1. Put rather or better. Translate the sentences.
- We’d ____ stay inside until the rain stops.
- You’d ____ leave before it gets dark.
- I’d ____ you didn’t wear jeans in the office.
- I’d ____ stay hungry than have to eat that fish.
- You’d ____ not phone her now. She's probably putting her baby to bed.
- You’d ____ stay in bed today. You look pale.
- I’d ____ send an e-mail than write a letter.
- You’d ____ watch the steps.
- Can I borrow your camera? – I’d ____ you didn’t.
- He’d ____ give up smoking as soon as possible.
2. Put had better or had better not. Translate.
- Bob is very angry with her. She ____ do that again.
- You ____ touch my laptop again.
- We ____ study a bit harder.
- The restaurant is always crowded. We ____ book a table in advance.
- I have to be at the station in 15 minutes. I ____ leave right now.
- This is her first day at work. She ____ be late.
- You ____ drive carefully. You've already had some accidents this year.
- It's going to rain. We ____ take an umbrella.
3. Complete the sentences according to the example:
For example: I’ll go shopping if you really want me to, but ____. - I’ll go shopping if you really want me to, but I’d rather you went. (I'll go to the store if you want, but I'd like you to go.)
- I’ll spend the money if you really want me to, but I’d rather your dad ____ .
- I’ll cook roast turkey if you really want me to, but I’d rather you ____ .
- I’ll iron your shirt if you really want me to, but I’d rather Victor ____ .
- I’ll take out the garbage if you really want me to, but I’d rather Mary ____ .
- I’ll do the washing up if you really want me to, but I’d rather Tim ____ .
4. Use would rather or would rather not. Translate.
- Kevin, let's go to New York by train. – I ____ go by car.
- What did Mr. Jackson tell you? – I ____ tell you.
- Would you like a cup of tea? – I ____ have hot chocolate.
- Do you feel like going out tonight? – No, I ____ stay at home.
- I don’t feel quite well this morning. I ____ go to school today.
- I ____ die than apologize to you.
Answers:
- better (We better stay inside until the rain stops.)
- better (You better leave before it gets dark.)
- rather (I wish you wouldn't wear jeans to the office.)
- rather (I would rather stay hungry than eat that fish.)
- better (You better not call her now. She might be putting the baby to bed.)
- better (You better stay in bed today. You look pale.)
- rather (I would rather send an email than write a regular one.)
- better (Better look at the steps more closely.)
- rather (Can I borrow your camera? – Better not.)
- better (He better quit smoking as soon as possible.)
- had better not (Bob is very angry with her. She better not do that again.)
- had better not (It's better if you don't touch my laptop anymore.)
- had better (It’s better for us to study more.)
- had better (The restaurant is always full of people. We better book a table in advance.)
- had better (I need to be at the station in 15 minutes. It’s better if I leave right now.)
- had better not (It's her first day at work. She shouldn't be late.)
- had better (You better drive carefully. You've already had several accidents this year.)
- had better (It's going to rain. We better take an umbrella.)
- ...but I’d rather your dad spent it. (I'll spend the money if that's what you want, but I'd like your father to spend it.)
- ...but I’d rather you cooked it. (I'll make roast turkey if you're so inclined, but I'd like you to cook it.)
- ...but I’d rather Victor ironed it. (I'll iron the shirt if you want, but I'd like Victor to iron it.)
- ...but I’d rather Mary took it out. (I'll take out the trash if that's what you want, but I'd like Mary to take it out.)
- ...but I’d rather Tim did it. (I'll wash the dishes if you want, but I'd like Tim to do the washing.)
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You’d better prepare for the exam instead of watching TV. You would rather study for the exam instead of watching TV. Mike had better take an umbrella if he doesn’t want to get soaked. Mike should have taken an umbrella if he didn't want to get wet. You’d better not ride a motorcycle without a helmet. You better not ride a motorcycle without a helmet. He'd better not tell her what really happened. He shouldn't tell her what really happened.
2. Had better is used to express recommendation or advice. In this sense, this expression is similar to the modal verb should. However, the meaning of had better is stronger and more specific than should, so often advice with had better sounds urgently like a warning to avoid possible troubles.
