Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Spanish

Common Spanish Verb Tenses and Structures

• Yo había hablado: I had spoken
• Yo habré hablado: I will have spoken
• Estuve muy decepcionado: I was very disappointed
• Ella no sentiría: She wouldn't feel
• Quiero comer: I want to eat
• Me gusta comer: I like eating

Expressing Desires and the Subjunctive

• Quiero que él venga: I want him to come
• No quiero que ella viva sola: I don't want her to live alone
• Quiero que vivas aquí: I want you to live here
• ¿Intentarías...?: Would you try...?
• Cuando me haya ido: When I have gone

Time and Duration with 'Desde'

• Desde abril estoy trabajando de camarero: I have been working as a waiter since April
• Tengo amigos desde hace un mes: I have had friends for a month
• Vivo en Burgos desde 2003: I have lived in Burgos since 2003

Essential

Present Simple

Usage: Habits and facts (e.g., I eat, I dance).

• Affirmative: I eat, she sleeps.
• Negative: I don't, she doesn't sleep.
• Frequency Adverbs (before the verb): Always, usually, never, sometimes, often, hardly ever, seldom, rarely.
• Time Expressions: Every day/week/month, in the evening/morning/afternoon, at night, on Mondays, once/twice a year/month.

Present Continuous

Usage: Actions happening now (e.g., I am... -ing).

• Affirmative: I am watching.
• Negative: She is not watching.
• Time Expressions (Start): Now, at the moment, at present, just now, right now.
• Time Expressions (End): Tonight, tomorrow, next week/day, in two days, on Sunday, the day after tomorrow.

Past Simple

Usage: Completed actions (e.g., I walked, I was, I was).

• Affirmative: I ate,

Mastering English Vocabulary and Essay Writing

Essential Irregular Verbs for English Learners

• Become: Llegar a ser (become/became/become)
• Mean: Querer decir (mean/meant/meant)
• Begin: Empezar (begin/began/begun)
• Break: Romper (break/broke/broken)
• Bring: Traer (bring/brought/brought)
• Burst: Reventar/Estallar (burst/burst/burst)
• Choose: Elegir (choose/chose/chosen)
• Forget: Olvidar (forget/forgot/forgotten)
• Learn: Aprender (learn/learnt/learnt)
• Let: Permitir (let/let/let)
• Lose: Perder (lose/lost/lost)
• Ring: Llamar (ring/rang/rung)
• Say: Decir (say/said/said)
• Show: Mostrar (show/showed/shown)
• Shut: Cerrar (shut/shut/shut)
• Take: Coger (take/took/taken)
• Teach: Enseñar (teach/taught/taught)
• Encourage: Animar (regular verb)

Common English Connectors and Transition Words

• First

Subjunctive

Subjunctive

El subjuntivo se usa para dar mayor énfasis en una oración.

¿Y cómo es eso?

Por ejemplo, en español se dice: "Es importante que nosotros comamos sano".

Mientras que en inglés se dice: "It is important that we eat healthily".

Subjunctive Sentence Structure

El orden que se utiliza en este tipo de oraciones es el siguiente:

It is + adjective + that + subject + verb (base form) + complement (It's)

Common Adjectives Used with the Subjunctive

Los verbos/adjetivos que mayormente se usan en este tipo de oraciones son:

• Best
• Crucial
• Desirable
• Essential
• Imperative
• Important
• Recommended
• Urgent
• Vital

Examples with the Subjunctive

It's crucial that you pay attention to the teacher.

Es crucial que prestes atención al profesor.

It's essential that

Personality Adjectives (English and Spanish)

• Ambitious (ambicioso)
• Bossy (mandón)
• Communicative (comunicativo)
• Considerate (considerado)
• Faithful (fiel)
• Honest (honesto)
• Imaginative (imaginativo)
• Jealous (celoso)
• Logical (lógico)
• Mature (maduro)
• Organized (organizado)
• Patient (paciente)
• Possessive (posesivo)
• Reasonable (razonable)
• Responsible (responsable)
• Selfish (egoísta)
• Sensitive (sensible)
• Sociable (sociable)
• Tidy (ordenado)
• Vain (vano)

Extreme Adjectives (Standard vs. Intense)

Adjectives

Phrasal Verbs, Gerunds & Vocabulary (EN — ES)

Relationship Vocabulary (EN — ES)

• ask out: pedir salir
• be on the rebound: estar despechado
• be seeing: estar saliendo
• be through: romper
• break off: romper
• cheat on: engañar
• dump: romper (dejar a alguien)
• fancy: gustar
• have a crush on: tener un flechazo
• have a date with: tener una cita con
• have a row with: tener una discusión
• hurt: hacer daño
• on the rocks: en peligro
• split up with: separarse
• there are plenty more fish in the sea: hay más peces en el mar
• change your mind: cambiar de idea
• go stale: echarse a perder
• go through a rough patch: pasar un momento difícil
• long-term relationship: relación a largo plazo
• make a commitment: hacer una promesa / comprometerse
• run down: desprestigiar a alguien
• settle down:

Infinitives and Gerunds: Usage Rules

The Infinitive (to + Verb)

The infinitive form (to + verb) is typically used:

• After certain adjectives.
• To express purpose or explanation (e.g., to pay attention).
• With certain verbs.

The Gerund (Verb + -ing)

The gerund form (verb + -ing) is typically used:

• After prepositions.
• As the subject of a sentence.
• In fixed phrases.
• After the following verbs:

Verbs followed by the Gerund:

admit, avoid, can't help, can't stand, consider, delay, deny, detest, don't mind, enjoy, feel like, finish, give up, imagine, mention, mind, miss, practise, resent, resist, suggest, understand.

Modal Verbs: Expressing Ability, Obligation, and Possibility

Ability and Possibility

• Can: I can play the piano. (Ability)
• Be able to: Is he able to find

English Grammar Essentials

Modal Verbs and Semi-Modals

• Semi-Modals:
  • Have to (tener que): Expresses obligation.
  • Be able to (ser capaz de): Expresses ability.
• Modal Verbs:
  • Ability: Can / Could (podría, pude) / Will be able to (será capaz de).
  • Advice: Should (debería), Ought to (debería).
    • Present and Future: Should / Ought to.
    • Past (3rd form): Should have + past participle (deberías haber...).
  • Possibility:
    • Present: May (puede que...).
    • Future: Might (podría).
    • Past (3rd form): Might have + past participle (podría haber...).
  • Obligation:
    • Present and Future: Must (debes).
    • Present and Future: Have to (tienes que).

Verbs Followed by TO + Infinitive

Used after verbs expressing:

• Mental Actions: plan, forget, manage, agree, learn, promise, prepare, need, hope, decide,

Reported Speech

Conditionals

Passive Voice

English Verb Tenses: Structure & Usage

Present Simple

• Affirmative: Subject + main verb (base form).
• Negative: Subject + auxiliary verb "to do" + not + main verb (base form).
• Interrogative: Auxiliary verb "To do" + subject + main verb (base form)?

Present Continuous

• Affirmative: Subject + auxiliary verb "to be" + main verb (-ing form).
• Negative: Subject + auxiliary verb "to be" + not + main verb (-ing form).
• Interrogative: Auxiliary verb "To be" + subject + main verb (-ing form)?

Past Simple

• Affirmative: Subject + main verb (-ed or irregular past form).
• Negative: Subject + wasn't/weren't (for verb "to be") OR Subject + auxiliary verb "did" + not + main verb (base form).
• Interrogative: Auxiliary verb "Was" / "Were" + subject? (for verb "to be") OR Auxiliary