Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Quiero aprender algo nuevo algún día.

In Spanish, when you want to express that you want to do something, you use the verb querer followed by the infinitive of the action you wish to do. So quiero aprender literally means “I want to learn,” where aprender remains in the infinitive form.

Can I replace “algo nuevo” with “algo diferente”?

Yes, you could say Quiero aprender algo diferente algún día to convey a similar idea of wanting to learn something “different” instead of “new.” In Spanish, nuevo emphasizes it’s new to you or newly discovered, while diferente emphasizes it’s something different compared to what you already know.

What does the accent on “algún” mean and why is it there?

In Spanish, when the word alguno comes before a masculine singular noun (like día), it changes to algún and takes an accent. This is simply a spelling rule: alguno + día → algún día. Without the accent, algún wouldn’t be correctly spelled; it also helps differentiate it from the full form alguno in other contexts.

Could I say “Querría aprender algo nuevo algún día” instead of “Quiero aprender algo nuevo algún día”?

Yes, querría is the conditional tense, and it conveys a more polite or hypothetical desire—akin to “I would like to learn something new someday.” Quiero is the present tense and sounds more direct and certain—“I want to learn something new someday.” Both are correct, but they carry slightly different nuances.

Why is “al día” not used? Isn’t that how you say “someday” in Spanish?

Al día literally means “by the day” or could be interpreted in various ways (for example, “per day”). To express “someday,” we use algún día to indicate an unspecified day in the future. Think of it as “one day (in the future),” which more accurately conveys the meaning of “someday” in English.