You'd better watch your language. You should watch your speech. He'd better not travel alone. It's better for him not to travel alone. They'd better pay their debts. They should pay their debts.
Would rather
Would you rather have tea or coffee? Would you prefer tea or coffee? I’d rather stay home and read a book. I would probably stay at home and read a book. We'd rather not go out this evening. We'd probably stay home tonight. Alice would rather not visit her mother-in-law. Alice would prefer not to visit her mother-in-law.
They’d rather drive than travel by train. They would rather travel by car than by train. I’d rather have gone shopping with you than with Mary. I'd rather go to the store with you than with Mary. We’d rather type than write a letter. I would rather type than write a letter by hand. I'd rather had bought a gold ring. I'd rather buy a gold ring.
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3. Also, our preference may extend to other people, in which case the structure of the sentence will differ from the previous one: |
IN Spanish There are several types of future, present and past tenses. In this lesson you will learn all about the indicative, imperative, subjunctive and conditional moods. In the article you will find brief information about each time: how it is constructed, marker words for a given time and when it is used, and several examples are given under each time.
Times of historical type: , Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto, Pretérito Anterior, Imperfecto de Subjuntivo, Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo, .
The verb in Spanish can be used in four moods: indicative, imperative, subjunctive and conditional. In general, mood is a special category of a verb that expresses its modality, namely, the relationship of the content of the statement to what is happening, or the attitude of the speaker to the interlocutor (in the case of the imperative mood).
Let's start with the indicative mood. Indicative is the most common in Spanish. It means real action which happened in the past, is happening now or will happen, and does not imply any conditions. The indicative mood includes 8 tenses, referring to the present, future and past tenses.
Presente de indicativo (simple present tense)
Used to denote a simple action occurring at the moment, as well as a repeated action in the present. Often used with time indicators such as ahora (now), en este momento (at the moment), siempre (always), etc.:
Escribo a menudo a mis parientes. – I often write to my relatives.
Siempre desayuna a las siete. – He always has breakfast at seven.
Also, the simple present tense serves to indicate a planned action in the future, while the sentence will always have a pointer to the future tense:
Llegamos pasado mañana. - We arrive the day after tomorrow.
Futuro simple/imperfecto (simple/imperfect future tense)
Denotes a simple action occurring in the future tense, as well as a repeated action in the future. Indicators of the use of this tense can be words such as mañana (tomorrow), pasado mañana (the day after tomorrow), dentro de ... días (in ... days), la semana que viene (next week), el año que viene (next year) and so on.:
Iremos a Italia a fines de octubre. - We will go to Italy at the end of October.
Often used in modal sentences to indicate probability or command:
Jorge tendrá unos treinta años. - Jorge is probably about thirty years old.
¡Hija, lavarás la vajilla! - Daughter, wash the dishes!
Futuro perfecto (perfect future tense)
Used to denote an action that will be completed before some point in the future or before the start of some other action. Words indicating this time: hasta (before), para (la próxima semana) (to (next week), etc.:
Habre hablado español para el Año Nuevo. – By the New Year I will speak Spanish.
La película habrá terminado, cuando venga. - The film will end by the time he comes.
Very often used in modal meaning to indicate probable, possible, assumed actions performed in the past:
Nos habremos visto en alguna parte. - Perhaps we met somewhere.
El tren habrá llegado a la estación. - The train has probably (already) arrived at the station.
Pretérito perfecto de indicativo (present perfect tense)
Expresses an action that happened in the past but is relevant to the present. Indicators of this time can be: esta semana (this week), este mes (this month), hoy (today), nunca (never), todavía (until now), últimamente (recently), ya (already), etc. .P.:
Hoy José ha ido a la escuela sin comer. - Today Jose went to school without eating.
Recientemente enrique ha regresado de Barcelona. – Enrique recently returned from Barcelona.
Pretérito indefinido (simple past tense)
Used to denote a simple action completed in the past, a long action indicating a time period, when listing several actions in the past. Indicators are: ayer (yesterday), anteayer (the day before yesterday), aquel día (that day), el mes pasado (last month), dos años atrás (two years ago), etc.:
Cristóbal Colón descubrió América en 1492. - Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492.
