Breakdown of Tenemos que preparar la cena para nuestros amigos.
para
for / in order to (+ infinitive) / by (a deadline)
el amigo
the friend
tener
to have
nuestro
our
que
that (relative pronoun, conjunction)
la cena
the dinner
preparar
to prepare
Questions & Answers about Tenemos que preparar la cena para nuestros amigos.
Why do we need que between tenemos and preparar?
To say you 'have to' do something, you must use the set phrase tener que followed by an infinitive (a verb in its base form, like preparar). If you forget the que, tener just means 'to have' as in 'to own' or 'to possess'. Together, tenemos que preparar translates to 'we have to prepare'.
In English we just say 'prepare dinner', but here it says preparar la cena. Do I always need the la?
Yes, Spanish uses definite articles (el, la, los, las) much more often than English. When talking about preparing, serving, or eating meals, you generally need to include the article before the name of the meal.
How do I know to use para instead of por for the word 'for'?
A great rule to remember is that para is used for the 'recipient' of an action or an item. Since the dinner is being made specifically for the friends to eat, they are the recipients, making para the correct choice.
Why does the word for 'our' have an 's' at the end (nuestros)?
Learn Tenemos que preparar la cena para nuestros amigos and more in Spanish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free