Spanish Verbs: Conjugation and Translation, Slides of Spanish

Download Spanish Verbs: Conjugation and Translation and more Slides Spanish in PDF only on Docsity! MFLE Spanish Reference Grammar Contents Introduction 1 Spanish alphabet, pronunciation and punctuation 2 Stress on Spanish words 3 Verbs 5 Introduction to the Spanish verb 5 Present tense 6 Irregular verbs 8 Interrogative 14 The future tense 16 The imperative mood 16 Nouns, articles, adjectives, adverbs 19 Nouns 19 Articles 20 Adjectives 21 Adverbs 25 Time, date, numbers and weather 26 Time 26 Days of the week 28 Months and seasons 28 The date 29 Numbers 30 Weather 32 1 MFLE Spanish Reference Grammar Introduction 'Grammar is the way that words make sense. It is a code or set of rules accepted by any community who share a language.' (Language into Languages Teaching, SEED, University of Glasgow, 2001) What follows is an attempt to set out the rules of grammar for the structures which are commonly used in the teaching of Spanish for P6 and P7. This is a reference grammar for teachers. It is not intended for use by pupils, unless perhaps as a spell-check for the months of the year, for example. Why use this resource? It is appreciated that a number of teachers who have completed their MLPS training may feel a little insecure in their knowledge of basic Spanish grammar. This is understandable, and this reference grammar attempts to be a resource to help. It is by definition very restricted, but closely tied to the requirements of teachers offering Spanish in the primary school. The fact that it has been produced does not mean that primary school teachers will now be expected to teach grammar formally as it is laid out here. There is no expectation that pupils should work through this grammar resource. As noted above, it is a reference resource for teachers, to try to make them more comfortable with the rules behind the communicative language which they are offering in class. It is felt that a degree of security about the rules of grammar will make teachers more comfortable in their use of Spanish. How should I use this resource? As will be seen throughout the grammar, we do not shy away from explaining simple rules to the pupils. However, such explanations should be done in a sensitive way. There is nothing to be gained in foreign language teaching from leaving pupils unsure and insecure when a simple explanation, where possible drawing analogies with English, would remove doubts and make the picture clearer. Any explanation of grammar given to pupils should not be taken directly from this resource and projected on the whiteboard. Instead, teachers can use the resource to find out the correct form before going on to explain, in their own words, any basic rules of grammar. These explanations will vary according to the needs of the pupils, some of whom will benefit from a sharper exposure to grammar. 4 For example: • ¿qué? - what? • ¿cómo? - how? • ¿dónde? - where? An accent mark is used to distinguish a small number of words which have the same pronounciation but a different meaning. For example: Word with accent English translation Word without accent English translation tú you tu yours él he el the sí yes si if mí me (after a preposition) mi my Verbs Introduction to the Spanish verb 'Verbs are used to assert or state what is happening, or what is the case. They are sometimes called "doing words" or "action words", but they do not always show action: if we say "he is bone idle" or "he has stopped" there is not much action going on. 'Verbs also show the time when things are happening: this is called the tense of the verb.' (Language into Languages Teaching: SEED: University of Glasgow: 2001) Subject pronouns The subject pronouns are: Pronoun English translation 1st person singular yo I 2nd person singular (informal) tú you 2nd person singular (formal) usted you 3rd person singular él/ella he/she 1st person plural nosotros/as we 2nd person plural (informal) vosotros/as you 2nd person plural (formal) ustedes you 3rd person plural ellos/ellas they 5 There are several differences between the use of the subject pronoun in Spanish and English. Omitting the subject pronoun In Spanish the subject pronoun is frequently omitted because, as in Latin, the ending of the verb will indicate the subject. However, if it is not clear who the subject is, then the pronoun has to be used, and it can also be used for emphasis. Four versions of 'you' There are four possible translations of the one English word 'you': 1. tú 2. vosotros 3. usted 4. ustedes 'Tú' is a second person singular and is used when speaking to one person whom you know well, eg a child, relation, friend, or animal. A good rule of thumb here is to use 'tú' if you would call a person by their first name. 