Grammar Explanations
Table of Contents
Page # Topic
and
will show you how to approach learning a new language
lauriehughes@post.harvard.edu
v Each letter in Spanish has only one sound.
v You pronounce every letter one at a time until you get to the end of the word.
v Don’t change your pitch or hang onto any letters like we do in English. Say each sound briefly then move on to the next one.
v When there is an accent mark (á, é, í, ó, ú), say that syllable with a little more force than the other syllables. Accent marks are only on vowels.
v There are 4 extra letters in the Spanish alphabet (ch, ñ, ll, rr). Even though in English some of these are 2 letters next to each other, they’re considered one letter in Spanish. The ñ is a separate letter; it’s not an n with an accent mark.
v Spanish is spoken in a monotone compared to English. Listen to the TV or radio in Spanish and compare them. Even though it won’t feel like it, 15 minutes a day will do amazing things for your learning.
Vowels (called vocales in Spanish): A Spanish word you know w/ this letter:
A “ah,” as in “say ah” at the doctor’s office taco
E “eh,” as in the sound in egg enchilada
I “ee” quesadilla
O “oh,” same as English taco
U “oo,” not “uh” like in English burrito (pronounced “boo,” not “buh)
Consonants (called consonantes in Spanish) that are the same as English:
F K L M N P S T W Y
Consonants that have different sounds than they do in English:
B – subtle combination between “b” & “v” burrito
C – “k” when followed by an a, o, or u casa
“s” when followed by an e or i cena = dinner (say-nah)
CH – same as English churro
D – subtle combination between “d” & voiced “th” enchilada
G – “guh” when followed by an a, o, or u agua
“h” when followed by an e or i gente = people (hen-tay)
H – always silent hola
J – makes an “h” sound
LL – makes a “y” sound quesadilla
ñ – “ny” sound as in canyon el niño, la piñata
Q – qu make “k” sound, not “kwuh” quesadilla
R – say “pot of tea” fast & you’re also saying hermosa = beautiful
para ti – notice the r
RR – same as r, but make another trill churro, carro, burrito
V - combination between “b” & “v” veinte = 20 (BEH-een-tay)
X – makes an “h” sound México (MEH-hee-co)
Z – makes an “s” sound zapato = shoe (sah-PAH-toh)
Description
To describe yourself:
Soy + noun Soy estudiante. (I’m a student.)
Soy + adjective Soy simpático. (I’m nice.)
Soy simpática. (I’m nice.)
A noun is a person, place or thing.
An adjective is a word that describes a noun.
If you’re using an adjective, the adjective has to
match with you. If you’re male, the adjective
ends in o; if you’re female, the adjective ends in a.
Some adjectives end in e, and those are for either
male or female.
To describe the person you’re talking to:
Eres + noun Eres muchacho. (You’re a boy.)
Eres + adjective Eres muchacha. (You’re a girl.)
Eres rubio. (You’re blond.)
Eres rubia. (You’re blond.)
To describe someone or something:
Es + noun Es jugador de fútbol.
(He’s a player of soccer.)
Es + adjective Es grande.
(He’s big, she’s big or it’s big.)
To describe you and another person (we):
Somos + noun (+s or +es) Somos amigos. (We’re friends.)
Somos + adjective (+s or +es) Somos inteligentes. (We’re smart.)
Add an s (or es if the word ends in a consonant)
to the noun or to the adjective because the subject,
we, is plural.
To describe people or things:
Son + noun (+s or +es) Son animales (They’re animals.)
Son + adjective (+s +es) Son guapos. Son guapas.
(They’re good looking.)
Put no in front of a verb to make it negative. No son inteligentes. = Son estúpidos.
No somos rubias. = Somos castañas.
No soy guapo. = Soy feo.
No es grande. = Es pequeño.
I like / don’t like
Me gusta… = I like…
No me gusta… = I don’t like…
Put whatever you like or don’t like in place of the dots.
