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No olvides traer tu identificación a la estación.

No olvides traer tu identificación a la estación.
Don’t forget to bring your ID to the station.

Breakdown of No olvides traer tu identificación a la estación.

la estación
the station
a
to
traer
to bring
tu
your
olvidar
to forget
no
not
la identificación
the ID
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Questions & Answers about No olvides traer tu identificación a la estación.

Why is it No olvides and not No olvidas?

No olvides is a negative command (telling someone not to do something) directed at tú (informal “you”).

  • Olvidas = you forget (simple statement: You forget your ID a lot.)
  • No olvides = don’t forget (command: Don’t forget your ID.)

In Spanish, tú commands use special forms:

  • Affirmative: Olvida tu identificación. (Forget your ID.)
  • Negative: No olvides tu identificación. (Don’t forget your ID.)

So olvides here is the present subjunctive, which is what negative tú commands use.

Is olvides in the subjunctive? Why use the subjunctive for a command?

Yes, olvides is the present subjunctive of olvidar (tú form).

Spanish forms commands like this:

  • Informal tú affirmative command: use 3rd person singular indicative
    • Olvida (forget)
  • Informal tú negative command: use 2nd person singular subjunctive
    • No olvides (don’t forget)

So when you say No olvides…, Spanish grammar requires the subjunctive form olvides after no for a negative command.

Could I say No te olvides de traer tu identificación instead? Is there a difference?

Yes, that is another very natural way to say it:

  • No olvides traer tu identificación.
  • No te olvides de traer tu identificación.

Both mean essentially Don’t forget to bring your ID.

Nuances:

  • No olvides traer… is a bit more direct and simple.
  • No te olvides de traer… is slightly more colloquial / conversational in many places and literally means Don’t forget yourself to bring…, but in practice it just sounds like a friendly reminder.

Both are fine in Latin American Spanish. You’ll hear No te olvides de… very often in everyday speech.

Why is it traer and not traes?

Because traer is an infinitive, used after another verb (olvides) in this structure.

The pattern is:

  • No olvides + infinitive = Don’t forget to + verb

Examples:

  • No olvides llamar. = Don’t forget to call.
  • No olvides estudiar. = Don’t forget to study.
  • No olvides traer tu identificación. = Don’t forget to bring your ID.

Spanish does not say No olvides traes. That would be incorrect, just like Don’t forget you bring your ID is incorrect in English here.

What’s the difference between traer and llevar here? Could I say No olvides llevar tu identificación?

You can say No olvides llevar tu identificación; it’s also correct and common.

Subtle difference:

  • traer = to bring (movement toward the speaker or reference point)
  • llevar = to take/carry (movement away from the current place or toward some other place)

In many real-life situations, especially in Latin America, speakers don’t always strictly follow this distinction and both are used loosely.

In this sentence:

  • No olvides traer tu identificación a la estación.
    Sounds like: Don’t forget to bring your ID (to where we’ll be / where I’ll be / where the focus is).

  • No olvides llevar tu identificación a la estación.
    Think: Don’t forget to take your ID with you to the station.

In everyday speech, either works and the difference is minimal.

Why is it tu identificación and not su identificación?

tu is the informal singular “your” (for tú).

  • tú → tu identificación (your ID, speaking informally to one person)
  • usted → su identificación (your ID, speaking formally to one person)
  • ustedes → su identificación (your ID, speaking to more than one person)

The original sentence addresses someone with tú (informal), so tu identificación is the correct matching possessive.

How would this sentence change if I wanted to be formal (using usted)?

For usted, you use the usted command form (3rd person singular subjunctive):

  • No olvide traer su identificación a la estación.

Changes:

  • olvides → olvide (usted form)
  • tu → su (formal your)

So:

  • Informal: No olvides traer tu identificación a la estación.
  • Formal: No olvide traer su identificación a la estación.
Why is it a la estación and not al estación?

al is the contraction of a + el, used only before masculine singular nouns:

  • a + el parque → al parque
  • a + el banco → al banco

estación is feminine: la estación.

So we use a + la, which does not contract:

  • a la estación (to the station)

You would never say al estación; that would mix a masculine article with a feminine noun.

Why is estación feminine? Is there a rule?

Estación ends in -ción, and most nouns ending in -ción / -sión are feminine:

  • la estación
  • la nación
  • la información
  • la decisión
  • la televisión

There are small exceptions in Spanish in general, but with -ción / -sión nouns, you can safely assume they are feminine and take la.

Why do identificación and estación have accents?

Both words end in -ción, and in Spanish that ending is stressed on the last syllable:

  • identificaCIÓN
  • estaCIÓN

According to Spanish accent rules, words ending in n, s, or a vowel are normally stressed on the second-to-last syllable.

Since these are stressed on the last syllable instead, they must have a written accent:

  • identificación
  • estación

Without the accent, the stress rules would make people pronounce them differently.

Is identificación the usual word for “ID” in Latin America? Are there other common words?

Identificación is very commonly used and understood everywhere in Latin America to mean ID, especially in contexts like:

  • ¿Tiene su identificación?
  • Le voy a pedir una identificación con foto.

Other words you might hear:

  • documento (de identidad) / documento de identificación
  • cédula (common in several Latin American countries for a national ID card)
  • credencial (often for student IDs, work IDs, etc.)

But in a general phrase like your sentence, identificación is perfectly natural and widely understood.

Can I put tu identificación at the beginning of the sentence, like in English: “Don’t forget your ID to the station”?

You could move it, but you have to respect natural Spanish word order.

Most natural:

  • No olvides traer tu identificación a la estación.

Other possible but less common orders:

  • No olvides tu identificación cuando vengas a la estación.
  • Tu identificación, no olvides traerla a la estación. (emphatic, spoken style)

You cannot just mirror English word-for-word. Something like No olvides tu identificación traer a la estación sounds awkward or incorrect.

The infinitive traer normally stays right after olvides here: olvides traer.

How would I say this to more than one person (you all) in Latin America?

Latin America generally uses ustedes for “you all,” even informally, so you use the ustedes command:

  • No olviden traer su identificación a la estación.

Changes:

  • olvides → olviden (ustedes form)
  • tu → su (your, plural)

In many parts of Spain, the informal plural would be:

  • No olvidéis traer vuestra identificación a la estación. (vosotros)
How would I say it in a very casual spoken way, like talking to a friend?

Some natural casual variants in Latin American Spanish:

  • No vayas a olvidar traer tu identificación a la estación.
  • No te vayas a olvidar de traer tu identificación.
  • Acuérdate de traer tu identificación a la estación. (literally: Remember to bring your ID to the station.)

All have the same practical meaning; they just sound more colloquial or friendly depending on tone and region.