The Ecuador Insider

From your very first moments in Ecuador, or once in any Spanish-speaking country, you’ll have to know how to ask questions…

Right when you get off the plane, you’ll have to ask the taxi driver… “How much?” (Cuánto cuesta?)

Asking Questions

Asking questions in Spanish is very similar to asking them in English. Just add one of the following words to the front of the question, and raise your voice towards the end of the sentence.

Qué- what
Cuándo- when
Dónde- where
Por qué- why porque-because
Cómo- how
Quién- who
Cuál- Which
Cuántos? – How many
Cuánto? = how much

Hay…? – Are there… as answer: Hay… = There is/are… (“Hay” is used for both “Are there” and “There are” in the question and answer form.)

Examples:

-Hay dos camas?  (Are there two beds?)
Sí, hay dos camas. (Yes, there are two beds.)

-Qué quieres?  (What do you want?)

-Dónde estás?  (Where are you?)

-Por qué vas allí? (Why do you go there?)

Now try to make 5 questions of your own…

 

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Today we’re going to cover one topic you NEED to know in order to be understood in Spanish.

And one topic very difficult for English speakers to grasp.

The “to be” verb in Spanish… actually, there’s two, when in Engish there is only one…

Ser vs Estar = to be

Seris basically used to express something permanent, or characteristics of something that don’t change quickly.

For instance…

I am American.  = Soy Americano.

I am a man.  = Soy hombre.

Estar is used to express the location of something or describe characteristics of something that can easily and quickly change.

For example…

I am hot.  = Estoy con calor.

I am in Ecuador.  = Estoy en Ecuador.

Now there’s one usage of “estar” that’s a bit hard to grasp…

We use “estar” when we describe something or someone we see or meet for the first time… for example…

She is cute. = Ella está buena.

These two verbs are used SO MUCH it’s worth it taking a few minutes and memorizing the conjugations of them in the present and past, then practice using them in the following exercise.

SER

(present tense)

I am = yo soy
You are = tú eres
He/she is = él/ella es
we are = nosotros somos
they are = ellos/ellas son

(past tense)

I was = yo fui
You were = tú fuiste
He/she was = él/ella fue
we were = nosotros fuimos
they were = ellos/ellas fueron
ESTAR

(present tense)

I am = yo estoy
You are = tú estás
He/she is = él/ella está
we are = nosotros estamos
they are = ellos/ellas están

(past tense)

I was = yo estaba
You were = tú estabas
He/she was = él/ella estaba
we were = nosotros estabamos
they were = ellos/ellas estaban

EXERCISE: Use the conjugated form of ser or estar in the past or present depending on the sentence…

1. I was happy.  Yo ____ contento.

2. I am from Canada.  Yo ___ de Canada.

3. You were in school yesterday.  Tú _____ en la escuela ayer.

4. He was sad yesterday.  Él _____ triste ayer.

5. She is beautiful.  Ella ______ hermosa.

6. He is cheap.  Él ____ tacaño.

7. I was tired last night.  Yo _____ cansado anoche.

8. I am in love with Tomás.  Yo _____ enamorado con Tomás.

ANSWERS:
1. estaba
2. soy
3. estabas
4. estaba
5. es
6. es
7. estaba
8. estoy

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Today, let’s talk about the past.

I know, I know, it’s never fun.

And in fact, you don’t really need to know how to talk in the past tense in order to get your point across in another language.

But it helps!

Expressing the Past in Spanish (El Pasado)

To express the past tense in Spanish, all you have to do is conjugate the verbs you use into the past form like you do in the present tense, how the verbs’ endings change depends on if it ends with “–ar, -er, or –ir”.

But knowing how to conjugate one, you know how to conjugate almost all. (There are a few irregulars.)

The tricky part in Spanish is that there are TWO forms of the past tense.

Noice how the endings of the verbs change according to the subject…

The preterit: Used to express specific, one-time occurrences in the past.

Example: To Work- Trabajar

Yo trabajé
Tú trabajaste
Él/ella trabajó
Ellos/ellas trabajaron
Nosotros trabajamos

The Imperfect: Used to express a recurring occurrence or routine in the past.

Example: To Work- Trabajar

Yo trabajaba
Tú trabajabas
Él/ella trabajaba
Ellos/ellas trabajában
Nosotros trabajabamos

But to express yourself for now using the past, all you need to learn is one form of the past; the most common one, the preterit. Using the preterit EVERYONE will understand you when you talk about the past. Later on you could always learn the imperfect as you improve.

Here is how the verbs conjugate (or change) according to the speaker in the preterit (past) tense.

-ar verbs

To Work- Trabajar

Yo trabajé
Tú trabajaste
Él/ella trabajó
Ellos/ellas trabajaron
Nosotros trabajamos

See how you drop the “-ar” and add the endings according to “who” does the action?

