Reviewing Words with Cards | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Quiero repasar estas palabras.

   I want to review these words.

   Quiero

   I want

   repasar

   to review

   estas

   these

   palabras

   words

   More detail

   Quiero is the first-person singular present form of querer, “to want.” The ending -o identifies “I” here. Querer is followed by an infinitive to express what someone wants to do: Quiero descansar means “I want to rest.” repasar is an infinitive meaning “to review” or “to go over again.” After quiero, it names the action wanted without adding a separate subject: Quiero leer means “I want to read.” estas is the feminine plural form of the demonstrative meaning “these.” It agrees with the noun it modifies in gender and number. The masculine plural counterpart is estos; singular forms are esta and este. palabras is the plural of the feminine noun palabra, “word.” The plural ending -s marks more than one word. For example, una palabra means “one word,” while dos palabras means “two words.” Together, Quiero + repasar expresses “I want to review,” and estas palabras identifies the words being reviewed. The complete utterance is therefore “I want to review these words.”

2. Usemos estas tarjetas de palabras.

   Let's use these word cards.

   Usemos

   let’s use

   estas

   these

   tarjetas

   cards

   palabras

   words

   More detail

   Usemos means “let’s use” here. It is the first-person plural form of usar used to propose a joint action: the speaker includes themself and one or more other people. Compare uso (“I use”) and usamos (“we use” as a statement); in this utterance, usemos functions as an affirmative exhortation rather than a simple statement. estas means “these.” It is the feminine plural form of the demonstrative este, and it agrees with the feminine plural noun tarjetas. The corresponding singular form is esta (“this,” feminine), as in esta tarjeta (“this card”). tarjetas means “cards” here. Its singular base form is tarjeta; the final -s marks the plural. Tarjeta is a feminine noun, so the feminine demonstrative estas agrees with it in estas tarjetas. palabras means “words.” Its singular base form is palabra, and palabras is its plural form. In tarjetas de palabras, de links the cards to their content or type: literally, “cards of words,” naturally “word cards.” Together, Usemos estas tarjetas de palabras forms a proposal to use these word cards: “Let’s use these word cards.”

3. No puedo recordar esta palabra.

   I can't remember this one.

   No puedo

   I can't

   recordar

   remember

   esta

   this

   palabra

   word

   More detail

   No puedo combines no with puedo, the first-person singular present form of poder (“can” or “be able to”). With an infinitive after it, puedo + infinitive means “I can …”; negating it gives “I can’t …”. Example: No puedo venir. — “I can’t come.” recordar is the infinitive “to remember.” After puedo, Spanish uses the infinitive: puedo recordar means “I can remember,” while no puedo recordar means “I can’t remember.” Recordar is a stem-changing verb in some present-tense forms, but the infinitive itself does not change here. esta is the feminine singular form of the demonstrative meaning “this.” It agrees with the feminine singular noun it modifies, palabra; the masculine singular counterpart is este. In this sentence, esta palabra identifies the word being referred to as “this word,” matching the translation’s “this one.” palabra means “word.” It is a feminine singular noun, so the matching demonstrative is esta: esta palabra. Example: Esta palabra es nueva. — “This word is new.” Together, No puedo recordar esta palabra. means “I can’t remember this one,” with esta palabra making clear that “this one” refers to the word in question. The reusable pattern is No puedo + infinitive + noun phrase: “I can’t [do something to] [something].”

4. Mira la oración de ejemplo.

   Look at the example sentence.

   Mira

   Look

   oración

   sentence

   ejemplo

   example

   More detail

   Mira is the affirmative command form of mirar for tú singular: “look.” It addresses one person informally. The present indicative form is miras (“you look”), while the command is mira. Example: Mira la pantalla. — “Look at the screen.” oración means “sentence.” Its plural is oraciones. In this utterance, la oración means “the sentence,” with la marking a singular feminine noun. Example: La oración es corta. — “The sentence is short.” ejemplo means “example.” Its plural is ejemplos. In de ejemplo, it specifies the kind of sentence: “example” or “that serves as an example.” Example: Es un buen ejemplo. — “It is a good example.” Together, Mira gives the command, la oración identifies what to look at, and de ejemplo describes that sentence. The complete meaning is: “Look at the example sentence.”

5. La oración me ayuda a recordarla.

   The sentence helps me remember it.

   oración

   sentence

   ayuda

   helps

   recordarla

   remember it

   More detail

   oración means “sentence” here. It is a feminine noun, so the phrase uses la oración; the article marks grammatical gender, not a numerical quantity. The plural is oraciones. ayuda is the present-tense third-person singular form of ayudar (“to help”). The subject is la oración, so the verb is singular. A useful pattern is ayudar a + infinitive: “to help someone do something.” Here, me is the person helped, and a recordar... names what the sentence helps me do. recordarla combines the infinitive recordar (“to remember”) with the direct-object pronoun la, attached to the infinitive: recordar + la → recordarla. The pronoun is feminine singular and functions as the direct object. The fixed texts support the meaning “it,” but they do not uniquely identify the pronoun’s specific referent. Compare the separate and attached forms: Quiero recordar la oración. / Quiero recordarla. — “I want to remember the sentence.” Together, La oración is the subject, me ayuda means “helps me,” and a recordarla means “to remember it.” Thus the complete utterance means “The sentence helps me remember it.” The pattern X me ayuda a + infinitive can be reused for another thing that helps the speaker perform an action.