Pretérito imperfecto de indicativo (past imperfect tense)
Denotes a continuous but unfinished action, an action repeated in the past, as well as an action that occurred or occurred against the background of another action in the past. The following expressions will serve as indicators of such time: a menudo, frecuentemente (often), a veces (sometimes), todos los días (every day), por las madrugadas (las tardes) (in the mornings, (evenings)), cada vez que ( every time), siempre (always), de ordinario, de costumbre (usually), de vez en cuando (from time to time), cada año (día, mes) (every year (day, month)):
A las nueve veía la TV. - At 9 o’clock I was watching TV.
Por las madrugadas sus hijos salían de casa e iban a la escuela. “In the mornings, his children left the house and went to school.
Mientras mi hermano hacía los deberes, yo escuchaba la música. - While my brother was doing his homework, I was listening to music.
Pretérito pluscuamperfecto de indicativo (long past tense)
Indicates an action that completed before another action began in the past. In individual sentences this tense occurs very rarely; most often it is used when agreeing on tenses and in subordinate clauses.
Cuando entramo s en la sala de espectáculos, la actuación había empezado. – When we entered the auditorium, the performance had already begun.
Pretérito anterior de indicativo (past antecedent tense)
Expresses an action that ended immediately before another action began in the past. Most often used in subordinate clauses and when agreeing tenses. In a sentence it is accompanied by the following expressions: apenas (as soon as), así que (so), cuando (when), después que (after), en cuanto (as soon as), en seguida que (immediately, that same moment), luego que (as soon as), no bien (barely, as soon as), tan pronto como (as soon as), etc.:
Apenas me hube acostado, sonó el telefono. - As soon as I got into bed, the phone rang.
Futuro imperfecto de Subjuntivo (Unfinished future tense)
Futuro imperfecto de Subjuntivo is used when you need to describe an unfinished situation that refers to a moment in the future tense. In oral speech, Spaniards do not use this tense, but replace it with Presente de Subjuntivo. You can find the Incomplete Future Tense in fiction, newspapers and documents.
Presente de Subjuntivo tense construction: endings in the first conjugation are added to the base of the verbs: -are-ares-are-áremos-areis-aren; in the second and third conjugation: -iere-ieres-iere-iéremos-iereis-ieren. For example: escribir (to write) - escribiere, escribieres, escribiere, escribiéremos, escribiereis, escribieren.
- Quise que comieres. - I wanted you to eat.
- Las personas que no aceptaren estas reglas serán sancionadas. — People who do not take these rules into account will be punished.
- Sea como fuere. - Whatever it is.
Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo (complete tense in the future)
Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo describes a moment in the future that must be completed before another moment in the future. This tense is not used either in colloquial speech, or in journalistic or artistic speech. Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo time must be excellent for lawyers, jurists, judges, that is, people who are closely associated with documentation and laws.
Construction of the Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo: auxiliary verb haber in Futuro Imperfecto de Subjuntivo and participle verb.
Conjugation of the verb haber in Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo: hubiere, hubieres, hubiere, hubiéremos, hubiereis, hubieren.
- Si ningún candidato hubiere obtenido la confianza del Congreso, el Rey disolverá ambas Cámaras. - If no candidate earns the confidence of Congress, the king will dissolve both houses. (1978 Constitution)
- Si alguien no cumpliere con su deber de ciudadano, será castigado con arreglo al daño que hubiere producido. - If a person fails to fulfill his civic duty, he will be punished according to the damage caused.
Imperative mood
Conveys motivation to action. It comes in two forms: Imperativo afirmativo and Imperativo negativo.
Imperativo afirmativo (affirmative form of the imperative mood) is used to express a command to do something:
¡Hablen ustedes español, por favor! - Please speak Spanish!
Imperativo negativo (negative form of the imperative) expresses an order not to do something:
No trabajes los domingos. - Don't work on Sundays.
Subjunctive mood
The subjunctive mood has a special position in the Spanish language. Many beginners often encounter difficulties in the process of learning it. It is used in subordinate clauses if the verb of the main clause expresses a request, order, wish, prohibition, emotions and feelings, opinion and judgment, doubt and denial.
