Coffee During a Break | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: During a classroom break, two adults talk about coffee, sugar, and milk when milk is not available..

EN → ES / Level: A1

About This Lesson

Use Coffee During a Break to practice Spanish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

¿Quieres café?

KYEH-rehs kah-FEH Do you want coffee?
B

Sí, por favor. Solo una taza pequeña.

SEE, por fah-VOR. SOH-loh OO-nah TAH-sah peh-KEH-nyah. Yes, please. Just a small cup.
A

Aquí tienes.

ah-KEE TYEH-nehs. Here you are.
B

Huele bien.

WEH-leh BYEHN. It smells nice.
A

¿Necesitas azúcar?

neh-seh-SEE-tahs ah-SOO-kahr? Do you need sugar?
B

No, solo leche, por favor.

NOH, SOH-loh LEH-cheh, por fah-VOR. No, just milk, please.
A

Lo siento, no hay leche.

loh SYEHN-toh, noh eye LEH-cheh. Sorry, there is no milk.
B

Está bien.

eh-STAH BYEHN. That is okay.

Word by Word

Quieres “Quieres” asks one person whether they want something, as in “¿Quieres café?”. It is useful in the pattern “¿Quieres + something?” when offering a drink, food, or another item.
café “café” means coffee in “¿Quieres café?”. It names the drink being offered and can be used after “¿Quieres?” when offering coffee to someone.
Sí “Sí” means yes and gives an affirmative answer in “Sí, por favor.” It is useful when accepting an offer or agreeing with a question.
por favor The whole expression “por favor” means please and makes “Sí” sound polite when accepting the coffee. Inside this fixed expression, “por” and “favor” work together as a polite request or response; the phrase is commonly placed after a request or acceptance.
Solo “Solo” means just or only and limits the request to “una taza pequeña” in “Solo una taza pequeña.” It is useful before a noun or noun phrase when specifying that the amount or choice should be limited.
una “una” means a or one in “una taza pequeña”, introducing one cup. It comes before “taza” and uses the form that matches this noun; “una + noun” is a common way to refer to one item.
taza “taza” means cup in “una taza pequeña”. It identifies the container requested for the coffee and is useful when asking for or describing a cup of a drink.
pequeña “pequeña” means small and describes “taza” in “una taza pequeña”. It follows the noun here and matches it, so the phrase specifies a small cup.
Aquí “Aquí” means here in “Aquí tienes”. It points to the item being offered or handed over and is useful when giving something to another person.
tienes In “Aquí tienes”, “tienes” contributes the idea of having or holding the item being offered, while the whole expression means here you are. “Aquí tienes” is a useful phrase when handing something to someone.
Huele “Huele” says that something smells a certain way in “Huele bien”. Here it comments on the coffee’s smell, and the expression is useful when describing how something smells.
bien “bien” means well or nicely in “Huele bien”, giving a positive evaluation of the smell. Together with “Huele”, it is useful for saying that something has a pleasant smell.
Necesitas “Necesitas” asks one person whether they need something, as in “¿Necesitas azúcar?”. It is useful in the pattern “¿Necesitas + something?” when checking what another person requires.
azúcar “azúcar” means sugar in “¿Necesitas azúcar?”. It names the ingredient being offered, and it can follow “¿Necesitas?” when asking whether someone wants or needs sugar.
No “No” is the answer meaning no in “No, solo leche, por favor.” The lowercase “no” in “no hay leche” negates the statement and means there is no milk; “no” is therefore useful both as a negative answer and before a verb to make a statement negative.
leche “leche” means milk in both “solo leche” and “no hay leche”. It names the drink ingredient requested in the first phrase and the unavailable ingredient in the second.
Lo siento The whole expression “Lo siento” means sorry and is used here to apologize for the missing milk. Within this fixed phrase, “Lo” refers to what is regretted and “siento” expresses the speaker’s feeling; the expression is useful when giving an apology after bad news or an inconvenience.
hay “hay” expresses that something exists or is available in “no hay leche”; with “no”, the phrase says that milk is not available. The reusable pattern “hay + noun” states that something is present, while “no hay + noun” states that it is absent.
Está “Está” links the situation to the state expressed by “bien” in “Está bien”, meaning that it is okay. “Está bien” is useful for accepting an apology, showing that a problem is not serious, or saying that a situation is acceptable.

Grammar Points

hay + sustantivo

Hay café.

eye kah-FEH.

There is coffee.

Hay means “there is” and “there are”; it does not change according to whether the noun is singular or plural.

oler + bien

Huele bien.

WEH-leh BYEHN.

It smells good.

Spanish uses the adverb bien after huele, while English uses the adjective “good” in this expression.

Spanish Vocabulary

aquí adv
ah-KEE here

Aquí tienes.

bien adv
BYEHN well; nicely

Huele bien.

café noun
kah-FEH coffee

¿Quieres café?

huele verb
WEH-leh smells

Huele bien.

necesitas verb
neh-seh-SEE-tahs need

¿Necesitas azúcar?

pequeña adj
peh-KEH-nyah small

una taza pequeña

por favor phrase
por fah-VOR please

Sí, por favor.

quieres verb
KYEH-rehs want

¿Quieres café?

sí intj
SEE yes

Sí, por favor.

solo adv
SOH-loh just; only

Solo una taza pequeña.

taza noun
TAH-sah cup

Solo una taza pequeña.

tienes verb
TYEH-nehs have; here you are

Aquí tienes.

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Do you want coffee?

Show Answer¿Quieres café?

Here you are.

Show AnswerAquí tienes.

It smells nice.

Show AnswerHuele bien.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

want

Show Answerquieres

have; here you are

Show Answertienes

here

Show Answeraquí

just; only

Show Answersolo