Giving Directions in Spanish Within a Hospital
Jun 26, 2018
This free Spanish audio lesson introduces the "Giving Directions in Spanish" series at docmolly.com. As requested by Bien, a listener, we will practice giving directions in Spanish within a hospital.
First, we will review the vocabulary. Then, we will use this vocabulary to give directions in Spanish. Normally we are speaking with strangers when we ask for and give directions. Therefore, we will use the Usted conjugation for all the verbs.
Vocabulary
Perdone Excuse me.
La cafeteria Cafeteria
El sótano Basement
Baje al sótano. Go down to the basement.
El pasillo, el corredor Hall(way)
Siga el pasillo. Follow the hall.
A la derecha / izquierda To the right / left
El ascensor Elevator
Al salir del ascensor As you leave the elevator
Doble/gire a la derecha/izquierda Turn right/left
A mano derecha/izquierda On the right-hand/left-hand side
Asking for and Giving Directions
Perdone, ¿Dónde está la cafetería? Excuse me. Where is the cafeteria?
Está en el sótano. It’s in the basement.
¿Cómo se va / se llega allí? How do you get there?
Siga (por) este pasillo y usted verá el ascensor a la derecha. Follow this hallway and you’ll see the elevator to your right.
Baje al sótano. Go down basement.
Al salir del ascensor, doble/gire a la izquierda. As you exit the elevator, turn left.
Verá la cafeteria a mano derecha. You will see the cafeteria on the right-hand side.
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Today’s podcast is a quiz on the Spanish prepositions POR y PARA. It kicks off a series of audio lessons that will cover these two prepositions at docmolly.com.
This podcast reviews some of the grammar points covered during an interview I did for the Medical Spanish Podcast. I interviewed folk healer Francisco Chavajay while studying at the San Pedro Spanish School in Guatemala. The clinical dialogues and interviews presented in the Medical Spanish Podcast provide an effective method of learning key grammatical concepts used in everyday Spanish conversation. In this free grammar podcast, we go over a sampling of the grammar points covered in my interview with don Francisco.
Don Francisco and I
Grammar Points from the Interview
“Fíjese que para ser curandero uno no aprende, no le enseñan.”
Fijarse
Fíjate que son muy caros. Look, they are very expensive.
Fíjese que para ser curandero uno no aprende. You see, to be a curandero one doesn’t learn.
The Third Person Plural to Express a Passive Action in Spanish
“No le enseñan.” One is not taught.
Me ingresaron en el hospital. I was admitted to the hospital.
Le enseñaron a respetar a los mayores. She was taught to respect her elders.
Sino Que
“No le enseñan, sino que lo trae desde el vientre de la madre.” One isn’t taught, rather one gets it from the womb of the mother.
No me riñeron, sino que me animaron. They did not scold me, instead, they encouraged me.
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Subscribe to the premium Spanish Grammar podcast at docmolly.com.
I highly recommend San Pedro Spanish School in Guatemala. My niece and I had an amazing experience living with a host family and studying at the school. Listen to this podcast to hear more about our experience.
Quedar y Quedarse – I am back with a quiz!
Apr 10, 2017
Spanish Grammar Audio Quiz
This is my first free podcast since September and my first free grammar podcast for over a year! As many of you know I host two podcasts: the Spanish Grammar Review and the Medical Spanish Podcast. In 2016, I finished up the premium series on the Subjunctive for the grammar podcast and then kept busy making premium lessons for the Medical Spanish Podcast. More recently, I took a break from podcasting to build this new website at docmolly.com. Since building this site I have added two premium lessons to the Verbs series of the Spanish Grammar Subscription covering QUEDAR and QUEDARSE and today's free podcast is a quiz reviewing what we learned in these premium lessons.
Member? Listen to the 2 premium lessons covering the uses QUEDAR(SE) in our member-only verb series Verbs Series.
Table of Contents
2:57 Intro to Lesson
4:05 Audio Quiz
QUEDAR Y QUEDARSE
4:05
Me quedé en casa de un amigo. (I stayed at a friends house.)
Quedamos a las siete en la plaza. (We're meeting at seven at the plaza.)
(Ellos) quedaron en ir hoy. They decided / agreed to go today.
Nos quedan tres invitaciones por escribir. (We have three invitations left to write.)
Quedan cinco días para navidad. (There are five days left until Christmas.)
Él siempre queda bien con las chicas. (He always makes a good impression with the girls.)
Esa corbata queda bien con tus ojos. (That tie goes well with your eyes.)
Se quedó pensativa un largo rato. (She remained deep in thought for a long time.)
Aún queda comida. (There's still food left.)
La escuela queda a tres millas de aquí. (The school is 3 miles from here.)
Siempre se me quedan los guantes en casa! (I always leave my gloves at home.)
No nos queda más remedio. (We have no choice.)
Gracias por escuchar.
Become a member and access all our interactive audio lessons here: docmolly.com/store/
Already a member? Listen to the 2 premium lessons covering the uses QUEDAR(SE) in our member-only verb series Verbs Series.
Are you ready to take on some advanced Spanish grammar? This audio quiz reviews the material covered in the following premium audio lessons.
