouns:

DIMINUTIVE FORMS

The diminutive ending on a noun implies a smaller size or form.  It is also used to express endearment.  The most common diminutive endings are -ito(a), -cito(a), -illo(a), and -cillo(a).

If a noun ends in a or o, -ito(a) is added to the noun stem:

bocado	mouthful	bocadito	tidbit / morsel

libro	book	librito	a little book

gato	cat	gatito	a little cat / kitten

rosa	rose	rosita	a little rose

If a noun ends in l, the -ito(a) ending is added to the complete noun:

animal	animal	animalito	a little animal

papel	paper	papelito	a little paper

chaval	boy	chavalito	a little boy

If a noun ends in e, r, or n, the -cito(a) or -cillo(a) ending is added directly to the complete noun:

amor	darling / love	amorcito	little darling / love

parte	part	partecita	a small part

ratón	mouse	ratoncito	a little mouse

Some noun stems are changed to accommodate the diminutive ending:

chico	boy	chiquito	a little boy

pedazo	piece	pedacito	a little piece

poco	little / few / not many	poquito	a little / few / small amount

AUGMENTATIVE FORMS

The augmentative ending on a noun implies a larger size or form. It can also imply disrespect or scorn.  The most common augmentative endings are -ote(a), -on(a), and -azo(a).

árbol	tree	arbolazo	a large tree

cara	countenance / presence	carota	a wise guy

gigante	giant / huge	gigantón	huge / enormous

libro	book	librote	a large book

muchacho	boy	muchachote	a big child

perro	dog	perrazo	a large dog

NOUNS + -azo

The -azo ending may also be added to the name of an object to denote the idea of a physical blow from that object.  The derived noun is always masculine regardless of the noun's original gender.

la estaca	big stick	el estacazo	blow from a big stick

el hacha	axe	el hachazo	blow from an axe

el martillo	hammer	el martillazo	blow from a hammer

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Gender


SUBJECT PRONOUNS

The Subject Pronouns are usually omitted since the verb ending sufficiently indicates the person and number.  The Subject Pronouns are:

Singular	Plural

yo	I	nosotros -as	we

tú	you (familiar)	vosotros -as	you (familiar pl.)

usted	you (formal)	ustedes	you (formal pl.)

él	he, it	ellos	they

ella	she, it	ellas	they

ello	it

USAGE

Tú and vosotros are used to address children, an intimate friend, people whom one treats in a familiar way, animals, and the public (usually).  They are also used in prayers.

Usted, a contraction of Vuestra Merced, your grace, was formerly used in polite conversation and conveys a certain formality and respect.  The forms usted and ustedes are abbreviated respectively Vd., V., or Ud. and Vds., VV., or Uds.  Among families the use of tú or usted to address older members varies with the degree of formality observed.

With the exception of usted and ustedes, which are used regularly, subject pronouns are used only when the emphasis is on the doer of the action, rather than on the action itself:

¿Tiene él mi libro?

Does he have my book?

To mark a contrast between two persons:

Él es colombiano pero ella es norteamericana.

He is Colombian but she is North American.

When no verb is expressed:

¿Quién es?	Who is it?

Soy yo.	It is I.  (or It is me.)

Somos nosotros.	It is we.

¿Es Vd.?	Is it you?

¿Son ellos?	Is it they?

Es él.	It is he.

ELLO

The neuter third person singular form ello refers to a previous proposition or statement rather than to a noun, as there are no neuter nouns in Spanish.  Ello (it) is almost invariably omitted as the subject of a sentence.

para ello = for it (referring to an entire idea)

Quería ser doctor.  Para ello estudió varios años.

He wanted to be a doctor.  For it he studied for several years.

"It" is almost always expressed by the verb form.

Es larga.	It is long.

Llueve.	It is raining.

No funciona.	It doesn't work.

PLURAL SUBJECT

When a subject consists of a combination of nouns and pronouns, they combine as follows:

tú + yo	=	nosotros

tú + Ud.	=	ustedes

tú + él, ella	=	ustedes (Amer.)

tú + él, ella	=	vosotros (Spain)

tú + yo = nosotros

él + yo = nosotros

Tú y yo podemos ir al campo el viernes.

You and I can go to the countryside on Friday.

tú + él = vosotros	in Spain

tú + él = ustedes	in Latin America

Tú y Esteban estudiáis juntos, ¿verdad?

You and Steven study together, right?

COMPARE:

Tú y Esteban estudian juntos, ¿verdad?

You and Steven study together, right?

tú + usted = ustedes

Tú y usted vengan por aquí, por favor.

You and you (formal) come this way, please.

SUBJECT PRONOUNS FOR EMPHASIS

The adjective mismo (-ma), self, is used with the subject pronouns to add emphasis:

yo mismo -ma	I myself

tú mismo -ma	you yourself

él mismo	he himself

ella misma	she herself

Ud. mismo -ma	you yourself

nosotros -tras mismos -mas	we ourselves

vosotros -tras mismos -mas	you yourselves

ellos mismos	they themselves (masc.)

ellas mismas	they themselves (fem.)

Uds. mismos -mas	you yourselves

Yo mismo reparé el carro.

I, myself, repaired the car.

Tú misma tienes que ir a obtener la licencia de conducir.

You, yourself, have to go to obtain the driver's license.

Related Topic:

Prepositional Pronouns


PREPOSITIONAL PRONOUNS

Prepositional pronouns are used after prepositions.  Except for the first and second person singular, the prepositional forms are the same as the subject pronouns, the exceptions being mí, tí.

Singular	Plural

mí	me	nosotros -as	us

tí	you	vosotros -as	you (familiar)

él	him	ellos	them

ella	her	ellas	them

usted	you	ustedes	you (formal)

Sí is used to mean himself, herself, yourself, and themselves.  The written accent over mí and sí avoids confusion with si (if), and mi (my).

When the preposition con is used with mí, tí, or sí, a single word is formed by adding -go:

conmigo	=	with me

contigo	=	with you

consigo	=	with him, with her, with you, with them

Juan va conmigo.

John is going with me.

Ella quiere estudiar contigo.

She wants to study with you.

Nos lleva consigo.

He is taking us with him.

The subject pronouns are usually used after entre, except in the phrase entre sí.

entre sí	=	between themselves, between yourselves, between one another

Va a sentarse entre tú y yo.

He is going to sit down between you and me.

The subject pronouns are used after excepto, menos, and salvo when meaning except.

Todo el mundo lo cree menos yo.

Everybody believes it except me.

Excepto tú, nadie lo sabe.

Except you, nobody knows it.

Todos vinieron salvo él.

Everybody came except him.

Related Topics:

Subject Pronouns

Prepositions


DESCRIPTIVE ADJECTIVES

All adjectives must agree in number with the nouns they modify.  The plurals of adjectives are formed in the same manner as that of nouns, namely by adding either -s or -es.

If the adjective ends in a vowel, add -s.

If the adjective ends in a consonant, add -es.

If the adjective ends in -z, change the z to c and add -es.

Related Topics:

Plural Forms of Nouns

Group Nouns

Compound Nouns

Adverbs


GENDERED ADJECTIVES

Some adjectives must agree in gender with the nouns they modify.  The classes of adjectives that change their form to indicate a difference between masculine and feminine gender include:

1.	ADJECTIVES ENDING IN -o

Adjectives ending in an -o change to a feminine form by replacing the -o with an -a ending.

alto(s)	alta(s)	high

flaco(s)	flaca(s)	thin

gordo(s)	gorda(s)	fat

pequeño(s)	pequeña(s)	small

rojo(s)	roja(s)	red

2.	ADJECTIVES ENDING IN -or, -an, -on, + -in

Adjectives ending in -or, -an, -on, or -in change to a feminine form by adding -a to the final 	consonant.  Accented masculine endings drop the accent in the feminine form.

Catalán(es)	Catalana(s)	Catalonian

consolador(es)	consoladora(s)	consoling

holgazán(es)	holgazana(s)	idle, lazy

trabajador(es)	trabajadora(s)	hard-working

3.	ADJECTIVES OF NATIONALITY

Adjectives of nationality ending in a consonant change to a feminine form by adding -a to

the final consonant.  Adjectives of nationality ending in -o follow the same rules as for

all adjectives ending in -o.

alemán(es)	alemana(s)	German

francés(es)	francesa(s)	French

inglés(es)	inglesa(s)	English

japonés(es)	japonesa(s)	Japanese

Related Topic:

Gender


UNGENDERED ADJECTIVES

All adjectives ending in -e and many adjectives ending in a consonant are ungendered in both their singular and plural forms.

Singular	Plural	English

alegre	alegres	cheerful

grande	grandes	large

pobre	pobres	poor

triste	tristes	sad

verde	verdes	green

difícil	difíciles	difficult

fácil	fáciles	easy

feliz	felices	happy

gris	grises	gray

Related Topics:

Contents

Adjectives


FEMININE NOUNS + MASCULINE ARTICLE

Feminine nouns such as el hacha and el agua that begin with a stressed a or ha are preceded by the masuline article el in the singular form, but are always preceded by the feminine article las in the plural form.  Since these nouns are feminine, they must be modified by a feminine adjective if one exists.

el agua	las aguas sucias	the dirty water

el águila	las aguilas negras	the black eagles

el hacha	las hachas duras	the strong axes

Related Topics:

Adjectives

Gender


SHORTENED ADJECTIVES

Some adjectives drop the final -o in the masculine singular form when they precede the noun they modify.

primero	first	malo	bad

primer libro	first book	mal olor	bad odor

primera lección	first lesson	mala fama	bad name or reputation

bueno	good	alguno	some

buen médico	good doctor	algún mercado	some market

buena vista	good view	algunas cucharas	some spoons

ninguno	none

ningún hombre	no (not one) man

ninguna persona	no (not one) person

The adjective grande changes to gran before both feminine and masculine singular nouns.

un gran piloto	a great pilot

una gran mujer	a great woman

Related Topics:

Adjectives

Gender


POSITION OF ADJECTIVES

Descriptive adjectives generally follow the noun they modify.  The meanings of some adjectives change depending on whether they precede or follow the noun.

Adjective	 Before Noun	After Noun

cierto	cierta promesa	promesa cierta

(a certain)	(definite/sure)

grande/gran	un gran libro	un libro grande

(great)	(large/big)

medio	media población	la población media

(half)	(average)

pobre	un pobre hombre	un hombre pobre

(miserable, pitiful)	(poor, needy)

puro	pura agua	agua pura

(total, complete)	(pure, unadulterated)

único	la única mujer	una mujer única

only	unique

viejo	un viejo manuscrito	un manuscrito viejo

antique	old

PREDICATIVE ADJECTIVES

Adjectives can follow the verbs ser or estar (to be) and serve as a subject complement.  The adjective always agrees in number and gender with the subject it modifies.

El libro es antiguo.	The book is old.

La sopa está sabrosa.	The soup is delicious.

Los vestidos son bonitos.	The dresses are pretty.

Ellos están listos.	They are ready.

ADJECTIVE PRECEDES NOUN

Sometimes the adjective precedes the noun, an order that emphasizes the adjective over the noun.

¡Está picante la salsa!	The sauce is hot!

¡Es brillante la idea!	The idea is brilliant!

ADJECTIVES AS NOUNS

Adjectives can be used as nouns.  The noun is dropped and the article is retained.

el automóvil antiguo	the old car

el antiguo	the old one

la puerta verde	the green door

la verde	the green one

los libros buenos	the good books

los buenos	the good ones

TWO OR MORE ADJECTIVES

When two adjectives follow a noun, they are separated by the conjunction y (and).

Es una ciudad vieja y majestuosa.

It is an old, majestic city.

Rodolfo en un hombre juicioso y trabajador.

Rudolf is a mature and hard-working man.

When more than two adjectives follow a noun, the first adjectives are separated by a comma, and the last is separated by the conjunction y.

La gente es inteligente, amable, complaciente y trabajadora.

The people are intelligent, kind, accommodating, and hard-working.

Es un médico excelente, dedicado y cuidadoso.

He is an excellent, dedicated, and careful doctor.

ADJECTIVE + NOUN IN SEPARATE SENTENCES

An adjective can modify a noun in a previous sentence.  The adjective must agree with the noun it modifies, even though the noun is not present in the same sentence.

¿De que color es la paloma?	Es blanca.

What color is the dove?	It's white.

¿Qué te parece la silla?	Es cómoda.

How does the chair seem to you?	It's comfortable.

Related Topics:

Gender

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations

Adverbs


ADJECTIVES OF QUANTITY

Adjectives of quantity indicate how much or how many.  They almost always precede the noun they modify.

Singular	English	Plural	English	Note

ambos(as)	both	Only a plural form

algún(a)	some	algunos(as)	some

cada	each, every	Only one form

demasiado(a)	too much	demasiados(as)	too many

mucho(a)	a lot of, much	muchos(as)	lots of, many

ningún(a)	not...any	Only singular

otro(a)	other, another	otros(as)	other

poco(a)	only a little, not much	pocos(as)	only a few, not many

todo (el)	all, all the	todos (los)	every, all

toda (la)	all, all the	todas (las)	every, all

Related Topics:

Adjectives

Negative Statements; Ninguno/Ningún/Ni


POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES

The possessive adjective changes form in order to agree with the noun  they modify.  Nuestro and vuestro agree in number and gender and mi, tu, and su agree in number only.

