I. Vocabulario nuevo / New Vocabulary
yo – I él – he
tú – you [singular, informal] ella – she
usted – you [singular, formal]
nosotros – we [masculine] ustedes – you [plural, formal]
nosotras – we [feminine] ellos – they [masculine]
vosotros – you [masculine plural, informal] ellas – they [feminine]
vosotras – you [feminine plural, informal]
ser – to be ¡Hablen! – Speak! [plural command]
¡No esperen! – Don’t wait! [plural command]
alto – tall accidental – accidental
simpático – nice usual – usual
antipático – unfriendly normal – normal
guapo – good-looking optimista – optimistic
bonito – pretty pesimista – pessimistic
feo – ugly activo – active
joven – young responsable – responsible
viejo – old
largo – long embarazada – pregnant
corto – short in length elegante – elegant
grande – big excelente – excellent
pequeño – small fantástico –
fantastic
avergonzado – embarrassed
el accidente – accident el taxi – taxi
la cuestión – question, issue el teléfono – telephone
la pregunta – question el colegio – high school
Lesson
3
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Learning Spanish: How to Understand and Speak a New Language
la persona – person el amigo – male friend
el vecino – male neighbor la amiga – female friend
la vecina – female neighbor el novio – boyfriend
el hombre – man la novia – girlfriend
la mujer – woman
y – and sí – yes
o – or no – no, not
pero – but ahora – now
II. Repaso general / General Review
A. Improving Your Ability to Speak
It’s important as a beginning language learner that you take every opportunity to speak Spanish. Don’t wait until you’ve
learned more vocabulary and grammar. ¡Hablen español ahora! [“Speak Spanish now!”] The best way to improve
your spoken Spanish is to speak more.
B. Subject Pronouns
The singular subject pronouns in Spanish are yo – I; tú – you [singular, informal]; usted – you [singular, formal];
él – he; and ella – she. The plural subject pronouns are nosotros – we [masculine]; nosotras – we [feminine];
vosotros – you [masculine plural, informal]; vosotras – you [feminine plural, informal]; ustedes – you [plural, formal];
ellos – they [masculine]; and ellas – they [feminine].
The informal, singular way to say “you” is tú; the formal, singular way to say “you” is usted. If you’re speaking to a
family member, a friend, or someone else you’re well acquainted with, you’ll probably use tú. You’ll use usted when
talking with someone you have a formal relationship with or with someone you don’t know well. If you’re not sure which
pronoun to use, it’s better to use usted, because using the informal tú can be seen as rude by someone you don’t
know well.
The vosotros and vosotras forms, which are plural, informal ways to say “you,” are used only in Spain. In Latin America,
the plural of tú is ustedes and the plural of usted is ustedes; vosotros and vosotras are never used in Latin America.
The pronouns nosotros, vosotros, and ellos are used when referring to a group of all men or a mixed group of men
and women. Even a group of many women and just one man would be referred to with these masculine pronouns. The
pronouns nosotras, vosotras,
and ellas are used only when every member of the group is female.
C. The Verb ser
The infinitive form, which is the verb form found in the dictionary, of all Spanish verbs ends in -ar, -er, or -ir. Ser, the
infinitive form meaning “to be,” has the following six forms in the present tense: soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son.
Conjugating a verb means giving its proper verb forms for different subjects in a given tense. Ser is conjugated with
the subject pronouns in the present tense as follows.
Ser with singular subject pronouns: yo soy; tú eres; usted, él, or ella es
Ser with plural subject pronouns: nosotros or nosotras somos; vosotros or vosotras sois;
ustedes, ellos, or ellas son
Any singular subject that is not yo or tú uses the verb form es (e.g., La clase es importante).
Any plural subject that is not nosotros, nosotras, vosotros, or vosotras uses the verb form son (e.g., Los amigos
son optimistas).
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Lesson 3—Subject Pronouns and the Verb Ser
Ser is used 1) to identify a person or thing (Ella es Claudia); 2) to talk about one’s profession (Son doctores), origin,
or nationality (Roberto es de Chile); or 3) to describe inherent characteristics of someone or something (Carla es
inteligente; El hotel es elegante.).
