Cuando termino de cocinar, dejo el delantal sobre la silla y guardo el salero, la espátula y el pimentero en el cajón.

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Breakdown of Cuando termino de cocinar, dejo el delantal sobre la silla y guardo el salero, la espátula y el pimentero en el cajón.

• cocinar: to cook
• en: in
• cuando: when

Questions & Answers about Cuando termino de cocinar, dejo el delantal sobre la silla y guardo el salero, la espátula y el pimentero en el cajón.

Why is there no yo in Cuando termino de cocinar?

In Spanish, subject pronouns are often omitted because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

• termino = I finish
• dejo = I leave
• guardo = I put away / store

So yo is unnecessary unless you want extra emphasis or contrast:

• Yo termino de cocinar, pero tú no. = I finish cooking, but you don’t.

Why is it termino de cocinar and not just termino cocinar?

After terminar, Spanish normally uses de + infinitive when you mean to finish doing something.

• terminar de cocinar = to finish cooking
• terminar de leer = to finish reading
• terminar de limpiar = to finish cleaning

So termino de cocinar is the standard structure.

Be careful: acabar de + infinitive means to have just done something, which is different:

• Acabo de cocinar = I’ve just cooked / I just finished cooking

Why is the sentence in the present tense if it sounds like a routine?

Spanish often uses the present tense to talk about habitual actions, just like English does.

• Cuando termino de cocinar, dejo... y guardo... = When I finish cooking, I leave... and put away...

This describes what the speaker generally does every time, not just one specific moment.