'Vosotros', which has the feminine form 'vosotras' which is used for more than one feminine subject, is the plural of 'tú' and is a second person plural. It is used when talking to more than one person whom you know. 'Usted' is used when speaking formally to one person whom you might address by their title, eg Mr, Doctor, Professor, etc. 'Ustedes' is the plural form of 'usted'. 'Usted' always takes the same verb ending as 'él' and 'ella'; similarly in the plural 'ustedes' always takes the same verb ending as 'ellos' and 'ellas'. In school • In school, teachers would address individual pupils by 'tú', and groups of pupils by 'vosotros/as'. • Pupils should address the teacher as 'usted'. Words to mean 'we' 'Nosotros', the word for 'we', also has a feminine form ('nosotras') which is used if all subjects are feminine. However, as with 'vosotros', if one man and four women, for example, are the subject, the masculine would be used. There is no word for 'it' in Spanish. Every noun, whether a person or object, is masculine or feminine. 6 Present tense In Spanish there are three forms of the infinite of the verb. They have one of the following endings: • -ar • -er • -ir The infinitive form of a verb is that which appears in a dictionary, and which is indicated in English by the use of the word 'to' in front. Thus, 'to look' is an infinitive in English. The infinitive is the starting point from which all tenses are formed. To form the present tense of a Spanish regular verb ending in '-ar-, for example 'hablar' (to speak), take away the '-ar', (the ending), and to what is left (the stem), add, '-o', '-as', '-a', '-amos', '-áis', '-an'. So for the present tense of hablar, we have: hablar: to speak Pronoun Verb form English translation yo hablo I have tú hablas You (singular, informal) have usted habla You (singular, formal) have él/ella habla He/she/it has nosotros/as hablamos We have vosotros/as habláis You (plural, informal) have ustedes hablan You (plural, formal) have ellos/ellas hablan They have The endings of a verb ending in '-er', such as 'beber', are '-o', '-es', '-e', '- emos', '-éis', '-en'. For a verb ending in '-ir', such as 'vivir', the endings are '-o', '-es', '-e', '-imos', '- ís', 'en'. beber: to drink Pronoun Verb form English translation yo bebo I drink tú bebes You (singular, informal) drink usted bebe You (singular, formal) drink él/ella bebe He/she/it drinks nosotros/as bebemos We drink 9 If you want to say where or how someone or something is, use 'estar'. This generally refers to a more temporary state. For example: 'Soy escocesa y soy estudiante.' - 'I’m Scottish and I’m a student. Ella es mi hermana y es bonita.' - 'She’s my sister and is very pretty.' These describe what or who someone is. But: '¿Dónde estás? Estoy en Escocia.' - 'Where are you? I’m in Scotland.' '¿Cómo estás? Estoy muy bien, gracias.' - 'How are you. I’m very well, thanks.' These describe where or how someone is. Commonly used irregular verbs Below is the full present tense of commonly used irregular verbs. In all cases, teachers will not actually be using the full present tense, but they are included for reference. dar: to give Pronoun Verb form English translation yo doy I give tú das You (singular, informal) give usted da You (singular, formal) give él/ella da He/she/it gives nosotros/as damos We give vosotros/as dais You (plural, informal) give ustedes dan You (plural, formal) give ellos/ellas dan They give decir: to say Pronoun Verb form English translation yo digo I say tú dices You (singular, informal) say usted dice You (singular, formal) say él/ella dice He/she/it says nosotros/as decimos We say 10 vosotros/as decís You (plural, informal) say ustedes dicen You (plural, formal) say ellos/ellas dicen They say hacer: to do, to make Pronoun Verb form English translation yo hago I do, make tú haces You (singular, informal) do, make usted hace You (singular, formal) do, make él/ella hace He/she/it do, make nosotros/as hacemos We do, make vosotros/as hacéis