Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Ambas amigas llegaron a tiempo, pero no salió ningún tren. - Both friends arrived on time, but no train left.

Both mean “both.” bold Ambas is a single word and a bit more formal or written; bold las dos is very common in everyday speech. In Spain, bold las dos amigas often sounds more natural in conversation, while bold ambas amigas is perfectly correct and slightly more formal.

Why is it bold ambas amigas and not bold ambos amigas or bold ambas amigos?

Agreement. bold Amigas is feminine plural, so the quantifier must be feminine plural: bold ambas. If the noun were masculine plural (bold amigos), you’d use bold ambos.

What if one friend is male and the other is female?

Spanish uses the masculine plural for mixed groups, so you’d normally say bold ambos amigos or more commonly bold los dos amigos. You would not say bold ambas amigas for a mixed pair.

Why are bold llegaron and bold salió in the preterite? Could I use the present perfect in Spain?

The preterite highlights completed past events: they arrived; no train departed. In much of Spain, the present perfect is also common for recent past or within “today,” so bold Han llegado a tiempo, pero no ha salido ningún tren would often be natural if the time frame is still “open” (e.g., earlier today).

Why bold ningún and not bold ninguno? And why the accent on bold ningún?

bold Ningún is the short (apocopated) form used before a masculine singular noun: bold ningún tren. bold Ninguno is used when it stands alone: bold No salió ninguno. The accent in bold ningún keeps the stress on the last syllable (it ends in -n, which otherwise would shift the stress).

Isn’t bold no salió ningún tren a double negative?

Spanish uses negative concord: the negator bold no is required before the verb, and negative words like bold ningún/nadie/nada appear too. It’s correct and standard. If you move the negative word before the verb, you drop bold no: bold Ningún tren salió (also correct, slightly more emphatic/formal).

Why is the subject after the verb in bold no salió ningún tren?

With negation and an indefinite subject, Spanish typically places the subject after the verb: bold No salió ningún tren. Preposing it (bold Ningún tren salió) is possible but tends to sound more emphatic or formal.

Why singular bold ningún tren and not a plural like bold ningunos trenes?

bold Ninguno/ninguna is normally singular, meaning “not a single.” So bold ningún tren = “no train at all.” Plurals (bold ningunos/ningunas) are rare and used mainly with nouns that are only plural (e.g., bold ningunas tijeras). If you simply want a plural negation, you can say bold No salieron trenes, but that’s less categorical than bold No salió ningún tren.

Could I say bold No salieron trenes instead? What’s the nuance?

Yes. bold No salieron trenes states that trains didn’t depart (plural focus). bold No salió ningún tren stresses the total absence of even one train—slightly stronger.

Why bold pero and not bold sino?

bold Pero introduces a contrast (“but/however”). bold Sino is used after a negation to correct/replace what comes before (e.g., bold No salieron trenes, sino autobuses). Since the first clause isn’t negative, bold pero is the right choice.

Does the comma before bold pero follow Spanish punctuation rules?

Yes. In Spanish, a comma normally separates two independent clauses linked by bold pero: bold ..., pero ....

What does bold a tiempo mean? Can I say bold en hora or bold con tiempo?

bold A tiempo = “on time.” bold En hora also means “on schedule” (often for transport or clocks), and is fine in Spain: bold Llegaron en hora. bold Con tiempo means “with time to spare/early”: bold Llegaron con tiempo.

Could I say bold a la hora to mean “on time”?

Not for this meaning. bold A la hora usually means “at the (specified) time,” not “on time” as an idiom. Use bold a tiempo or bold en hora.

Why does bold salió have an accent, but bold llegaron doesn’t?

bold Salió is stressed on the last syllable; since it ends in a vowel, a written accent is needed to mark that stress. bold Llegaron follows the default stress (second-to-last syllable for words ending in -n, -s, or vowel), so no accent is required.

Any pronunciation tips (Spain)?

bold ll in bold llegaron and bold salió is usually pronounced like English “y” (yeísmo): [ye-ga-ROHN], [sa-LYÓ].
bold g in bold llegar is a hard [g] before a, o, u.
The final -n in bold llegaron is clearly pronounced in Peninsular Spanish.

Can I flip the clause order: bold No salió ningún tren, pero ambas amigas llegaron a tiempo?

Yes. It’s fully grammatical and keeps the same meaning; it just foregrounds the lack of trains.

Is bold partir a good alternative to bold salir for trains in Spain?

bold Salir is the standard everyday verb for departures. bold Partir is understood but sounds formal or literary in Spain in this context. You’ll hear bold El tren sale a las ocho much more than bold El tren parte a las ocho.

Any other equivalent to bold ningún tren in a more formal style?

Yes: bold No salió tren alguno. The pattern bold (noun) alguno after a negation is formal/literary but correct and clear.