Singular	English	Plural	English

mi cuaderno	my notebook	mis cuadernos	my notebooks

mi herramienta	my tool	mis herramientas	my tools

tu plato	your plate	tus platos	your plates

tu camisa	your shirt	tus camisas	your shirts

su carro	his, her,	sus carros	his, her,

their, your car	their, your car

su casa	his, her,	sus casas	his, her,

their, your house	their, your house

nuestro loro	our parrot	nuestros loros	our parrots

nuestra carta	our letter	nuestras cartas	our letters

vuestro libro	your book	vuestros libros	your books

vuestra pluma	your pen	vuestras plumas	your pens

SU + SUS

The meaning of su and sus can be his, her, their, or your.  If the meaning is not clear from the context of the sentence, a prepositional phrase, de + proper noun or subject pronoun, is used to clarify the meaning.  If the prepositional phrase is used, su is generally replaced by the definite article.

Marco quiere leer su libro.

Marco wants to read his book.

Marco quiere leer el libro de ella.

Marco wants to read her book.

When the plural form includes both masculine and feminine direct objects, ellos is used.  The preposition de is usually repeated before each proper name and object pronoun in a series.

Es el libro de Antonio y de María.

It is Antonio's and Maria's book.

Es la casa de ellos.

It is their house.

Related Topics:

Definite Article

Subject Pronouns

Prepositions


Possessive Pronouns

A POSSESSIVE PRONOUN is a pronoun that answers the question "Whose...?".

EXAMPLE:	¿Quieres tomar el almuerzo en mi casa o en la tuya?

Do you want to eat lunch at my house or at yours?

Related Topics:

Contents

Pronouns


DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES

The demonstrative adjectives are as follows:

Singular	Plural

Masc	este	this	estos	these	(near me)

Fem	esta	this	estas	these	(near me)

Masc	ese	that	esos	those	(near you)

Fem	esa	that	esas	those	(near you)

Masc	aquel	that	aquellos	those	(yonder)

Fem	aquella	that	aquellas	those	(yonder)

USAGE

Este(a) and estos(as) refer to objects or persons close to the speaker.

este lápiz	this pencil

estos lápices	these pencils

Ese(a) and esos(as) refer to objects or persons at a physical or temporal distance from the speaker.

ese vaso	that glass

esos vasos	those glasses

Aquel(la) and aquellos(as) refer to objects or persons at a substantial physical or temporal distance from the speaker.

aquel edificio	that building

aquellos edificios	those buildings

NOTE:	The part of speech Demonstrative is no longer available in the program itself.  Because of their syntactic similarity they are now considered articles.

Related Topics:

Possessive Adjectives

Comparative and Superlative Forms


COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE FORMS

In English, the comparative and the superlative are formed by adding the endings -er and -est to the adjective. In Spanish, the comparative is formed by placing más (more) or menos (less) before the adjective.  There is no difference between the comparative and superlative forms except for the use of the definite article or the possessive adjective before the noun.

Descriptive	Comparative	Superlative

un hombre alto	un hombre más alto	el hombre más alto

a tall man	a taller man	the tallest man

una mujer instruida	una mujer más instruida	la mujer más instruida

an educated woman	a more educated woman	the most educated woman

los libros caros	unos libros más caros	los libros más caros

the costly books	some more costly books	the costliest books

las pinturas nuevas	unas pinturas más nuevas	las pinturas más nuevas

the new paintings	some newer paintings	the newest paintings

The superlative is formed by using the definite article el, la, los, or las, or the possessive adjective before the noun, followed by más + adjective.

mi chaqueta nueva	mi chaqueta más nueva

my new jacket	my newest jacket

el vestido lindo	el vestido más lindo

the beautiful dress	the most beautiful dress

la tarta deliciosa	la tarta más deliciosa

the delicious cake	the most delicious cake

ABSTRACT NOUNS

The use of lo + masculine singular adjective to form an abstract noun is common.

Lo más bonito eran los cohetes.

The prettiest part was the skyrockets.

La presentación era de lo más cómico que Uds. pueden imaginar.

The presentation was (one) of the most comical that you can imagine.

IRREGULAR COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE ADJECTIVES

Four adjectives have irregular forms in the comparative and superlative:

Descriptive	Comparative	Superlative

bueno	mejor	el, la mejor / los, las mejores

good	better	the best

malo	peor	el, la peor / los, las peores

bad	worse	the worst

grande	mayor	el, la mayor / los, las mayores

big, great	greater, older	the greatest, the oldest

pequeño	menor	el, la menor / los, las menores

small	lesser, younger	the least, the youngest

Bueno and malo may appear before or after the noun without changing the meaning of the adjective.

Compré un buen automóvil.	Yo no quería oír la mala noticia.

Compré un automóvil bueno.	Yo no quería oír la noticia mala.

I bought a good car.	I didn't want to hear the bad news.

Mejor and peor generally precede the noun in the superlative form.

Es mi mejor amigo.	Era la peor película que he visto.

He is my best friend.	It was the worst movie I have seen.

Mayor and menor are used to convey age when referring to people.

Davíd es mi hermano menor.	Davíd es el hermano menor.

David is my younger brother.	David is the youngest brother.

The adjectives joven and viejo are used to describe age in a noncomparative form.

Alejandro es joven.	Margarita es vieja.

Alexander is young.	Margarita is old.

Grande and pequeño are used to express size.

La mesa es grande.

The table is big.

Esta mesa es más grande que aquella.

This table is bigger than that one.

Mi mesa es la más grande.

My table is the biggest.

Mi coche es pequeño.

My car is small.

Tu coche es más pequeño.

Your car is smaller.

El coche de Diego es el más pequeño.

Diego's car is the smallest.

Más...que and más...de (more...than), and menos...que and menos...de (less...than) are used to compare one adjective to another.

Rafael es alto.

Rafael is tall.

Rafael es más alto que Luís.

Rafael is taller than Luis.

Rafael es el estudiante más alto de la clase.

Rafael is the tallest student in the class.

Más de (more than) and menos de (less than) are used with numbers in an affirmative statement.  Más que and menos que are used with numbers in negative statements.

Tengo más de veinte dolares.

I have more than twenty dollars.

No tengo más que veinte dolares.

I have no more than twenty dollars.

I have only twenty dollars.

ADJECTIVES ENDING IN -ísimo

The absolute superlative is also formed by adding the ending -ísimo (very, extremely) to the stem of the adjective and some adverbs.  It is not used in comparisons but has the strongest connotation.  The ending must agree in number and gender with the noun it modifies.  There is always an accent over -ísimo.

If the adjective ends in a vowel, drop the final vowel and add -ísimo:

bello	bellísimo

beautiful	the most beautiful

If the adjective ends in a consonant, add -ísimo directly to the adjective:

difícil	dificilísimo

difficult	the most difficult

Sometimes the adjective changes spelling to accommodate the -ísimo ending:

-co changes to -qu, -go changes to -gu, and -z changes to -c.

rico	rich	riquísimo	very rich

largo	long	larguísimo	very long

feliz	happy	felicísimo	very happy

Adjectives ending in unstressed -io generally drop the i of the stem before -ísimo.

sucio	dirty	sucísimo	very dirty

limpio	clean	limpísimo	very clean

ADJECTIVES AS NOUNS

In the superlative, the adjective can be used as a noun:

¿Cuál es la ciudad más interesante?

What is the most interesting city?

La más interesante es Atenas.

The most interesting (one) is Athens.

¿Quién es el cantante mejor?

Who is the best singer?

El mejor es Roberto.

The best is Roberto.

IRREGULAR ABSOLUTE SUPERLATIVES

Some adjectives have irregular absolute superlatives.  Many of them are forms taken directly from Latin.  A partial list follows:

Positive	Superlative

antiguo	old	antiquísimo	very old

bueno	good	óptimo	very good

buenísimo

fácil	easy	facilísimo	very easy

fiel	faithful	fidelísimo	very faithful

fuerte	strong	fortísimo	very strong

grande	great	máximo	very big

grandísimo

malo	bad	pésimo	very bad

malísimo

nuevo	new	novísimo	very new

nuevísimo

pequeño	small	mínimo	very small

pequeñísimo

pobre	poor	paupérrimo	very poor

sabio	wise	sapientísimo	very wise

terrible	terrible	terribilísimo	very terrible

COMPARISON OF EQUALS

ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS + tan...como

Where English uses as...as to compare two characteristics that are equal, Spanish uses

tan...como.  The adjective must agree with the noun it modifies.

Tu hermana es tan alta como la mía.

Your sister is as tall as mine.

Pedro es tan extrovertido como Juan.

Peter is as extroverted as John.

Estos pájaros son tan bellos como esos.

These birds are as beautiful as those.

Los jóvenes son tan respetados como sus padres.

The children are as respected as their parents.

NOUNS + tanto...como

Where English uses as much...as or as many...as to compare two equal quantities,

Spanish uses tanto (-a, -os, -as)...como.  Since tanto modifies the noun it

precedes, it functions as an adjective and changes its form according to the

number and gender of the noun it modifies.

Él no tiene tanta paciencia como yo.

He does not have as much patience as I.

Tengo tanto entusiasmo como tú.

I have as much enthusiasm as you.

Ella habla tanto como él.

She speaks as much as he does.

Él habla tan aprisa como ella.

He speaks as fast as she does.

If the noun being modified is referred to in a previous sentence, it is frequently omitted.

¿Cuántos libros compraste?	Compré tantos como tú.

How many books did you buy?	I bought as many as you.

Related Topics:

Gender

Plural Forms of Nouns

Adverbs


ADVERBS

Adverbs can be formed from most adjectives by adding -mente to the feminine singular form of the adjective.  The -mente ending corresponds to the English -ly ending.  If the adjective has a written accent, the accent is retained in the adverb form.

cariñosa	cariñosamente

constante	constantemente

fácil	fácilmente

perfecto	perfectamente

rápido	rápidamente

triste	tristemente

NOUN + con AS ADVERB

Adverbs are frequently formed by using the prepositional phrase con + the singular form of

the noun.

con + noun	-mente	English

con ansiedad	ansiosamente	anxiously

con cuidado	cuidadosamente	carefully

con gusto	gustosamente	gladly

con cariño	cariñosamente	lovingly

con dificultad	dificultosamente	with difficulty

con lentitud	lentamente	slowly

con paciencia	pacientemente	patiently

con rapidez	rápidamente	rapidly

ADVERBS NOT DERIVED FROM ADJECTIVES

Some of the more common adverbs that are not derived from adjectives are:

algo	somewhat	aprisa	quickly, hurriedly

demasiado	too	tan	so

mucho	a lot	poco	a little

muchísimo	a great deal	poquísimo	very little

mal	badly	bastante	quite, rather

peor	worse	nada	not at all

muy	very	despacio	slowly

siempre	always	nunca	never

USAGE

ADVERBS THAT MODIFY VERBS

Adverbs that answer the question, ¿cómo? (how?), usually follow the verb.  A few adverbs such as rápidamente, lentamente, and duramente may also appear in a masculine singular adjective form:  rápido, lento, duro.

Ellos corren rápidamente.	They run rapidly.

Ellos corren rápido.

Trabaja duramente.	He works hard.

Trabaja duro.

When two adverbs with the -mente ending are used, only the second adverb takes the -mente ending.

Tenemos que trabajar lenta y cuidadosamente.

We must work slowly and carefully.

The adverbs bien and mal usually follow the first adverb.  Since bien and mal do not take the

-mente ending, the first adverb does.

Estudian rápidamente y bien.

They study rapidly and well.

ADVERBS THAT MODIFY ADJECTIVES + OTHER ADVERBS

Adverbs such as muy, poco, bastante, and demasiado are used to convey intensity.  Adverbs that express degree include relativamente, extraordinariamente, enormemente, extremadamente, verdaderamente, and realmente.

Words such as poco, demasiado, and bastante can be used as both adverbs and adjectives. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs.  Adverbs never change their form.  Adjectives modify nouns and pronouns and must agree with the words they modify in number and, if possible, in gender.

Adverbs do not change form.

Estudio demasiado rápido.	I study too rapidly.

Ellos estudian demasiado rápido.	They study too rapidly.

Adjectives change form.

Tengo demasiadas revistas.	I have too many magazines.

Me diste demasiados tamales.	You gave me too many tamales.

MODIFICATION OF ADVERBS BY OTHER ADVERBS

Affirmative

Dibuja muy, muy bien.	He (she) draws very, very well.

Canta enormemente bien.	He (she) sings tremendously well.

Corre bastante mal.	He (she) runs quite badly.

Negative

Ana no habla nada bien.	Anna does not speak at all well.

Pablo no canta muy bien.	Paul does not sing very well.

MODIFICATION OF ADJECTIVES BY ADVERBS

Affirmative

Felipe está algo alegre.	Phillip is somewhat happy.

Jaime es bastante alto.	James is quite tall.

Mari se siente demasiado cansada.	Mary feels too tired.

Negative

Ese hombre es poco caballeroso.	That man is not very gentleman-like.

Isabel no es nada gorda.	Elizabeth is not fat at all.

Related Topics:

Descriptive Adjectives

Position of Adjectives

Comparative and Superlative Forms


PREPOSITIONS

The simple prepositions in Spanish are:

a	at, to	hacia	towards

ante	before	hasta	until, to, up to, as far as

bajo	under	mediante	by means of

con	with	menos	except, but

contra	against	para	for

de	of, from	por	for, by

desde	from, since	salvo	except, save

durante	during	según	according to

en	in, to, at, on	sin	without

entre	among, between	sobre	on, about

excepto	except	tras	after

VERB + PREPOSITION

Prepositions complete the meaning of verbs in different ways:

pensar	intend

pensar de	to think of, have an opinion about

pensar en	to think of, meditate on

VERB + PREPOSITION + NOUN OBJECT

A verb that requires a preposition before a noun (object) requires the same preposition before a subordinate clause:

enterarse de	=	to find out about

Yo me enteré de que eran de Bolivia.

I found out about that they were from Bolivia.

