Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Mi abuela cocina marisco fresco cuando la familia está de visita. - My grandmother cooks fresh seafood when the family is visiting.

cocina is the third-person singular present indicative form of cocinar (to cook), matching the subject mi abuela (she). It tells us “my grandmother cooks” as a habitual or regular action.

Why is marisco singular instead of mariscos?

Here marisco functions as a mass noun meaning “seafood” in general. In Spanish you often use the singular to talk about a category of food. If you want to emphasize individual items, you could say mariscos.

Why does fresco come after marisco, and why is it fresco not fresca?

In Spanish most adjectives follow the noun. fresco agrees in gender (masculine) and number (singular) with marisco, which is also masculine singular.

Why do we use la familia instead of just familia?

Collective nouns like familia usually take a definite article in Spanish when referring to a specific group. la familia here means “the (whole) family.”

What does está de visita mean, and why use estar instead of ser?

estar de visita is an idiomatic expression meaning “to be visiting” (to be here temporarily). We use estar because it describes a temporary state or condition, whereas ser would imply a permanent characteristic.

Could I start the sentence with cuando? For example: Cuando la familia está de visita, mi abuela cocina marisco fresco.

Yes, Spanish word order is flexible. Beginning with cuando simply highlights the time clause first, but the overall meaning remains the same.

Why is there an accent on está but not on esta?

está (with an accent) is the third-person singular present of estar (“he/she is”). esta (no accent) is a feminine demonstrative adjective meaning “this.” The accent differentiates the verb from the adjective.

Why isn’t there an article before mi abuela (like la mi abuela)?

In Spanish, possessive adjectives (mi, tu, su, etc.) replace the definite article. You never say la mi abuela; you simply say mi abuela.