Breakdown of Te espero en el andén 3 hasta que llegue el tren.
yo
I
en
on
llegar
to arrive
el tren
the train
tres
three
esperar
to wait
te
you
hasta que
until
el andén
the platform
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Questions & Answers about Te espero en el andén 3 hasta que llegue el tren.
Why is llegue (subjunctive) used after hasta que instead of llega or llegará?
Because with hasta que referring to a future/unknown event, Spanish uses the subjunctive. You’re waiting until something that hasn’t happened yet.
- Future/anticipated: Te espero… hasta que llegue el tren.
- Habitual: Siempre te espero… hasta que llega el tren. (indicative)
- Completed past: Te esperé… hasta que llegó el tren. (indicative) You do not use the future tense in that subordinate clause.
How would this sentence look in the past?
- Completed, real past: Te esperé en el andén 3 hasta que llegó el tren.
- In reported past while the arrival was still pending from that past viewpoint: Dijo que te esperaba en el andén 3 hasta que llegara el tren.
Can I say Te esperaré instead of Te espero?
Yes. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans: Te espero ≈ “I’ll wait for you.” Te esperaré is also correct and can sound a bit more formal or predictive.
What’s the difference among Te espero, Te voy a esperar/Voy a esperarte, and Te estaré esperando?
- Te espero: neutral, often used for arrangements (present with future sense).
- Te voy a esperar / Voy a esperarte: plan/intention.
- Te estaré esperando: emphasizes the ongoing nature (“I’ll be there waiting”).
Why is it Te espero and not Te espero por or Te espero a?
Esperar already means “to wait for,” so no por is needed in standard Spanish. With people as full nouns, you use the personal a: Espero a Juan, but with a pronoun it’s just Te espero. Note: in parts of the Caribbean (e.g., Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic), esperar por is common and accepted regionally.
Does Espero que llegue el tren mean “I wait until the train arrives”?
No. Espero que llegue el tren means “I hope the train arrives.” To express waiting without hasta que, say Espero a que llegue el tren (“I wait for the train to arrive”).
Where can I place the object pronoun te with other verb forms?
- Before a conjugated verb: Te voy a esperar.
- Attached to an infinitive/gerund/affirmative command: Voy a esperarte, Estoy esperándote, Espérame en el andén 3.
How do I make this formal or plural?
- Usted (formal you): Lo/La espero en el andén 3…
- Ustedes (you plural): Los/Las espero en el andén 3… In most of Latin America, using le as a direct object here is not standard.
Why is it en el andén and not al andén?
En is for location (“on/at the platform”). A is for movement toward a place (“Voy al andén 3”).
What does andén mean in Latin America, and are vía or plataforma used?
Andén = platform at a train or bus station. In Spain, you’ll also see vía 3 (track 3). In some Latin American contexts, plataforma appears, especially for bus terminals. In Colombia, andén can also mean “sidewalk,” but in station contexts it’s the platform.
Do I need the article in en el andén 3?
Yes. Use the article: en el andén 3. Dropping it is typical on signs or timetables, but not in regular speech.
Should I say andén 3, andén tres, or andén tercero?
Use a cardinal number: andén 3 or andén tres. Ordinals like tercero are not typically used for platform numbers.
Why does andén have an accent, and why is it llegue with gu?
- andén: the accent marks stress on the last syllable (it ends in “n,” so the default would be penultimate stress).
- llegue: the gu keeps the hard “g” sound before “e”; lege would be pronounced with a soft “h” sound.
Can I say hasta que el tren llegue instead of hasta que llegue el tren?
Yes. Both word orders are correct and mean the same.
Is the que after hasta required?
Yes, if a conjugated verb follows: hasta que llegue. Without que, you’d need a noun or an infinitive: hasta la llegada del tren. (Hasta llegar el tren is incorrect.)
Can I use cuando instead of hasta que?
No. Hasta que = “until.” Cuando = “when.” Te espero cuando llegue el tren means you will wait at the time the train arrives, not up to that moment.
Could Te espero mean “I expect you”?
With a person as direct object, Te espero is understood as “I’m waiting for you.” To express expectation, use something like Espero que vengas (“I hope/expect you to come”) or Cuento contigo (“I’m counting on you”).
Does this imply I stop waiting once the train arrives?
That’s the natural reading: you wait up to the train’s arrival and then the waiting ends (e.g., to board). Context could override this, but that’s the default.