Easy Learning Spanish Conversation
Hello
Hola. Hello. ¡Hola, Jaime! Hi Jaime! Buenos días. Good morning. Hola, buenos días. Good morning. Buenas tardes, Luis. Good afternoon, Luis. Buenas noches. Good evening.¿LO SABÍAS?
When you pass friends and acquaintances in the street and don’t stop to talk, rather than saying hola you say hasta luego or adiós.
You’ll also want to ask the people you know how they are. The simplest way to do this is by using ¿Qué tal? This is quite informal, and suitable when you know the person quite well. If you want to be more formal you say ¿Cómo está? to someone you speak to as usted.
How are you?
Hola, Juana, ¿qué tal?Hi, how are you, Juana?¡Buenos días! ¿Cómo está, señor García?Good morning! How are you, señor García?Hola, Pepe, ¿qué tal te va?Hello, Pepe, how’s it going?¿Qué pasa, Raquel? ¡Cuánto tiempo sin verte!How are things, Raquel? It’s ages since I’ve seen you!Use adiós (goodbye) or hasta pronto (see you soon) to say goodbye to people you don’t know well. You can just say hasta luego (see you) if you want to sound more informal.
Goodbye
¡Adiós!Goodbye!¡Adiós! ¡Hasta otra!Goodbye! See you again!¡Buenas noches!Good night!¿LO SABÍAS?
Buenas noches means both good evening and good night. So you use it both when arriving and leaving somewhere in the evening. When saying goodbye to someone you know you’ll see tomorrow, such as a colleague, you say hasta mañana (see you tomorrow).
See you…!
¡Hasta luego!See you!¡Hasta pronto!See you soon!¡Hasta mañana!See you tomorrow!¡Hasta el lunes!See you on Monday!INTRODUCING PEOPLE
You’ll want to introduce people you know to one another. The simplest way is by saying éste es (this is) when introducing a man, and ésta es when introducing a woman.
This is…
José, éste es mi marido.José, this is my husband.Pedro, ésta es Marta Valls.Pedro, this is Marta Valls.Quiero presentarte a nuestro director de ventas, Jorge Mata.Let me introduce you to our sales director, Jorge Mata.Quiero que conozcas a mi amigo Daniel.I’d like you to meet my friend Daniel.¿LO SABÍAS?
When you’re introduced to someone, you’ll want to know how to react. The traditional encantado should only be used in formal or business situations these days, and very often people just say ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal?. You would reply in the same way – ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal?.
TALKING ABOUT YOURSELF
To get the conversation going, you’ll need to be able to say at least what your name is, who you are or what you do, and where you’re from. Saying what your name is is rather different in Spanish from English. You say me llamo (literally I call myself). me llamo comes from the verb llamarse. If you want to say what someone else is called you use se llama. For more information on reflexive verbs like llamarse, see here.
My name is…
Me llamo Daniel Norrington.My name is Daniel Norrington.Me llamo Liz Owen.My name is Liz Owen.Me llamo Jack.My name is Jack.Se llama Kevin.His name is Kevin.Se llama Helen.Her name is Helen.I’m…
Soy amigo de Paul.I’m a friend of Paul’s.Soy el hermano de Rodrigo.I’m Rodrigo’s brother.Soy soltero.I’m single.Soy maestro.I’m a teacher.Soy representante.I’m a rep.Trabajo de programador para Compumax.I work as a programmer for Compumax.¿LO SABÍAS?
When you say what you do in Spanish, don’t include a word for a or an before your job: soy maestro (I’m a teacher), soy enfermera (I’m a nurse).
To say how old you are, use tengo followed by your age and then años (literally I have… years). tengo comes from the verb tener. For more information on tener, see here.
I’m…years old
Tengo veintidós años.I’m twenty-two years old.Tengo treinta y siete años.I’m thirty-seven.Mi hijo tiene siete años.My son’s seven.¿Cuántos años tienes?How old are you?I have…
Tengo dos hermanas.I have two sisters.Tengo un hijo y una hija.I have a son and a daughter.Tenemos familia en el sur de España.We have relatives in the south of Spain.¿Tienes hijos?Have you got any children?I live…
Vivo en Gales.I live in Wales.Vivo solo.I live on my own.Vivimos en un apartamento.We live in a flat.¿LO SABÍAS?
Remember to say vivo sola rather than vivo solo if you’re female.
I’m staying…
Estoy en el Excelsior Palace.I’m staying at the Excelsior Palace.Estoy en casa de unos amigos.I’m staying with friends.Me quedo una semana en Madrid.I’m staying in Madrid for a week.Me voy a quedar unos cuantos días más.I’m going to stay for a few more days.To talk about yourself, you’ll need to be able to say how long you’ve been doing something, such as learning Spanish! One way to do this is to use hace followed by the length of time and then que and the verb in the present. For more information on the present tense, see here. You can also use llevo to mean I’ve been in examples like these.
