Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Usted puede esperar en la oficina; en cuanto llegue la jefa, la recibirá. - You can wait in the office; as soon as the boss arrives, she will see you.

Usted is the formal way to say you in Spanish. It is used for politeness, distance, or professional situations. Since this sentence sounds like something said in an office or formal setting, Usted fits well.

Because usted is grammatically treated like he/she, the verb is in the third person singular:

usted puede
not usted puedes

If the sentence were informal, it would be:

Tú puedes esperar en la oficina...

Why does usted take a third-person verb if it means you?

This is one of the most important things to remember about usted. Even though it means you, Spanish grammar treats it as a third-person singular form.

So you get:

Usted puede
Usted espera
Usted llegará

not:

Usted puedes
Usted esperas
Usted llegarás

The same thing happens later in the sentence with la recibirá. The pronoun referring back to you also follows third-person grammar.

What does esperar en la oficina mean exactly? Why en and not a?