Breakdown of No hay chance de llegar hoy.
no
no, not
hoy
today
llegar
to arrive
el chance
the chance (LatAm colloquial)
Questions & Answers about No hay chance de llegar hoy.
Is chance actually a Spanish word?
Yes, in Latin America it is a very common informal word borrowed from English. It means opportunity or possibility. In more formal Spanish or in Spain, you would use oportunidad or posibilidad.
Why do we use the infinitive llegar instead of a conjugated verb?
Because there is no specific person mentioned who is doing the arriving. When talking generally, you use de + infinitive. If you wanted to say there is no chance that we will arrive, you would introduce a new subject using que + the subjunctive mood: No hay chance de que lleguemos hoy.
The current lesson is about a lo mejor. How does no hay chance compare?
While a lo mejor (maybe/might) expresses that something is probable or possible, no hay chance expresses zero probability. Notice that a lo mejor always takes the indicative mood, while a phrase like no hay chance de que... triggers the subjunctive because it denies a possibility.
Why do we need the word de before llegar?
In Spanish, when a noun like chance, oportunidad, or tiempo is followed by an action, they are linked by the preposition de. Think of it as matching the English 'chance of arriving' rather than 'chance to arrive.'