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

Some commonly used prepositional phrases include:

a causa de	on account of

a excepción de	with the exception of

a fines de	at the end of

a fuerza de	by dint of

al lado de	beside

a lo largo de	along

a más de	besides, farther than

a mediados de	about the middle of

al mes justo de	exactly a month after

a pesar de	in spite of

a principios de	at the beginning of

a punto de	about to

a través de	across, through

además de	besides, in addition to

con motivo de	on account of

de parte de	from

en contra de	against

en cuanto a	as for

en frente de	in front of

en pro de	in favor of

en vez de	instead of

en virtud de	by virtue of

más allá de	beyond

por medio de	by means of

por razón de	by reason of, at the rate of

sin embargo de	despite the fact that

a fines de septiembre	at the end of September

a mediados del siglo XX	about the middle of the twentieth century

a principios de 1849	at the beginning of 1849

PREPOSITIONS + ADVERBIAL PHRASES

A / EN

"A" implies motion, en implies rest:

Voy a casa.	I am going home.

Estamos en casa.	We are at home.

The following verbs require en:

caer	to fall

entrar	to go in

Él cayó en cama.	He fell ill.

Entró en la ciudad.	He went into the city.

The preposition "a" refers to the termination of time, and "en" indicates the length of time in which an action takes place:

A las cuatro...	At four o'clock...

A tres dias de estar aquí...	After being here three days...

Llegaré a Moscú en dos dias.	I shall reach Moscow in two days.

Estará de vuelta en ocho dias.	He will be back in a week.

With expressions of distance, a means away.

A dos pasos...	Two steps away...

A tres manzanas...	Three blocks away...

La ciudad está a cien kilómetros.	The city is a hundred kilometers away.

ANTE / DELANTE DE / ANTES DE

ante	=	before or in the presence of an authority; it figuratively denotes preference

ante todo	before all

ante el juez	before the judge

ante la belleza	in the presence of beauty

ante la nación	before the nation

delante de	=	before, in respect to place

delante de ellos	in front of them

delante de la casa	before the house

antes de	=	before, in respect to time

antes de Marzo	before March

antes de la noche	before night

BAJO / DEBAJO DE

bajo	=	under or below, usually in a figurative sense

bajo el general Mendoza	under General Mendoza

diez grados bajo cero	ten degrees below zero

bajo ciertas condiciones	under certain conditions

debajo de	=	under, below in physical position

debajo de la mesa...	under the table...

El gato está debajo de la cama.	The cat is under the bed.

DETRAS DE / TRAS / DESPUES DE

detrás de	=	behind in physical position

detrás del carro....	behind the car...

tras	=	after, behind in succession

Entraron, unos tras otros, al museo.

They entered, one after another, into the museum.

después de	=	after, in respect to time

después de las once...	after eleven o'clock...

EN / ENCIMA DE / SOBRE

en	=	in, on

Vive en Guadalajara.

He lives in Guadalajara.

Las manzanas están en la mesa.

The apples are on the table.

encima de	=	on top of, above

Ponga la cobertura encima de la jaula de los pájaros, por favor.

Put the cover on top of the birdcage, please.

sobre	=	on (physically); concerning or about (figuratively)

Los anteojos están sobre la mesa.
The eyeglasses are on the table.

Fui a una conferencia sobre computadoras.

I went to a lecture on computers.

DESDE

desde	=	since, from, often a correlative with hasta, to

desde entonces	since then

desde allí	from there

desde Bogotá hasta Pereira...	from Bogota to Pereira...

desde ahora	from now

HASTA

hasta	=	until, till, as far as, refers to both time and place

hasta el 15 del mes...	until the 15th of the month...

Me acompañó hasta la puerta.

He accompanied me as far as the door.

Hasta is frequently used as an adverb in the sense of even and as many as.

Hasta París cansa.	Even Paris wearies.

Hasta es inteligente.	He is even intelligent.

Hasta cuatro representantes me visitaron.

As many as four representatives visited me.

ENTRE

entre	=	between, among, plus an adverbial expression meaning half

entre él y yo...	between him and me...

entre los arboles...	among the trees...

entre risa y llanto...	half laughing, half crying...

Related Topics:

Descriptive Adjectives

Adverbs

Adverbs and Adverbial Phrases

Para Vs. Por


CONJUNCTIONS

The simple conjunctions uniting coordinate clauses are:

y	and

o	or

ni	nor

pero	but nevertheless

sino	but on the contrary

más	but

The simple conjunctions introducing subordinate clauses are:

como	as, as soon as

cuando	when

mientras	while

pues	since

que	that

si	if

THE CONJUNCTION "Y"

The conjunction y changes to e before words beginning with i or hi, except before questions and words beginning with the dipthong ie:

español e ingles...	Spanish and English...

madre e hija...	mother and daughter...

nieve y hielo...	snow and ice...

...y Isabel?	... and Isabel?

"Y" is sometimes used at the beginning of a sentence or phrase to add emphasis:

¡Y si no consigue el trabajo!	And if he doesn't get the job!

"O" becomes u before a word beginning with o or ho:

uno u otro...	one or the other...

mujer u hombre...	woman or man...

siete u ocho...	seven or eight...

PERO

Pero means but or nevertheless:

Esta noche yo iba a caminar, pero cambié de opinión.

Tonight I was going to walk, but I changed my mind.

SINO / SINO QUE

Sino is used after a negative for contrast.

No es español sino portugués.

It is not Spanish but Portuguese.

No solo (or solamente)...sino (que) (tambien) means not only...but (also).

No solo no había ganado dinero en América sino que lo había perdido.

Not only had he not made money in America, but he had also lost it.

MAS

Mas is more rhetorical than pero and is sometimes used for euphony:

Para sí no quería grandezas: mas para su hijo todo le parecía poco.

For herself she did not desire titles, but for her son everything seemed to be too little.

The English but, in the sense of only, is generally no...mas que:

No tenemos mas que veinte dolares.

We have no more than twenty dollars.

We have only twenty dollars.

QUE

Que serves as a conjunction and is required after affirmations or oaths and before adverbs and clauses, though redundant in English:

Dijo que sí.	He said (that it was) so.

Creo que no.	I believe (that) not.

Claro que no.	Of course not.

¡Por Dios! que no es verdad.	By God, it is not true.

Que often has comparative force, implying progressive or continuous action:

Mejor que mejor.	Better and better.

Corría que no andaba.	She ran rather than walked.

Corre que corre.	It runs faster and faster.

A que implies a bet:

A que no sabe Ud. ¿cuántos años tiene?

I bet you don't know how old he is.

Conjunctions formed from adverbs and prepositions by the addition of que are:

antes (de) que	before

asi que	as soon as, so that

aunque	although

bien que	although

desde que	since (time)

después que	after

hasta que	until

luego que	as soon as

mientras que	while

para que	in order that, so that

porque	because

pues que	for, since (reason)

puesto que	for, since (reason)

supuesto que	for, since (reason)

ya que	for, since (reason)

sin que	without

Conjunctions formed from prepositional phrases by the addition of que include:

a fin de que	in order that

con tal (de) que	provided that

dado que	given that

en caso de que	in case that

a medida que	as

de modo que	so that

de manera que	so that

de suerte que	so that

PUES

Pues is frequently used as an adverb:

Pues, a mí no me digas.

Well, don't tell me.

Pues yo, prefiero trabajar en casa.

Well, as for me, I prefer to work at home.

Related Topics:

Adverbs

Prepositions

Clauses


Relative Forms

A RELATIVE CLAUSE is a subordinate clause introduced by a relative pronoun that describes or qualifies the subject or object of a sentence.  It answers the question "What sort of...?".  The relative clause can contain a subject, verb, and/or object(s).

EXAMPLES:	El hombre, a quien conocemos, ha vendido su casa.

The man, whom we know, has sold his house.

Ella se pusó el sombrero que compró recientemente.

She put on the hat that she recently bought.

RELATIVE PRONOUNS introduce relative clauses.  Spanish relative pronouns include:

quien (-es)	who, whom, the ones who

que	who, that, which, whom

lo que	that which

el que (los que)	that which, those which

la que (las que)	that which, those which

el cual (los cuales)	the one(s) which

la cual (las cuales)	the one(s) which

lo cual	that which

donde	where

"Quien (-es)" means "who," "whom," and occasionally "the one(s) who."  It refers only to persons and 	has 	singular and plural forms, but no feminine form.  When a person or persons is the object of a preposition,  "quien (-	es)" ("whom") is used.

"Que," the most frequently used relative pronoun, means "who," "that," or "which," and, as direct object 	of a verb, 	"whom."  It refers to both persons and things, singular and plural, and its form is invariable.

EXAMPLES:	Esta persona está más cualificada que la que conocí ayer.

This person is more qualified than the one I met yesterday.

Lo que me dijiste no es cierto.

What you told me it is not true.

Related Topics:

Contents

Pronouns


INTERJECTIONS

Interjections are more numerous and important in Spanish than in English:

Divine names as exclamations are common and are not usually regarded as profane:

¡Dios!	God!

¡Por Dios!	For goodness' sake!

¡Dios mío!	My God!

¡Ay Dios mío!	Oh my God!

¡Dios te oiga!	God willing!

¡Jesús!	Bless you! (after a sneeze)

¡Jesús, María y José!	Good heavens!

¡Virgen santísima!	By all thats Holy!

¡Válgame Dios!	For Gods sake!

Imperatives frequently become interjections:

¡Anda! (incredulity)	Go away!  Come on!

¡Calla!  ¡Calle!	Shut up!  Keep still!

¡Diga!	Say!  Do tell!

¡Oye!  ¡Oiga!	Listen!

¡Mira!  ¡Mire Ud.!	Look!  Listen!

¡Quita!  ¡Quítese Ud.!	Get out!  Leave me alone!

¡Toma!	Here, take it!

¡Vamos!  ¡Vaya!	Come on!  Go ahead!

¡Viva!	Hurrah!

¡Vaya! is the most common of these and the hardest to render by a single word:

¡Carta de tu tío! Y ¡vaya si es gorda!

Letter from your uncle!  And it's a fat one!

¡Vaya una hora de venir!

This is a pretty hour to come!

¡Vaya si le conozco!

Of course I know him!

Nouns and adjectives may become interjections:

¡Al asesino!	Murder!

¡Al ladrón!	Stop thief!

¡Alto!	Freeze!

¡Bravo!	Good!

¡Cuidado!	Watch out!  Be careful!

¡Fuego!	Fire!

¡Socorro!	Help!

¡Ojo!  ¡Mucho ojo!	Attention!  With care!

(Sometimes used on shipping crates containing fragile merchandise.)

Personal pronouns are connected with adjectives used as interjections by the preposition de.  This is also true of ¡Ay! with nouns or pronouns:

¡Necio de mí!	Fool that I am!

¡Pobrecita de ella!	Poor little girl!

¡Ay de mí!	Woe is me!

¡Ay de los vencidos!	Woe to the conquered!

The following are frequent in conversation for emphasis or protestation:

¡Hombre!	¡Hijo!

¡Mujer!	¡Hija!

¡Chico!	¡Señor!

Señor appears in expressions not addressed to a particular individual:

¡Señor, no esperaba escapar tan fácilmente!

Gee, I didn't expect to get off so easily!

Related Topics:

Imperative Form

Negative Statements

Adverbs

Prepositions


NOTES ON ESTAR

Estar is used to express location or position, temporary or permanent, real or figurative.  Estar means to be here, to be there, to be present.

Ciudad Bolívar está junto al Orinoco.

Bolivar City is beside the Orinoco (river in Venezuela).

A su lado estaba un caballero joven.

At her side was a young gentleman.

Estará usted en su ambiente.

You will be in your element.

Estuvo de médico militar en Cuba.

He was in Cuba as an army doctor.

¿Ha estado el doctor Ramírez aquí?

Has Doctor Ramirez been here?

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations


NOTES ON SER

Ser is used to express:

1.	Permanent characteristics such as origin, ownership, or material:

¿De qué parte de Los Estados Unidos eres tú?

From what part of the United States are you?

Soy de Miami.

I am from Miami.

El café es de Colombia.

The coffee is from Colombia.

Esta casa es de mi padre.

This house belongs to my father.

El mueble era de madera de pino.

The piece of furniture was made of pine (wood).

2.	Quality or statements of fact:

Él es abogado.

He is a lawyer.

Ella es bonita.

She is pretty.

3.	Events:

La escena es en un pueblo de Castilla.

The scene is (action takes place) in a town in Castile.

Fue en el invierno del 93.

It happened in the winter of '93.

4.	Expressions of time:

The third person forms of ser are used to indicate time of day:

¿Qué hora es?	What time is it?

Es la una.	It is one o'clock.

Es la una y cuarto.	It is a quarter past one.

Son las dos.	It is two o'clock.

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, and Tener; Conjugations


NOTES ON GUSTAR

The literal translation of gustar is to be pleasing, but the English meaning is to like.  Gustar is almost always used with the indirect object pronouns, me, te, le, nos, os, and les.

Me gusta.

It is pleasing to me.	=	I like it.

Me gustan las flores.

Flowers are pleasing to me.	=	I like flowers.

Les gusta esquiar.

Skiing is pleasing to them.	=	They like skiing (to ski).

GUSTAR + INFINITIVE

When the subject is an infinitive, gustar is always singular even if more than one infinitive is included:

Les gusta pescar y nadar.

Fishing and swimming are pleasing to them.

They like fishing and swimming.

GUSTAR + PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

The prepositional phrases, a él, a ella, a usted, a ellos, a ellas, or a ustedes are used to clarify le and les.

A ellos les gusta la musica.

The music is pleasing to them.

They like the music.

A los niños les gusta jugar.

Playing is pleasing to the children.

The children like to play.

GUSTAR + NEGATIVE

In all cases, the negative immediately precedes the indirect object pronoun:

A los pilotos nunca les gusta declararse en huelga.

