Spilled water | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Hay agua en el suelo.

   There is water on the floor.

   Hay

   there is / there are

   agua

   water

   suelo

   floor / ground

   More detail

   Hay means “there is” or “there are” when introducing something that exists in a place. It is the impersonal present form of haber, so it does not change to agree with the thing mentioned: Hay agua and Hay dos vasos both use hay. Do not confuse it with está or están, which locate a specific subject. agua means “water.” It is a mass noun here, so the sentence presents water without stating a numerical amount. Although agua is grammatically feminine, singular forms such as el agua are used in some contexts for pronunciation; this does not make the noun masculine. suelo means “floor” in this sentence. It can also mean “ground” when referring to outdoor land; the surrounding phrase determines the intended sense. Its useful plural is suelos. The location is expressed by en el suelo: en means “in/on” depending on the spatial relationship, and el is the singular masculine definite article used with suelo. Here, “on the floor” is the natural translation. Together, Hay + agua + en el suelo gives “There is water on the floor.” The following context says that it is spreading toward the door, which is compatible with agua as the thing being referred to, but the fixed sentence itself only states its presence and location.

2. Se está extendiendo hacia la puerta.

   It is spreading toward the door.

   Se está extendiendo

   is spreading

   hacia

   toward

   puerta

   door

   More detail

   Se está extendiendo means “it is spreading” here. The fixed translation identifies the subject as “it”; in this context, the sentence can describe the water mentioned earlier. Extenderse is the pronominal form meaning “to spread” or “to extend,” while extender without se can mean “to extend something” or “to spread something.” The form está is the third-person singular present of estar. With the gerund extendiendo, it forms the progressive construction estar + gerund: está extendiendo = “is spreading.” The se belongs to the verb form and is not a separate translation of “it.” hacia marks direction toward a destination or point. The reusable pattern is hacia + place: Camina hacia la salida means “He/She walks toward the exit.” Unlike a verb of arrival, hacia focuses on the direction, not necessarily on reaching the endpoint. puerta is the noun “door.” In the sentence it appears in the singular feminine phrase la puerta; the article la agrees with this noun. A useful contrast is la puerta (“the door”) versus las puertas (“the doors”). Together, Se está extendiendo describes an ongoing spreading process, and hacia la puerta gives its direction. The whole utterance therefore means “It is spreading toward the door.”

3. La botella pequeña se rompió.

   The small bottle broke.

   botella

   bottle

   pequeña

   small

   se rompió

   broke

   More detail

   botella means “bottle” here. It is a feminine singular noun: la botella (“the bottle”), las botellas (“the bottles”). A useful example is La botella está llena. — “The bottle is full.” pequeña means “small” and describes botella. The adjective is feminine singular to agree with that noun. Its base form is pequeño; compare pequeña, pequeños, and pequeñas according to the noun’s gender and number. Example: un vaso pequeño — “a small glass.” se rompió means “broke” in this sentence. The verb is romperse, used here for something that breaks; rompió is the preterite form for a third-person singular subject, and se is part of this pronominal use. This wording presents the bottle as the thing that broke, without stating who or what caused it. Example: El vaso se rompió. — “The glass broke.” Together, La botella pequeña means “the small bottle,” and se rompió says that it broke. The complete utterance is therefore “The small bottle broke.”

4. Voy a buscar una toalla seca.

   I will get a dry towel.

   Voy a

   I am going to

   buscar

   get

   toalla

   towel

   seca

   dry

   More detail

   Voy a combines the present-tense form voy of ir (“I go”) with a and an infinitive to express a planned or imminent action: voy a + infinitive. Here, voy is first-person singular, so the subject is “I.” Example: Voy a descansar. — “I’m going to rest.” buscar is the infinitive meaning “to look for” or, in this context, “to get.” Its form does not mark the subject or time by itself; voy a supplies the first-person planned-action meaning. Example: Voy a buscar las llaves. — “I’m going to look for the keys.” toalla is a feminine noun meaning “towel.” Its plural is toallas. The neighboring article and adjective therefore use feminine singular forms here: una toalla. Una is an indefinite article; in this sentence it does not by itself assert a numerical count beyond introducing an unspecified towel. seca is the feminine singular form of the adjective seco, meaning “dry.” It agrees with the feminine singular noun toalla; the masculine singular form is seco, and the plural forms are secos and secas according to the noun’s grammatical gender. Example: Necesito una camisa seca. — “I need a dry shirt.” Together, Voy a buscar expresses the speaker’s planned action, and una toalla seca identifies what the speaker will get: an unspecified dry towel. The complete meaning is “I will get a dry towel.”

5. ¿Puedes mover la bolsa primero?

   Can you move the bag first?