The subjunctive mood is used in four tense forms:
Presente de subjuntivo (present subjunctive)
Indicates an action performed simultaneously or immediately after the action in the main clause (the verb of the main clause is in one of the tenses of the actual type):
Quiero que me dejen en paz. - I want to be left alone.
Pretérito imperfecto de sunjuntivo (past imperfect subjunctive)
It means an action performed in the past simultaneously or after the action in the main clause (the verb of the main clause is in one of the tenses of the historical type). In this case, the main clause is always in the past tense.
Mi abuela quiso que yo hablara español. – My grandmother wanted me to speak Spanish.
Yo tenía miedo que el salón de belleza estuviera cerrada. – I was afraid that the hairdresser was closed.
Me gustaría que hiciera buen tiempo en primavera. – I would like to have good weather in the spring.
Te ordenó que te pusieras el abrigo marrón. - I ordered you to wear a brown cloak.
La desperté a las seis para que ella no perdiera el tren. “I woke her up at six o’clock in the morning so that she wouldn’t miss the train.”
Pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo (past perfect subjunctive)
Assumes that the action (in the past or in the future) precedes the action of the predicate in the main clause, which is in one of the tenses of the actual type. That is, the verb of the main clause must be in the past tense and indicate that the action has already happened. In Construction of Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo: auxiliary verb haber in Presente de Subjuntivo with semantic verb.
Es bueno que hayamos reservado los billetes. - It's good that we booked tickets.
Me alegra que hayas tenido buenas notas en el examen. – I am very glad that you got good marks in the exam.
Es posible que él haya venido. - Perhaps he came ( I arrived).
No creo que hayan preparado el reglo para la fiesta. “I don’t think they prepared a holiday gift.”
Pretérito pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo (long-past subjunctive)
Indicates an action preceding the action in the main sentence, the predicate of which is in one of the tenses of the historical type:
Ella no creía que hubieses dicho esto. - She didn't believe you said that.
Conditional mood
Meaning that an action is possible only under certain conditions, it has 2 tenses: Potencial simple and Potencial perfecto.
Potencial simple (conditional imperfective mood)
Expresses an unreal but possible action: an imperfect action desired or expected in the present or future, an action possible in the past, a polite request and a future action in the past tense:
Comería un pedazo de tarta. - I would eat a piece of cake.
¿Podría decirme donde está la biblioteca? - Can you tell me where is the library located?
Potencial perfecto (compuesto) (conditional perfect)
Indicates an unreal and impossible action: an action desired or possible in the past, an expected action that occurred before another action in the past:
Habría ido al cine ayer pero no tuve dinero. - I would have gone to the cinema yesterday, but I didn’t have money.
Fernando no pasó el examen. Habría estudiado poco. - Fernando did not pass the exam. Perhaps he didn't study enough.
It's time to start learning a new tense in Spanish - the future tense. From various tenses of the Spanish language, we so far know the Present Simple - Presente and the Present Continuous - Presente Continuo.
Let's slowly start talking in the future!
Spanish has two future tenses: Futuro Próximo (Near Future) and Futuro Simple (Simple Future). Now we will not explain all the differences between these two tenses, we will only say that they are very similar in use, although the forms of the verbs are different.
In this lesson we will go through the topic “Futuro Próximo” - the Near Future.
Let's start our topic with illustrative examples:
1. Mañana voy a estudiar inglés en el colegio– Tomorrow I will learn English at school
2. Esta semana vamos a jugar al fútbol– This week we will play football
3. El mes que viene Antonio y Carla van a viajar a Francia– Next month Antonio and Carla will go to France
4.Este año escolar va a ser muy duro– This school year will be very difficult.
5. ¿Me vas a devolver el paraguas?-Will you return my umbrella?
6. ¿Cómo vais a trabajar si sois tan vagos?- How will you work if you are so lazy?
7.Esta noche no voy a ver la tele, porque tengo que levantarme muy temprano por la mañana– I won’t watch TV tonight because I have to get up very early tomorrow.
As can be seen from the examples, the formation of Futuro Próximo is very simple. You just need to remember the design
IR + a + Infinitivo
Let's decipher: the verb “ir” (which means “to go, go”) + the preposition “a” + the indefinite form of the verb (infinitive)
In this construction, only the verb ir is changed! We do not change the preposition “a” and the infinitive.
