Learn Spanish (Latin America): Yo no voy a la biblioteca hoy.

Yo no voy a la biblioteca hoy.

I am not going to the library today.

Breakdown of Yo no voy a la biblioteca hoy.

Questions & Answers about Yo no voy a la biblioteca hoy.

Why is there an a after voy?

In Spanish, the verb ir (to go) is almost always followed by the preposition a (to) when you are talking about going to a destination. Here, voy a means "I am going to".

Why is "I am going" translated as just Yo voy instead of using a word for "am"?

In Spanish, the simple present tense can mean both "I go" and "I am going". The single word voy covers the whole action, so you do not need a separate word for "am".

Why is no placed before voy instead of after it?

To make a sentence negative in Spanish, you simply put no directly before the verb. While in English we say "I am not going," the Spanish structure is closer to "I not go" (Yo no voy).

Is the word yo strictly necessary here?

No, you could just say No voy a la biblioteca hoy. Because the verb form voy only ever applies to yo (I), the subject is already obvious. Spanish speakers often drop the yo unless they want to add emphasis.

Does biblioteca mean "bookstore"?