-er and –ir verbs (both –er and –ir verbs change using the same endings in the past)

To go up- Subir

Yo subí
Tú subiste
Él/ella subió
Ellos/ellas subieron
Nosotros subimos

Exercise 2.1: Now you try a couple. Change the verb according to the subject given in the preterit (past) tense.

Example: (vender, tú) vendiste (You sold)

1. (tomar, nosotros) _________
2. (cambiar, ellos) ____________
3. (caminar, yo) ___________
4. (subir, ella) ___________
5. (hablar, tú y yo) ___________
6. (bajar, ellos) _________
7. (salir, él) __________
8. (esperar, yo) _________
9. (rendir, tú) _______
10. (pasar, nosotros) ________
11. (comer, ellos) ________

Hasta manana,

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OK, verbs.

I’m sure you were expecting me to mention them soon, right?

Every sentence in about every language needs a verb, or a word describing the “action”.

Verbs can also help us tell whether the action takes place in the present, past or future.

Today, we’ll learn how to talk in both the present and future in Spanish.

Expressing the Present (El Presente)

To express the present tense in Spanish all you have to do is conjugate the verbs you use in the present form. There are three types of verbs in Spanish (ones that end in –ar, -er, and –ir), each of which are conjugated slightly differently depending on the subject of the sentence.

But knowing how to conjugate one, you know how to conjugate almost all of them. (There are a few irregular verbs.)

Here are the possible subjects.
Yo = I
tú/usted = you
él/ella =  he/she
nosotros = we
ellos/ellas = they

Examples: Notice how the verbs change ending according to the subject.

-ar: Verbs ending in –ar change like the one below in the present tense.

To work: trabajar

I work = (yo) trabajo
You work = (tú) trabajas
He/she works = (él, ella) trabaja
They work = (ellos, ellas) trabajan
We work = (nosotros) trabajamos

-ir: Here is an –ir verb in the present tense.

To live: vivir

I live = (yo) vivo
You live = (tú) vives
He/she lives = (él, ella) vive
They live = (ellos, ellas) viven
We live = (nosotros) vivimos

-er: Here is an –er verb in the present tense.

To eat: comer

I eat = (yo) como
You eat = (tú) comes
He/she eats = (él, ella) come
They eat = (ellos, ellas) comen
We eat = (nosotros) comemos

Note: But remember you don’t have to include the subjects (yo, tú, él, ella, etc.) when talking unless you want to emphasize “who” is doing the action: because in Spanish the conjugated verb tells the receiver of the message both the “who” and the “what”.

But if it is easier to talk with them for now, do it, everyone will still understand you.

Exercise 1.1: Now you try a couple. Change the verb according to the subject given.

Example: (comprar, yo) compro (I buy)

1. (andar, tú) _______ (you walk)
2. (perfeccionar, él) ________ (he perfects)
3. (tomar, nosotros) _________ (we take)
4. (cambiar, ellos) ____________ (they change)
5. (poner, tú) ___________ (you put)
6. (buscar, yo) ___________ (I look for)
7. (subir, ella) ___________ (She goes up)
8. (hablar, nosotros) ___________ (You and me (we) talk)
9. (bajar, ellos) _________ (they go down)
10. (salir, él) __________ (he goes out)
11. (esperar, yo) _________ (I wait)

Now you can talk in the present! Keep going to learn how you can talk about the past and future.

Expressing the Future (El Futuro)

Expressing something that will happen in the future is easy in Spanish, because like English, you just put the “to go” verb conjugated in the present tense in front of the verb expressing whatever it is you are going to do.

I WILL run.  OR  I am going to run.  = Voy a correr.

Ir (to go) + a + verb (not conjugated )

Example: Voy a beber (to drink). = I am going to drink.

Ir (to go) in present

Yo voy
Tù vas
Èl/ella va
Nosotros vamos
Ellos/ellas van

Exercise 3.1: Now say you (or the subject stated) are going to do the following things in the future.

Example: (yo) __voy_ a querer. (I will want)

1. (él) ________ perfeccionar la táctica. (He is going to perfect the tactic).
2. (nosotros) _________ tomar la cerveza. (We are going to drink the beer.)
3. (ellos) ____________ cambiar el mundo. (They will change the world.)
4. (yo) ___________ buscar en Google. (I will search in Google.)
5. (ella) ___________ subir las escaleras. (She will go up the stairs.)
6. (Nosotros) ___________ hablar más tarde. (We will talk later.)
7. (él) __________ salir de la casa. (He will go out of the house.)
8. (yo) _________ esperar para ti. (I will wait for you.)
9. (tú) _______ rendir muy bien. (You will perform well.)
10. (nosotros) ________ pasar la prueba. (We will pass the test.)

Now you can talk in both the present and the future.

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