The pilots never like to go on strike.

GUSTAR / EMPHASIS

The prepositional phrases, a mí, a tí, a nosotros, or a vosotros may be used for emphasis:

¿A tí te gusta bailar?

Do you like to dance?

Si, a mí me gusta bailar.

Yes, I like to dance.

GUSTAR + DE

Gustar de with a personal subject means to enjoy.

Gabriel gustaba de pasear por su jardín.

Gabriel enjoyed walking through his garden.

Related Topics:

Gender

Negative Statements

Subject Pronouns

Prepositions


PARA vs. POR

Para and por are used to express the many meanings of the English words for and by.

COMPARISON OF PARA AND POR

Para denotes	Por denotes

Purpose / for the purpose of	Reason / cause

In order to / on behalf of	Due to / because of

Intended for

Destination / destined for	Movement through a place

Comparison	Exchange / in place of

Future point of time	Indefinite time / duration of time

USAGE:  PARA

Para precedes an infinitive clause that explains the purpose of the action expressed by the principal verb:

Ella usó el dinero para comprar un coche.

She used the money (in order) to buy a car.

Compramos libros para leer y estudiar.

We buy books (in order) to read and study.

Trabaja para vivir y no vivas para trabajar.

Work (in order) to live, do not live (in order) to work.

Aprovecho esta ocasión para darle las gracias.

I take advantage of this opportunity to thank you.

Para denotes purpose, for the purpose of, intended for, or on behalf of:

Compré una mesa para la concina.

I bought a table (intended) for the kitchen.

Dejar para mañana...

To leave (something intended) for tomorrow...

Viajaba para su compañía.

He used to travel for (on behalf of) his company.

Para denotes destination:

Coja Ud. el avión para Nueva York.

Take the plane (destined) for New York.

La carta era para su hermano.

The letter was (destined) for his brother.

Para is sometimes used to denote comparison:

Es alto para su edad.

He is tall for his age.

Para is used to specify a future point of time:

La lección para mañana...

The lesson (intended) for tomorrow...

Estoy para salir...

I am about to (intending to) leave...

After verbs of motion "a" is used instead of para:

La muchacha se paró a ver el desfile.

The girl stopped (in order) to watch the parade.

Subió a la montaña a contemplar la ciudad.

He ascended the mountain (in order) to study the city.

Para con is used in certain expressions of conduct and as toward:

deberes para con los padres...

duties toward one's parents...

indulgencia para conmigo...

indulgence toward me...

USAGE:  POR

Por introduces the reason or cause for the action expressed by the principal verb:

No pudo hacerlo por hallarse enfermo.

He could not do it because he was sick.

Por ganar la competición recibió una beca.

For winning the competition he received a scholarship.

No lo digo por mí.

I do not say it for (because of) my own sake.

Por is used to denote movement through a place:

Volar por el aire...	To fly through the air...

Pasar por la calle...	To go through the street...

¿Por dónde se va?	Which way (through where) does one go?

Por allí...	In (through) that direction...

Por aquí...	In (through) this direction...

Por denotes exchange or in place of:

Pagué diez dólares por el libro.

I paid ten dollars (in exchange) for the book.

Tomé su sombrero por el mío.

I took your hat (in exchange) for mine.

Mauricio va a trabajar por Rosa.

Maurice is going to work in Rosa's place.

COMPARE:

Mauricio va a trabajar para Rosa.

Maurice is going to work for (in the employ of) Rosa.

Por is used to express indefinite time and duration of time:

por la noche	at night

mañana por la mañana	tomorrow morning

Viví en Venezuela por (durante) tres años.

I lived in Venezuela for three years.

Por combines with the prepositions debajo de, delante de, detrás de, encima de, and entre, after verbs of movement:

Tiró la pelota por encima de la cerca.

He threw the ball over the fence.

Los niños pasaron por debajo del árbol.

The children passed under the tree.

Por is used in certain exclamations:

¡Por Dios!	Oh, my God!  (For God's sake!)

¡Bien por mi hermano!	Good for my brother!

Por is used to denote an object or a part of the human body:

La cogió por la mano.

He took her by the hand.

Por is used in certain expressions similar to English:

mandar por el médico...	to send for the doctor...

ir por las verduras...	to go for vegetables...

Por is used in numerous expressions containing adverbs and conjunctions:

por decirlo así...	so to speak...

por desgracia...	unfortunately...

Related Topics:

Adverbs

Prepositions

Interjections

Clauses

Adverbs and Adverbial Phrases


DECLARATIVE SENTENCES

ACTIVE VOICE

The active voice is a construction in which the subject performs the action described by the

verb.  In both English and in Spanish, sentences in the active voice are constructed in the

subject-verb-object pattern.

EXAMPLE:

Un mecánico / repara / el automóvil.  A mechanic repairs (is repairing) the car.

subject	verb	object

SUBJECT

The subject of a sentence can be a noun, pronoun, proper name, or a noun phrase.  A clause, gerund, gerund phrase, or infinitive phrase can also function as the subject.  The simple subject is a noun or pronoun, whereas the complete subject consists of the noun or pronoun plus all its modifiers.  A compound subject consists of two or more nouns, pronouns, or noun phrases.

POSITION OF SUBJECT

In Spanish, the subject does not always occur before the verb as it does in English.  A variety of constructions is therefore possible, including complete omission of the subject:

Subject at end:

Reparó este automóvil un mecánico bueno.

A good mechanic repaired this automobile.

Subject immediately after verb:

Reparó un mecánico bueno este automóvil.

A good mechanic repaired this automobile.

Subject (él / he) omitted:

Reparó este automóvil.

He repaired this automobile.

The subject is often placed at the end of a sentence when it contains new information, as in answer to the question  ¿Quién?

¿Quién reparó este automóvil?	Who repaired this automobile?

Lo reparó un mecánico bueno.	A good mechanic repaired it.

For even greater emphasis:

Fue un mecánico bueno quien lo reparó.

It was a good mechanic who repaired it.


PREDICATE

A predicate consists of a verb or verbal phrase, including any complements, objects, and modifiers of a sentence or clause.  The predicate always contains a verb and can consist of a verb and complement (nouns, pronouns, prepositional phrases, adjectives, and verb phrases).  The predicate can either be an inflected verb form or a combination of inflected auxiliary and past participle or infinitive verb forms.

A sentence can include more than one verb, object, or complement.

Related Topics:

Contents

Syntax


OBJECT

The object of a sentence can be a noun, pronoun, proper name, or a noun phrase.  The accusative case indicates the direct object, and the dative case indicates the indirect object.  A subordinate clause may also function as an object.

POSITION OF OBJECT

There are three constructions that emphasize the object:

[1]	In the active voice, the sentence can begin with the object followed by the pronoun:

Este automóvil lo reparó un mecánico bueno.

A good mechanic repaired this car.

      [2]	In a sentence using se, the object can be treated as subject. It is an alternative for

the true passive:

Este automóvil se reparó en México.	[object (car) becomes new subject]

This car was repaired in Mexico.

or	and

Se reparó este automóvil en México.	[subject agrees with verb]

This car was repaired in Mexico.

[3]	In the passive voice with ser, the previous subject is entirely omitted or preceded by

por:

Este automóvil fue reparado por un mecánico bueno.

[past participle agrees with subject]

TWO OBJECT PRONOUNS

When two object pronouns are used with the same verb, the indirect object pronoun occurs first.

Me lo dió.	He gave it to me.

Dámelo.	Give it to me.

TWO THIRD-PERSON PRONOUNS

When two pronouns of the third person occur together, the indirect object pronouns le and les assume the form se.

Mandé un paquete a mi padre.	I sent a package to my father.

Le mandé un paquete.	I sent him a package.

Lo mandé a mi padre.	I sent it to my father.

Se lo mandé.	I sent it to him.

The sentence Se lo mandé may have six different meanings.  To distinguish the various

meanings of le, les, and se, the prepositional phrases, a él, a ella, a usted, a ellos, a ellas, or a ustedes are added.

se or le	se or les

a él	to him	a ellos	to them (m.)

a ella	to her	a ellas	to them (f.)

a usted	to you	a ustedes	to you (pl.)

No se lo mandé a ellos.	I did not send it to them.

Yo quería mandárselo a él.	I would like to send it to him.

A él le mandé un paquete.	I sent him a package.

A ellas no les escribió.	He did not write to them.

A ellos les gusta la musica.	The music is pleasing to them.

They like the music.

A los niños les gusta jugar.	Playing is pleasing to the children.

The children like to play.

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES FOR EMPHASIS

The prepositional phrases, a mí, a tí, a nosotros, or a vosotros may be used for emphasis:

¿A tí te pagaron ayer?

Did they pay you yesterday?

Si, a mí me pagaron.

Yes, They paid me.

Related Topics:

Reflexive Verbs

Subject Pronouns

Prepositions

Clauses


VERBS

Summary of Tenses

Estar, Ser, Ir, & Tener

Present Tense

Simple Past Tense

Imperfect Tense

Future Tense

Conditional Tense

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Subjunctive

Compound Tenses

Present Perfect Tense

Past Perfect Tense

Past Anterior Tense

Future Perfect Tense

Conditional Perfect Tense

Imperfect Subjunctive

Past Perfect Subjunctive

Passive Voice

Reflexive Verbs

Imperative Form

Participles

Notes On Estar

Notes On Ser

Notes On Gustar


ADVERBS AND ADVERBIAL PHRASES

When an adverb begins a sentence, it is generally emphatic and often causes an inversion of the subject and verb.

Tú lo sabes bien.	You know (it) very well.

Bien lo sabes tú.

ADVERBS ENDING IN -mente

When two or more adverbs ending in -mente modify the same verb, -mente is omitted from all but the last.

EXAMPLES:

fácil	easy	fácilmente	easily

lento	slow	lentamente	slowly

rápido	quick	rápidamente	quickly

Trabajaron rápida, continua, y juiciosamente.

They worked quickly, continuously, and judiciously.

Recientemente is shortened to recién before a past participle used as an adjective.

El gobierno recién formado...

The recently formed government...

Lo + ADVERB + que

When followed by an adverb + que, the neuter article lo corresponds to the English

how + adverb.  It indicates the extent to which something is done.

Se quejó de lo rápido que hablábamos.

He complained about how rapidly we were speaking.

ADVERBS OF LOCATION

Adverbs of location include:

aquí 	here / near me

acá	here / toward me

ahí	there / near you

allí	over there / greater distance from speaker

allá	yonder / far off in time, space, or thought

Acá and allá are used primarily with verbs of motion.

Ahí corresponds roughly to the demonstrative ese.

Dondequiera and adondequiera correspond to the English wherever.  When its meaning is every place, it is followed by the indicative.  When it refers to an indefinite place, it calls for the subjunctive mood.

Certain adverbs and adverbial phrases modify either the verb or the entire sentence:

SIQUIERA vs. NI SIQUIERA

In affirmative and negative statements, siquiera (at least) and ni siquiera (not even) precede the verb.

Siquiera dame una explicación.

At least give me an explanation.

David ni siquiera trabaja con computadoras.

David doesn't even work with computers.

If ni siquiera (not even) follows the verb, no is placed before the verb.

David no trabaja ni siquiera con computadoras.

David doesn't even work with computers.

YA vs. YA NO

Ya has various meanings.  In the Present and Present Continuous Tenses, ya means now; in the Simple Past Tense it means already; and in the negative, no longer or any more.

Ya voy a trabajar.	I am going to work now.

Voy a trabajar ya.

Ya fui al mercado.	I already went to the market.

Ya no trabajo.	I no longer work.

No trabajo ya.

Related Topics:

Negative Statements

Adverbs


NEGATION

The negative no is always placed directly before the verb, except in sentences that contain a reflexive verb and/or object pronoun.

Hablo español.	No hablo español.

I speak Spanish.	I don't speak Spanish.

Se lavan las manos.	No se lavan las manos.

They are washing their hands.	They are not washing their hands.

Negatives other than no may also be placed before the verb.

Nadie fue con ella.	Ni él ni ella asistieron a la recepción.

Nobody went with her.	Neither he nor she attended the reception.

Nunca tuvimos la oportunidad de viajar por aquí.

We never had the opportunity of traveling through here.

In all cases, the negative immediately precedes the indirect object pronoun.

A él no le gusta comer muy tarde.

He doesn't like to eat very late.

Related Topics:

Punctuation

Negative Statements


QUESTIONS

Questions are asked in Spanish by placing the verb before the subject.  The subject may be placed directly after the verb or at the end of the question.

Question	Statement

¿Viene Juan?	Juan viene.

Is John coming?	John is coming.

¿Es Tegucigalpa la capital de Honduras?	Tegucigalpa es la capital de Honduras.

Is Tegucigalpa the capital of Honduras?	Tegucigalpa is the capital of Honduras.

INTERROGATIVES

All interrogatives have a written accent over the stressed vowel and when in questions they are preceded by an inverted question mark.

¿Qué?	what?	¿Quién -es?	who?

¿Cuál?	which (one)?	¿Cuándo?	when?

¿Cuáles?	which (ones)?	¿Dónde?	where?

¿Cuánto -a?	how much?	¿Por qué?	why?

¿Cuántos -as?	how many?	¿Cómo?	how?

¿Qué dice?	What does he say?

¿Cuál es la fecha?	What is the date?

¿Cuáles son tus libros?	Which are your books?

¿Cuánto cuesta?	How much does it cost?

¿A quién compró usted la casa?	From whom did you buy the house?

¿Cuándo vamos a la playa?	When are we going to the beach?

¿Dónde se lo encontró?	Where did he find it?

RHETORICAL QUESTIONS

Affirmative and negative statements may be turned into questions by adding a question word or phrase at the end.  The inverted question mark is placed before the question, not before the entire sentence.