D. Cognates
Spanish and English share many cognates, which are words that are the same or similar in two languages. Sometimes
Spanish cognates are spelled the same as the word in English: normal, hotel, usual. Other Spanish cognates are
spelled similar to, but not the same as, the word in English: activo, responsable, excelente. Your comprehension of
Spanish will improve if you listen for cognates when conversing and look for them when reading.
Occasionally, a Spanish word will look like an English word but mean something else. These words are called false
cognates. Examples include largo (which looks like “large” but means “long”)
and colegio (which looks like “college”
but means “high school”). False cognates, however, are relatively rare compared to the vast number of cognates
shared by English and Spanish.
E. Adjectives
Adjectives in Spanish must agree in number and gender with the noun being modified. So, if the subject is masculine
singular, the adjective must also be masculine singular, and if the subject is feminine plural, the adjective must also be
feminine plural.
Adjectives ending in -o have four forms. For example, viejo, meaning “old,” has the following four forms: viejo
(masculine singular); vieja (feminine singular); viejos (masculine plural); viejas (feminine plural).
Adjectives ending in -e have two forms, as can be seen in responsable (masculine and feminine singular) and
responsables (masculine and feminine plural).
Adjectives ending in -ista have two forms, as can be seen in pesimista (masculine and feminine singular) and
pesimistas (masculine and feminine plural).
III. Actividades / Activities
a. Decide si debes dirigirte a las siguientes personas de una manera formal o informal. / Decide if you should address
the following people in a formal or informal way.
1. You are about to call your friend to ask him to watch the game with you. ________________________________
2. Your uncle wants to borrow your car.____________________________________________________________
3. Your boss just sent you an email. ______________________________________________________________
4. Your neighbor is inviting you to a gathering on Saturday. ____________________________________________
5. The CEO of the company is entering the room.____________________________________________________
6. You just met someone._______________________________________________________________________
7. The President of the United States is coming to your town. __________________________________________
8. You and your sister are going to celebrate her birthday. _____________________________________________
9. Someone called and it was a wrong number. _____________________________________________________
10. You meet a random person at the supermarket. __________________________________________________
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Learning Spanish: How to Understand and Speak a New Language
b. Alejandra está hablando sobre su familia con su vecina Cecilia. / Alejandra is talking about her family with her
neighbor Cecilia.
Agrega la conjugación correcta del verbo ser. / Add the correct conjugation of the verb ser.
1. Carlos __________ mi esposo [my husband].
2. Pablo ___________ mi hijo [son].
3. Marisol _________ mi hija [daughter].
4. Pablo y Marisol _________ mis hijos [children].
5. Yo __________ la esposa [wife] de Carlos.
6. Yo __________ la madre [mother] de Pablo y Marisol.
7. Nosotros __________ la familia González Fallas.
8. Carlos ________ el padre [father] de Pablo y Marisol.
9. ¿De dónde ________ usted y Luis?
c. La familia González Fallas continúa conociendo a los miembros de su nuevo vecindario en Villa Celeste. / The
González Fallas family continues to meet the members of their new neighborhood in Villa Celeste.
Completa el diálogo entre Alejandra, Luisa, Pablo y Marisol usando el verbo ser y palabras para saludarse y
presentarse. / Complete the dialogue between Alejandra, Luisa, Pablo, and Marisol using the verb ser and words to
greet others and introduce oneself.
Alejandra: ¡Hola! Me 1) _________________ Alejandra.
Luisa: Mucho 2) ________________. 3)________________Luisa.
Alejandra: Le 4) ________________ a Pablo. Él 5)________________ mi hijo.
Luisa: ¡Encantada! Mi nombre 6)_________________ Luisa.
Pablo: 7)_______________. Ella 8)_______________ mi hermana Marisol.
Marisol: ¿Qué tal?
Luisa: 9) ¡______________ bien, gracias!
Luisa: Le 10) __________________ mi hija Elena. Ella 11) _____________ estudiante de la universidad.
Marisol: 12) ¡_______________ gusto!
Elena: Igualmente. Erica y Felipe 13) _______________ mis hermanos.
d. Elena está hablando con Marisol. / Elena is talking with Marisol.
¿Qué pronombres personales necesita Elena para hablar de…? / What subject pronouns does Elena need to talk