Subjunctive 15 – Conditional (If… then… ) Statements About the Present Subjunctive 16 – Conditional Statements About the Past Subjunctive 17 – The Subjunctive Following “Como Si” Subjunctive 18 – The Subjunctive Following “Ojalá” Subjunctive 19 – “No Matter How Much” in Spanish Subjunctive 20 – La Forma Reduplicativa
Quiz # 3 – The Subjunctive in Adjective Clauses
Mar 26, 2015
This lesson is a quiz that reviews the use of the subjunctive in adjective clauses covered in the last two lessons.
A subordinate adjective clause describes a noun or pronoun in the main clause of a sentence. When it describes something KNOWN AND SPECIFIC, we use the INDICATIVE. When the subordinate adjective clause describes something NOT YET IDENTIFIED, which may or may not exist, we use the SUBJUNCTIVE.
Quiz #2 – The Subjunctive in Noun Clauses
Dec 05, 2014
Do you know when to use the subjunctive in noun clauses?
If not, you've come to the right place. Learn to identify the noun clause in a sentence, and then when to use the subjunctive vs the indicative within the noun clause. We cover this in depth in the Subjunctive series offered through the Spanish Grammar Subscription at docmolly.com.
Subscribe to the premium Spanish Grammar subscription at docmolly.com.
What is a Noun Clause?
A subordinate noun clause is introduced by the conjunction QUE. It contains a subject and a conjugated verb and takes the role of a noun within the sentence. Just like a noun, it can act as the subject or the direct object of the verb in the main clause. It answers the question, “What?”
1:45
Identify the subordinate noun clause:
1. Deseo que me acompañes al baile. ¿Qué deseas? … que me acompañes al baile.
2. Es cierto que te voy a acompañar. ¿Cuál es cierto? …. que te voy a acompañar.
3. Me sorprende que Francisco vaya a clase todos los días. ¿Qué te sorprende? … que Francisco vaya a clases todos los días.
When do we use the subjunctive in the subordinate noun clause?
3:07
1. When the main clause expresses INFLUENCE over the action expressed in the subordinate noun clause. For example, when you want, hope, or need something to occur, you express that action or event in the subjunctive. Ej: Necesito que asistas a clase.
2. When the main clause expresses an EMOTIONAL RESPONSE OR VALUE JUDGEMENT regarding the action or event expressed in the subordinate noun clause. Ej: Me enfada que ellos fumen en case.
3. When the main clause expresses DENIAL, DOUBT OR UNCERTAINTY regarding the action or event expressed in the subordinate noun clause. Ej: No estoy segura que puedan ir.
We otherwise use the indicative to simply state our perceived reality.
QUIZ
6:27
Es probable It will likely rain this afternoon. Es probable que llueva esta tarde.
Necesito I need you to come with me. Necesito que me acompañes.
Deseo I want to live in Italy. Deseo vivir en Italia. I want you to visit me in Italy. Deseo que me visites en Italia.
Es cierto It’s true that I work here. Es cierto que trabajo aqui.
Es importante It’s importante to keep still. Es importante quedarse quieto.
It’s important that you keep still. Es importante que te quedes quieto/a.
No era posible It wasn’t possible for her to continue working. No era posible que siguiera / siguiese trabajando.
Me molestó It bothered me that they hadn’t study for the test. Me molestó que no hubieran / hubiesen estudiado para el examen.
Te ruego I beg you to stop. Te ruego que pares.
Tengo miedo I’m afraid that they can hear us. Tengo miedo que nos puedan oír.
Me temo I’m afraid there are no rooms available. Me temo que no hay habitaciones disponibles.
Más vale It’s better to tell the truth. Más vale decir la verdad.
You better tell the truth. Más vale que digas la verdad.
Dudaba I doubted that we could do it. Dudaba que pudiéramos hacerlo.
EXTRA CREDIT: (Not included in the podcast, as not to cause confusion.)
I doubted that I could do it. Dudaba que pudiera hacerlo.* -OR- Dudaba poder hacerlo.
*Unlike in the examples above involving verbs and expressions of influence, the subjunctive sometimes follow verbs of emotion and doubt even when the subject remains the same.
Quiz # 1 – Choose the Correct Tense of the Subjunctive
Sep 05, 2014
Check out our Subjunctive Course for a comprehensive review of the Spanish subjunctive. This audio quiz reviews the first module of the course, where we review the conjugation of the subjunctive in its four tenses and when to use each tense.
Present Subjunctive
Present Perfect Subjunctive
Imperfect Subjunctive
Pluperfect Subjunctive
In each example of the quiz, choose the correct tense of the subjunctive.
Learn the different uses of the Spanish verb ACABAR. In this audio lesson we practice using the verb ACABAR in different grammatical constructs to mean different things.
In this audio lesson we practice phrases describing body language in Spanish. While reading in Spanish recently, I took note of several phrases describing gestures or body language, so I decided to make a podcast out of them. First, we’ll practice naming the gestures in Spanish and then we’ll use them in sentences.
In this audio lesson, we practice three different time expressions in Spanish to describe something that started in the past and continues into the present. For example: “I have been studying Spanish for years.”