Quieres acompañarme, ¿verdad?

You want to accompany me, right?

Quieres acompañarme, ¿verdad que sí?

You want to accompany me, don't you?

Te gustan los plátanos, ¿no?

You like bananas, right?

Related Topics:

Contents

Punctuation


CLAUSES

A sentence may consist of a main clause containing, at a minimum, a subject and a predicate.

Es picante.

It is spicy.

Or it may consist of a main clause and one or more subordinate clauses.

Me gusta aunque es picante.

I like it although it is spicy.

MAIN CLAUSES

A main clause may begin with the subject of the sentence, one of the objects, an adverb / adverbial phrase, or a subordinate clause.

SUBORDINATE CLAUSES

By definition, a subordinate clause is always dependent on a main clause and cannot stand by itself.  The statement made in a subordinate clause does not have the same weight as that made in the main clause.

Subordinate clauses are separated from the main clause by commas.

Si se lo permitiera su presupuesto, compraría una casa en el campo.

If his budget permitted, he would buy a house in the country.

CONDITIONAL CLAUSES

Conditional, contrary-to-fact clauses, require the Imperfect Subjunctive; the conditional is used in the subordinate clause.

Si tuviera (or tuviese) un libro, lo leería.

If I had a book, I would read it.

Si

Ordinary conditions after si take the Present or Imperfect.

Si sale la semana entrante, llegará a Canadá a tiempo para la conferencia.

If he leaves next week, he will arrive in Canada on time for the meeting.

In indirect questions, si is followed by the conditional and means whether.

Le pregunté si quería salir la próxima semana.

I asked him if he would like to leave next week.

Quisiera

Quisiera means would like:

Yo quisiera acompañarte.

I would like to go with you.

COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS

Coordinating conjunctions join two clauses and give them both equal weight.  These conjunctions

are not counted as one of the elements of the clause and therefore the word order does not change.

The coordinating conjunctions are:

y	and

o, u	or

o...o	either...or

ni...ni	neither...nor

pero	but, though

sino	but, but rather

sino que	but

Sino is used for but only when the first part of the sentence is negative and the second part contradicts it.  Pero is used in all other cases.

Quiere trabajar pero no tiene una educación.

He wants to work but he doesn't have an education.

No quiere trabajar ahora, sino matricularse en la universidad.

He doesn't want to work now, but rather to enroll in the university.

Sino que generally replaces sino to introduce a clause.

Ella no gastó el dinero, sino que lo ahorró para sus metas.

She didn't spend the money, but saved it for her goals.

A subordinate clause can be introduced only by a conjunction or relative pronoun.  Many conjunctions that introduce subordinate clauses are formed by adding que to a preposition.

antes de	antes de que	before

después de	después de que	after

Vamos después de las seis.

Let's go after six o'clock.

Vamos antes de que venga a ella.

Let's go before she comes.

Related Topics:

Contents

Syntax


IMPERATIVES

The Imperative Form is used in to express a command.  The Subjunctive Form of the Imperative is used to express commands in the Ud. and Uds. forms.

OBLIGATIONS

Certain Spanish verbs and impersonal expressions imply obligation.

deber	to be obligated to, ought to, should

tener que	to have to

hay que	one must

es necesario	it is necessary to

Deber conveys moral obligation.  The Present Indicative of deber conveys a strong commitment or obligation.  The -ra form of the Imperfect Subjunctive or the Conditional conveys a milder expression.

Debes estudiar.

You ought to study.

Deberías estudiar.

You really should study.

Tener que is a verb form conjugated in every person and implies necessity.

Tengo que pagar las cuentas.

I have to pay the bills.

Tuvieron que ir.

They had to go.

Hay que implies a sense of obligation but does not apply directly to the person as does tener que.

Hay que pagar las cuentas.

One must pay bills.

It is necessary to pay bills.

DIRECT COMMANDS

A direct command is expressed by a verb in the Subjunctive Mood, usually at the beginning of the sentence.

¡Déjame hacer un repaso del presupuesto!

Let me make a review of the budget!

INDIRECT COMMANDS

An indirect command expressed in the third person singular or plural is in the Subjunctive Mood and is introduced by Qué.

¡Qué escriba él primero!

Let him write first!

¡Qué lo hagan ellos!

Let them do it!

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

The Future Tense can be used as the equivalent of an order or an instruction.

Se marchará usted a las ocho en punto.

Leave at eight o'clock sharp.

Los pasajeros pasarán por el agente de seguridad.

The passengers pass through the security police.

The infinitive is often used as a command in short sentences that serve as written directions or public notices.

No Estacionar	No Parking

No Fumar	No Smoking / Do Not Smoke

Firmar los documentos siguientes:

Sign the following documents:

Related Topics:

Summary of Tenses

Imperfect Subjunctive

Reflexive Verbs

Imperative Form

Prepositions

Interjections

Conjunctions

Notes on Gustar


THE CLOCK AND THE CALENDAR

The names of the days, months, and seasons are usually not capitalized.

DAYS OF THE WEEK

lunes	Monday	viernes	Friday

martes	Tuesday	sábado	Saturday

miércoles	Wednesday	domingo	Sunday

jueves	Thursday

The definite article is required before expressions of time that are modified by an adjective.

la semana pasada...	el sábado próximo...

last week...	next Saturday...

In expressions of time the definite article appears where English uses the preposition "on":

el viernes...	los jueves...

on Friday...	on Thursdays...

El avión sale el catorce del mes.

The plane leaves on the fourteenth of the month.

MONTHS OF THE YEAR

enero	January	julio	July

febrero	February	agosto	August

marzo	March	se(p)tiembre	September

abril	April	octubre	October

mayo	May	noviembre	November

junio	June	diciembre	December

SEASONS OF THE YEAR

la primavera	spring	el otoño	autumn

el verano	summer	el invierno	winter

TIME OF DAY

The third person forms of ser are used to indicate time of day:

¿Qué hora es?	What time is it?

Es la una.	It is one o'clock.

Es la una y cuarto.	It is a quarter past one.

Son las dos.	It is two o'clock.

Son las dos y media.	It is half past two.

Son las tres menos cuarto.	It is a quarter to three.

Son las cuatro y diez.	It is ten minutes past four.

Son las cinco menos diez.	It is ten minutes to five.

DIVISIONS OF THE DAY

la mañana	morning

el día	day

de día	by day

la noche	night, evening

la tarde	afternoon

anoche	last night

anteayer	the day before yesterday

anteayer noche	the night before last

anteayer tarde	the afternoon before last

ayer	yesterday

esta noche	tonight

hoy	today

mañana	tomorrow

mañana por la mañana	tomorrow morning

REPETITION

Repetition is expressed using vez (one time) and por, al, or the definite article. It answers the question "How often?".

¿Cuántas veces la semana, al día, por año?...

How often a week, a day, a year?...

una vez	once

una vez que	once, as soon as, when

una que otra vez	once in awhile, on rare occasions

dos veces	twice

a veces	at times, sometimes, occasionally

a la vez	at the same time, simultaneously

a la vez que	at the same time as, while

a su vez	in turn; in his turn; for his, her, or one's part

alguna vez	once

alguna que otra vez	occasionally, once in a while, sometimes

algunas veces	sometimes

dos veces más grande	twice as big

cada vez	each time

cada vez más	more and more

cuántas veces	how often

de una vez	right now, right away, without further ado

de una vez por todas	once and for all

de vez en cuando	from time to time

era or érase una vez	once upon a time

hacer las veces de	to stand in for, substitute, replace

la primera vez	the first time

las más veces	in most cases, most of the time

muchas veces	many times, often

otra vez	once again, again; some other time

pocas veces	seldom, rarely

raras veces	seldom

repetidas veces	repeatedly

tal vez	perhaps, maybe; possibly

tener las veces de	to have the rank or status of

toda vez que	since, inasmuch as

Related Topics:

Contents

ABBREVIATIONS COMMONLY USED


CARDINAL & ORDINAL NUMERALS
CARDINAL & ORDINAL NUMBERS

CARDINAL NUMBERS

The cardinal numbers are:

0	=	cero	10	=	diez

1	=	uno -a	11	=	once

2	=	dos	12	=	doce

3	=	tres	13	=	trece

4	=	cuatro	14	=	catorce

5	=	cinco	15	=	quince

6	=	seis	16	=	dieciséis

7	=	siete	17	=	diecisiete

8	=	ocho	18	=	dieciocho

9	=	nueve	19	=	diecinueve

Beyond the number 20, the numerals are read in Spanish literally as twenty and one, twenty and two, fifty and four, etc.

20	=	veinte

21	=	veintiuno -a

22	=	veintidós

30	=	treinta

40	=	cuarenta

50	=	cincuenta

60	=	sesenta

70	=	setenta

80	=	ochenta

90	=	noventa

100	=	ciento

101	=	ciento uno -a

121	=	ciento veintiuno -a

1000	=	mil

2000	=	dos mil

100.000	=	cien mil

200.000	=	doscientos -as mil

1.000.000	=  un millón

2.000.000	=	dos millones

1.000.000.000  =  un billón (US), mil millones (EU)

EXCEPTIONS:  The cardinal numbers are invariable, except that:

Uno becomes un before a masculine noun.

Ciento becomes cien before nouns, mil, millón, and billón.

Compounds of ciento are treated as adjectives.

After the nouns millón and billón, the preposition de is required.

ORDINAL NUMBERS

The ordinal numbers are:

1st	=	primero -a

2d	=	segundo -a

3d	=	tercero -a

4th	=	cuarto -a

5th	=	quinto -a

6th	=	sexto -a

7th	=	séptimo -a

8th	=	octavo

9th	=	noveno -a, nono -a

10th	=	décimo -a

11th	=	undécimo -a

12th	=	duodécimo -a

13th	=	décimotercero -a

14th	=	décimocuarto-a

15th	=	décimoquinto -a

16th	=	décimosexto -a

17th	=	décimoséptimo -a

18th	=	décimoctavo -a

19th	=	décimonono -a

decimonoveno -a

20th	=	vigésimo -a

21st	=	vigésimo -a primero -a

22d	=	vigésimo -a segundo -a

30th	=	trigésimo -a primero -a

40th	=	cuadragésimo -a

50th	=	quincuagésimo -a

60th	=	sexagésimo -a

70th	=	septuagésimo -a

80th	=	octogésimo -a

90th	=	nonagésimo -a

100th	=	centésimo -a

101st	=	centésimo -a primero -a

111th	=	centésimo -a undécimo -a

121th  =	centésimo -a vigésimo -a primero -a

200th	=	ducentésimo, -a

300th	=	trecentésimo, -a

400th	=	cuadringentésimo, -a

500th	=	quingentésimo, -a

600th	=	sexcentésimo, -a

700th	=	septingentésimo, -a

800th	=	octingentésimo, -a

900th	=	noningentésimo, -a

1000th	=	milésimo -a

2000th	=	dos milésimo -a

100,000th	=	cien milésimo -a

200,000th	=	doscientos milésimo -a

1,000,000th	=	millonésimo -a

2,000,000th	=	dos millonésimo -a

1,000,000,000th	=	mil millonésimo -a

NOTE:  Primero and tercero lose their final o before a masculine singular noun (like alguno, bueno, ninguno, and malo).

FRACTIONS

Fractional numerals:

one half	=	un medio

one third	=	un tercio

two thirds	=	dos tercios

one fourth	=	un cuarto

three fourths	=	tres cuartos

one fifth	=	un quinto

one sixth	=	un sexto

one seventh	=	un séptimo

one eighth	=	un octavo

one ninth	=	un noveno

one tenth	=	un décimo

Fractional numerals above décimo are formed by adding -avo to the cardinals.  The final e of a cardinal (except those containing siete and nueve) may be dropped before -avo.  When the e of once, doce, trece, catorce, and quince is dropped, the c must be changed to z.

one eleventh	=	un onceavo, un onzavo

one twelfth	=	un doceavo, un dozavo

one thirteenth	=	un treceavo, un trezavo

one fourteenth	=	un catorceavo, un catorzavo

one fifteenth	=	un quinceavo, un quinzavo

one sixteenth	=	un dieciseisavo

one seventeenth	=	un diecisieteavo

one eighteenth	=	un dieciochoavo

one nineteenth	=	un diecinueveavo

one twentieth	=	un veinteavo

one thirtieth	=	un treintavo

one hundredth	=	un centésimo, (una centésima parte)

one thousandth	=	un milésimo

one ten-thousandth	=	un diezmilésimo

one one-millionth	=	un millonésimo

Fractional numerals are also commonly formed with the feminine form of the ordinals modifying the word parte:

third	=	tercera parte

twentieth	=	vigésima parte

The numerator of a fraction is a cardinal:

two-ninths	=	2/9	= dos novenos

fourteen-thirtieths	=	14/30	= catorce trigésimas partes

NUMERICAL NOTATION

WHOLE NUMBERS

The period is used to divide whole numbers:

10.000	=	ten thousand

DECIMALS

The comma is used for the decimal point:

1,2	=	one point two (uno coma dos)

Related Topics:

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ABBREVIATIONS COMMONLY USED


PUNCTUATION

The Spanish names of the marks of punctuation are:

.	punto final	...	puntos suspensivos	¨	diéresis

,	coma	¿ ?	interrogación	<< >>	comillas or cita

;	punto y coma	¡ !	admiración	-	guión

:	dos puntos	( )	parentesis	(em dash)	raya

Spanish punctuation differs from English mainly in the use of inverted question marks before interrogative words and sentences and inverted exclamation points before exclamatory words and sentences:

¿Adónde van?	(To) where are they going?

¡Qué hermosa!	How beautiful!