You (plural, informal) do, make ustedes hacen You (plural, formal) do, make ellos/ellas hacen They do, make Note: 'Hacer' is also used in the third person singular for some weather expressions (see Time, date, numbers and weather). ir: to go Pronoun Verb form English translation yo voy I go tú vas You (singular, informal) go usted va You (singular, formal) go él/ella va He/she/it goes nosotros/as vamos We go vosotros/as vais You (plural, informal) go ustedes van You (plural, formal) go ellos/ellas van They go saber: to know (a fact/how to do something) Pronoun Verb form English translation yo sé I know tú sabes You (singular, informal) know usted sabe You (singular, formal) know él/ella sabe He/she/it knows nosotros/as sabemos We know vosotros/as sabéis You (plural, informal) know ustedes saben You (plural, formal) know ellos/ellas saben They know 11 tener: to have Pronoun Verb form English translation yo tengo I have tú tienes You (singular, informal) have usted tiene You (singular, formal) have él/ella tiene He/she/it has nosotros/as tenemos We have vosotros/as tenéis You (plural, informal) have ustedes tienen You (plural, formal) have ellos/ellas tienen They have Note: 'tener' + 'que' + infinitive means 'to have to'. For example: 'Tengo que estudiar' - 'I have to study.' venir: to come Pronoun Verb form English translation yo vengo I come tú vienes You (singular, informal) come usted viene You (singular, formal) come él/ella viene He/she/it comes nosotros/as venimos We come vosotros/as venís You (plural, informal) come ustedes vienen You (plural, formal) come ellos/ellas vienen They come hay: there is or there are This verb is an irregular form of the verb 'haber' and is invariable, ie it is the same whether the subject is singular or plural. This verb is very useful. For example: ¿Hay un banco por aquí? - Is there a bank near here? ¿Hay plátanos? - Are there any bananas? No, no hay. - No, there isn't/aren't. 14 jugar(ue): to play This is the only stem-changing verb in which the 'u' changes to 'ue'. Pronoun Verb form English translation yo juego I play tú juegas You (singular, informal) play usted juega You (singular, formal) play él/ella juega He/she/it plays nosotros/as jugamos We play vosotros/as jugáis You (plural, informal) play ustedes juegan You (plural, formal) play ellos/ellas juegan They play Note: Use 'jugar' + 'a' to play a sport, but 'tocar' to play a musical instrument. Examples: 'jugar al fútbol' (to play football); 'tocar la guitarra' (to play the guitar). Interrogative You can ask a question in Spanish by using one of the following methods. Use common question words qué what quién who cómo how dónde where por qué why cuándo when These words all have accents when asking a question. Remember to use an inverted question mark at the beginning of the question as well as the end. NB - This does not always mean the first question mark comes at the beginning of the sentence. For example: '¿Dónde vives?' - 'Where do you live?' but 'Trabajas mucho, ¿no?' - 'You work hard, don't you?' (Read more about punctuation in Spanish on p.2) 15 Use intonation Or you can use intonation to form a question. This simply means that a normal statement is turned into a question by raising the voice at the end. Note that raising the voice does not mean increasing the volume; it is an upturn in the stress pattern of the sentence which turns the statement into a question. For example: '¿Trabajas?' - 'Do you work?' Use the word 'verdad' The word 'verdad' (literally 'truth') can be added to a phrase to turn it into a question. It is similar to 'n'est-ce pas?' in French. For example: 'No eres española, ¿verdad?' - 'You're not Spanish, are you?' (Note again the use of the upside-down question mark in the middle of the sentence. It shows where the actual question - '¿verdad?' - starts.) Forming the negative To form a negative simply put 'no' immediately in front of the verb. So the answer to the question above is simply: 'No, no trabajo.' - 'No, I don’t work.' There are other negative words in Spanish which usually go after the verb but 'no' must still come before as well. 'Negative' word English translation nada nothing nadie no one nunca never tampoco neither ninguno/a none Examples: 'Yo no voy nunca al supermercado.' - 'I never go to the supermarket.' 'No quiero nada más, gracias.' - 'I don’t want anything else, thanks.' 