Talking About a Sore Back | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: At home, two adults talk about a sore back, sitting more comfortably, and standing up slowly..

EN → ES / Level: A1

About This Lesson

Use Talking About a Sore Back to practice Spanish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Me duele la espalda.

meh DWEH-leh lah ehs-PAHL-dah. My back feels sore.
B

Intenta sentarte con la espalda recta.

een-TEHN-tah sehn-TAR-teh kohn lah ehs-PAHL-dah REHK-tah. Try to sit up straight.
A

Hoy pasé demasiado tiempo sentado.

OY pah-SEH deh-mah-SYAH-doh TYEHM-poh sehn-TAH-doh. I sat too long today.
B

Estírate despacio si puedes.

ehs-TEE-rah-teh dehs-PAH-syoh see PWEH-dehs. Stretch slowly if you can.
A

Esta silla es más cómoda.

EHS-tah SEE-yah ehs MAHS KOH-moh-dah. This chair feels better.
B

Quédate ahí unos minutos.

KEH-dah-teh ah-EE OO-nohs mee-NOO-tohs. Stay there for a few minutes.
A

Un descanso corto debería ayudar.

oon dehs-KAHN-soh KOR-toh deh-beh-REE-ah ah-yoo-DAR. A short rest should help.
B

Muévete despacio cuando te levantes.

MWEH-beh-teh dehs-PAH-syoh KWAHN-doh teh leh-BAHN-tehs. Move slowly when you stand up.

Word by Word

Me In “Me duele la espalda”, “Me” marks the person who is experiencing the pain: the speaker. The reusable pattern “Me duele + body part” tells what part of the body hurts.
duele In “Me duele la espalda”, “duele” means “hurts” and describes the pain being felt. It is used with the body part that hurts, such as “la espalda” here.
la In “la espalda”, “la” means “the” and comes before the body part being mentioned. Use it before a singular noun such as “espalda” in this expression.
espalda “Espalda” means “back”; here it is the body part that hurts in “Me duele la espalda”. You can use it after “Me duele” to say that your back hurts.
Intenta “Intenta” gives direct advice to try something, here in “Intenta sentarte con la espalda recta”. A useful pattern is “Intenta + infinitive” when suggesting an action.
sentarte In “Intenta sentarte”, “sentarte” means “to sit down”, with “te” referring to the person being addressed. It follows “Intenta” to name the action being suggested.
con In “con la espalda recta”, “con” means “with” and introduces the posture or condition to maintain. Here it connects sitting with having “la espalda recta”.
recta In “la espalda recta”, “recta” means “straight” and describes the back. It gives the posture to use while sitting in “Intenta sentarte con la espalda recta”.
Hoy “Hoy” means “today” and places “pasé demasiado tiempo sentado” on the current day. It can be placed at the beginning to say when something happened.
pasé In “Hoy pasé demasiado tiempo sentado”, “pasé” means “I spent” and describes the speaker’s time in that situation. It is used with an amount of time, such as “demasiado tiempo”.
demasiado In “demasiado tiempo”, “demasiado” means “too much” and makes the amount excessive, giving the sentence the meaning “too long”. It comes before the amount or noun it modifies here.
tiempo “Tiempo” means “time”; in “pasé demasiado tiempo sentado”, it is the amount of time the speaker spent sitting. A common pattern is “pasar tiempo + describing activity or state”.
sentado In “pasé demasiado tiempo sentado”, “sentado” describes being seated. It tells what state the speaker was in during the time mentioned.
Estírate “Estírate” is an instruction to stretch, directed at the person being addressed. The attached “te” makes the action refer to that person’s own body, as in “Estírate despacio”.
despacio “Despacio” means “slowly” and describes how the person should stretch in “Estírate despacio”. It can be used after an action to describe the manner of doing it.
si In “si puedes”, “si” means “if” and introduces a condition for the advice “Estírate despacio”. It is used before the situation that must be possible or true.
puedes In “si puedes”, “puedes” means “you can” and says that the action is possible for the person addressed. Together, “si puedes” makes the advice conditional.
Esta “Esta” means “this” and points to the chair being referred to in “Esta silla”. It comes before the noun to identify a nearby or currently relevant thing.
silla “Silla” means “chair”; in “Esta silla es más cómoda”, it is the thing being compared for comfort. It can follow “Esta” when pointing out a particular chair.
es In “Esta silla es más cómoda”, “es” links the chair with the description “más cómoda”, meaning that the chair is or feels more comfortable. It connects a subject with a quality.
más In “más cómoda”, “más” means “more” and forms a comparison. Here it shows that this chair is more comfortable than the other sitting option implied by the dialogue.
cómoda “Cómoda” means “comfortable” and describes “Esta silla” in “Esta silla es más cómoda”. With “más”, it expresses the comparison “more comfortable”.
Quédate “Quédate” tells the person addressed to stay or remain where they are, here in “Quédate ahí”. The attached “te” makes the instruction refer to the person staying.
ahí “Ahí” means “there” and identifies the place where the person should remain in “Quédate ahí”. It usually follows an action or instruction to specify location.
unos In “unos minutos”, “unos” means “a few” and gives an approximate small quantity. It comes before the plural noun “minutos”.
minutos “Minutos” means “minutes”; in “Quédate ahí unos minutos”, it gives the length of time to stay. It is used after “unos” to express a few minutes.
Un In “Un descanso corto”, “un” means “a” or “one” and introduces the singular noun “descanso”. It is used before a singular masculine noun in this expression.
descanso “Descanso” means “rest”; in “Un descanso corto debería ayudar”, it is the rest that is expected to help. It can be described by an adjective such as “corto”.
corto “Corto” means “short” and describes the duration of “Un descanso”. In “Un descanso corto”, it comes after the noun it describes.
debería In “debería ayudar”, “debería” means “should” and expresses an expected or reasonable result. It is followed by the infinitive “ayudar” to name the expected action.
ayudar “Ayudar” means “to help”; in “debería ayudar”, it names the result expected from the short rest. After “debería”, it remains in this infinitive form.
Muévete “Muévete” is an instruction to move, directed at the person being addressed, especially in “Muévete despacio”. The attached “te” makes the movement refer to that person.
cuando In “cuando te levantes”, “cuando” means “when” and introduces the moment connected with moving slowly. It links the advice to the action of standing up.
te In “te levantes”, “te” refers to the person being addressed and is part of the expression for that person standing up. Here it connects the action to the person who must do it.
levantes In “cuando te levantes”, “levantes” means “stand up” as part of the expression “te levantes”. The phrase identifies the moment when the person should move slowly.