In English, we use the present perfect tense, “I have been…,” followed by a gerund (e.g. studying).
In Spanish, we usually use the simple present tense. There are three common variations to express an action that started in the past and continues into the present.
Hace + período de tiempo + que + verbo en el presente. Hace años que estudio español.
¿Cuánto (tiempo) hace que + verbo en el presente? ¿Hace cuánto (tiempo) que + verbo en el presente? (otra opción) ¿Cuánto (tiempo) hace que estudias español? (How long have you been studying Spanish?)
Construction #2 using “desde”
Verbo en el presente + desde hace + período de tiempo. Estudio español desde hace años.
And making this into a question using “desde” ¿Desde cuándo + verbo en el presente? ¿Desde cuándo estudias español?
Construction # 3 using “llevar”
Levar + gerundio + período de tiempo. Llevo años estudiando español.
OJO: The period of time can go BEFORE OR AFTER the gerund. Also, as we will see in the examples below, the gerund can be replaced by an adjective, an adverb, or a prepositional phrase.
¿Cuánto tiempo + llevar + gerundio? ¿Cuánto tiempo llevas estudiando español?
We can also use llevar, followed by a location or description, to describe a state that started in the past and continues into the present.
¿Cuánto tiempo llevas en este país? (How long have you been in this country?)
Ya llevo unos cuantos días. (I’ve now been here for a few days.)
Using “hace que”
¿Cuánto (tiempo) hace que eres vegetariana? (How long have you been a vegetarian?)
Hace ocho años que soy vegetariana. (I have been a vegetarian for eight years.)
¿Cuánto (tiempo) hace que vives aquí? (How long has he been living here?)
Hace tres años que vivo aquí. (I’ve been living here for 3 years.)
¿Cuánto tiempo hace que tiene problemas con la bebida? (How long has she had a drinking problem?)
Hace años que tiene problemas con la bebida. (She’s had a drinking problem for years.)
Hace mucho tiempo que no nos vemos. (We haven’t seen each other for a long time.)
Hace años que no hablamos. (We haven’t spoken for years.)
¿Cuánto (tiempo) hace que te sientes así? (How long have you felt this way?)
Hace unos cuantos meses que me siento así. (I’ve been feeling this way for a few months.)
Using “desde”
¿Desde cuándo trabajas para esa empresa? (How long have you been working for that company?)
Trabajo para esa empresa desde hace tres años. (I have been working for that company for three years?)
¿Desde cuándo esperan? (How long have they been waiting?)
Esperamos desde hace más de una hora. (We’ve been waiting for more than an hour.)
¿Desde cuándo vive en ese departamento? (How long has she lived in that apartment?)
Vive en ese departamento desde hace menos de un año. (She’s lived in that apartment for less than a year.)
¿Desde cuándo entrenas al equipo de fútbol? (How long have you been coaching the soccer team?)
Entreno al equipo de fútbol desde hace un año. (I’ve been couching the soccer team for a year.)
¿Desde cuándo tiene estos síntomas? (How long have you had these symptoms?)
Tengo estos síntomas desde hace una semana. (I’ve had these symptoms for a week.)
¿Desde cuándo tocas la guitarra? (How long have you played the guitar?)
Toco la guitarra desde que tenía 11 años. (I’ve played the guitar since I was 11 years old.)
Using “llevar”
¿Cuánto tiempo llevas entrenándote para el maratón? (How long have they been training for the marathon?)
Llevo 5 meses entrenándome para el maratón. (I have been training for the marathon for 5 months.)
¿Cuánto tiempo lleva comportándose así? (How long has he been behaving like this?)
Lleva más de un mes comportándose así. (He’s been acting this way for over a month.)
¿Cuánto tiempo lleva en la cárcel? (How long has she been in prison?)
Lleva 2 semanas en la cárcel. (She’s been in prison for 2 weeks.)
¿Cuánto tiempo llevamos aquí? (How long have we been here?)
Llevamos una semana aquí. (We’ve been here for a week.)
¿Cuánto tiempo llevas con esta llaga? (How long have you had this sore?)
Llevo por lo menos un mes con esta llaga. (I’ve had this sore for at least a month.)
¿Cuánto tiempo llevan casados? (How long have you been married?)
Llevamos cincuenta y dos años casados. (We have been married for 52 years.)
¿Cuánto meses llevas de embarazo? (How many months pregnant are you?)
Llevo seis meses de embarazo. (I am 6 months pregnant.)
Want to learn more?
Subscribe to the premium audio lessons. In the premium audio lessons offered through the Spanish Grammar Subscription we practice using these time expressions to describe actions and events that occurred in the past.
SER vs ESTAR – Intro to the Spanish Grammar Review Podcast
Jun 23, 2012
Do you know when to use SER vs ESTAR?
Some of you may remember my original Spanish Grammar Review podcast that I started in 2007. I took a break to focus on the Medical Spanish Podcast and resumed podcasting about Spanish grammar in June of 2012. In this first podcast of the “new” Spanish Grammar Review we take an audio quiz covering when to use SER and when to use ESTAR. I hope you enjoy it.