16 The future tense To imply the future, you don't have to use the future tense with younger pupils. You can use the immediate future instead. The immediate future is so called because it describes something that you are just about to do, and it's a simple way of forming the future tense. In English, the immediate future would be 'I’m going to wash the dishes' rather than 'I will wash the dishes'. How do you form the immediate future in Spanish? In Spanish, as in English, the immediate future is formed by using the present tense of the verb 'to go' - 'ir'. This is followed immediately by 'a' then an infinitive. For example: 'Voy a mirar la tele.' - I’m going to watch television.' 'Vamos a ir a España.' - 'We’re going to go to Spain.' Points to note The use of the immediate future at the later stages of learning the language opens up the opportunity for greater flexibility in speech and in pupils’ conceptual awareness when using Spanish, and is a very important part of the work. The present tense can be used to express futurity if it is accompanied by an appropriate adverb or adverbial expression. For example: If you are travelling by train, it is five pm, and you say 'llegamos a las seis' ('We will arrive at six'), you are expressing futurity though strictly speaking you are using the present tense. The imperative mood Because Spanish has four forms of 'you', there are four forms of the imperative: 1. informal singular - used with 'tú' 2. informal plural - used with vosotros 3. formal singular - used with usted 4. formal plural - used with ustedes 19 Some other useful classroom commands In the classroom, you might also say: '¡Vamonos!' - 'Let’s go.' '¡Silencio, por favor!' - 'Quiet, please!' Nouns, articles, adjectives, adverbs Nouns 'Nouns are the types of words which give the names of things, people, places, happenings and ideas… Nouns can be singular (referring to one thing) or plural (referring to many).' (LILT 2001) All nouns in Spanish are either masculine or feminine, even those referring to objects or things. In Spanish, nouns which end in 'o' or refer to a male human or animal are almost always masculine. Nouns which end in 'a' or refer to a female human or animal are almost always feminine. However, there are exceptions, such as: • 'el dentista' - the dentist ('the female dentist' would be 'la dentista') • 'el mapa' - the map • 'el día' - the day • 'la mano' - the hand • 'la foto' - the photo Nouns ending in '-ión', '-dad', '-tad' and '-tud' are almost always feminine. Examples include 'la canción' (the song) and 'la cuidad' (the city). Common exceptions to this are 'el avión' ('the aeroplane') and 'el camión' ('the lorry'). However not all nouns indicate their gender by their ending or meaning, so it is important to learn the gender along with the noun. For example, 'la flor' ('the flower') is feminine; 'el guante' ('the glove') is masculine; 'la clase' ('the class') is feminine. Plurals In Spanish if a noun ends in an unstressed vowel, add an 's' to make it plural. If a noun ends in a consonant or a stressed vowel, add '-es'. This '-es' is always pronounced as a separate syllable. 20 Examples: • 'cafés' - cafés or coffees • 'tes' - teas Articles ' "The" and "a" are … called the definite article (the) and the indefinite article (a, an). In modern grammar, both are called determiners.' (LILT 2001) The definite article The definite article is the word 'the' in English. In Spanish, the definite article is 'el' if the noun is masculine and 'la' if the noun is feminine. In the plural they become 'los' and 'las'. Uses of the definite article Sometimes the definite article is used in Spanish when not in English. For example, 'I like coffee' is 'me gusta el café'. Also, if you talk about Mr Garcia, he is 'el señor García', but if you talk to him he is 'Señor García'. This is true of all titles when used with proper names. The indefinite article The indefinite article in English is 'a', 'an' or 'some'. In Spanish, the indefinite article is 'un' if the noun is masculine and 'una' if the noun is feminine. To translate 'some', use 'unos' before a masculine plural noun and 'unas' before a feminine plural noun. However, as in English, the indefinite article can be omitted when 'some' is implied. For example: 'Tengo amigos.' - 'I have (some) friends.' Examples of definite and indefinite articles Here are some examples of definite and indefinite articles - masculine and feminine, singular and plural. 