Grammar Points

Me duele + parte del cuerpo

Me duele la espalda.

meh DWEH-leh lah ehs-PAHL-dah.

My back hurts.

Spanish uses me (“to me”) with the body part as the grammatical subject: literally, “The back hurts to me.”

Imperativo reflexivo: verbo + te

Estírate despacio.

ehs-TEE-rah-teh dehs-PAH-syoh.

Stretch slowly.

With a tú command, the reflexive pronoun te attaches to the end of the verb: estira + te.

Spanish Vocabulary

demasiado adv
deh-mah-SYAH-doh too much; too long

pasé demasiado tiempo

despacio adv
dehs-PAH-syoh slowly

Estírate despacio si puedes.

doler verb
doh-LER to hurt duele

Me duele la espalda.

espalda noun
ehs-PAHL-dah back

Me duele la espalda.

estirarse verb
ehs-tee-RAR-seh to stretch Estírate

Estírate despacio si puedes.

hoy adv
OY today

Hoy pasé demasiado tiempo sentado.

intentar verb
een-tehn-TAR to try Intenta

Intenta sentarte con la espalda recta.

me pron
meh to me Me

Me duele la espalda.

pasar verb
pah-SAR to spend; to pass pasé

Hoy pasé demasiado tiempo sentado.

recto adj
REHK-toh straight recta

con la espalda recta

sentarse verb
sehn-TAR-seh to sit down sentarte

Intenta sentarte con la espalda recta.

tiempo noun
TYEHM-poh time

pasé demasiado tiempo sentado

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

My back feels sore.

Show AnswerMe duele la espalda.

Try to sit up straight.

Show AnswerIntenta sentarte con la espalda recta.

I sat too long today.

Show AnswerHoy pasé demasiado tiempo sentado.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

to sit down

Show Answersentarte

too much; too long

Show Answerdemasiado

to hurt

Show Answerduele

to spend; to pass

Show Answerpasé