Remember the conjugation of the verb ir?
Let's conjugate 3 verbs in Futuro Próximo:
yo voy a trabajar - I will work
tú vas a trabajar - you will work
el/ ella/ Vd. va a trabajar - it will work
nosotros vamos a trabajar - we will work
vosotros vais a trabajar - you will work
ellos/ellas/Vds. van a trabajar- they will work
voy a comer - I will have lunch
vas a comer - you will have lunch
va a comer - he will have lunch
vamos a comer - we will have lunch
vais a comer - you will have lunch
van a comer - they will have lunch
voy a escribir - I will write
vas a escribir - you will write
va a escribir - he will write
vamos a escribir - we will write
vais a escribir - you will write
van a escribir - they will write
From the examples it is clear that all constructions are the same, no matter what the verb ends in - -ar, -er or -ir.
So, if you want to say that something will happen in the future, use the construction ir + a + infinitive.
Look at the examples below:
1) Tomorrow I will go shopping – Mañana voy a hacer la compra
2) The day after tomorrow we will go to our grandparents - Pasado mañana vamos a visitar a nuestros abuelos
3) They say they won't sell the house - Dicen que no van a vender la casa
4) Pablo will come soon – Pablo va a venir pronto
5) When will you prepare for the exam? – ¿Cuándo vas a prepararte para el examen?
6) I won’t study for the exam because I’m smart – No voy a prepararme para el examen, porque soy inteligente
7) Today I will go to bed very late – Hoy me voy a acostar muy tarde(remember that you can change the order of words? = Hoy voy acostarme muy tarde)
8) ¿Vas a casarte con Daniela o no?= ¿Te vas a casar con Daniela o no?– Will you marry Daniela or not?
9) Estoy muy cansado, voy a descansar un poco– I’m very tired, I’ll rest a little
10) Creo que no vamos a ir a España, tengo miedo a los aviones– I think we won’t go to Spain, I’m afraid to fly on planes
Please note that the Spaniards say: voy a ir, vas a ir, va a ir, etc. The verb “ir” is used as often as any other infinitive in this construction:
voy a ir a la playa – I’ll go to the beach
¿vas a ir a la Universidad? – will you go to university?
Temporal indicators for the future tense
There are words that are very often used when we speak in the future tense. We have already used some of these words in our examples (see above).
Now let's just list them and try to remember them:
1) Mañana – tomorrow
Mañana voy a cenar en el restaurante– Tomorrow I will have dinner at a restaurant
2) Pasado mañana - the day after tomorrow
Pasado mañana van a llegar mis primos- My cousins will arrive the day after tomorrow
3)La semana / el mes / el año…que viene– Next week/next month/year
La semana que viene nos va a visitar mi tío- My uncle will come to visit us next week.
El año que viene van a crecer los sueldos– Salaries will increase next year
4)La semana próxima, el mes próximo, el año próximo– Next week / next month / year (These constructions are similar to the previous ones and are translated in exactly the same way. In the same construction, the word “próximo” can be placed both before and after the noun)
El mes próximo vamos a vivir mejor– Next month we will live better
La próxima semana Julio va a ir al campo– Next week Julio will go to the village
5) Combinations with the demonstrative pronoun este / esta:
esta noche - this night, in the evening
este mes – this month
este viernes – this Friday
este fin de semana – this weekend
este año – this year
este otoño – this fall
etc.
Este sábado me voy a quedar en casa– This Saturday I will stay at home
6) Dentro de... – Through...
Dentro de una hora va a llegar mi jefe- My boss will arrive in an hour
Dentro de un año me voy a graduar de la Universidad– In a year I will graduate from the university
En... = Dentro de...
Voy a irme en cinco minutos - I'll leave in five minutes
Ana va a terminar el proyecto en tres días– Anna will finish the project in three days
7) Pronto - coming soon
Pronto vamos a ir a una fiesta- We'll go to a party soon
Spanish is a beautiful and emotional language. Perhaps, The best way study this romantic language - getting acquainted with poetry. In this article we will look at the basic tenses of the Spanish language in the context of poetry and see how sentences are constructed using examples from poetry and poems. We hope this helps you understand the logic behind Spanish tenses. So let's get started!
