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Spanish (Spain)

### **Café** or **un café**?

After verbs like **tener**, **buscar**, **necesitar**, **beber** or **llevar**, Spanish often leaves the article out when no particular one is meant: with uncountable things (**café**, **dinero**), with plurals (**gafas**), and with things you either have or don't (**coche**, **piso**). **¿Tienes coche?** asks if you are a car owner; describe the car and **un** normally returns: *Tengo un coche viejo*.

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### Ordering: **un café**, **una caña**

In a bar you order portions, so you count them: **un café**, **dos cañas**.

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### Things in general: **el café**, **los gatos**

A single subject noun in front of the verb can't stand alone; in general statements it takes **el, la, los, las**. English says *Sugar is bad*; Spanish says **El azúcar es malo** (*Azúcar es malo* is wrong). With **gustar** and **encantar** you talk about the thing in general, so it takes the article too.

| no article | article |
|---|---|
| No bebo **café**. | Me gusta **el café**. |
| Busco **piso**. | **Los pisos** son caros. |

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### Two nouns joined by **de**

When the second noun only says what kind of thing the first one is, it has no article: **el zumo de naranja**, **las gafas de sol**, **el dolor de cabeza**. When it means one particular thing, the article stays: **la llave del coche**.

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### Common mistakes

- *Me gusta café* → **Me gusta el café**.
- *Quiero un zumo de la naranja* → **Quiero un zumo de naranja**.

Article or no article (un café, zumo de naranja)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular subjects and 'ser' (yo soy, esto es)

Plural nouns and definite articles (los, las)

Plural pronouns and 'ser' (somos, sois, son)

Adjective agreement (-o, -a, -os, -as)

Indefinite articles (un, una, unos, unas)

Simple negation (no)

Yes/no questions

Regular '-ar' verbs (-o, -as, -a...)

Regular '-er' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Regular '-ir' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Locative adverbs (aquí, allí)

Question words (quién, cómo)

The verb estar (estoy, estás)

The preposition en (en)

Ser vs. estar

The verb tener (tengo, tienes)

Possessive determiners (mi, tu, su)

Origin and possession (de, del)

The verb ir (voy, vas)

Destination (a, al)

The personal 'a' (a)

Stem-changing verbs: e to ie

Stem-changing verbs: o to ue

Irregular first-person verbs

Reflexive verbs (me, te, se)

Numbers 1 to 10 (uno, dos, tres)

Numbers 11 to 20 (once, doce, trece)

Counting by tens to 100 (treinta, cuarenta, cien)

Compound numbers up to 99 (veintiuno, treinta y uno)

Days of the week (el lunes, el martes)

The family and the personal 'a' (a mi tío, a mi prima)

Months of the year

Telling time (es la, son las)

Verbs of liking (me gusta)

Plural agreement with verbs of liking (gustan)

Degree modifiers (muy, mucho)

Formal address (usted, ustedes)

Direct object pronouns (lo, la, los, las)

The near future (ir a)

Obligation (tener que)

Present continuous (-ando, -iendo)

Affirmative commands (tú, vosotros)

Basic Food and Drink

The Human Body: Head and Arms

The Human Body: Legs and Health

Wardrobe Essentials

Fresh Produce

Meals and Proteins

Public Transport

Hello and goodbye (hola, ¿qué tal?)

Thank you, sorry, OK (gracias, vale)

There is, there are (hay)

My building (la escalera, el ascensor)

Describing people (moreno, rubio, tímido)

Land and sea (el mar, el río, el norte)

Sightseeing (la plaza, la catedral)

Asking the way (cerca, a la derecha, todo recto)

In class (¿puedes repetir?)

Verb + infinitive (quiero comer, sé leer)

What's your name? (me llamo, encantado)

Phone, computer and email

Hundreds and thousands (doscientos, mil)

What do you do? (¿a qué te dedicas?)

Personal details (la edad, la fecha de nacimiento)

Me neither (también, tampoco, ni)

How much is it? (el precio, la vuelta)

What's the weather like? (hace sol, nieva)

Free time (el concierto, el tenis)

At the bar (¿qué vas a tomar?)

The Natural World

Demonstratives (este, ese, aquel)

Prepositions of place (encima de, debajo de)

Prepositional pronouns (para mí, contigo)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primero to décimo)

Adverbs of frequency (a veces, nunca)

Exclamations (¡qué...!)

Indefinite pronouns (algo, alguien)

Indefinite determiners (algún, ningún)

Indirect object pronouns (le, les)

Double object pronouns (me lo, te la)

Double object pronouns (se lo, se la)

Verbs of preference (encantar, interesar)

Impersonal obligation (hay que)

Starting and finishing actions (empezar a, terminar de)

Adjective comparatives (más que, menos que)

Comparatives of equality (tan como)

Noun comparatives (tanto como)

Question	Answer
Do you have a car? No, I go by bike.	¿Tienes coche? No, voy en bici.
I am looking for a flat in the center.	Busco piso en el centro.
I don't drink coffee at night.	No bebo café por la noche.
My brother wears glasses.	Mi hermano lleva gafas.
Do you need help?	¿Necesitas ayuda?
Today I have a headache.	Hoy tengo dolor de cabeza.
In summer I always wear sunglasses.	En verano siempre llevo gafas de sol.
Sugar is bad for teeth.	El azúcar es malo para los dientes.
Cats sleep a lot.	Los gatos duermen mucho.
Spaniards have dinner very late.	Los españoles cenan muy tarde.
Sport is good for everyone.	El deporte es bueno para todos.
My children don't like fish.	A mis hijos no les gusta el pescado.
I love tea, but today I want coffee.	Me encanta el té, pero hoy quiero café.
Do you have something for a headache?	¿Tienes algo para el dolor de cabeza?
Where are my sunglasses?	¿Dónde están mis gafas de sol?
The history teacher is very nice.	El profesor de historia es muy simpático.
Where is the car key?	¿Dónde está la llave del coche?
A coffee with milk, please.	Un café con leche, por favor.
Can I have two small beers and a tapa?	¿Me pones dos cañas y una tapa?
I drink coffee every day, but now I want a tea.	Bebo café todos los días, pero ahora quiero un té.
For me, an orange juice.	Para mí, un zumo de naranja.
A beer for him and a glass of water for me.	Una cerveza para él y un vaso de agua para mí.

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