21 Masculine singular Masculine plural English translation Feminine singular Feminine plural English translation el libro los libros the book/the books la mesa las mesas the table/the tables el mes los meses the month/the months la ciudad las ciudades the town/the towns un hijo (unos) hijos a son/(some) sons una hija (unas) hijas a daughter/some daughters Contracted forms of articles In Spanish, you cannot use 'a' together with the definite article 'el'. Instead, the two words contract to form 'al' (a + el) meaning 'to the'. For example: 'Voy al banco.' - 'I go to the bank.' Similarly, you cannot use 'de' together with the definite article 'el'. Instead, the two words contract to form 'del' ( de + el) meaning 'of the'. For example: 'El libro del chico.' - 'The boy's book.' There are no apostrophes in Spanish. If you wrote 'la aldea' ('the village'), you would not change la to l'. When it is spoken, the two letter ‘a’s run into each other and it sounds like one word. If you want to indicate possession - for example 'John’s book' - you have to say 'el libro de Juan'. Adjectives Adjectives qualify nouns, that is give us more detail about them. A noun such as ‘man’ is nondescript, but if we add words (to) the noun, a transformation occurs. (LILT 2001) Adjectives are used to describe, or in grammatical terms to qualify, nouns and other expressions. In English, adjectives precede the noun unless for special effects. 24 They are arranged here as first, second and third persons, singular and plural. In this form they always precede the noun. Masculine singular Feminine singular Masculine plural Feminine singular English translation mi mi mis mis my tu tu tus tus your (informal singular) su su sus sus his, her, your (formal singular) nuestro nuestra nuestros nuestras ours vuestro vuestra vuestros vuestras your (informal plural) su su sus sus their, your (formal plural) Note: only 'nuestro' and 'vuestro' have feminine forms. Examples: 'Mi libro'/'mis libros' - 'my book'/'my books' 'Nuestra casa'/'nuestras casas' - 'our house'/'our houses' 'Su casa', out of context, could have various meanings - for example: • his house • her house • your (formal singular) house • their house • your (formal plural) house It may be necessary to clarify the possessor by saying, for example: • 'la casa de usted' - 'your [formal singular] house' or • 'la casa de ellos' - 'their house'. A note about pronouns The 'usted' and 'ellos' used in the phrases above are pronouns, which are not used frequently in Spanish (see Subject pronouns in the Verbs section). After a preposition, the 'yo' and 'tu' pronouns become 'mí' and 'tí'. 25 How subject pronouns change after prepositions Subject pronoun After preposition English translation yo mí I/me tú tí you/you usted/él/ella usted/él/ella you nosotros/as nosotros/as we/us vosotros/as vosotros/as you/you ustedes/ellos/ellas ustedes/ellos/ellas they/them Examples: • para mí - for me • pienso an tí - I think about you • sin nosotros - without us Adverbs Adverbs are used to modify verbs, or to say how actions are performed. In English, adverbs can generally be recognised by the ending of '-ly'. The most common way of forming an adverb in Spanish is to add '-mente' to the feminine singular form of an adjective. Unlike adjectives, the endings of adverbs never change. For example: Adjective/adverb English translation lento slow lentamente slowly rápido quick rápidamente quickly normal normal normalmente normally general general generalmente generally 26 However, as in English, there are some exceptions. Adverbs which do not end in '-mente' Some common adverbs which do not end in '-mente' are: Adverb English translation bien well mal badly despacio slowly (more common than 'lentamente') 'Much' and 'too much' Both 'mucho' ('much', 'many') and 'demasiado' ('too much', 'too many') can be used either as adjectives or as adverbs. When used as adjectives, they must agree with the nouns they describe; when used as adverbs the ending never changes. For example: Example of adjective/adverb English translation Tengo muchos libros. I have many books. (adjective) La mujer trabaja mucho. The woman works hard. (adverb) Tengo demasiados libros. I have too many books. (adjective) La mujer trabaja demasiado. The woman works too much. (adverb) Time, date, numbers and weather Time To say 'What time is it?' you would say '¿Qué hora es?' To say the time, use: • 'es la' followed by the number for one o'clock • 'son las' for followed by the number for any time from 2 o'clock to 12 o'clock. For example: • 'es la una' - 'it's one o'clock' • 'son las dos' - 'it's two o'clock' • 'son las ocho' - 'it's eight o'clock' Note - It is always 'la' or 'las' because 'la hora' is feminine. 