I’ve been…for…
Hace cinco años que soy enfermera.I’ve been a nurse for five years.Hace diez años que vivo en España.I’ve been living in Spain for ten years.Hace sólo dos días que estoy aquí.I’ve only been here for two days.Llevo dos semanas en Madrid.I’ve been in Madrid for two weeks.Llevo dos años estudiando español.I’ve been studying Spanish for two years.Llevo seis meses de camarera.I’ve been a waitress for six months.APOLOGIZING
There may be times when you wish to make an apology to somebody. The simplest way to do this is to say perdona (to someone you speak to as tú) and perdone (to someone you speak to as usted).
I’m sorry…
Perdona.I’m sorry.Perdona por no pasar a verte, pero no tuve tiempo.I’m sorry I didn’t call in, but I didn’t have time.Perdone que llegue tarde.I’m sorry I’m late.Siento no haberte llamado para decírtelo.I’m sorry I didn’t phone to let you know.¿LO SABÍAS?
If you need to get past someone, or if you bump into them, just say perdón (excuse me or sorry).
I’m afraid that…
Lo siento, pero no puedo ir.I’m afraid that I can’t come.Lo siento, pero no entendí tu nombre.I’m afraid I didn’t catch your name.Me temo que no tengo tu número.I’m afraid that I don’t have your number.ASKING FOR INFORMATION
In social situations you will often want to find out more about someone or their family, job and so on. To do this use háblame (tell me).
Tell me…
Háblame un poco de ti.Tell me a bit about yourself.Háblame de tu familia.Tell me about your family.¿En qué consiste tu trabajo?Tell me what your job involves.You can use the next questions when chatting socially.
What’s…?
¿Cuál es tu dirección?What’s your address?¿Cuál es el número de teléfono de Francisco?What’s Francisco’s phone number?¿En qué trabajas?What do you do for a living?Perdona, ¿qué has dicho?Sorry, what did you say?¿Qué significa ‘azafata’?What does ‘azafata’ mean?¿Cómo te llamas?What’s your name?You’ll often want to find out where things are. Remember that when you use ¿Dónde…?, está is how you generally translate the word is.
Where…?
¿Dónde quieres que quedemos?Where do you want to meet?¿Dónde trabajas?Where do you work?¿Dónde vives?Where do you live?¿Dónde está tu piso?Where’s your flat?¿Dónde te quedas?Where are you staying?¿De dónde vienes?Where do you come from?When…?
¿Cuándo estarás aquí?When will you get here?¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?When’s your birthday?¿Sábes cuándo dará a luz Marta?Do you know when Marta’s baby’s due?¿A qué hora quieres quedar?When do you want to meet?How long have…?
¿Cuánto tiempo hace que estás en España?How long have you been in Spain?¿Cuánto tiempo hace que trabajas aquí?How long have you been working here?¿Cuánto tiempo hace que esperas?How long have you been waiting?One very versatile way of asking someone socially how something is going or has gone is to use the phrase ¿Qué tal…? and then the noun in question. You don’t need to use any verb at all.
How…?
¿Qué tal las vacaciones?How was your holiday?¿Qué tal el vuelo?How was your flight?¿Qué tal el hotel?How’s the hotel?Sometimes you’ll want to ask why a friend or acquaintance did or didn’t do something. You can use ¿Por qué…? and a past tense to ask the question (Why…?).
Why…?
¿Por qué te fuiste de Barcelona?Why did you move from Barcelona?¿Por qué decidiste dedicarte a la enseñanza?Why did you choose a career in teaching?¿Por qué no fuiste ayer?Why didn’t you go yesterday?¿Por qué no me llamaste anoche por teléfono?Why didn’t you ring me last night?SAYING WHAT YOU WANT TO DO
When talking to friends and colleagues there’ll be plenty of things you’ll want to do together. To say what you would like to do, you can use me gustaría (I’d like). This comes from the verb gustar.
I’d like to…
Me gustaría darte las gracias por tu ayuda.I’d like to thank you for helping me.Me gustaría hablar luego contigo.I’d like to speak to you later.Nos gustaría presentarte a un amigo.We’d like you to meet a friend.Nos gustaría invitarte a tomar una copa.We’d like to invite you out for a drink.Alternatively, you can use quiero followed by the infinitive. If you want someone else to do something for you, use quiero que followed by a verb in the subjunctive. For more information on the subjunctive, see here.
I want to…
Quiero organizar una fiesta sorpresa.I want to organize a surprise party.Quiero invitar a algunos amigos para mi cumpleaños.I want to have a few friends over for my birthday.Quiero que vengas conmigo.I want you to come with me.Quiero que esta noche todo salga bien.I want this evening to be a success.You may want to ask people you know what you should do. One way to do this is to use ¿Crees que debo…? (Should I…?) followed by a verb in the infinitive. debo comes from the verb deber. For more on deber, see here.
Should I…?