If what you like is a thing, put “the” and the thing.
Me gusta el helado. = I like ice cream.
Me gusta la playa. = I like the beach.
If what you like is a verb (an action word), just put the verb (ending in r) after it.
Me gusta nadar. = I like to swim.
No me gusta estudiar. = I don’t like to study.
Me gusta cantar y bailar. = I like to sing and dance.
If you’re talking about liking more than one thing, put an n on gusta and remember to put “the” in front of the things you like or don’t like.
Me gustan los perros. = I like dogs.
No me gustan los gatos. = I don’t like cats.
If you want to ask someone, “Do you like…” use te gusta or te gustan.
¿Te gusta el chocolate? = Do you like chocolate?
Sí, me gusta el chocolate. = Yes, I like chocolate.
¿Te gustan las películas de horror? = Do you like horror movies?
No, no me gustan las películas de horror. = No, I don’t like horror movies.
¿Te gusta esquiar? = Do you like to ski?
Sí, me gusta mucho esquiar. = Yes, I really like skiing.
Question Words
To be able to converse in Spanish, you must know the words that start most questions. Otherwise you won’t know how to answer them. Each question word has an accent mark.
Quién/Quiénes = who
Qué = what
Dónde = where
Cómo = how
Cuándo = when
Cuánto = how much, how many
Cuál = which one
Por qué = why
Sample questions & answers:
¿Quién es? Who is it? Es mi amiga. It’s/She’s my friend.
¿Qué es? What is it? Es una pluma. It’s a pen.
¿De dónde eres? Where
are you from? Soy de California. I’m from
¿Dónde está? Where is it? Está aquí. It’s right here.
¿Cómo estás? How are you? Estoy bien. I’m fine.
¿Cómo te llamas? What’s your name? Me llamo Laurie. My name is Laurie.
¿Cuándo sales? When do you leave? Salgo a las doce. I’m leaving at 12.
¿Cuánto cuesta? How much is it? Es diez dólares. It’s $10.
¿Cuántos años tienes? How old are you? Tengo diez y I’m 16./ I have
seis años 16yrs.
¿Cuál es la fecha de When’s your b-day? Es el veinte y dos It’s May 22.
tu cumpleaños? de mayo.
¿Por qué estudias Why are you Estudio porque es I’m studying because
español? studying Spanish? divertido. it’s fun.
¿Qué te gusta hacer? What do you like Me gusta jugar. I like to play.
to do?
Keeping the Conversation
Going
One of the keys to speaking in another language is to be able to keep the conversation going even when you don’t know how to say very many things yet. You’ll learn a lot more if you get more practice speaking, so don’t be the one to end the conversation.
Here are follow up questions that allow you to continue the conversation without knowing much.
¿Y tú? And you?
(if you’re talking to a friend, family member, or someone younger than you)
¿Y Usted? And you?
(talking to someone you don’t know or someone whom you’d call Mr. or Mrs.)
Example Conversation - Question and Answer:
Friend: ¿Qué te gusta hacer? (What do you like to do?)
You: Me gusta jugar. (I like to play.)
Example Conversation - Keeping the Conversation Going:
Friend: ¿Qué te gusta hacer? (What do you like to do?)
You: Me gusta jugar. ¿Y tú? (I like to play. And you?)
Friend: Me gusta leer. (I like to read.)
Handy verbs &
exchanges
¿Quieres…(+noun or verb)? Do you want…? Quiero… I want…
¿Tienes… (+noun)? Do you have…? Tengo… I have…
¿Necesitas…(+noun or verb? Do you need…? Necesito… I need…
¿Vas a… (+noun or verb)? Are you going to…? Voy a… I’m going to…
¿Eres …(+noun or adj)? Are you…? Soy… I am…
¿Estás… (+adj)? Are you…? Estoy… I am…
Agree or disagree
Estoy de acuerdo. = I agree.
No estoy de acuerdo. = I disagree or I don’t agree.