29 Points to note The months are written without capital letters unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence. To say 'in' with a month, you use 'en'. So 'in January' is 'en enero'. Seasons The four seasons in Spanish are as follows. Season English translation la primavera spring el verano summer el otoño autumn el invierno winter Points to note The seasons are also written without capital letters unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence. To say 'in' with a season, you use 'en'. So 'in summer' is 'en verano'. The date Apart from the first, which is normally 'el primero' (although 'uno' is possible), cardinal numbers instead of ordinals are used with dates. The date is always given in the masculine as 'el día' is masculine. For example: • el primero de marzo - the first of March • el dos de mayo - the second of May • el quince de agosto - the 15th of August • el treinta de noviembre - the 30th of November Expressions of date To say 'on' with a date, simply use the forms given above. Spanish does not use a word for 'on' in expressions which give the date. Thus, 'el primero de abril' can also mean 'on the first of April' as well as simply 'the first of April'. Spanish expression English translation ¿Qué día es hoy? What is today’s date? Es el ocho de octubre. It is the 8th of October. 30 Numbers Numbers are of two kinds: 1. cardinal - the most basic number (one, two, three etc.) 2. ordinal - numbers which give the place of each article in numerical order (first, second, third etc.) Cardinal numbers The cardinal numbers from zero to 19 are given below. cero - 0 diez - 10 uno/una - 1 once - 11 dos - 2 doce - 12 tres - 3 trece - 13 cuatro - 4 catorce - 14 cinco - 5 quince - 15 seis - 6 dieciséis - 16 siete - 7 diecisiete - 17 ocho - 8 dieciocho - 18 nueve - 9 diecinueve - 19 Some common cardinal numbers between 20 and one million are given below. veinte - 20 setenta - 70 vientiuno/ún/una - 21 ochenta - 80 veintidós - 22 noventa - 90 veintitrés - 23 ciento - 100 veinticuatro - 24 ciento uno/a - 101 veinticinco - 25 ciento dos - 102 veintiséis - 26 doscientos/as - 200 veintisiete - 27 trescientos/as - 300 veintiocho - 28 cuatrocientos/as - 400 veintinueve - 29 quincientos/as - 500 treinta - 30 seiscientos/as - 600 treinta y uno - 31 setecientos/as - 700 treinta y dos - 32 ochocientos/as - 800 cuarenta etc - 40 novecientos/as - 900 cuarenta y uno - 41 mil - 1000 cincuenta - 50 dos mil - 2000 sesenta - 60 un millón - 1,000,000 31 Points to note about cardinal numbers • 20s are written as one word; 30s, 40s etc as three words - eg 'venticuatro' (24); 'sesenta y dos' (62). • Be careful with 60 and 70: 'sesenta' and 'setenta' can sound very similar. • When immediately preceding a noun, 'ciento' (100) is shortened to 'cien', eg 'cien euros'. • 'Uno' and numbers ending in 'uno' can be masculine or feminine - eg 'un hombre' ('one man'); 'cuarenta y una mujeres' ('41 women'). • All the 'hundred' endings have a feminine form, eg 'doscientas casas' ('200 houses') . • Note from the list above that 500, 700 and 900 have irregular spellings - they do not just add 'cientos/as' to the single number as the others do. • 'Mil' meaning 'thousand' never has an 's'. For example: 'dos mil'. Ordinal numbers The ordinal numbers from 'first' to 'tenth' are given below. primero/primer/primera - first (see 'Points to note about ordinal numbers', below) segundo/a - second tercero/tercer/tercera - third (see 'Points to note about ordinal numbers', below) cuarto/a - fourth quinto/a - fifth sexto/a - sixth séptimo/a - seventh octavo/a - eighth noveno/a - ninth décimo/a - tenth Points to note about ordinal numbers • They agree in gender with the noun which they usually precede, eg 'la primera vez' ('the first time'). • The ordinal number most likely to be needed is 'first', which is 'primero/a'. It is used in dates. • 'Primero' and 'tercero' drop the 'o' before a masculine noun, eg 'el primer piso' ('the first floor'); 'el tercer dia' ('the third day').