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There are 3 verb moods in Spanish: indicativo , subjunctivo And imperative . Mood is a grammatical category that allows you to distinguish between verb tenses. All verb forms, with the exception of the infinitive, participle and gerund, are always in one of these moods. In this article we will consider only the first mood.
Indicative mood – Indicativo
The indicative mood is the most commonly used. Used to compare facts and objective statements. In Spanish, the indicative mood is used in the present, past, future and conditional sentences.Estábamos, estamos, estaremos juntos. A pedazos, a ratos, a parpados, a sueños.
- Mario Benedetti.
In this quote we can observe the conjugation of the verb estar(to be) in the past ( estábamos), present ( estamos) and future ( estaremos).
Presente
In Spanish there are 3 categories of verb. They can be identified by the last two letters of the infinitive ( -ar, -er, -ir), which is the base form of the verb. U regular verbs the base remains the same, but only the ending changes. Irregular verbs are conjugated differently.
To conjugate a regular verb ending in –ar, just drop the ending –ar and add the following:
-o ( hablo)
-as ( hablas)
-a ( habla)
-amos( hablamos)
-áis ( habláis)
-an ( hablan)
To conjugate regular verb, ending with –er or –ir, just drop the ending and add one of the following:
-o ( bebo)
-es ( bebes)
-e ( bebe)
-emos (-er) / -imos (-ir) ( bebemos)
-éis (-er) / -ís (-ir) ( bebeis)
-en ( beben)
The following lines are from the poem (20 poems of love and one song of despair), one of the most famous works of the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. Here is an excerpt from poem 14, where we can see the conjugation of the regular verb llegar(to arrive) and an irregular verb jugar(play).
Juegas Todos los días con la luz del universo. Every day you play with the light of the entire universe.
Sutil visitadora, llegas en la flor y en el agua. A timid guest in the guise of either water or a flower.
Irregular Verbs Spanish are also the most frequently used, so we often encounter conjugations of these particular verbs. One of these irregular verbs is ser(to be), conjugates as:
soy,
eres
es,
somos,
sois
son.
Here are more examples:
Eres más que esta blanca cabecita que aprieto, You are more than just a silken head,
como un racimo entre mis manos cada día. which my hand caresses like a grape.
In the present tense, some verbs change vowels inside the root. Such changes occur for all persons, with the exception of nosotros and vosotros, for which the root (stem) of the regular verb is preserved. There are several variations of changes within the root, but the most common is change with i on ie. For example, verb querer(want) follows this rule:
Quiero hacer contigo. I want to do something with you
lo que la primavera hace con los cerezos. what spring does to cherries.
Preterito Perfecto
Preterito Perfecto describes an action that began in the past and continues or is repeated in the present. It can also describe an action that happened in the recent past. El Poeta a su Amada(The Poet to His Beloved) is a poem written by César Vallejo that is ideal for studying Preterito Perfecto. In Spanish, Preterito Perfecto is formed using an auxiliary verb haber(to have) in the indicative mood and past participle (with endings - ado, -ido) of the desired verb. The auxiliary verb haber and the past participle always appear together.
Amada, en esta noche tú te has crucificado sobre los dos maderos curvados de mi beso.
To form a negative sentence, add a particle no before the verb haber(auxiliary). We can see this in the following passage from the poem Vallejo, Para el Alma Imposible de mi Amada:
Amada: no has querido plasmarte jamás como lo ha pensado mi divino amor.
The past participle is formed by dropping the ending of the infinitive and replacing it with -ado or - ido. Some past participles are irregular, for example: abierto, compuesto, deshecho, resuelto, visto,escrito.
has construido tu casa you built your house
has emplumado tus pájaros you set your birds free
has golpeado al viento you curbed the wind
con tus propios huesos with your own hands
The lines above are an excerpt from Arbol de Diana(The Tree of Diana), the fourth book of poetry by Argentine poet Alejandra Pizarnik. As we see in this example, if we discard the verb endings construir, emplumar And golpear (constru-, emplum-, golpe-), we get the past participles of these regular verbs. Fortunately, the past participles of regular verbs follow a similar pattern.