This is an easy way to make your opinions known.
To add more to the conversation, add your reason for agreeing or disagreeing after it by using description.
--¡Las novelas de amor son fantásticas! = Romance novels are fantastic!
--No estoy de acuerdo porque las mujeres = I disagree because the women are ugly,
son feas, y los hombres son estúpidos. and the men are stupid.
Verb
Charts
Verbs are usually laid out in a six box pattern. The top word is the infinitive, which means “to _________.” You have to change that infinitive to make it match with the subject of a sentence. For example in English, you would say, “We are friends,” instead of “We be friends.”
Spanish has subject pronouns (I, you, he, she, it, we, they), but they’re optional. You should be familiar with them because you’ll see them often when you read in Spanish. The ones that end in –as are for a group of all girls.
Yo I
Tú you (one person, friend or family member)
Usted/Ud. you (person you would address as Mr. or Ms.)
El he/it
Ella she/it
Nosotros/Nosotras we
Ustedes/Uds. you (more than one person)
Ellos/Ellas they
Back to the chart…The first column is for when the subject is singular. The second column is for when the subject is plural. The top row is for when the subject includes yourself (I, we), the middle row is for when you’re talking directly to someone (you), and the bottom row is for when you’re talking about someone or something.
Example verb:
what’s in parentheses is optional in Spanish
hablar – to speak, to talk
|
(yo) hablo – I talk |
(nosotros) hablamos – We talk |
|
(tú) hablas – You talk |
|
|
(él/ella/Ud.) habla – He/she talks |
(ellos/ellas/Uds.) hablan – They talk |
Irregular
Verbs
Unfortunately, the most useful verbs in any language are irregular. Whenever you see the word, “irregular,” it means that you have to just sit down and memorize it because it doesn’t follow any normal pattern. My theory for why the most useful verbs are irregular is that these forms get used the most, and a long time ago some dumb people made some mistakes with the original forms. People kept repeating the wrong form, and it eventually became common usage. So, as you’re memorizing, you can thank some idiot who lived thousands of years ago who got it wrong and convinced all his friends to say it this weird way instead.
Here are the most useful verbs in Spanish:
Ser – to be
(where you’re from or permanent characteristic)
|
(yo) soy |
(nosotros) somos |
|
(tú) eres |
|
|
(él/ella) es |
(ellos/ellas) son |
Estar – to be
(location or temporary characteristic)
|
(yo) estoy |
(nosotros) estamos |
|
(tú) estás |
|
|
(él/ella) está |
(ellos/ellas) están |
Ir – to go
|
(yo) voy |
(nosotros) vamos |
|
(tú) vas |
|
|
(él/ella) va |
(ellos/ellas) van |
Tener – to have
|
(yo) tengo |
(nosotros) tenemos |
|
(tú) tienes |
|
|
(él/ella) tiene |
(ellos/ellas) tienen |
Querer – to want
|
(yo) quiero |
(nosotros) queremos |
|
(tú) quieres |
|
|
(él/ella) quiere |
(ellos/ellas) quieren |
Good news: there are thousands of verbs that follow predictable patterns called regular verbs. To learn these verbs, you just plug the verb into one of 3 patterns.
Here’s how you use the patterns. First, find out what the infinitive of the verb is. An infinitive in Spanish ends in “r.” In English the infinitive form is “to ____,” such as “to run,” “to go,” or “to swim.” Next, look at the last 2 letters of the infinitive in Spanish. These letters tell you which of the three patterns to use: -ar, -er, or -ir. For example, if a word ends in –ar, it will follow the regular –ar verb pattern (unless someone’s told you that it’s an irregular one, but assume that it’s regular until then). The next step is to take off the last two letters of that verb and add the ending that matches with your subject.