The period is used to divide whole numbers and the comma is used for the decimal point:

10.000	=	ten thousand

1,4	=	one and four tenths

Where English uses quotation marks, Spanish uses an em dash to indicate the beginning of a quotation.

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ABBREVIATIONS COMMONLY USED


Non-Grammatical Forms

Non-grammatical is a part of speech applied mainly to exclamations, or for any other word or expression that does not fit in any other lexical category.  Non-grammaticals do not inflect; they do not have gender, number, person, or tense.  Common Spanish non-grammaticals are:

¡Caramba!

¡Ay!

¡Hurra!

¡Sí!

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ABBREVIATIONS COMMONLY USED


Title Forms

Titles are words or abbreviations that appear in front of proper nouns and are used to address people directly or to refer to them in a formal way.  Examples:

 	Don Juan

Sr. Martínez

Doctor Palacios

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ABBREVIATIONS COMMONLY USED


ABBREVIATIONS COMMONLY USED

abrev.	abreviatura; abreviado	abbreviation; abbreviated

a.c.	año en curso; año curriente	current year

adj.	adjetivo	adejctive

admón.	administración	administration

adv.	adverbio	adverb

Am.	América; americanismo	America; americanism

apdo.	apartado de correos	post office box

arq.	arquitectura	architecture

art.	artículo	article

atta., atto., atte.	atenta/atentamente	yours sincerely; yours faithfully

aux.	auxiliar	auxiliary

B°, Bco.	banco	bank

bol.	bolsa	stock market

Cº	Centígrado, Celsius	Centigrade

C., Cía	Compañia	Company

C/	Calle	Road, Street

C.A.E.	cóbrese al entregar	cash on delivery

C.E.	Comunidad Europea	European Community

com.int.	comercio internacional	international commerce

comp.	comparativo	comparative

conj.	conjunción	conjunction

contr.	contracción	contraction

corp.	asuntos corporativos	corporate matters

C.P.	contestación pagada	reply paid

C.S.F.	coste/seguro/flete	cost/insurance/freight

cte.	corriente, del corriente	instant, current (month)

D.	Don	Mr.

Da.	Doña	Mrs.

E.	este	East

ej.	ejemplo	example

E.U.	Estados Unidos	United States

EE.UU.	Los Estados Unidos	The United States

f.	femenino	feminine

FAB	franco a bordo	free on board

fam.	familiar	familiar; colloquial

F.C., f.c.	ferrocarril	railway

fig.	figurado; figurativamente	figurative

fund.	fundición	smelting

G.B.	Gran Bretaña	Great Britain

G.C.	Guardia Civil	Civil Guard

gén.	género	gender

ger.	gerundio	gerund

gral.	general	general

gram.	gramática	grammar; grammatical

Hnos.	hermanos	brothers

id.	ídem	the same as above

imper.	imperativo	imperative; command

impers.	impersonal	impersonal

indic.	indicativo	indicative

inf.	infinitivo	infinitive

interj.	interjección	interjection

irr.	irregular	irregular

IVA	impuesto sobre valor añadido	Value Added Tax

kg	kilogramo(s)	kilogram(s)

km/h	kilómetros por hora	kilometers per hour

kv.	kilovatio	kilowatt

m.	masculino	masculine

m/min.	metro; minuto	meter; minute

M.C.	Mercado Común	Common Market

MIT	Ministerio de Informacion y	Ministry of Information and

Turismo	Tourism

N.	norte	North

n/o	nuestra orden	our order

N.U.	Naciones Unidas	United Nations

O.	oeste	West

p°b°	peso bruto	gross weight

pers.	personal; persona	person; personal

p.ej.	por ejemplo	for example

pl.	plural	plural

p°n°	peso neto	net weight

PNB	producto nacional bruto	Gross National Product

pos.	posesivo	possessive

P.P.	porte pagado	carriage paid

p.p.	participio pasado	past participle

p.pr.	participio presente	present participle

pral.	principal	principal

prep.	preposición	preposition

pres.	presente	present

pret.	pretérito	preterite

pron.	pronombre	pronoun

pta./ptas.	peseta(s)	peseta(s)

PVP	precio de venta al público	retail price

®	marca registrada	registered trademark

refl.	reflexivo	reflexive

RENFE	Red Nacional de	Spanish National Railway

Ferrocarriles Españoles	Network

S.	sur	South

s.	sustantivo	noun; substantive

SA	Sociedad Anónima	Public Limited Company

s.e.u.o.	salvo error u omision	errors and omissions excepted

sing.	singular	singular

SL	Sociedad Limitada	Limited Company

SP	Servicio Público	Public Service (taxis, buses)

SR	Sin Reserva	without reservation

Sr, Sres.	señor, señores	Mr., Messrs., Gentlemen

Sra.	señora	Mrs.

S.R.C.	se ruega contestación	please reply

Srta.	señorita	Miss

subj.	subjuntivo	subjunctive

super.	superlativo	superlative

tel., telef., Tfno	teléfono	telephone

TRB	toneladas de registro bruto	gross register tons

TVE	Televisión Española	Spanish Television

v.	verbo	verb

V°B°	visto bueno	approved by

Vd/s	usted, ustedes	you (singular and plural)

v.i.	verbo intransitivo	intransitive verb

v.r.	verbo reflexivo	reflexive verb

v.t.	verbo transitivo	transitive verb

Related Topics:

Contents

Non-Grammatical Forms


GLOSSARY

Adjectives	Diminutive Endings	Noun	Pronoun

Adverbs	Direct Object	Object of a Preposition	Reflexive Pronoun

Augmentative Endings	Gerund	Object Pronoun	Reflexive Verb

Auxiliary Verb	Imperative Form	Participial Adjective	Relative Clause

Clause	Impersonal Expressions	Passive Voice	Relative Pronouns

Comparative Form	Indicative	Past Participles	Simple Tenses

Compound Noun	Indirect Object	Personal Pronouns 	Stem-Changing Verbs

Compound Tenses	Indirect Speech	Possessive Adjectives	Subject

Conditional Clause	Infinitive	Possessive Pronouns	Subject Complement

Conditional Mood	Infinitive Clause	Predicate	Subject Pronouns

Conjugated	Inflected Verb	Predicate Adjective	Subjunctive Mood

Conjunction	Interjection	Predicate Noun	Subordinate Clause

Continuous Tenses	Intransitive Verb	Preposition	Superlative

Contraction	Irregular Verbs	Prepositional Phrase	Syntax

Contrary-to-Fact Statement	Main Clause	Prepositional Pronouns	Transitive Verb

Coordinating Conjunctions	Neuter Article	Present Participle	Verb

Demonstrative Adjectives	Neuter Pronoun

ADJECTIVES describe or qualify nouns.  They answer the question "What sort of...?".  Spanish adjectives always agree in number and gender with the nouns they modify.  Unlike English, Spanish adjectives can be placed before or after the noun for special emphasis or meaning.

ADVERBS describe or qualify a verb, an adjective, or another adverb and answer the questions "How...?", "When...?", Where...?", or "In what manner...?".  In Spanish, most "how" adverbs are formed by adding -mente to the feminine singular form of the adjective.

AUGMENTATIVE ENDINGS on nouns imply a larger form or greater quality.  They can also express disrespect or scorn.  The most common augmentative endings are -ote(a), -on(a), and -azo(a).

EXAMPLE:	el perro / el perrazo

the dog / big dog

An AUXILIARY VERB helps in the conjugation of a main verb.  The Spanish auxiliary verb haber (to have) is used to form the compound tenses.

EXAMPLE:	He hablado con la profesora.

I have spoken with the teacher.

A CLAUSE is a phrase or group of words that includes at least a subject and a verb and forms part of a larger sentence.

EXAMPLE:	La mujer que vende flores pasó por aquí hoy.

The woman who sells flowers came by here today.

The COMPARATIVE FORM indicates a difference in degree or quality (e.g., more than, less than).  In English, the comparative is formed by adding the ending -er to the adjective.  In Spanish, it is formed by placing más (more) or menos (less) before the adjective.

EXAMPLE:	Descriptive	Comparative

el libro interesante	un libro más interesante

A COMPOUND NOUN is a noun that consists of two or more independent elements.  In Spanish, the article preceding compound nouns changes in number, but the noun does not.  Compound nouns are always masculine.

EXAMPLE:	skyscraper	el rascacielos	los rascacielos

Note:	rascar = to scrape	el cielo = sky

COMPOUND TENSES consist of a conjugated auxiliary verb plus the past participle of the main verb.  They occur in the Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Past Anterior, Future Perfect, as well as the Present Perfect Conditional, Past Subjunctive, and Past Perfect Subjunctive.

EXAMPLE:	Hemos decidido ir al cine esta noche.

We have decided to go to the movies tonight.

A CONDITIONAL CLAUSE is a phrase or group of words that states the condition under which the action described by the main clause may be realized.

EXAMPLE:	Si tuviera dinero, podría viajar a menudo.

If I had money, I could travel very often.

The CONDITIONAL expresses an action that you would do if something else were possible.  It also  expresses the hypothetical, unreal, or speculative, and states the condition under which another action or event may be carried out.

A verb is CONJUGATED when it is listed according to person (1st, 2nd, 3rd), number (singular / plural), tense (present, past, future, etc.), and indicative or subjunctive mood.

A CONJUNCTION serves as a link between words, phrases, clauses, or sentences.

CONTINUOUS TENSES are used in English and Spanish to indicate that an action or condition is in progress or ongoing, or that an action was in progress when another one took place.  They occur in the Present, Past, Present Perfect, Past Perfect,  Future and Conditional Tenses.  In Spanish, alternate continuous tenses may be formed using the auxiliaries ir, venir, or estar + present participle.

EXAMPLES:	Estoy hablando con la profesora.

I am speaking  with the teacher.

Vino corriendo...

He came running...

A CONTRACTION is formed by omitting and/or combining some of the sounds of longer words.  In Spanish, a + el is contracted to al; de + el becomes del.

EXAMPLES:	Fuimos al campo.	We went to the countryside.

Fuimos a la casa del Sr. Muñoz.	We went to Mr. Muñoz' house.

A CONTRARY-TO-FACT STATEMENT describes a condition or set of conditions that do not actually exist.  It includes a second clause in which these conditions are described as fulfillable.

EXAMPLE: 	Si el automóvil no fuera tan caro, podríamos comprarlo.

If the automobile were not so expensive, we could buy it.

COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS link two independent clauses in a sentence.

DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES point to a definite person or object.  English uses this, these, that, and those.  English uses this, these, that, and those. A demonstrative is either an adjective or a pronoun and must agree with the noun it modifies.  Spanish uses:

Singular	Plural

Masc.	Fem.	Masc.	Fem.

este	esta	this (near me)	estos	estas	these

ese	esa	that (near you)	esos	esas	those

aquel	aquella	that (over there)	aquellos	aquellas	those

DIMINUTIVE ENDINGS are added to nouns to imply a smaller form or lesser quality.  They can also express affection or endearment.  The most common diminutive endings are -ito(a), -cito(a), -illo(a), and -cillo(a).

EXAMPLE:	la rosa / la rosita	el pastor / el pastorcito

the rose / the little rose	the shepperd / the little shepperd

The DIRECT OBJECT is the person, place, or thing that is the direct recipient of the action described by a verb.

EXAMPLE:	Leyó el poema.	He read the poem.

In English, a GERUND is a noun that is formed from a verb and ends in -ing.  In Spanish, the infinitive serves as the gerund.

EXAMPLE:	Smoking is bad for the health.

El fumar es malo para la salud.

The IMPERATIVE FORM of a verb is used to give a command or make a suggestion.  These forms are short and derived from the verb stem.  Their spellings vary.

EXAMPLES:	¡Véte a dormir!	Go to sleep!

¡Dáme el cuaderno!	Give me the notebook!

IMPERSONAL EXPRESSIONS take an indefinite subject and create a sense of objectivity.  Some common examples are:

es importante	it's important

es imposible	it's impossible

es una lástima	it's a pity

es necesario	it's necessary

es posible	it's possible

es preciso	it's necessary

es probable	it's probable, likely

es raro	it's unusual, strange

es urgente	it's urgent

The INDICATIVE is the mood of the verb used in objective statements or questions.  By contrast, the subjunctive mood expresses a request, a supposition, or an emotion such as a wish, a fear, a joy, etc.  The imperative mood expresses a command or polite request.

An INDIRECT OBJECT is the person or thing "to whom" or "for whom" an action is performed.

EXAMPLE:	Él le regaló un vestido a ella.

He gave her a dress.

INDIRECT SPEECH is the reporting of the words of an unknown speaker.  Spanish uses the pronoun se with the third person singular verb form to express "it is...," "people...," "they...," and "one...."

EXAMPLES:

Indirect Speech:	Él cree que (dice que... / sabe que...) el proyecto está terminado.

He believes that (says that.... / knows that...) the project is

completed.

Indirect Speech with "se":	Se cree que...	It is believed that...	People believe that...

They believe that...	One believes that...

...the project is completed.

Se dice que...	It is said that...	People say that...

They say that...	One says that...

...the project is completed.

Se sabe que...	It is known that...	People know that...

They know that...	One knows that...

...the project is completed.

An INFINITIVE is the basic form of a verb.  It reflects no person, number, or tense.  There are three infinitive endings in Spanish: -ar, -er, and -ir.

An INFINITIVE CLAUSE with para (in order to) indicates purpose or intent.

EXAMPLE:	Ahorro dinero para comprar una casa.

I am saving money (in order) to buy a house.

An INFLECTED VERB is one that has been identified as singular or plural and assigned endings for 1st, 2nd, or 3rd person.

EXAMPLE:	viaja	(sing., 3rd person, Present Tense)

(he) travels

An INTERJECTION briefly expresses an emotional reaction to a situation, e.g., concern, approval, surprise, etc.

