Learn Spanish (Latin America): No trabajas hoy porque estás mal. - You do not work today because you are unwell.

Porque written as one word without an accent mark means "because". Por qué written as two words with an accent on the é means "why". In this sentence, porque is the joining word used to give the simple reason why the person is not working today.

Why does the sentence leave out the word "you" (tú)?

In Spanish, the verbs trabajas (you work) and estás (you are) already tell us who is doing the action because of their -as endings. The pronoun tú is usually dropped in everyday speech unless you want to add special emphasis.

Why do we use estás instead of eres for "you are"?

We use the verb estar (which gives us estás) for temporary states and conditions, including how someone is feeling or their current health. If you used the verb ser and said eres mal, it would mean "you are evil" or "you are a bad person"!

Does mal always mean "unwell"? I thought it meant "bad".

Mal generally translates to "bad" or "badly". However, when paired with the verb estar to describe a person, estar mal is the standard, everyday way to say someone is feeling sick, unwell, or poorly.