   Puedes

   you can

   mover

   move

   bolsa

   bag

   primero

   first

   More detail

   Puedes is the present-tense tú form of poder, “to be able to” or “can.” In this question, it asks whether the listener can or is willing to do something; it is not an imperative. Poder is followed by an infinitive: ¿Puedes + infinitive...? Example: ¿Puedes esperar? — “Can you wait?” mover is the infinitive “to move.” After puedes, it names the action being requested. The infinitive does not show the actor here; puedes identifies the listener as the person who would move something. Example: Quiero mover la mesa. — “I want to move the table.” bolsa is a feminine noun meaning “bag.” In the utterance, la bolsa means “the bag”: la is the feminine singular definite article agreeing with bolsa. The article presents the bag as identifiable in the situation; it does not itself state a numerical quantity. Example: La bolsa está aquí. — “The bag is here.” primero is an adverb meaning “first.” It places moving the bag before another action or step; it does not mean that the bag is first. The same form can also be an adjective in other sentences, where it agrees with a noun, but here it modifies the action mover. Together, ¿Puedes mover la bolsa primero? uses the reusable pattern ¿Puedes + infinitive + object + adverb? The question asks the listener to move the bag first, before another relevant action. The fixed meaning is therefore “Can you move the bag first?”

6. La pondré en la silla.

   I will put it on the chair.

   La

   it (feminine object)

   pondré

   I will put

   silla

   chair

   More detail

   La is a feminine singular direct-object clitic: it means “it” when the thing being placed is feminine singular. In the supplied context, it refers to la bolsa (“the bag”). The initial capital letter is required because the sentence begins with this word; the clitic itself is normally written la. Compare lo for a masculine singular direct object and las for a feminine plural one. pondré comes from the verb poner, “to put/place.” It is the first-person singular future form: pondré = “I will put/place.” The future stem is irregular (pondr-), and the accent marks the final stressed syllable. For example, Pondré el libro aquí means “I will put the book here.” silla is the noun “chair.” Its usual article is feminine singular la: la silla, “the chair.” The word itself stays silla here; the feminine marking is shown by the article, not by a change to the noun. A plural example is las sillas, “the chairs.” The remaining words connect the placement: en introduces the location, and la silla means “the chair.” Together, La pondré en la silla has the pattern [direct-object clitic] + [first-person future verb] + en + [location]. Thus the speaker says that they will put the feminine singular object, understood here as the bag, on the chair.

7. Entonces podemos limpiar el suelo.

   Then we can clean the floor.

   Entonces

   then

   podemos

   we can

   limpiar

   clean

   suelo

   floor

   More detail

   Entonces means “then” here, linking this statement to what came before. It can mark a consequence or a point in time; in this sentence, the fixed translation supports the linking meaning “then.” podemos is the first-person plural present form of poder: podemos = “we can.” It expresses that the speaker and at least one other person have the ability or possibility to do something. Poder is commonly followed by an infinitive: Podemos esperar. — “We can wait.” limpiar is the infinitive “to clean.” After podemos, it remains in the infinitive rather than changing to agree with the subject: podemos limpiar = “we can clean.” Other useful forms include limpio (“I clean” or “I am cleaning,” depending on context) and limpiamos (“we clean” or “we cleaned,” depending on context). suelo is the masculine singular noun “floor” in this sentence, as shown by the preceding el. Spanish suelo can also refer to “ground” or “soil” in other contexts, but the fixed translation identifies “floor” here. El suelo está limpio. — “The floor is clean.” Together, Entonces podemos limpiar el suelo means “Then we can clean the floor.” The pattern podemos + infinitive is reusable for saying what “we” can do, and el suelo identifies the thing being cleaned.

8. La bolsa se quedará seca allí.

   The bag will stay dry there.

   bolsa

   bag

   se quedará

   will stay

   seca

   dry

   allí

   there

   More detail

   bolsa means “bag” here. It is a feminine singular noun, as shown by la bolsa; a useful plural is las bolsas. The feminine marking belongs to the noun phrase, not to the English meaning of “bag.” se quedará means “will stay/remain.” The base verb is quedarse, used here with se as a pronominal verb. quedará is the third-person singular future form: “will stay.” For example, El libro se quedará aquí means “The book will stay here.” seca means “dry” and describes la bolsa. It is the feminine singular form of the adjective seco; compare seco with a masculine singular noun and secas with a feminine plural noun. Its feminine singular form agrees with bolsa, not with the verb. allí means “there,” referring to a place away from the speaker. It is an adverb, so it does not change for gender or number. For example, La bolsa está allí means “The bag is there.” Together, La bolsa identifies the subject, se quedará says that it will remain in that state, seca gives the state, and allí gives the location. The complete meaning is “The bag will stay dry there.”