EXAMPLES:	¡Olé!	Bravo!

¡Cuidado!	Watch out!  Look out!

¡Pobrecito!	Poor little thing!

An INTRANSITIVE VERB does not describe an action, but merely expresses a state of affairs, change, or natural process.  It therefore does not take an object.

EXAMPLE:	Él caminó mucho.

He walked a lot.

IRREGULAR VERBS show deviations from the usual pattern of inflection (spelling) in the stem as well as the endings.

A MAIN CLAUSE is the independent or principal clause in a sentence.  It does not depend on another clause for its meaning and can stand on its own as a full sentence.

EXAMPLE:	Cuando él venga, te avisaré.

When he comes, I will let you know.

A NEUTER ARTICLE is equivalent to the English the / that / what / which and is neither masculine nor feminine.  The translation of lo varies according to context.

EXAMPLES:	Entendieron lo que ella me decía.

They understood what she was saying to me.

Ella compró lo más bonito para la boda.

She bought the prettiest one for the wedding.

Querían saber lo de tu vecino.

They wanted to know all about your neighbor.

A NEUTER PRONOUN takes the place of a noun and refers to phrases or ideas without gender.

A NOUN names a person, place, or thing.

The OBJECT OF A PREPOSITION is a noun that follows a preposition.

EXAMPLE:	Este libro es para Andrés.

This book is for Andrew.

An OBJECT PRONOUN receives the action of the verb.

EXAMPLES:	Nos visitaron.

They visited us.

A PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE is an adjective derived from a verb.  It must agree in number with the noun it modifies.

EXAMPLE:	Hay mucha gente hispano-hablante aquí.

There are many Spanish-speaking people here.

Servimos la salsa picante.

We served hot sauce.

In PASSIVE VOICE, the order of subject and object are reversed, i.e., the subject receives the action of the verb.  Passive voice conveys a sense of anonymity or objectivity.

EXAMPLES:	Active:	Él terminó el contrato.	He ended the contract.

Passive:	El contrato fue terminado por él.	The contract was ended by him.

PAST PARTICIPLES are formed by adding -ado or -ido to the present perfect stem of the verb.  English equivalents are formed by adding -ed, -t, -en, etc. (i.e., parked, kept, frozen).  They are used in the compound tenses and in passive voice and they can also stand alone as adjectives.

EXAMPLES:	El pollo había sido asado.

The chicken had been roasted.

I like roasted chicken.

A mí me gusta el pollo asado.

POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES modify nouns and answer the question "Whose...?".  They must be repeated before each noun they modify.

EXAMPLE:	mi padre y mi madre...

my father and mother...

A POSSESSIVE PRONOUN is a pronoun that answers the question "Whose...?".

EXAMPLE:	¿Quieres tomar el almuerzo en mi casa o en la tuya?

Do you want to eat lunch at my house or at yours?

A PREDICATE modifies a subject and includes the verbs, objects, or phrases governed by the verb.  It can also be a verb or linking verb (ser = "to be") that connects the elements of a sentence.

EXAMPLES:	Carmen / va al parque los domingos.

Carmen / goes to the park on Sundays.

subject / predicate

Pedro / es cantante.

Peter / is a singer.

subject / predicate

A PREDICATE ADJECTIVE describes the subject of a predicate.

EXAMPLE:	Él es muy encantador.	He is very charming.

A PREDICATE NOUN is equivalent in meaning to the subject and is linked to it by a predicate.

EXAMPLE:	Él es ingeniero.	He is an engineer.

A PREPOSITION introduces a noun, pronoun, adverb, infinitive, or present participle and can indicate spatial or temporal relationships.  Spanish prepositions include the "personal a," para, por, de, con, en, sobre, encima de, antes de, delante de, ante, detrás de, tras, and others.

EXAMPLE:	Se presentó ante el juez.

He appeared before the judge.

A PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE consists of a preposition and its object and modifies the subject or verb.  Prepositional phrases are often used instead of adverbs of manner.

EXAMPLES:	El libro está en la mesa.

The book is on the table.

dulcemente	con dulzura	sweetly

felizmente	con felicidad	happily

irónicamente	de modo irónico	ironically / sarcastically

PREPOSITIONAL PRONOUNS follow prepositions.  Except for the first, second, and third persons singular (mí, tí, and sí), the prepositional pronouns are the same as the subject pronouns.  Note that con (with) and mí become conmigo (with me); con and tí become contigo; con with sí becomes consigo.  Tú changes to tí after a preposition.

In English, a PRESENT PARTICIPLE is a verb form ending in -ing.  It may also be used as an adjective or a noun.  In Spanish, present participles end in -ando or -iendo.  They may only be used as verbs.

EXAMPLE:	Estaban hablando del terremoto.

They were talking about the earthquake.

Viendo la película, me acordé de ti.

While watching the movie, I thought of you.

A PRONOUN can substitute a noun.  Like Spanish nouns, some pronouns have gender and number.

Singular	Plural

yo	I	nosotros	we (masc.)

nosotras	we (fem.)

tú	you (familiar)	vosotros	you (familiar, masc.)

vosotras	you (familiar, fem.)

usted	you (formal)	ustedes	you (formal)

él	he	ellos	they (masc.)

ella	she	ellas	they (fem.)

ello	(neuter subject pronoun)

A REFLEXIVE PRONOUN is the object of a verb and refers back to the subject as "myself," "yourself," "himself," etc.

       EXAMPLE:                Me lavo.

                                I wash myself.

A REFLEXIVE VERB is used whenever the subject does the action to itself.  Very often the reflexive adds the idea of get  or become to the meaning of the verb.

EXAMPLES:	Él se cayó al suelo.

He fell to the ground.

Él se hizo rico.

He became rich.

A RELATIVE CLAUSE is a subordinate clause introduced by a relative pronoun that describes or qualifies the subject or object of a sentence.  It answers the question "What sort of...?".  The relative clause can contain a subject, verb, and/or object(s).

RELATIVE PRONOUNS introduce relative clauses.  Spanish relative pronouns include:

quien (-es)	who, whom, the ones who

que	who, that, which, whom

lo que	that which

el que (los que)	that which, those which

la que (las que)	that which, those which

el cual (los cuales)	the one(s) which

la cual (las cuales)	the one(s) which

lo cual	that which

donde	where

SIMPLE TENSES consist of a conjugated main verb only.  They occur in the Present, Imperfect, Past, Future, Present Conditional, Present Subjunctive, and Imperfect Subjunctive.

STEM-CHANGING VERBS are regular and irregular verbs that take spelling changes in the stem when conjugated.

The SUBJECT of a sentence performs the action described by the verb.

A SUBJECT COMPLEMENT is a word or words used after a verb to complete a predicate.  It modifies the noun, noun phrase, or pronoun in a sentence or clause.

EXAMPLES:	Ellos estaban cansados.

They were tired.

Nos gusta caminar por el barrio.

We like to walk through the neighborhood.

SUBJECT PRONOUNS  (also known as Personal Pronouns) refer to the person or thing that makes up the subject.  The subject pronouns are often omitted in Spanish since the verb ending indicates gender and number.  The forms yo, tú, nosotros, and vosotros are therefore usually required only for emphasis.

EXAMPLES:	Tengo sueño.	I am sleepy.

Yo tengo sueño.	I am sleepy.

Tú no sabes lo que dices

You dont know  what you are talking about.

The SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD is used in subordinate clauses in which there is a change of subject and indicates that a situation is hypothetical, unreal, wished or hoped for, or somehow speculative in nature.  Spanish uses special verb forms to indicate the subjunctive (Present, Past, Imperfect, and Past Perfect Subjunctives). The Future Subjunctive is used in clauses implying a supposition and is found only in legal style or antiquated phrases.

A SUBORDINATE CLAUSE is a secondary clause.  Its meaning depends on the independent or main clause.

EXAMPLE:	 No te pongas la chaqueta aunque tengas frío.

 Dont put your jacket on, even though you are cold.

A SUPERLATIVE is an adjective or adverb that expresses the third and highest level of comparison (e.g., most, least).  In English it is formed by adding the ending est to the adjective. In Spanish, it is formed by placing el/la más (the most) before the adjective.

EXAMPLES:	el edificio más alto...	the tallest building...

SYNTAX is the order in which words are put together to form phrases, clauses, or sentences.

A TRANSITIVE VERB expresses an action that directly affects someone or something.  It therefore takes a direct object.

EXAMPLE:	Él ve la televisión.

He watches television.

A VERB is a word that expresses an action.


def adjectives
Adjectives

ADJECTIVES describe or qualify nouns.  They answer the question "What sort of...?".  Spanish adjectives always agree in number and gender with the nouns they modify.  Unlike English, Spanish adjectives can be placed before or after the noun for special emphasis or meaning.


def adverbs
Adverbs

ADVERBS describe or qualify a verb, an adjective, or another adverb and answer the questions "How...?", "When...?",

"Where...?", or "In what manner...?".  In Spanish, most "how" adverbs are formed by adding -mente to the feminine singular form of the adjective.


def Augmentative Endings
Augmentative Endings

AUGMENTATIVE ENDINGS on nouns imply a larger form or greater quality.  They can also express disrespect or scorn.  The most common augmentative endings are -ote(a), -on(a), and -azo(a).

EXAMPLE:	el perro / el perrazo

the dog / big dog


def Auxiliary Verb
Auxiliary Verb

An AUXILIARY VERB helps in the conjugation of a main verb.  The Spanish auxiliary verb haber (to have) is used to form the compound tenses.

EXAMPLE:	He hablado con la profesora.

I have spoken with the teacher.


def Clause
Clause

A CLAUSE is a phrase or group of words that includes at least a subject and a verb and forms part of a larger sentence.

EXAMPLE:	La mujer que vende flores pasó por aquí hoy.

The woman who sells flowers came by here today.


def Comparative Endings
Comparative Form

The COMPARATIVE FORM indicates a difference in degree or quality (e.g., more than, less than).  In English, the comparative is formed by adding the ending -er to the adjective.  In Spanish, it is formed by placing más (more) or menos (less) before the adjective.

EXAMPLE:	Descriptive	Comparative

el libro interesante	un libro más interesante


def Compound Noun
Compound Noun

A COMPOUND NOUN is a noun that consists of two or more independent elements.  In Spanish, the article preceding compound nouns changes in number, but the noun does not.  Compound nouns are always masculine.

EXAMPLE:	skyscraper	el rascacielos	los rascacielos

Note:	rascar = to scrape	el cielo = sky


def Compound Tenses
Compound Tenses

COMPOUND TENSES consist of a conjugated auxiliary verb plus the past participle of the main verb.  They occur in the Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Past Anterior, Future Perfect, as well as the Present Perfect Conditional, Past Subjunctive, and Past Perfect Subjunctive.

EXAMPLE:	Hemos decidido ir al cine esta noche.

We have decided to go to the movies tonight.


def Conditional Clause
Conditional Clause

A CONDITIONAL CLAUSE is a phrase or group of words that states the condition under which the action described by the main clause may be realized.

EXAMPLE:	Si tuviera dinero, podría viajar a menudo.

If I had money, I could travel very often.


def Conditional Mood
Conditional Mood

The CONDITIONAL MOOD uses the construction "If...then...."  It expresses the hypothetical, unreal, or speculative, and states the condition under which another action or event may be realized.


def Conjugation
Conjugated

A verb is CONJUGATED when it is listed according to person (1st, 2nd, 3rd), number (singular / plural), tense (present, past, future, conditional, etc.), and indicative or subjunctive mood.


def Conjunction
Conjunction

A CONJUNCTION serves as a link between words, phrases, clauses, or sentences.


def Continuous Tenses
Continuous Tenses

CONTINUOUS TENSES are used in English and Spanish to indicate that an action or condition is in progress or ongoing, or that an action was in progress when another one took place.  They occur in the Present, Past, Present Perfect, Past Perfect, and Future Tenses, and the Conditional Mood.  In Spanish, alternate continuous tenses may be formed using the auxiliaries ir, venir, or estar + present participle.

EXAMPLES:	He hablado con la profesora.

I have spoken with the teacher.

Vino corriendo...

He came running...


def Contraction
Contraction

A CONTRACTION is formed by omitting and/or combining some of the sounds of longer words.  In Spanish, a + el is contracted to al; de + el becomes del.

EXAMPLES:	Fuimos al campo.	We went to the countryside.

Fuimos a la casa del Sr. Muñoz.	We went to Mr. Muñoz' house.


def Contrary-to-Fact Statement
Contrary-to-Fact Statement

A CONTRARY-TO-FACT STATEMENT describes a condition or set of conditions that do not actually exist.  It includes a second clause in which these conditions are described as fulfillable.

EXAMPLE: 	Si el automóvil no fuera tan caro, podríamos comprarlo.

If the automobile were not so expensive, we could buy it.


def Coordinating Conjunctions
Coordinating Conjunctions

COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS link two independent clauses in a sentence.


def Demonstrative Adjectives
Demonstrative Adjectives

DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES point to a definite person or object.  English uses this, these, that, and those. A demonstrative is either an adjective or a pronoun and must agree with the noun it modifies.  Spanish uses:

Singular	Plural

Masc.	Fem.	Masc.	Fem.

este	esta	this (near me)	estos	estas	these

ese	esa	that (near you)	esos	esas	those

aquel	aquella	that (over there)	aquellos	aquellas	those


def Diminutive Endings
Diminutive Endings

DIMINUTIVE ENDINGS are added to nouns to imply a smaller form or lesser quality.  They can also express affection or endearment.  The most common diminutive endings are -ito(a), -cito(a), -illo(a), and -cillo(a).

EXAMPLE:	la rosa / la rosita	el pastor / el pastorcito

the rose / the little rose	the shepperd / the little shepperd


def Direct Object
Direct Object

The DIRECT OBJECT is the person, place, or thing that is the direct recipient of the action described by a verb.

