Breakfast shopping | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: In a grocery shop, two adults decide which breakfast items to buy for tomorrow..

EN → ES / Level: A1

About This Lesson

Use Breakfast shopping to practice Spanish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

¿Qué debemos comprar hoy?

keh deh-BEH-mohs kohm-PRAHR oy What should we buy today?
B

Necesitamos cosas para el desayuno de mañana.

neh-seh-see-TAH-mohs KOH-sahs PAH-rah ehl deh-sah-YOO-noh deh mah-NYAH-nah We need things for tomorrow's breakfast.
A

Entonces necesitamos pan y mantequilla.

ehn-TOHN-sehs neh-seh-see-TAH-mohs pahn ee mahn-teh-KEE-yah Then we need bread and butter.
B

¿También necesitamos yogur?

tahm-BYEHN neh-seh-see-TAH-mohs yoh-GOOR Do we need yogurt too?
A

Quiero comerlo con mermelada de fresa.

KYEH-roh koh-MEHR-loh kohn mehr-meh-LAH-dah deh FREH-sah I want to eat it with strawberry jam.
B

Entonces, vamos a comprar yogur y mermelada.

ehn-TOHN-sehs BAH-mohs ah kohm-PRAHR yoh-GOOR ee mehr-meh-LAH-dah Then let's get yogurt and jam.

Word by Word

Qué “Qué” asks what is being considered in the question “¿Qué debemos comprar hoy?”. It is used before the rest of a question to ask for a thing or choice, such as when deciding what to buy. In this dialogue, the shopper uses it to ask which items they should purchase.
debemos “Debemos” expresses what the speakers should or need to do here: they should buy something. It is a form of deber and is followed by the infinitive “comprar”. This form is useful when making a shared decision about a necessary action.
comprar “Comprar” means to buy in “¿Qué debemos comprar hoy?”. It is an infinitive after “debemos”, so the action is presented without a separate subject form. Use it when talking about purchasing food or other items.
hoy “Hoy” means today and sets the shopping time in “comprar hoy”. It is commonly placed near the action or at the end of a sentence to say that something happens on the current day. Here, the shopper is deciding what to buy during today’s visit.
Necesitamos “Necesitamos” means we need in “Necesitamos cosas para el desayuno de mañana.” It is a form of necesitar used with the things that are needed. In a shopping situation, it can introduce the items required for a meal or plan.
cosas “Cosas” means things or items, referring generally to the groceries needed for breakfast. It is the plural of cosa and is used here after “Necesitamos”. This word is useful when the speaker does not list the items immediately or wants to refer to several items together.
para “Para” shows that the things are intended for “el desayuno de mañana”, so it means for in this context. It appears before the noun phrase that gives the purpose or intended use. Here, it connects the groceries with the breakfast they are meant to provide.
el “El” means the and introduces “desayuno” in “el desayuno de mañana”. It is used before a specific noun phrase referring to the breakfast under discussion. In this dialogue, it helps identify the planned meal.
desayuno “Desayuno” means breakfast in “el desayuno de mañana”. It names the meal for which the speakers are shopping. It can be used after a determiner such as “el” when referring to a particular breakfast.
de “De” links “desayuno” with “mañana” in “el desayuno de mañana”, identifying which breakfast is meant. Here it expresses a relationship between a noun and the time associated with it. This use is helpful when specifying a noun by a person, thing, or time.
mañana “Mañana” means tomorrow in “el desayuno de mañana”. It identifies the future day connected with the breakfast, rather than the current shopping day. Use it when planning something for the next day.
Entonces “Entonces” means then and marks the next step that follows from what was just said. It introduces the decision to buy bread and butter after identifying the breakfast needs. In conversation, it is useful for moving from a reason or conclusion to an action.
pan “Pan” means bread, one of the items the speakers decide they need. It appears after “necesitamos” as the direct item required for breakfast. Use it when naming bread as a food item in a shopping list or meal plan.
y “Y” means and and joins “pan” with “mantequilla”. It connects two items in the same list or statement. Here, it lets the speaker name both breakfast groceries together.
mantequilla “Mantequilla” means butter, the second grocery item in “pan y mantequilla”. It is joined to the first item with “y”. In this dialogue, it is used when listing foods to buy for breakfast.
También “También” means also or too in “¿También necesitamos yogur?”. It adds yogurt to the items that may be needed, rather than introducing a completely separate question. This word is useful when adding another item, person, or fact to something already mentioned.
yogur “Yogur” means yogurt, first as a possible additional need and later as an item to buy. It appears after “necesitamos” in the question and after “comprar” in the decision. In a grocery conversation, it names the specific food being considered.
Quiero “Quiero” means I want and expresses the speaker’s desire in “Quiero comerlo con mermelada de fresa.” It is a form of querer followed here by the infinitive “comerlo”. Use it to state a desired action or preference, such as how the speaker wants to eat something.
comerlo “Comerlo” means to eat it; in this dialogue, “lo” refers to the yogurt being discussed. The form combines the action “comer” with the object pronoun “lo”, which is attached to the infinitive. This pattern is useful when stating what someone wants to do with a specific item.
con “Con” means with and shows the food combination in “comerlo con mermelada de fresa”. It is placed before the noun phrase that accompanies or is added to the action. Here, it explains that the yogurt is to be eaten with strawberry jam.
mermelada “Mermelada” means jam in “mermelada de fresa”. The words “de fresa” specify that this is strawberry jam, while “mermelada” names the food itself. In this dialogue, it is a grocery item and an accompaniment for the yogurt.
fresa “Fresa” means strawberry in “mermelada de fresa”. It identifies the type or flavor of the jam through the phrase “de fresa”. This pattern is useful when naming a food together with its ingredient or flavor.
vamos “Vamos” helps form the suggestion “vamos a comprar”, meaning let’s buy in this dialogue. It is a form of ir, and together with “a” and “comprar” it proposes a shared action. Use this expression when inviting another person to do something together.
a “A” links “vamos” to the infinitive “comprar” in “vamos a comprar”. Together, these words form the structure used to suggest or plan the action of buying. This pattern is useful for proposing a shared activity or referring to a planned action.

Grammar Points

deber + infinitivo

¿Qué debemos comprar hoy?

keh deh-BEH-mohs kohm-PRAHR oy

What should we buy today?

Use deber + an infinitive to say that someone should or ought to do something.

vamos a + infinitivo

Vamos a comprar pan y mantequilla.

BAH-mohs ah kohm-PRAHR pahn ee mahn-teh-KEE-yah

Let's buy bread and butter.

Use vamos a + an infinitive to suggest an action or say what we are going to do.

Spanish Vocabulary

comprar verb
kohm-PRAHR to buy
cosa noun
KOH-sah thing cosas
deber verb
deh-BEHR should; ought to debemos
desayuno noun
deh-sah-YOO-noh breakfast
entonces adv
ehn-TOHN-sehs then
hoy adv
oy today
mañana adv
mah-NYAH-nah tomorrow

el desayuno de mañana

necesitar verb
neh-seh-see-TAHR to need necesitamos
pan noun
pahn bread
para prep
PAH-rah for
qué pron
keh what

¿Qué debemos comprar hoy?

y conj
ee and

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

What should we buy today?

Show Answer¿Qué debemos comprar hoy?

Then we need bread and butter.

Show AnswerEntonces necesitamos pan y mantequilla.

Do we need yogurt too?

Show Answer¿También necesitamos yogur?

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

to buy

Show Answercomprar

tomorrow

Show Answermañana

for

Show Answerpara

breakfast

Show Answerdesayuno