Content

• To step

Have you just started learning Spanish? Below you will find a short conversation. You will find its pronunciation, translation and explanation and it is a good start to learning Spanish.

To step

1. Say hello. There are several ways you can say this. The most common is "Hola!" (Oh-la), which you probably learned from Dora when you were little.
   • While this is short and simple, you can add longer words to show that you already know a little more Spanish. Try "buenos días!" (Bwe-nos di-as), which means "Good morning!" Similarly, you can use "Buenas tardes!" (Bwe-nas tar-des) in the afternoon, "good afternoon!". So the greetings change according to the time of day.
2. Asking someone's name is done like this: "¿Cómo te llamas? (co-mo te lja-mas).
3. Give your name. To say "My name is ______" you say "Me llamo ____" (me lja-mo). You say your name where the lines are, for example "Me llamo Teresa".
4. Tell someone you enjoy meeting them. Say "Mucho gusto" (mu-tsjo goes-to) for "nice to meet you." Literally it means "great pleasure". They can then reply with "Igualmente!" (Ig-wal-men-te) or "El gusto es mío" (el goes-to es mi-o). The first answer means "Nice to meet you too" (literally "Similar") and the second means "The pleasure is mine".
5. Ask someone where he / she is from. People will often ask this like this: "De dónde eres?" (The don-de e-res).
6. Tell where you come from. You answer this question with "Yo soy de _______ (jo soj de). You can place your land on the open line. Belgium is "Bélgica" and the Netherlands is "Los Países Bajos".
7. Ask someone how they are doing. You can ask this like this: "Cómo estas?" (Co-mo es bag). This means "How are you?"
8. Answer this by saying "Yo estoy ____". You can give different answers to the question above. You use "Yo estoy" (I am going / am _____). On the line you can say: "bien" (bjen), which means good; "Feliz" (fe-liz), meaning happy, "mal" meaning bad, "cansado" meaning tired, and "enfermo" meaning sick.
9. Ask someone how old he / she is. Then ask "Cuantos años tienes?" Which literally means "How many years have you got?" You pronounce this like this: "kwan-tos an-jos tje-nes".
10. Tell us how old you are. Of course you answer this question with a number. You can find the translation of the numbers in the dictionary.
11. When is your birthday? You ask this like this: "Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?" (Kwan-do es toe koem-ple-jan-jos).
12. Tell someone when your birthday is! You tell your birthday by answering "Es el ____ de ___". On the first line, say the date, such as the second (dos), the thirty-first (treinta y uno), or the nineteenth (diecinueve). Look in the dictionary to find the translation of the numbers. On the second line you say the month, such as July (julio), August (agosto) or March (marzo). You can also use the dictionary to translate the months.
13. Say goodbye when you leave. Most people know how to say "goodbye" when you leave in Spanish: "Adios!". In the evening or at night you say "¡Buenas noches!" (Good evening or good night). You pronounce it bwe-nas no-tsjes.
14. Practice your skills by translating the following conversation between Roberto and Maria into English, without using the guide above. Try to do this using only what you have memorized.
    • Roberto: ¡Hola!
    • Maria: ¡Buenos días!
    • Roberto: ¿Cómo te llamas?
    • Maria: Me llamo María. ¿Y tú?
    • Roberto: Me llamo Roberto. Mucho gusto.
    • Maria: ¡El gusto es mío! ¿De dónde eres?
    • Roberto: Yo soy de España. ¿Y tú?
    • Maria: Yo soy the Honduras. ¿Cómo estás?
    • Roberto: Estoy feliz.¿Y tú?
    • Maria: Estoy bien, gracias. ¿Cuántos años tienes?
    • Roberto: Quince años. ¿Y tú?
    • Maria: Catorce. ¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?
    • Roberto: Es el dos de abril. ¿Y el tuyo?
    • Maria: Es el once de junio. ¡Adiós!
    • Roberto: ¡Buenas noches!