EXAMPLE:	Leyó el poema.	He read the poem.


def Gerund
Gerund

In English, a GERUND is a noun that is formed from a verb and ends in -ing.  In Spanish, the infinitive serves as the gerund.

EXAMPLE:	Smoking is bad for the health.

El fumar es malo para la salud.


def Imperative Form
Imperative Form

The IMPERATIVE FORM of a verb is used to give a command or make a suggestion.  These forms are short and derived from the verb stem.  Their spellings vary.

EXAMPLES:	¡Véte a dormir!	Go to sleep!

¡Dáme el cuaderno!	Give me the notebook!


def Impersonal Expressions
Impersonal Expressions

IMPERSONAL EXPRESSIONS take an indefinite subject and create a sense of objectivity.  Some common examples are:

es importante	it's important

es imposible	it's impossible

es una lástima	it's a pity

es necesario	it's necessary

es posible	it's possible

es preciso	it's necessary

es probable	it's probable, likely

es raro	it's unusual, strange

es urgente	it's urgent


def Indicative
Indicative

The INDICATIVE is the mood of the verb used in objective statements or questions.  By contrast, the subjunctive mood expresses a request, a supposition, or an emotion such as a wish, a fear, a joy, etc.  The imperative mood expresses a command or polite request.


def Indirect Object
Indirect Object

An INDIRECT OBJECT is the person or thing "to whom" or "for whom" an action is performed.

EXAMPLE:	Él le regaló un vestido a ella.

He gave her a dress.


def Indirect Speech
Indirect Speech

INDIRECT SPEECH is the reporting of the words of an unknown speaker.  Spanish uses the pronoun se with the third person singular verb form to express "it is...," "people...," "they...," and "one...."

EXAMPLES:

Indirect Speech:	Él cree que (dice que... / sabe que...) el proyecto está terminado.

He believes that (says that.... / knows that...) the project is

completed.

Indirect Speech with "se":	Se cree que...	It is believed that...	People believe that...

They believe that...	One believes that...

...the project is completed.

Se dice que...	It is said that...	People say that...

They say that...	One says that...

...the project is completed.

Se sabe que...	It is known that...	People know that...

They know that...	One knows that...

...the project is completed.


def Infinitive
Infinitive

An INFINITIVE is the basic form of a verb.  It reflects no person, number, or tense.  There are three infinitive endings

in Spanish: -ar, -er, and -ir.


def Infinitive Clause
Infinitive Clause

An INFINITIVE CLAUSE with para (in order to) indicates purpose or intent.

EXAMPLE:	Ahorro dinero para comprar una casa.

I am saving money (in order) to buy a house.


def Inflected Verb
Inflected Verb

An INFLECTED VERB is one that has been identified as singular or plural and assigned endings for 1st, 2nd, or 3rd person.

EXAMPLE:	viaja	(sing., 3rd person, Present Tense)

(he) travels


def Interjection
Interjection

An INTERJECTION briefly expresses an emotional reaction to a situation, e.g., concern, approval, surprise, etc.

EXAMPLES:	¡Olé!	Bravo!

¡Cuidado!	Watch out!  Look out!

¡Pobrecito!	Poor little thing!


def Intransitive Verb
Intransitive Verb

An INTRANSITIVE VERB does not describe an action, but merely expresses a state of affairs, change, or natural process.  It therefore does not take an object.

EXAMPLE:	Él caminó mucho.

He walked a lot.


def Irregular Verbs
Irregular Verbs

IRREGULAR VERBS show deviations from the usual pattern of inflection (spelling) in the stem as well as the endings.


def Main Clause
Main Clause

A MAIN CLAUSE is the independent or principal clause in a sentence.  It does not depend on another clause for its meaning and can stand on its own as a full sentence.

EXAMPLE:	Cuando él venga, te avisaré.

When he comes, I will let you know.


def Neuter Article
Neuter Article

A NEUTER ARTICLE is equivalent to the English the / that / what / which and is neither masculine nor feminine.  The translation of lo varies according to context.

EXAMPLES:	Entendieron lo que ella me decía.

They understood what she was saying to me.

Ella compró lo más bonito para la boda.

She bought the prettiest one for the wedding.

Querían saber lo de tu vecino.

They wanted to know all about your neighbor.


def Neuter Pronoun
Neuter Pronoun

A NEUTER PRONOUN takes the place of a noun and refers to phrases or ideas without gender.


def Noun
Noun

A NOUN names a person, place, or thing.


def Object of a Preposition
Object of a Preposition

The OBJECT OF A PREPOSITION is a noun that follows a preposition.

EXAMPLE:	Este libro es para Andrés.

This book is for Andrew.


def Object Pronoun
Object Pronoun

An OBJECT PRONOUN receives the action of the verb.

EXAMPLES:	Nos visitaron.

They visited us.


def Participial Adjective
Participial Adjective

A PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE is an adjective derived from a verb.  It must agree in number with the noun it modifies.

EXAMPLE:	Hay mucha gente hispano-hablante aquí.

There are many Spanish-speaking people here.

Servimos la salsa picante.

We served hot sauce.


def Passive Voice
Passive Voice

In PASSIVE VOICE, the order of subject and object are reversed, i.e., the subject receives the action of the verb.  Passive voice conveys a sense of anonymity or objectivity.

EXAMPLES:	Active:	Él terminó el contrato.	He ended the contract.

Passive:	El contrato fue terminado por él.	The contract was ended by him.


def Past Participles
Past Participles

PAST PARTICIPLES are formed by adding -ado or -ido to the present perfect stem of the verb.  English equivalents are formed by adding -ed, -t, -en, etc. (i.e., parked, kept, frozen).  They are used in the compound tenses and in passive voice and they can also stand alone as adjectives.

EXAMPLES:	El pollo había sido asado.

The chicken had been roasted.

I like roasted chicken.

A mí me gusta el pollo asado.


def Possessive Adjectives
Possessive Adjectives

POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES modify nouns and answer the question "Whose...?".  They must be repeated before each noun they modify.

EXAMPLE:	mi padre y mi madre...

my father and mother...


def Possessive Pronoun
Possessive Pronoun

A POSSESSIVE PRONOUN is a pronoun that answers the question "Whose...?".

EXAMPLE:	¿Quieres tomar el almuerzo en mi casa o en la tuya?

Do you want to eat lunch at my house or at yours?


def Predicate
Predicate

A PREDICATE modifies a subject and includes the verbs, objects, or phrases governed by the verb.  It can also be a verb or linking verb (ser = "to be") that connects the elements of a sentence.

EXAMPLES:	Carmen / va al parque los domingos.

Carmen / goes to the park on Sundays.

subject / predicate

Pedro / es cantante.

Peter / is a singer.

subject / predicate


def Predicate Adjective
Predicate Adjective

A PREDICATE ADJECTIVE describes the subject of a predicate.

EXAMPLE:	Él es muy encantador.	He is very charming.


def Predicate Noun
Predicate Noun

A PREDICATE NOUN is equivalent in meaning to the subject and is linked to it by a predicate.

EXAMPLE:	Él es ingeniero.	He is an engineer.


def Preposition
Preposition

A PREPOSITION introduces a noun, pronoun, adverb, infinitive, or present participle and can indicate spatial or temporal relationships.  Spanish prepositions include the "personal a," para, por, de, con, en, sobre, encima de, antes de, delante de, ante, detrás de, tras, and others.

EXAMPLE:	Se presentó ante el juez.

He appeared before the judge.


def Prepositional Phrase
Prepositional Phrase

A PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE consists of a preposition and its object and modifies the subject or verb.  Prepositional phrases are often used instead of adverbs of manner.

EXAMPLES:	El libro está en la mesa.

The book is on  the table.

dulcemente	con dulzura	sweetly

felizmente	con felicidad	happily

irónicamente	de modo irónico	ironically / sarcastically


def Prepositional Pronouns
Prepositional Pronouns

PREPOSITIONAL PRONOUNS follow prepositions.  Except for the first, second, and third persons singular (mí, tí, and sí), the prepositional pronouns are the same as the subject pronouns.  Note that con (with) and mí become conmigo (with me); con and tí become contigo; con with sí becomes consigo.  Tú changes to tí after a preposition.


def Present Participle
Present Participle

In English, a PRESENT PARTICIPLE is a verb form ending in -ing.  It may also be used as an adjective or a noun.  In Spanish, present participles end in -ando or -iendo.  They may only be used as verbs.

EXAMPLE:	Estaban hablando del terremoto.

They were talking about the earthquake.

Viendo la película, me acordé de ti.

While watching the movie, I thought of you.


def Pronoun
Pronoun

A PRONOUN can substitute a noun.  Like Spanish nouns,  some pronouns have gender and number.

Singular	Plural

yo	I	nosotros	we (masc.)

nosotras	we (fem.)

tú	you (familiar)	vosotros	you (familiar, masc.)

vosotras	you (familiar, fem.)

usted	you (formal)	ustedes	you (formal)

él	he	ellos	they (masc.)

ella	she	ellas	they (fem.)

ello	(neuter subject pronoun)


def Reflexive Pronoun
Reflexive Pronoun

A REFLEXIVE PRONOUN is the object of a verb or preposition and refers back to the subject as "myself," "yourself," himself," etc.

EXAMPLE:                Me lavo.

                                   I wash myself.


def Reflexive Verb
Reflexive Verb

A REFLEXIVE VERB is used whenever the subject does the action to itself.  Very often the reflexive adds the idea of get  or become to the meaning of the verb.

EXAMPLES:	Él se cayó al suelo.

He fell to the ground.

Él se hizo rico.

He became rich.


def Relative Clause
Relative Clause

A RELATIVE CLAUSE is a subordinate clause introduced by a relative pronoun that describes or qualifies the subject or object of a sentence.  It answers the question "What sort of...?".  The relative clause can contain a subject, verb, and/or object(s).


def Relative Pronouns
Relative Pronouns

RELATIVE PRONOUNS introduce relative clauses.  Spanish relative pronouns include:

quien (-es)	who, whom, the ones who

que	who, that, which, whom

lo que	that which

el que (los que)	that which, those which

la que (las que)	that which, those which

el cual (los cuales)	the one(s) which

la cual (las cuales)	the one(s) which

lo cual	that which

donde	where


def Simple Tenses
Simple Tenses

SIMPLE TENSES consist of a conjugated main verb only.  They occur in the Present, Imperfect, Past, Future, Present Conditional, Present Subjunctive, and Imperfect Subjunctive.


def Orthographic-Changing Verbs
Stem-Changing Verbs

STEM-CHANGING VERBS are regular and irregular verbs that take spelling changes in the stem when conjugated.


def Subject Complement
Subject Complement

A SUBJECT COMPLEMENT is a word or words used after a verb to complete a predicate.  It modifies the noun, noun phrase, or pronoun in a sentence or clause.

EXAMPLES:	Ellos estaban cansados.

They were tired.

Nos gusta caminar por el barrio.

We like to walk through the neighborhood.


def Subject Pronouns
Subject Pronouns

SUBJECT PRONOUNS (also known as Personal Pronouns) refer to the person or thing that makes up the subject.  The subject pronouns are often omitted in Spanish since the verb ending indicates gender and number.  The forms yo, tú, nosotros and vosotros are therefore usually required only for emphasis.

EXAMPLES:	Tengo sueño.	I am sleepy.

Yo tengo sueño.	I am sleepy.

Tú no sabes lo que dices

You dont know  what you are talking about.


def Subjunctive Mood
Subjunctive Mood

The SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD is used in subordinate clauses in which there is a change of subject and indicates that a situation is hypothetical, unreal, wished or hoped for, or somehow speculative in nature.  Spanish uses special verb forms to indicate the subjunctive (Present, Past, Imperfect, and Past Perfect Subjunctives). The Future Subjunctive is used in clauses implying a supposition and is found only in legal style or antiquated phrases.


def Subject
Subject

The SUBJECT of a sentence performs the action described by the verb.


def Subordinate Clause
Subordinate Clause

A SUBORDINATE CLAUSE is a secondary clause.  Its meaning depends on the independent or main clause.

EXAMPLE:	 No te pongas la chaqueta aunque tengas frío.

 Dont put your jacket on, even though you are cold.


def Superlative
Superlative

A SUPERLATIVE is an adjective or adverb that expresses the third and highest level of comparison (e.g., most, least).  In English it is formed by adding the ending est to the adjective. In Spanish, it is formed by placing el/la más (the most) before the adjective.

EXAMPLES:	el edificio más alto...	the tallest building...


def Syntax
Syntax

SYNTAX is the order in which words are put together to form phrases, clauses, or sentences.


def Transitive Verb
Transitive Verb

A TRANSITIVE VERB expresses an action that directly affects someone or something.  It therefore takes a direct object.

EXAMPLE:	Él ve la televisión.

He watches  television.


def Verb
Verb

A VERB is a word that expresses an action.


ARTICLES

Definite Article

Indefinite Article

Neuter Article

Negative Statements; Ninguno/Ningún/Ni


NOUNS

Gender

Plural Forms of Nouns

Group Nouns

Compound Nouns

Diminutive and Augmentative Forms


PRONOUNS

Subject Pronouns

Prepositional Pronouns

Possessive Pronouns


ADJECTIVES

Descriptive Adjectives

Gendered Adjectives

Ungendered Adjectives

Feminine Nouns + Masculine Article

Shortened Adjectives

Position of Adjectives

Adjectives of Quantity

Possessive Adjectives

Demonstrative Adjectives

Comparative and Superlative Forms


SYNTAX

Declarative Sentences

Predicate

Object

Adverbs and Adverbial Phrases

Negation

Questions

Clauses

Imperatives