Question 1

Why is compramos written the same way for both “we buy” (present) and “we bought” (preterite)? How can I tell which tense it is?

Accepted Answer

Spanish uses the same form compramos for first-person-plural in the present indicative and in the preterite. To disambiguate:  
- Look for time markers or context. For example:  
  • Ayer compramos medicina… clearly sets it in the past.  
  • Todos los meses compramos medicina… signals a habitual (present) action.  
- If you need to be explicit, add adverbs like ayer (yesterday) for past or ahora, siempre, normalmente for present.

Question 2

Why is there no article before medicina? Would it be wrong to say compramos la medicina?

Accepted Answer

In Spanish, uncountable or general items often appear without an article:  
- compramos medicina = we bought (some) medicine in general.  
Use la medicina if you mean a specific prescription you both know about:  
- Compramos la medicina que nos recetó el doctor.

Question 3

Why is en used in en la farmacia? Could I say a la farmacia?

Accepted Answer

- en indicates location where the action happens (“at the pharmacy”).  
- a expresses motion toward (“to the pharmacy”): Fuimos a la farmacia = “We went to the pharmacy.”  
Since you want “we bought … at the pharmacy,” you use en.

Question 4

What role does que play in que está cerca de la plaza? Can I drop it?

Accepted Answer

- que is a relative pronoun linking la farmacia with the clause está cerca de la plaza.  
- You can omit que está and still be correct:  
  • Compramos medicina en la farmacia cerca de la plaza.  
  But using que está makes the relationship more explicit and is very common in spoken Latin American Spanish.

Question 5

Why is it está (with an accent) and not es?

Accepted Answer

- You use estar (está) for location or temporary states.  
- ser (es) is for permanent or defining characteristics.  
Since you’re saying where the pharmacy is located, you need está. The written accent on está marks the stressed syllable in the present indicative.

Question 6

What does cerca de mean, and are there other ways to say “near”?

Accepted Answer

- cerca de = “close to” or “near.”  
Alternatives:  
  • junto a (right next to) — junto a la plaza  
  • al lado de (beside) — al lado de la plaza  
  • a poca distancia de (a short distance from)

Question 7

Could I replace medicina with a direct‐object pronoun? How would the sentence look?

Accepted Answer

Yes. medicina is feminine singular, so you use la:  
- La compramos en la farmacia que está cerca de la plaza.  
This pronoun comes directly before the verb compramos.

Question 8

Why is there no nosotros before compramos? Would it be wrong to include it?

Accepted Answer

- Spanish often omits subject pronouns because the verb ending already shows the subject.  
- You can include nosotros for emphasis or clarity:  
  • Nosotros compramos medicina…  
  It’s not wrong, just more emphatic or stylistically marked.

Question 9

Does plaza always mean the town square? Can it mean a shopping mall in Latin America?

Accepted Answer

- Traditionally, plaza = town square or open public space.  
- In some countries (e.g., Mexico, Peru), plaza can also refer to a shopping center or mall. Context and local usage will tell you which meaning is intended.

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