Getting to class | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. ¿Dónde vives?

   Where do you live?

   Dónde

   where

   vives

   live

   More detail

   Dónde asks about a place or location. The accent marks it as an interrogative word in a direct question; compare donde without an accent in statements such as Vivo donde trabaja Ana (“I live where Ana works”). vives means “you live” here. It is the present-tense form of vivir for tú (informal singular “you”): yo vivo, tú vives, él/ella vive. The ending -es identifies this -ir verb form; it does not mean “you” by itself in every Spanish verb. Example: ¿Dónde estudias? — “Where do you study?” Together, ¿Dónde vives? literally asks “Where do you live?” The pattern ¿Dónde + tú-form of a verb? is reusable for asking where someone does something, such as ¿Dónde trabajas? (“Where do you work?”).

2. Vivo cerca.

   I live nearby.

   Vivo

   I live

   cerca

   nearby

   More detail

   Vivo is the first-person singular present form of vivir (“to live”): yo vivo. The subject is therefore “I,” as in the fixed translation. Example: Vivo en Madrid. — “I live in Madrid.” cerca is an adverb meaning “nearby” or “close.” It can also be followed by de to specify what something is near: Vivo cerca de aquí. — “I live near here.” Together, Vivo cerca. means “I live nearby.” The implied subject is “I,” and cerca describes the location of that living situation without stating a specific place.

3. ¿Cómo llegas aquí?

   How do you get here?

   Cómo

   how

   llegas

   you get

   aquí

   here

   More detail

   Cómo asks about the manner or means of an action: “how.” Its accent mark distinguishes the interrogative form cómo from the unstressed conjunction como in other uses. Example: ¿Cómo estudias? — “How do you study?” llegas is the present-tense form of llegar for tú (singular, informal “you”): llegar → llegas. In this question, the present can ask about your usual way of getting here or the way you are getting here. The verb llegar means “to arrive” or, with a destination, “to get to.” Example: ¿Cuándo llegas? — “When do you arrive?” aquí means “here,” referring to the place understood in the conversation. The accent mark is part of the standard spelling. Example: Trabajo aquí. — “I work here.” Together, ¿Cómo llegas aquí? asks how you get to this place. The following example gives one possible answer to the reusable pattern: ¿Cómo llegas al trabajo? — “How do you get to work?”

4. Voy en bici los días soleados.

   I ride my bike on sunny days.

   Voy

   I go / I ride

   bici

   bike

   días

   days

   soleados

   sunny

   More detail

   Voy is the first-person singular present form of ir (“to go”): ir → voy. In ir en bici, the whole expression means “to go/ride by bicycle,” so voy means “I ride” here. Example: Voy en tren. — “I go by train.” bici is a feminine noun meaning “bike” or “bicycle.” It is a shortened everyday form related to bicicleta; the fixed sentence uses bici itself. En bici is the reusable pattern for “by bike” or “on a bike.” días is the plural of the masculine noun día (“day”): día → días. With the article, los días means “the days.” Example: Trabajo los días laborables. — “I work on weekdays.” soleados is the masculine plural form of the adjective soleado (“sunny”). It agrees with masculine plural días: día soleado → días soleados. The feminine forms are soleada and soleadas, used with feminine nouns. Example: Tenemos mañanas soleadas. — “We have sunny mornings.” Together, Voy en bici means “I ride my bike,” and los días soleados specifies when: “on sunny days.” The complete utterance is “I ride my bike on sunny days.”

5. ¿Y los días de lluvia?

   What about rainy days?

   ¿Y

   What about…?

   días

   days

   lluvia

   rain

   More detail

   ¿Y introduces an additional topic: “What about …?” It connects this question with the earlier topic of sunny days without replacing that topic. Example: ¿Y los fines de semana? — “What about weekends?” días means “days” here. Its singular base form is día, and días is the plural form. The noun is masculine, as shown by los días; the accent remains on the í in the plural. Example: Los días cortos pasan rápido. — “Short days go by quickly.” lluvia means “rain.” It is a feminine noun: la lluvia. In días de lluvia, de links the days with the condition or type that characterizes them, so the phrase means “days of rain,” naturally “rainy days.” Example: No salgo con lluvia. — “I don’t go out in the rain.” Together, los días de lluvia is the noun phrase being asked about. The complete utterance ¿Y los días de lluvia? asks what applies to rainy days as an additional category, with no verb stated because the surrounding context supplies the topic. A reusable pattern is ¿Y + noun phrase?, meaning “What about + noun phrase?”

6. Tomo el autobús cuando llueve.

   I take the bus when it rains.

   Tomo

   I take

   autobús

   bus

   cuando

   when

   llueve

   it rains

   More detail

   Tomo means “I take” here. It is the first-person singular present form of tomar. The present can describe a regular or repeated action, so tomo is useful for habits as well as what is happening now. Example: Tomo el tren. — “I take the train.” autobús means “bus.” It is a masculine noun, shown here by the article el: el autobús. The written accent on the final ú is part of the Spanish spelling. Example: El autobús llega tarde. — “The bus arrives late.” cuando means “when” and introduces the time condition for the main action. It can connect a repeated situation with what happens in that situation. Example: Leo cuando tengo tiempo. — “I read when I have time.” llueve means “it rains” here. It is the third-person singular present form of llover, a verb commonly used in this weather expression. Spanish uses this singular form without naming a human or animal subject. Example: Cuando llueve, camino menos. — “When it rains, I walk less.” Together, Tomo el autobús gives “I take the bus,” and cuando llueve specifies when this happens: “when it rains.” The complete utterance is therefore “I take the bus when it rains.”