3 patterns:
-ar
|
(yo) –o |
(nosotros) –amos |
|
(tú) –as |
|
|
(él/ella) –a |
(ellos/ellas) –an |
-er (same as –ar, but a’s are e’s)
|
(yo) –o |
(nosotros) –emos |
|
(tú) –es |
|
|
(él/ella) -e |
(ellos/ellas) –en |
-ir (same as –er, except for –imos)
|
(yo) –o |
(nosotros) –imos |
|
(tú) –es |
|
|
(él/ella) –e |
(ellos/ellas) –en |
Examples using the patterns:
I talk. = Hablo.
(hablar = to talk ---> habl + o = I talk.)
He eats. = Come.
(comer = to eat ---> com + e = he talks.)
They live. = Viven.
(vivir = to live ---> viv + en = they live.)
How to learn more Spanish
1) Do any of these:
v Listen to a Spanish speaking radio station
v Watch TV in Spanish
v Read anything in Spanish
v Talk to anyone in Spanish
2) Write down what questions you have about Spanish.
3) Ask your questions to someone who knows more Spanish than you do.
4) Repeat
I don’t understand. No comprendo or
No entiendo.
I don’t know. No sé.
I don’t remember. No recuerdo.
Spanish I
Sneak Preview
This packet will introduce the
grammar concepts taught in most Spanish I courses.
Please read the “Jump Into
Spanish” packet first.
Laurie Hughes
lauriehughes@post.harvard.edu
Gender
Just like we were each born a boy or a girl, all nouns
in Spanish are either “masculine” or “feminine.” Remember that a noun is a person, place, or
thing. In English people have one gender
or the other, but most of our nouns are not “masculine” or “feminine.” Think of a noun (person, place, thing, idea),
such as “tree,” and in English, we don’t think of it as masculine or
feminine. In Spanish, however, you
do.
In Spanish, words that are combined with nouns (such
as “the” or an adjective) have to match or agree with those nouns. Think of matching or agreeing like you would
when you get dressed in the morning.
You try to choose things that look right. In Spanish, you choose the word for “the”
that matches the noun that comes after it.
If you’re using an adjective (word that describes a noun), you’d choose
the one that matches with the noun being described.
Here’s how to make words match. You’re going to look at the noun and figure
out if it’s masculine or feminine. If it
ends in –o, it’s usually masculine, and if it ends in –a, it’s usually feminine. If it ends in another letter (besides –s
because that just means it’s in its plural form), then you have to ask someone
if it’s masculine or feminine, or look it up in the dictionary. In the dictionary if there’s an “m” after the
word it’s “masculine,” and an “f” after the word means “feminine”. Then look at the noun and figure out if it’s
singular (one thing) or plural (more than one thing). If it ends in an –s, it’s probably plural,
otherwise it’s probably singular.
In Spanish, there are 4 different words for
“the.” It’s annoying, but there’s not a
lot we can do about it. Choose the one
that matches the noun (masculine/feminine and singular/plural).
4 Ways to Say “the:”
|
|
masculine |
feminine |
|
singular |
el |
la |
|
plural |
los |
las |
Examples of matching:
el carro = the car
la silla = the chair
los libros = the books
las casas =
the houses
Ways to say “a,” “an” or “some:”
|
|
masculine |
feminine |
|
Singular |
un |
una |
|
Plural |
unos |
unas |
Examples with “a,” “an” and “some:”
Un vaso = a glass
Una pluma = a pen
Unos niños = some kids
Unas palabras = some words
Matching adjectives with nouns works similarly. Decide if the noun is masculine/feminine and
singular/plural. Then choose the form of
the adjective that matches. An adjective
that ends in –o can change its ending to –a, -os, or –as. An adjective that ends in –e changes to –es
when it’s plural. An adjective ending in
another letter usually stays the same for masculine or feminine, but you
usually add –es to make it plural. In
Spanish, the adjective goes after the noun.
Examples:
la comida deliciosa = the delicious meal
unos carros rojos = some red cars
las chicas bonitas = the beautiful girls
el papel blanco = the white paper
Dates
Saying the date in Spanish follows a formula.