¿Crees que debo invitar a su hermana?Should I invite his sister?¿Crees que debo llamarle otra vez?Should I call him again?¿Te parece buena idea ir a un restaurante chino?Should we go to a Chinese restaurant?EXPRESSING OPINIONS
When talking to people you know, you’ll want to say what you think of things. In Spanish there are two main ways of doing this. You can either use creo or pienso, both of which mean literally I think. Or you can use me parece, which means literally it seems to me.
I think…
Creo que tienes razón.I think you’ve got a point.Creo que deberíamos irnos a medianoche.I think we should leave at midnight.Pienso que Sonia tiene razón.I think Sonia’s right.Pienso que es un poco tarde para ir al cine.I think it’s a bit late to go to the cinema.Me parece una idea estupenda.I think it’s a great idea.A mí no me parece que sea así en absoluto.I don’t think that’s the case at all.¿LO SABÍAS?
Don’t forget to add que (that) after me parece, creo and pienso. It’s optional in English, but not in Spanish.
MAKING SUGGESTIONS
When you’re with friends and colleagues, you’ll probably want to suggest doing things together. One simple way of doing this is to use podríamos (we could) followed by the infinitive. podríamos comes from the verb poder. For more information on poder, see here.
We could…
Podríamos quedar otro día.We could postpone until another day.Podríamos salir a tomar algo alguna vez.We could go out for a drink sometime.Podríamos quedar en el Café Central.We could meet at the Café Central.Just as in English, you can also make a suggestion simply by asking ¿Por qué no…? (Why don’t…?).
Why don’t…?
¿Por qué no les llamas?Why don’t you phone them?¿Por qué no invitamos a Pablo y a su novia?Why don’t we invite Pablo and his girlfriend?¿Por qué no quedamos algún día?Why don’t we get together sometime?¿Quieres que comamos juntos?Why don’t we have lunch together?Another way to make suggestions is to use ¿Y si… ? (How about…?) and a verb in the present tense.
How about…?
¿Y si les invitamos a cenar?How about inviting them for dinner?¿Y si te vienes con nosotros?How about coming with us?¿Y si paso a por ti por la mañana?How about I pick you up in the morning?If you want to state your opinion, the Spanish en mi opinión is just like the English in my opinion.
In my opinion…
En mi opinión, es una buena propuesta.In my opinion, it’s a good suggestion.En mi opinión, no es verdad.It’s not true, in my opinion.En mi opinión, va a causar problemas.In my view, it’ll cause problems.When you want to ask someone what they think of something, you can use the verb parecer again, only this time in the phrase ¿Qué te parece…? (What do you think of…?).
What do you think of…?
¿Qué te parece su última película?What do you think of his latest film?¿Qué te parece la idea?What do you think of the idea?¿Qué te pareció el nuevo equipo?What did you think of the new team?¿Qué te parece?What do you think?To agree or disagree with what other people say, you can use estoy de acuerdo (I agree) or no estoy de acuerdo (I don’t agree).
I agree…
Estoy de acuerdo.I agree.Estoy de acuerdo con Mercedes.I agree with Mercedes.No estoy de acuerdo con esta decisión.I don’t agree with this decision.No estoy en absoluto de acuerdo con Maite.I completely disagree with Maite.¡Estoy totalmente de acuerdo contigo!I entirely agree with you!¿Estás de acuerdo?Do you agree?¿LO SABÍAS?
Remember that contigo is the way to say with you to someone you speak to as tú.
In Spanish, the verb tener (to have) is used in the phrase tener razón (to be right). For more information on tener, see here.
You’re right…
¡Tienes razón!You’re right!Creo que tienes razón.I think you’re right.Es Antonio quien tiene razón.It’s Antonio who’s right.TALKING ABOUT YOUR PLANS
You’ll want to make plans with business associates and friends. If you want to talk about a definite arrangement, for instance I’m seeing him tonight, you often use the future tense in Spanish. For more on the future tense, see here.
I’m…ing
Veré a Felipe el jueves.I’m seeing Felipe on Thursday.La veré esta tarde.I’m seeing her this afternoon.Iremos al cine esta noche.We’re going to the cinema tonight.Comeremos juntos el próximo viernes.We’re having lunch together next Friday.¿LO SABÍAS?
As you’ll see in the first example above, in Spanish you say ver a alguien. For more on this use of a, see here.
In English, to talk about the future we often say I’m going to. Spanish works the same way. To say that you’re going to do something, put voy a (I’m going to) or vamos a (we’re going to) before the verb. voy and vamos come from the verb ir. For more information on ir, see here.
I’m going to…
Voy a telefonearle.I’m going to phone him.Voy a decirle que no puedo ir.I’m going to tell him I can’t come.Vamos a decirles que vengan un poco más tarde.We’re going to tell them to come a little later.MAKING ARRANGEMENTS
When organizing things with people you know, you can use ¿Qué te parece si…? (Will it be all right if…?) to ask if something suits them. parece comes from the verb parecer (to seem).