6. Prueba otra tarjeta y mira primero la oración de ejemplo.

   Try another card and check the example first.

   Prueba

   try

   otra

   another

   tarjeta

   card

   mira

   check

   primero

   first

   oración

   sentence

   ejemplo

   example

   More detail

   Prueba is the affirmative command form of probar for tú (singular informal “you”): “try.” It has the same stem-vowel change as pruebas; prueba is the imperative, while pruebas is the present indicative form. Example: Prueba este método. — “Try this method.” otra means “another” here. It is the feminine singular form of otro because it describes tarjeta, a feminine singular noun. Compare otro libro (“another book”) and otras tarjetas (“other cards,” feminine plural). Otra adds the idea of a different card, without itself specifying a number. tarjeta means “card.” It is a feminine noun, as shown by otra tarjeta and the article la later in the sentence. Example: Tengo una tarjeta. — “I have a card.” mira is the affirmative command form of mirar for tú (singular informal “you”): “look” or, in this context, “check.” The present indicative form is miras. Example: Mira la pantalla. — “Look at the screen.” primero is an adverb meaning “first.” It tells the listener to check the example sentence before the other relevant step or steps. As an adverb, it does not agree with oración; the masculine-looking form is used here because this is the adverb, not an adjective modifying a noun. oración means “sentence.” In this utterance it refers to the sentence being used as an example. The accent mark is part of the spelling. Example: Lee la oración. — “Read the sentence.” ejemplo means “example.” In la oración de ejemplo, de ejemplo identifies the sentence as an example sentence; de links the noun phrase to its purpose or type. Example: Es un ejemplo claro. — “It is a clear example.” Together, Prueba otra tarjeta means “Try another card,” and mira primero la oración de ejemplo means “check the example sentence first.” The two commands are joined by y (“and”), so the same listener is told to try a different card and first look at the example sentence. The complete meaning is: “Try another card and check the example first.”

7. Ahora probaré la siguiente tarjeta.

   I will try the next card now.

   Ahora

   now

   probaré

   I will try

   siguiente

   next

   tarjeta

   card

   More detail

   Ahora means “now” here and places the action in the present moment. It can also appear elsewhere in a Spanish sentence, but its basic time reference remains the same. Probaré is the first-person singular future form of probar (“to try”): probaré = “I will try.” The ending -é marks the speaker as the subject and the action as future. Probar is useful for trying an item or testing an option; intentar is another common verb for trying to carry out an action. Example: Probaré otra opción. — “I will try another option.” Siguiente means “next” in la siguiente tarjeta. It is the singular form; unlike many Spanish adjectives, siguiente does not change between masculine and feminine: el siguiente ejercicio, la siguiente tarjeta. Its plural is siguientes. Tarjeta means “card.” It is a feminine singular noun, shown here by la; the adjective also agrees in number through the singular noun phrase: la siguiente tarjeta. Example: La tarjeta es pequeña. — “The card is small.” Together, la siguiente tarjeta means “the next card,” and probaré la siguiente tarjeta means “I will try the next card.” With ahora added, the complete utterance is Ahora probaré la siguiente tarjeta. — “I will try the next card now.”

8. Lee primero la oración y luego di la palabra.

   Read the sentence first, then say the word.

   Lee

   read

   primero

   first

   la oración

   the sentence

   luego

   then

   di

   say

   la palabra

   the word

   More detail

   Lee is the affirmative command for leer addressed to one tú listener: “read.” The command form is lee, not the present-tense form lees. Example: Lee el título. — “Read the title.” primero is the adverb “first,” marking the action that should happen before the next one. It does not change for gender or number. la oración means “the sentence.” Oración is a feminine noun, so it takes the feminine singular article la. Its plural is las oraciones. Example: La oración es corta. — “The sentence is short.” luego means “then” or “afterward.” Here it orders the second action after the first one. di is the affirmative command for decir addressed to one tú listener: “say.” It is an irregular command; it is not formed as dice. In a negative command, the form is different: No digas la palabra. — “Don’t say the word.” la palabra means “the word.” Palabra is a feminine noun, so the singular article is la; its plural is las palabras. Example: Escribe la palabra. — “Write the word.” Together, Lee primero la oración gives the first instruction, and luego di la palabra gives the next one: “Read the sentence first, then say the word.” Both commands use the affirmative tú form and address one listener directly.