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No olvidemos avisar a la casera cuando entreguemos las llaves.

No olvidemos avisar a la casera cuando entreguemos las llaves.
Let’s not forget to let the landlady know when we hand in the keys.
FromLesson 41inHardcore Spanish (Latin America)
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Questions & Answers about No olvidemos avisar a la casera cuando entreguemos las llaves.

What does "No olvidemos" express, and what form is it?
It’s a first‑person plural command: the present subjunctive used as a nosotros imperative. No olvidemos… means “Let’s not forget…”. (Affirmative would be olvidemos… = “let’s forget…,” which would be odd here.)
Why is entreguemos used after cuando instead of entregamos?

Because the action is in the future/hasn’t happened yet. With time conjunctions like cuando, Spanish uses the present subjunctive for pending or future events: cuando entreguemos = “when we hand over (in the future).” Use the indicative for habitual or past:

  • Habitual: Cuando entregamos las llaves, siempre…
  • Past: Cuando entregamos las llaves ayer, …
Can I say cuando entregaremos las llaves?
No. After cuando (and similar time conjunctions), Spanish does not use the simple future. Use the present subjunctive: cuando entreguemos las llaves.
Why is it avisar a la casera and not avisar la casera?
With people, avisar takes the preposition a: you “notify someone” = avisar a alguien. You can’t drop the a with a person. Optionally, you can add the IO pronoun: avisarle a la casera.
Where does the pronoun le go if I include it?

Attach it to the verb it belongs to (the one that governs the indirect object):

  • With avisar: No olvidemos avisarle a la casera…
  • With entregar: …cuando le entreguemos las llaves (a la casera).
    Clitic doubling (having both le and the full noun) is common and correct in many varieties: …cuando le entreguemos las llaves a la casera. Don’t say No le olvidemos avisar… (here le doesn’t belong to olvidar).
Is avisarla ever correct here?
No. With avisar, the person is an indirect object, so use le: avisarle (a la casera), not avisarla.
What’s the difference between olvidar and olvidarse de?

Both are correct and very common:

  • Non‑pronominal: No olvidemos avisar…
  • Pronominal: No nos olvidemos de avisar… The pronominal version often feels a bit more colloquial/spontaneous. Avoid olvidar de + infinitive in standard Spanish; use either olvidar + infinitive or olvidarse de + infinitive.
Is casera the right word for “landlady” in Latin America?
Yes. La casera = landlady; el casero = landlord. Synonyms you may also hear include la dueña, la propietaria, la arrendadora. Note that casero/casera can also mean “homemade” as an adjective, but with the article (la casera) and in a rental context, it means “landlady.”
Why is it las llaves, not los llaves?
Because llave is a feminine noun in Spanish: la llave / las llaves.
Could I use devolver instead of entregar?

Yes. Both are common:

  • entregar las llaves = hand over the keys (often slightly more formal, the idea of a handoff)
  • devolver las llaves = return the keys
    In some regions you’ll also hear regresar las llaves (e.g., Mexico) or simply dar las llaves.
Can I say al entregar las llaves instead of cuando entreguemos las llaves?

Yes: …avisar a la casera al entregar las llaves.
Al + infinitive means “upon/when doing.” It’s good if you mean “at the moment of handing them over.” If you want to emphasize future uncertainty, cuando + subjunctive is more explicit.

Why does cuando have no accent here? When would I write cuándo?

No accent because it’s a conjunction (“when”) introducing a time clause. Use cuándo (accent) only in direct or indirect questions:

  • Direct: ¿Cuándo entregamos las llaves?
  • Indirect: Avísale a la casera cuándo entregaremos las llaves.
If I mean “tell her the time when we’ll hand them over,” how do I say that?

Use an embedded question with cuándo (accent):
No olvidemos avisarle a la casera cuándo entregaremos las llaves.
Your original sentence with cuando (no accent) means “when we hand them over (at that time),” not “tell her what time.”

Why is it spelled entreguemos with gu?
Spelling rule: to keep a hard “g” sound before e/i, Spanish inserts a silent u: gue/gui. So it’s entreguemos (hard g), not “entregemos” (which would sound like “entrejemos” in many accents).
Can I rewrite the sentence with pronoun doubling?

Yes: No olvidemos avisarle a la casera cuando le entreguemos las llaves.
Doubling the indirect object (le … a la casera) is natural in much of Latin America.

Why not No olvidamos avisar…?
No olvidamos… is simple present indicative: “We don’t forget…” (a statement, often habitual). To make a suggestion/command (“Let’s not forget”), use No olvidemos…
Is there a more colloquial alternative like “Let’s not end up forgetting …”?

Yes: No vayamos a olvidar avisarle a la casera… or Que no se nos olvide avisarle a la casera…

  • No vayamos a + infinitive warns against an undesired outcome.
  • Que no se nos olvide… uses a common “accidental forgetting” construction.
How do affirmative vs. negative nosotros commands work with reflexives?
  • Affirmative: drop the final -s before nos/se: olvidémonos de avisar.
  • Negative: keep the -s and place pronouns before: No nos olvidemos de avisar.
    Your sentence uses the non‑pronominal verb, so it’s simply No olvidemos…
Does avisar take que or de que?
Both are accepted: avisar que… and avisar de que… (RAE). In much of Latin America, avisar que… is very common; in Spain, avisar de que… is frequent. Example: Avísale a la casera (de) que entregaremos las llaves mañana.
Can I move the cuando clause to the front?

Yes: Cuando entreguemos las llaves, no olvidemos avisar a la casera.
If the cuando clause comes first, use a comma after it.

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