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Spanish (Spain)

When dealing with official paperwork at an embassy, you'll want to use a polite tone. Spanish speakers use the conditional tense to soften statements and avoid sounding demanding.

### Softening statements

Instead of *quiero* (I want), use the conditional forms *querría* or *me gustaría* (I would like), followed by an infinitive verb.

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### Making polite requests with *poder*

To ask someone to do something without giving a direct command, use the conditional form of *poder*. *Podrías* (informal) or *podría* (formal) translates to "could you...?".

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### Asking "Would you mind?"

Another highly polite request uses the verb *importar* in the conditional: *¿Te importaría...?* (informal) or *¿Le importaría...?* (formal). Follow it directly with an infinitive.

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Polite requests (¿te importaría...?)

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
to renew	renovar
expired	caducado
I would like to renew my expired passport.	Querría renovar mi pasaporte caducado.
to assist; to attend to, to serve (customers, patients); to answer (a call)	atender
the embassy	la embajada
Would you mind assisting me at the embassy?	¿Te importaría atenderme en la embajada?
the ambassador	el embajador
the translator	el traductor
official	oficial
The ambassador needs a good official translator.	El embajador necesita un buen traductor oficial.
the photocopy	la fotocopia
the certificate	el certificado
Could you bring a photocopy of the certificate?	¿Podrías traer una fotocopia del certificado?
the file (dossier, record)	el expediente
I would like to review the file, please.	Me gustaría revisar el expediente, por favor.
Would you mind translating this to renew the visa?	¿Te importaría traducir esto para renovar el visado?
Have you ever seen an expired file?	¿Alguna vez has visto un expediente caducado?
Have you received the official photocopy? I sent it today.	¿Has recibido la fotocopia oficial? La he enviado hoy.
The official would assist the ambassador.	La funcionaria atendería al embajador.
We would like to visit the ambassador at the embassy.	Nos gustaría visitar al embajador en la embajada.
Would you mind if I leave the expired certificate here?	¿Te importaría si dejo el certificado caducado aquí?
Have you ever worked as a translator at the embassy?	¿Alguna vez has trabajado como traductora en la embajada?
Would you mind reviewing the file to renew it?	¿Te importaría revisar el expediente para renovarlo?
Here is the official photocopy for the procedure. How much is it? It is ten euros.	Aquí está la fotocopia oficial para el trámite. ¿Cuánto es? Son diez euros.
Could you assist this citizen, please?	¿Podrías atender a esta ciudadana, por favor?
to excuse	disculpar
Excuse me, could you repeat your name?	Disculpe, ¿podría repetir su nombre?
Will you excuse me for a moment? I have a call.	¿Me disculpas un momento? Tengo una llamada.
to thank, to be grateful for	agradecer
I am very grateful to you for it.	Te lo agradezco mucho.
I would be very grateful for your help.	Le agradecería mucho su ayuda.
to give (someone) a hand	echar una mano
Would you mind giving me a hand with the documents?	¿Te importaría echarme una mano con los documentos?
Will you give me a hand with the suitcase?	¿Me echas una mano con la maleta?
not at all, by no means (as a reply)	en absoluto
Do you mind if I open the window? Not at all.	¿Le importa si abro la ventana? En absoluto.
Would you mind waiting a moment? Not at all.	¿Te importaría esperar un momento? En absoluto.

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