Preterito and Imperfecto
Se entró de tarde en el río, She entered the river at dusk,
la sacó muerta el doctor; she was dead when the doctor pulled her out;
dicen que murió de frío, some say she died of cold,
Yo sé que murió de amor. but I know that she died of love.
This poem was written by Jose Martí. The most famous poem of Martí is La Nina de Guatemala (Girl from Guatemala). This wonderful Spanish poem is a good illustration of the times Preterito. Preterito is used to describe an action that was completed at a certain point in the past or continued for a certain amount of time in the past but has ended now.
On the other side, Imperfecto used for actions that took place in the past, but have not completed at the moment. And also to denote actions in the past, which represent a certain background for other events in the past, and to describe repeated actions in the past. There are only two types of endings for regular verbs in imperfecto: one for verbs -ar (aba, abas, aba, ábamos, abais, aban) and one for verbs with endings -er And -ir(ía, ías,ía, íamos, íais, ía, ías). Simply remove the ending from the base form of the verb (infinitive) and add the desired ending to form the verb in imperfecto.
En tus ojos peleaban las llamas del crepúsculo Twilight lightning battled in your eyes.
Y las hojas caían en el agua de tu alma And the backwater of your soul was covered with leaves.
This is another excerpt from the poem Veinte Poemas de Amor y una Canción Desesperada pen by Pablo Neruda. Poema 6 is about the memory of one autumn day and the woman whom the writer loved.
Fortunately, only three verbs are irregular in imperfecto: ser (be): era, eras, era, eramos, erais, eran; ir (go): iba, ibas,iba, íbamos, ibais, iban; And ver (see): veía, veías, veía, veíamos, veíais, veían.
Futuro Proximo and Futuro Simple
Futuro Proximo is used to express the immediate future and is translated as: “I am going to (do something).” Formed using a verb ir, conjugated in the present tense, indicative mood, preposition a, and a verb in the infinitive. Remember that the verb ir– is irregular and conjugates in the present tense as follows: voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van.
Y mientras anochece de pronto la mañana, And as soon as morning turns to night,
Yo sé que, aunque no quieras, vas a pensar en mí. I know, even without even knowing it, you will think about me.
In this excerpt from the poem Canción de la Lluvia(Rain Song) by José Ángel Buesa, we see the action of Futuro Próximo. It is formed using the verb ir in present time ( vas, second person) + a+ verb infinitive ( pensar).
Futuro Simple, on the contrary, is used to express the possibility of performing an action. Unlike Futuro Próximo, this tense requires only one word, created by adding endings to the infinitive of the verb. All verbs are conjugated to form the same endings: é ,as, á , emos, éis, on. For example:
Y tendrá un sobresalto tu corazón tranquilo, And it will strike your calm heart,
sintiendo que despierta tu ternura de ayer. feeling what awakened your tenderness from yesterday.
In the following example, the endings of the future tense are underlined. Poema del Renunciamiento(Poem of Abnegation) is written by José Ángel Buesa, a Cuban poet known for his melancholy poetry.
Pasar as por mi vida sin saber que pasaste. Pasar as en silencio por mi amor, y, al pasar, fingir é
una sonrisa, como un dulce contraste del dolor de quererte... y jamás lo sabr as.
Here are the most common ones Irregular Verbs in the future tense. The endings are formed like regular verbs, but the root changes:
caber(correspond): cabr-
poner(put): pondr-
decir(speak): dir-
haber(have): habr-
salir(leave): saldr
hacer(to do/to do): har-
poder(to be able): podr-
tener(have): tendr-
querer(want/love): querr-
valer(cost): valdr-
saber(know): sabr-
venir(come): vendr-
Next poem Todavia(Still) belongs to Mario Benedetti, Uruguayan poet. In the passage the roots are emphasized:
y si beso la osadía y el misterio de tus labios no hab rá dudas ni resabios te querré más todavía.
You can explore the world of the Spanish language, opening doors to a world filled with fascinating poetry. In the next article we will look at the 2 remaining moods (subjuntivo and imperative).
