Vostè vol mirar la televisió o escoltar la ràdio a la nit?

Vostè is the formal singular way to say you in Catalan. It is used when speaking politely or respectfully, for example to a stranger, an older person, or in a formal situation.

So this sentence is addressing one person formally.

If you wanted the informal version, you would usually say:

Tu vols mirar la televisió o escoltar la ràdio a la nit?

Even though Vostè means you, it takes the third-person singular verb form in Catalan, not the second-person form.

So:

• tu vols = informal you want
• vostè vol = formal you want

This is similar to Spanish usted quiere. Grammatically, vostè behaves like he/she for verb agreement.

They stay in the infinitive because they come after the verb vol (wants).

This pattern is very common in Catalan:

• vol mirar = wants to watch
• vol escoltar = wants to listen

Catalan often does not need a separate word for to before the second verb in this structure. So where English says wants to watch, Catalan says literally wants watch.

Both can appear in Catalan, but mirar la televisió is very common and natural for to watch TV.

The basic difference is:

• mirar = to look at, to watch
• veure = to see

So mirar la televisió emphasizes the act of watching. In everyday Catalan, this is a normal way to say watch TV.

In Catalan, it is normal to use the definite article with many nouns, including things like the television and the radio, where English may or may not use the.

So:

• la televisió = television / the television / TV
• la ràdio = radio / the radio

Both televisió and ràdio are feminine singular nouns, so they take la.

Because Catalan, like English, can use one main verb for two infinitives joined by o (or).

So:

Vostè vol mirar la televisió o escoltar la ràdio?

means:

Do you want to watch TV or listen to the radio?

You could repeat the verb, but it is usually unnecessary:

• Vostè vol mirar la televisió o vol escoltar la ràdio?

This is grammatical, but less economical.

A la nit means at night or in the evening/night, depending on context.

Catalan often uses the preposition a in time expressions like this:

• al matí = in the morning
• a la tarda = in the afternoon
• a la nit = at night

So the a is just the normal preposition used in this expression.

The word order is very normal for Catalan:

Vostè + vol + mirar la televisió + o + escoltar la ràdio + a la nit

Literally:

You want watch the television or listen the radio at night?

Catalan question word order often stays the same as a statement, especially in speech. Intonation usually helps show that it is a question.

So this question could also be understood as a statement with rising intonation.

The most direct informal version would be:

Tu vols mirar la televisió o escoltar la ràdio a la nit?

Changes:

• Vostè → Tu
• vol → vols

Everything else stays the same.

Here o simply means or.

Catalan has a small spelling/pronunciation change: o becomes u before words beginning with o or ho, to avoid confusion or awkward sound combinations.

Examples:

• set o vuit = seven or eight
• set u vuitanta = seven or eighty
• això o allò = this or that
• això u una altra cosa = this or another thing

In your sentence, the next word is escoltar, so it stays o: la televisió o escoltar

A rough guide:

• Vostè ≈ bos-TEH
• televisió ≈ te-le-vi-zee-O
• ràdio ≈ RA-di-o

A few useful notes:

• The accent in vostè shows stress on the last syllable.
• The accent in ràdio shows stress on the first syllable.
• In televisió, the stress is on the last syllable -ó.

Exact pronunciation varies somewhat between dialects, but these stress patterns stay important.

The accent marks help show stress and sometimes vowel quality.

In this sentence:

• vostè → stress on the last syllable
• televisió → stress on the last syllable
• ràdio → stress on the first syllable

For learners, the most important thing at first is: the accent mark tells you which syllable is stressed when it is not fully predictable.

Yes, but the meaning shifts a little.

• a la nit = at night / in the evening-night period
• de nit = by night / during the night / nighttime, often more descriptive

In this sentence, a la nit is the most natural choice for asking what someone wants to do in the evening or at night.

So:

Vostè vol mirar la televisió o escoltar la ràdio a la nit?

sounds very natural for Do you want to watch TV or listen to the radio at night?