Breakdown of Si la señal del wifi falla, intento reiniciar el móvil.
Questions & Answers about Si la señal del wifi falla, intento reiniciar el móvil.
Because this is a real/likely condition, not a hypothetical one.
falla = present indicative (3rd person singular of fallar)
- Si la señal del wifi falla, intento…
- If the wifi signal fails, I try… (a situation that really can happen)
falle = present subjunctive
- You would not normally use falle after si meaning if in this kind of sentence.
- Subjunctive in si-clauses is used in other structures, like aunque falle (even if it fails), but not in a straightforward “if this happens, I do that” sentence in modern, everyday Spanish.
So Si la señal del wifi falla… is the standard form for a normal, realistic condition.
In Spanish, when you talk about a future condition with si, you usually keep the present indicative in the si-clause, even if you mean the future.
- Si la señal del wifi falla, intento reiniciar el móvil.
= If/When the wifi signal fails, I (usually) try to restart my phone.
You could also say:
- Si la señal del wifi falla, intentaré reiniciar el móvil.
(present in the si part, future in the result part)
But you don’t say:
✗ Si la señal del wifi fallará, intentaré…
So:
- After si = use present indicative for realistic future conditions.
- In the main clause = present, future, or imperative are all possible, depending on meaning.
del = de + el, so del wifi literally means of the wifi.
- la señal del wifi suggests a specific wifi network you’re using (at home, at work, etc.).
- la señal de wifi is grammatically possible, and you might see/hear it, but it sounds a bit more like “a wifi signal / wifi-type signal” in general, less anchored to a specific network.
- la señal de la wifi is heard in some places (especially where people say la wifi), but la señal del wifi is more standard and widespread.
So la señal del wifi is the most natural way to say “the wifi signal” for a specific network.
Officially, wifi is treated as masculine:
- el wifi
- del wifi
However, in everyday speech in Spain you will also hear la wifi, probably because people are shortening la red wifi (wifi network) or la conexión wifi.
Pronunciation in Spain is usually:
- /ˈwi.fi/ – roughly like “wee-fee” (not like English “why-fy”).
So the sentence uses the standard masculine article: del wifi.
Spanish often uses the definite article (el / la) where English would use a possessive (my, your), especially with body parts, clothes, and very personal objects:
- Me duele la cabeza. = My head hurts.
- Me he olvidado el móvil. = I forgot my phone.
In intento reiniciar el móvil, it’s understood from context that we’re talking about my phone. Adding mi is also correct:
- intento reiniciar mi móvil
But el móvil is perfectly natural and very common in Spanish.
This is a regional vocabulary difference:
- In Spain, people normally say el móvil for mobile phone.
- In much of Latin America, the usual word is el celular.
- el teléfono is more general and can refer to any phone (landline or mobile), so by itself it’s less specific.
So in Spanish from Spain, el móvil is the most natural choice in this sentence.
Spanish usually omits subject pronouns (yo, tú, él, etc.) when the verb ending already shows who the subject is.
- intento → ending -o = yo
So intento reiniciar el móvil already means “I try to restart the phone.”
You can include yo for emphasis or contrast:
- Yo intento reiniciar el móvil, pero mi hermano no hace nada.
But in a neutral sentence, yo is normally dropped: the short version sounds more natural.
Yes, that word order is also correct:
- Si la señal del wifi falla, intento…
- Si falla la señal del wifi, intento…
Both are natural. The difference is very subtle:
- Si la señal del wifi falla… → more “neutral” subject–verb order.
- Si falla la señal del wifi… → starts with the verb, which can slightly emphasize the action/event of failing rather than the signal itself.
In everyday speech, both versions are used and understood in the same way.
reiniciar literally means to restart / reboot (a device, a system).
- apagar el móvil = to turn the phone off
- encender el móvil = to turn the phone on
- reiniciar el móvil = to turn it off and start it again; to reboot
So intento reiniciar el móvil = I try to restart / reboot my phone, usually to fix the connection problem.
Yes, both are correct and very similar in meaning:
intentar + infinitive
- intento reiniciar el móvil = I try to restart the phone.
tratar de + infinitive
- trato de reiniciar el móvil = I try to restart the phone.
Notes:
- With tratar, you must include de:
✗ trato reiniciar → incorrect
✓ trato de reiniciar → correct - In many contexts, intentar is slightly more common and feels a bit more neutral/direct.
- tratar de can sometimes sound a bit more “effort-focused,” but in this sentence the difference is minimal.
Spanish distinguishes:
si (without accent) = if
- Si la señal del wifi falla… = If the wifi signal fails…
sí (with accent) = yes or a reflexive/emphatic pronoun in some uses
- Sí, claro. = Yes, of course.
- Lo hizo él mismo, sí. = He did it himself, he did.
In this sentence, we need “if”, so it must be si without an accent.
Because fallar here is used as a normal intransitive verb with a clear subject:
- la señal del wifi = the subject
- falla = the verb
So the natural structure is:
- La señal del wifi falla.
- Si la señal del wifi falla…
Using se falla would sound like a reflexive or impersonal construction, which does not fit this meaning. Instead, Spanish uses other verbs with se in similar contexts:
- Se va el wifi. = The wifi goes out.
- Se corta el wifi. = The wifi cuts out.
But with fallar, you simply say falla with the normal subject.