Choosing a Light Snack | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: At home, two adults choose a light snack with yogurt and nuts..

EN → ES / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use Choosing a Light Snack to practice Spanish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Quiero un tentempié.

kee-EH-roh oon tehn-tehm-PYEH I want a snack.
A

No tengo mucha hambre.

noh TEHN-goh MOO-chah AHM-breh I am not very hungry.
B

Entonces elige algo ligero, como yogur.

ehn-TOHN-sehs eh-LEE-heh AHL-goh lee-HEH-roh, KOH-moh yoh-GOOR Then choose something light, like yogurt.
A

¿También tenemos nueces?

tahm-BYEHN teh-NEH-mohs NWEH-sehs Do we have nuts too?
B

Hay algunas en la alacena.

eye ahl-GOO-nahs ehn lah ah-lah-SEH-nah There are some in the cupboard.
A

El yogur con nueces suena bien.

ehl yoh-GOOR kohn NWEH-sehs SWEH-nah byehn Yogurt with nuts sounds good.
B

Toma un tazón pequeño.

TOH-mah oon tah-SON peh-KEH-nyoh Take a small bowl.
B

No es demasiado.

noh ehs deh-mah-SYAH-doh It is not too much.
A

Prepararé uno ahora.

preh-pah-rah-REH OO-noh ah-OH-rah I will make one now.
B

Déjame algunas nueces, por favor.

DEH-hah-meh ahl-GOO-nahs NWEH-sehs, pohr fah-BOHR Leave some nuts for me, please.

Word by Word

Quiero Quiero means “I want” in “Quiero un tentempié.” It states the speaker’s desire. Use Quiero before the thing or action you want.
un Un means “a” or “one” in “un tentempié,” introducing one unspecified snack. It appears directly before the masculine singular noun tentempié.
tentempié Tentempié means “snack,” referring to a small amount of food eaten between meals. In “un tentempié,” it is the thing the speaker wants. Use “un tentempié” when naming a snack in a food conversation.
No No marks negation in “No tengo mucha hambre,” making the statement negative. Place No before the verb to negate a simple statement.
tengo Tengo expresses having or experiencing something in “No tengo mucha hambre.” Together with mucha hambre, it describes the speaker’s level of hunger. Use tengo with a noun phrase for something a person has or experiences.
mucha Mucha means “much” or “a lot of” in “mucha hambre,” indicating a large amount of hunger. It appears before hambre in this expression. “No tengo mucha hambre” says that the amount is not large.
hambre Hambre means “hunger,” the state referred to in “No tengo mucha hambre.” It appears after tengo and is described by mucha. Use hambre when talking about the feeling of needing food.
Entonces Entonces means “then,” linking the suggestion to the speaker’s previous statement. Use it at the start of a sentence to introduce a consequence or next suggestion.
elige Elige gives the direct instruction “choose” in “Entonces elige algo ligero.” It tells the listener what to select. Use elige before the thing being chosen.
algo Algo means “something” in “elige algo ligero,” referring to an unspecified item. It can be followed by a description, as ligero describes the thing to choose here.
ligero Ligero means “light” here, describing food that is not heavy. In “algo ligero,” it describes the unspecified item after algo. Use ligero to describe a light food option.
como Como introduces an example in “como yogur,” meaning “like yogurt” or “such as yogurt.” Use como before a noun to give an example of the preceding category.
yogur Yogur means “yogurt,” the food offered as an example and later combined with nuts. Use it in a food combination such as “yogur con” followed by an ingredient.
También También means “also” or “too,” adding nuts to the food already under discussion. In “¿También tenemos nueces?”, it asks whether nuts are included as well. It appears before the verb in this question.
tenemos Tenemos means “we have” in “¿También tenemos nueces?” The question asks whether the household has nuts available. Use tenemos followed by the thing you have or may have.
nueces Nueces means “nuts,” the food asked about and later saved for the speaker. In “¿También tenemos nueces?”, it refers to more than one nut. It can follow a quantity expression, as in “algunas nueces.”
Hay Hay means “there is” or “there are” when stating that something exists or is available. In “Hay algunas en la alacena,” it introduces the presence of the nuts. Use Hay before information about an available item or items.
algunas Algunas means “some,” referring here to the nuts in “Hay algunas en la alacena.” It points to an unspecified quantity of the plural noun nueces. Use “algunas nueces” to refer to some nuts.
en En means “in,” locating the nuts inside the cupboard in “en la alacena.” Use en before a place to say where something is located.
la La means “the” before alacena in “la alacena.” It presents the cupboard as a specific place known in the conversation. It appears directly before alacena.
alacena Alacena means “cupboard,” the storage place where the nuts are located in “la alacena.” Use “en la alacena” when locating food in a cupboard.
El El means “the” before yogur in “El yogur con nueces.” It introduces the specific yogurt-and-nuts combination being discussed. It appears directly before yogur.
con Con means “with,” connecting yogurt and nuts in “El yogur con nueces.” Use con between a food and an ingredient or accompaniment.
suena Suena means “sounds” in “El yogur con nueces suena bien.” It expresses the speaker’s impression of the proposed combination, while bien completes the positive evaluation. Use suena with an evaluation when saying how an idea or combination seems.
bien Bien means “good” or “well” in “suena bien,” completing the expression that the combination sounds good. Use bien after suena to give a positive evaluation.
Toma Toma gives the direct instruction “take” in “Toma un tazón pequeño.” It asks the listener to take the bowl. Use Toma followed by the object being taken.
tazón Tazón means “bowl,” the object to take in “Toma un tazón pequeño.” Use “un tazón” when referring to a bowl.
pequeño Pequeño means “small,” describing the size of the bowl in “un tazón pequeño.” It appears after tazón and specifies which bowl to take. Use pequeño after a noun to describe a small item in this pattern.
es Es means “is” in “No es demasiado.” It links the thing understood from context with the judgment that it is not excessive. Use es before a description or evaluation.
demasiado Demasiado means “too much” or “too excessive” in “No es demasiado.” With No, the speaker says that the amount is acceptable. Use demasiado to mark an amount or degree beyond what is wanted.
Prepararé Prepararé means “I will prepare” or “I will make” in “Prepararé uno ahora.” It states what the speaker intends to do next. Use Prepararé before the thing that will be prepared.
uno Uno means “one” in “Prepararé uno ahora,” standing for a single item that is understood from context. The noun is not repeated. Use uno when referring to one understood item.
ahora Ahora means “now,” placing the preparation at the present moment or immediately. In “Prepararé uno ahora,” it appears at the end to specify when the action will happen.
Déjame Déjame means “leave me” or “save for me” in “Déjame algunas nueces, por favor.” It asks the listener to reserve something for the speaker. Use Déjame followed by the thing you want someone to keep for you.
por Por forms part of the polite request expression “por favor.” In this dialogue, it helps make “Déjame algunas nueces” courteous rather than adding a separate meaning by itself. Use the complete expression “por favor” with a request.
favor Favor means “favor” within “por favor,” the expression used here to mean “please.” It contributes to the polite request, but the expression is normally learned as the whole phrase “por favor.”

