Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo. - My friend wants to come to the park with me.

amiga = (female) friend, not necessarily romantic
novia = girlfriend (romantic partner)
chica (in context) can sometimes be used like “girlfriend,” but novia is the clearest.

So Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo is understood as my (female) friend, not “my girlfriend,” unless context makes it very obvious that she is your partner.

Why is it quiere and not quieres or quiero?

Because the verb querer is conjugated to match the subject mi amiga (she).

Present tense of querer:

yo quiero – I want
tú quieres – you (informal) want
él / ella / usted quiere – he / she / you (formal) want
nosotros queremos – we want
vosotros queréis – you all (informal, Spain) want
ellos / ellas / ustedes quieren – they / you all want

Mi amiga = she → third person singular → quiere.
So: Mi amiga quiere… = My friend (she) wants…

Why are there two verbs together: quiere venir? Is that normal?

Yes, it’s very normal in Spanish (and similar to English “wants to come”).

Structure:

First verb: conjugated → quiere (wants)
Second verb: infinitive (base form) → venir (to come)

Common patterns like this:

Quiero comer. – I want to eat.
Ella necesita estudiar. – She needs to study.
Vamos a salir. – We are going to go out.

So quiere venir literally is “wants to come.”
You cannot conjugate both (❌ quiere viene is wrong).

What is the difference between Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo and Mi amiga viene al parque conmigo?

Meaning difference:

Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo.
= My friend wants to come to the park with me.
Focuses on her desire/intention, not whether she actually comes.
Mi amiga viene al parque conmigo.
= My friend comes / is coming to the park with me.
Focuses on the action / plan itself, not just the desire.

So quiere venir talks about wanting; viene talks about actually coming.

Why is it al parque and not a el parque?

Spanish contracts a + el into al:

a (to) + el (the, masculine singular) → al

So:

Voy a el parque → ❌ incorrect / unnatural
Voy al parque → ✅ correct

But this only happens with a + el. It does not happen with other articles:

a la casa (to the house) → stays a la, not ala
a los parques (to the parks) → a los
a las tiendas (to the shops) → a las

Why is parque masculine? Is there a rule?

Parque takes the article el, so it’s grammatically masculine: el parque, un parque.

For many nouns, endings give you a clue:

Often masculine: -o, -e, some -ma (e.g. el problema), many others
Often feminine: -a, -ción, -sión, -dad, -tad, etc.

But there are many exceptions, and -e words can be either masculine or feminine. You usually learn the article with the noun:

el parque – the park (masculine)
la calle – the street (feminine)

So you memorize el parque as a unit.

Why do you need the a in al parque? Why not just quiere venir el parque?

With verbs of movement (come, go, walk, drive, etc.), Spanish normally needs a preposition a before the destination:

venir a un lugar – to come to a place
ir a un lugar – to go to a place
llegar a un lugar – to arrive at/to a place

So:

quiere venir al parque
= wants to come to the park

Querer venir el parque is incorrect because the “to” is missing. You need a → al (a + el).

Why is it conmigo and not con yo?

After con (“with”), Spanish uses special forms for yo and tú:

con + yo → conmigo (with me)
con + tú → contigo (with you)
con + él / ella / usted → con él / con ella / con usted (no change)

So:

Mi amiga quiere venir conmigo. – My friend wants to come with me.
¿Vienes conmigo? – Are you coming with me?
Voy contigo. – I’m going with you.

Con yo and con tú sound clearly wrong to native speakers.

Can I change the word order and say Mi amiga quiere venir conmigo al parque?

Yes, that’s perfectly correct.

Both are natural:

Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo.
Mi amiga quiere venir conmigo al parque.

In Spanish, elements like conmigo, al parque, mañana, etc. can move around more freely than in English, as long as the meaning stays clear.

Small nuance:

End-placing conmigo (…al parque conmigo) can slightly emphasize with me.
End-placing al parque (…conmigo al parque) can slightly emphasize to the park.

But in everyday conversation, both sound normal.

Where is the subject pronoun ella? Can I say Ella, mi amiga, quiere venir…?

In Spanish, subject pronouns (yo, tú, él, ella, etc.) are often omitted because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

Here, quiere could mean:

he wants
she wants
you (formal) want

But you also have mi amiga, so the subject is clear without ella.

You could say:

Ella quiere venir al parque conmigo. – She wants to come to the park with me.
Or: Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo.

Ella, mi amiga, quiere venir… is grammatically possible but sounds unusual in a simple sentence like this unless you are adding contrast or emphasis (for example, contrasting ella with other people).

Why don’t we use the personal a before mi amiga?

The personal a in Spanish is used before a direct object when it is a specific person (or pet):

Veo a mi amiga. – I see my (female) friend.
(mi amiga is the direct object.)

But in your sentence, mi amiga is the subject, not the object:

Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo.
(Who wants? Mi amiga. → subject)

The personal a is only for (usually human) direct objects, not for subjects.
So you don’t say A mi amiga quiere venir… here.

Does quiere mean she wants to come now or just in general?

By itself, quiere (present tense) is flexible and the exact time depends on context, similar to English:

It can mean a current desire:
Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo (ahora).
– My friend wants to come to the park with me (now).
Or a future / plan:
Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo mañana.
– My friend wants to come to the park with me tomorrow.

Without a time word (like ahora, hoy, mañana), it just states her desire in the present; context fills in when.

Are there other natural ways to say this in Spain with the same idea?

Yes, some common alternatives (with slightly different nuances) are:

Mi amiga va a venir al parque conmigo.
– My friend is going to come to the park with me.
(Focus on a planned future action.)
Mi amiga viene al parque conmigo.
– My friend is coming to the park with me.
(Similar to English present continuous for a planned action.)
A mi amiga le apetece venir al parque conmigo.
– My friend feels like coming / would like to come to the park with me.
(apetecer is very common in Spain to talk about what you feel like doing.)

Your original sentence Mi amiga quiere venir al parque conmigo is the most direct way to say “My friend wants to come to the park with me.”