Yo todavía no me atrevo a cantar en voz alta en español delante de toda la clase.

I still don’t dare to sing out loud in Spanish in front of the whole class.

Breakdown of Yo todavía no me atrevo a cantar en voz alta en español delante de toda la clase.

• yo: I
• en: in
• cantar: to sing
• español: Spanish
• a: to
• la clase: the class
• todavía: still
• no: not
• delante de: in front of
• atreverse: to dare
• en voz alta: out loud
• todo: whole

Questions & Answers about Yo todavía no me atrevo a cantar en voz alta en español delante de toda la clase.

Why is it me atrevo and not just atrevo?

Because atreverse is used reflexively when it means to dare (to do something).

• Me atrevo = I dare / I have the courage
• No me atrevo = I don’t dare

The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) is practically always used with this meaning:

• ¿Te atreves? – Do you dare?
• No se atreven a hablar. – They don’t dare to speak.

The non‑reflexive verb atrever exists but is rare and more literary, meaning to dare someone else to do something (like I dare you). In everyday speech, you should think of it as atreverse (a) + infinitive and always include the pronoun.

Why do we need the a in me atrevo a cantar?

In Spanish, atreverse almost always takes the preposition a before the action you dare to do:

• Me atrevo a cantar. – I dare to sing.
• No me atrevo a hablar en público. – I don’t dare to speak in public.

The pattern is atreverse a + infinitive (or a + noun: No me atrevo a esa operación). You can’t drop the a; me atrevo cantar is incorrect.

Is yo really necessary here?

No, it isn’t necessary. The verb atrevo already tells us the subject is yo.

• Yo todavía no me atrevo…
• Todavía no me atrevo…

Both are correct. Including yo usually adds emphasis or contrast, like:

• Yo todavía no me atrevo a cantar, (pero ellos sí).
  I still don’t dare to sing, (but they do).

In normal conversation, many speakers would simply say: Todavía no me atrevo a cantar…

Why is the order todavía no me atrevo? Could I say no me atrevo todavía?

Both todavía no me atrevo and no me atrevo todavía are grammatically correct.

• Todavía no me atrevo a cantar…
  – Most common, very natural. Means I still don’t dare to sing…

• No me atrevo todavía a cantar…
  – Also correct, but the adverb sounds a bit more “tagged on” and is less frequent.

What you cannot say is no todavía me atrevo – the order of elements in the negative is:

no + pronoun(s) + verb
no me atrevo ✅
me no atrevo ❌
no atrevo me ❌

What exactly does todavía add? How is it different from just no me atrevo?

Todavía means still / yet. It implies that the situation continues up to now, but may change in the future.

• No me atrevo a cantar.
  – I don’t dare to sing. (just a fact)

• Todavía no me atrevo a cantar.
  – I still don’t dare to sing. (suggests you might dare later, or that you expected to already be able to)

So todavía adds a time nuance: continuity and expectation of possible change.

Can I use aún instead of todavía here? Are they the same?

Yes, in this sentence you can:

• Yo aún no me atrevo a cantar…
• Yo todavía no me atrevo a cantar…

In negative sentences (no + verbo), aún and todavía are practically interchangeable in modern Spanish, including in Spain.

Some nuances:

• aún can sound a bit more formal or literary, especially in positive sentences (aún canta, he still sings), but here the difference is minimal.
• The opposite idea uses ya:
  • Ya me atrevo a cantar en voz alta. – Now I (finally) dare to sing out loud.

Why is it en voz alta and not just alto?

En voz alta is a very common fixed expression meaning out loud / aloud, especially for speaking, reading, or singing:

• leer en voz alta – to read aloud
• decir algo en voz alta – to say something out loud
• cantar en voz alta – to sing out loud

You can say cantar alto, which focuses more on volume (“sing loudly”), but en voz alta emphasizes that your voice is audible to others, typically in contrast with:

• en voz baja – in a low voice / quietly
• para mí / mentalmente – to myself / in my head

In a classroom context, cantar en voz alta is the most natural way to say “sing out loud” to the group.

Why do we say en español and not en el español?

With languages, Spanish normally drops the article after verbs like hablar, aprender, estudiar, saber and after en:

• Habla español. – He/She speaks Spanish.
• Estoy aprendiendo francés. – I’m learning French.
• Lo dijo en inglés. – He/She said it in English.
• Cantar en español. – To sing in Spanish.

We use the article when the language is treated more like a noun/concept, often as the subject, or with qualifiers:

• El español de España. – Peninsular Spanish.
• El español es una lengua románica.

So here, en español (no article) is the normal form.

What does delante de mean exactly, and how is it different from enfrente de or frente a?

Delante de literally means in front of, in the sense of physically in front / before someone or something.

With audiences or groups of people, delante de is very common to express the idea of performing or doing something in their presence:

• Hablar delante de toda la clase. – To speak in front of the whole class.
• Me da vergüenza bailar delante de la gente. – I’m embarrassed to dance in front of people.

Enfrente de / frente a also mean in front of, but they often suggest facing something opposite you, like across a street or directly facing:

• La farmacia está enfrente de la iglesia. – The pharmacy is opposite the church.

You can say frente a la clase in the sense of before the class, but delante de toda la clase is very natural and neutral for “in front of the whole class.”

Why is it toda la clase and not todo la clase or toda clase?

Because todo/toda/todos/todas has to agree in gender and number with the noun:

• todo el libro – the whole book (masc. sing.)
• toda la casa – the whole house (fem. sing.)
• todos los alumnos – all the students (masc. plural or mixed)
• todas las canciones – all the songs (fem. plural)

Clase is feminine singular, so we say toda la clase:

• delante de toda la clase – in front of the whole class

• todo la clase ❌ (gender mismatch)
• toda clase (without article) would mean something like “all kinds of class(es)” in other contexts, not the whole specific class.

Why is the pronoun me placed between no and atrevo?

This follows the standard order of clitic pronouns in Spanish:

1. In simple tenses, the pronoun(s) go before the conjugated verb:

   • Me atrevo.
   • Te veo.
   • Se levanta.

2. In negative sentences, no comes first, then the pronoun(s), then the verb:

   • No me atrevo.
   • No te veo.
   • No se levanta.

You cannot say:

• Me no atrevo ❌
• No atrevo me ❌

With infinitives and gerunds, the pronoun is attached to the end:

• atreverme a cantar – to dare to sing
• sin atreverme a cantar – without daring to sing

Could we also say Todavía no me he atrevido a cantar…? Is there a difference?

Yes, that’s another correct option, and the nuance changes slightly:

• Todavía no me atrevo a cantar…
  – Focuses on your current state: Right now, I don’t dare to sing…

• Todavía no me he atrevido a cantar…
  – Focuses on your past actions up to now: So far, I haven’t dared to sing… (even once).

In many contexts they’re both possible and very close in meaning. If you’re talking about your general attitude in the present, no me atrevo is more direct; if you’re talking about what has (not) happened up to this point in time, no me he atrevido highlights that history.

Is this sentence specifically “Spain Spanish”, or would Latin American speakers use it too?

The sentence is completely standard and would be understood and accepted in both Spain and Latin America as-is:

• Yo todavía no me atrevo a cantar en voz alta en español delante de toda la clase.

There is no Spain‑only vocabulary or grammar here. The main difference would just be pronunciation (for example, clase is pronounced with a /θ/ for many speakers in Spain: [ˈklaθe], versus [ˈklase] in most of Latin America). The structure and word choice are neutral and universal.