Siempre llevo una libreta pequeña en el bolso para apuntar ideas.

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Breakdown of Siempre llevo una libreta pequeña en el bolso para apuntar ideas.

• pequeño: small
• una: a
• en: in

Questions & Answers about Siempre llevo una libreta pequeña en el bolso para apuntar ideas.

Why is siempre at the beginning of the sentence?

Putting siempre at the beginning gives it a little emphasis, but it still just means always.

So:

• Siempre llevo una libreta... = I always carry a notebook...
• Llevo siempre una libreta... is also possible, but less common in everyday speech.

Starting with siempre is very natural in Spanish.

Why is there no yo in the sentence?

Spanish often leaves out subject pronouns when they are not needed, because the verb ending already tells you who the subject is.

• llevo = I carry / I take
• so yo is already understood

You could say Yo siempre llevo una libreta pequeña..., but that usually adds emphasis, for example if you want to contrast yourself with someone else.

What does llevo mean here?

Here llevo means I carry or I take with me.

It comes from llevar, which often means:

• to carry
• to wear
• to take along

In this sentence, it means you regularly have the notebook with you.