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Spanish (Spain)

### Recent and brief

| Spanish | English | note |
|---|---|---|
| **reciente** | recent | adverb: *recientemente* |
| **breve** | brief | for time and texts |
| **el periodo** | period (of time) | also spelled *período* |
| **la construcción** | construction | building something; the building trade |
| **la democracia** | democracy | |
| **el alimento** | food item, foodstuff | usually plural |

**Breve** is usually about how long something lasts or how long a text is: a meeting, a speech, a news item. **Corto** is the everyday word for physical length, and it works for time too.

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*Seré breve* is a common way to promise a short speech:

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**Reciente** usually follows the noun in everyday Spanish:

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### Periods and building work

**El periodo** and **el período** are both correct; this course writes *periodo*.

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**La construcción** is the act of building something, and also the building trade:

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### Democracy and food

**Los alimentos** is the word for food in the news, on labels and in shops; at the table you usually say **la comida**.

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A food bank is *un banco de alimentos*:

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As a subject, an idea like **la democracia** usually keeps its article where English drops it (*la democracia está en peligro*); after **sin** it usually goes bare:

{{item:1253072}}

Reading the news (reciente, breve, el periodo)

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
recent	reciente
It's a very recent piece of news.	Es una noticia muy reciente.
According to a recent survey, young people read less.	Según una encuesta reciente, los jóvenes leen menos.
These photos are recent: they're from last summer.	Estas fotos son recientes: son del verano pasado.
brief	breve
The meeting was very brief.	La reunión fue muy breve.
I'll be brief: we don't have much time.	Seré breve: no tenemos mucho tiempo.
On the last page there are brief news items.	En la última página hay noticias breves.
the period (of time)	el periodo
It was a very difficult period for the country.	Fue un periodo muy difícil para el país.
The contract is for a period of six months.	El contrato es por un periodo de seis meses.
During that period, unemployment went down a lot.	Durante ese periodo, el paro bajó mucho.
the construction (the building of something)	la construcción
The construction of the new hospital starts in March.	La construcción del nuevo hospital empieza en marzo.
My father works in construction.	Mi padre trabaja en la construcción.
The neighbors are protesting against the construction of a hotel.	Los vecinos protestan contra la construcción de un hotel.
democracy	la democracia
In a democracy, everyone can vote.	En una democracia, todos pueden votar.
My grandparents lived many years without democracy.	Mis abuelos vivieron muchos años sin democracia.
Many young people believe that democracy is in danger.	Muchos jóvenes creen que la democracia está en peligro.
the foodstuff (a food item)	el alimento
The price of foodstuffs has gone up a lot this year.	El precio de los alimentos ha subido mucho este año.
Fresh foods are more expensive.	Los alimentos frescos son más caros.
The food bank needs help.	El banco de alimentos necesita ayuda.

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