Grammar Points

Hay + sustantivo

Hay algunas nueces.

eye ahl-GOO-nahs NWEH-sehs

There are some nuts.

Hay significa “there is/there are” y no cambia con singular o plural; algunas concuerda con nueces.

Prepararé + objeto

Prepararé uno ahora.

preh-pah-rah-REH OO-noh ah-OH-rah

I’ll prepare one now.

La terminación -ré marca el futuro en primera persona singular: prepararé = I will prepare.

Spanish Vocabulary

algo pron
AHL-goh something

Entonces elige algo ligero, como yogur.

como prep
KOH-moh like

Entonces elige algo ligero, como yogur.

elegir verb
eh-leh-HEER to choose elige

Entonces elige algo ligero, como yogur.

entonces adv
ehn-TOHN-sehs then

Entonces elige algo ligero, como yogur.

hambre noun
AHM-breh hunger

No tengo mucha hambre.

ligero adj
lee-HEH-roh light

Entonces elige algo ligero, como yogur.

nuez noun
NWEHS nut; walnut nueces

¿También tenemos nueces?

querer verb
keh-REHR to want Quiero

Quiero un tentempié.

también adv
tahm-BYEHN also; too

¿También tenemos nueces?

tener verb
teh-NEHR to have tengo

No tengo mucha hambre.

tentempié noun
tehn-tehm-PYEH snack

Quiero un tentempié.

yogur noun
yoh-GOOR yogurt

El yogur con nueces suena bien.

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

I want a snack.

Show AnswerQuiero un tentempié.

I am not very hungry.

Show AnswerNo tengo mucha hambre.

Then choose something light, like yogurt.

Show AnswerEntonces elige algo ligero, como yogur.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

then

Show Answerentonces

like

Show Answercomo

light

Show Answerligero

snack

Show Answertentempié