Reading medicine label instructions | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: At home, two adults read medicine label instructions and decide to call the pharmacy about an unclear dose..

EN → ES / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use Reading medicine label instructions to practice Spanish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Recogí este medicamento en la farmacia.

reh-koh-HEE ES-teh meh-dee-kah-MEN-toh ehn lah far-MAH-syah. I picked up this medicine at the pharmacy.
B

¿El farmacéutico explicó las instrucciones?

ehl far-mah-SEH-oo-tee-koh ehk-splee-KOH lahs een-strook-SYOH-nehs? Did the pharmacist explain the instructions?
A

La etiqueta dice que hay que tomarlo después de las comidas.

lah eh-tee-KEH-tah DEE-seh keh EYE keh toh-MAR-loh dehs-PWEHS deh lahs koh-MEE-dahs. The label says to take it after meals.
B

Entonces, no lo tomes antes del desayuno.

ehn-TOHN-sehs, noh loh TOH-mehs AHN-tehs dehl deh-sah-YOO-noh. Then do not take it before breakfast.
A

No tengo clara la dosis.

noh TEN-goh KLAH-rah lah DOH-sees. I am not sure about the dose.
B

Llama a la farmacia si la etiqueta no está clara.

YAH-mah ah lah far-MAH-syah see lah eh-tee-KEH-tah noh ehs-TAH KLAH-rah. Call the pharmacy if the label is unclear.
A

Eso es más seguro que adivinar.

EH-soh ehs mahs seh-GOO-roh keh ah-dee-bee-NAR. That is safer than guessing.
B

El farmacéutico puede decirte cuál es la dosis correcta antes de que lo tomes.

ehl far-mah-SEH-oo-tee-koh PWEH-deh deh-SEER-teh KWAHL ehs lah DOH-sees koh-RREHK-tah AHN-tehs deh keh loh TOH-mehs. The pharmacist can tell you the correct dose before you take it.

Word by Word

Recogí In this dialogue, “Recogí” means “I picked up” the medicine at the pharmacy. It is the past form of recoger used for the speaker’s completed action. A useful reuse pattern is “Recogí ... en ...” for saying where you picked something up.
este Here, “este” means “this” and points to the medicine being discussed. It comes before the masculine singular noun medicamento. Use este before a nearby masculine singular item you are identifying.
medicamento “Medicamento” means “medicine” in “este medicamento.” It is the item that the speaker picked up and later refers to with “lo.” It commonly appears after a determiner or with an adjective describing the medicine.
en In “en la farmacia,” “en” means “at” and identifies the place where the medicine was picked up. It is used with a location to show where something happens or is located. The reusable pattern here is “en + place.”
la “La” is the definite article meaning “the” before the feminine singular nouns farmacia and etiqueta. The dialogue also uses the same article as “La” at the start of a sentence. Use la before a feminine singular noun.
farmacia “Farmacia” means “pharmacy,” the place where the medicine was picked up and where the speaker is told to call. It appears after “en” in “en la farmacia” and after “a” in “a la farmacia.” The noun can be reused with a location expression or as the destination of a call.
El “El” means “the” before the masculine singular noun farmacéutico. It identifies the pharmacist as the subject of the question and the later statement. Use el before a masculine singular noun.
farmacéutico “Farmacéutico” means “pharmacist” in this dialogue. It is the person who may explain the instructions and give the correct dose. A useful reuse pattern is “El farmacéutico puede...” when describing what the pharmacist can do.
explicó In “El farmacéutico explicó las instrucciones,” “explicó” means “explained.” It is the completed past action attributed to the pharmacist. The reusable pattern is “explicó + information or object,” such as “explicó las instrucciones.”
las “Las” means “the” before the feminine plural noun instrucciones. In the dialogue, it identifies the instructions that the pharmacist may have explained. Use las before a feminine plural noun.
instrucciones “Instrucciones” means “instructions,” specifically the medicine instructions in this dialogue. It is the object of explicó in “explicó las instrucciones.” It can be used for directions that explain how something should be done.
etiqueta “Etiqueta” means “label,” referring to the medicine label. In “La etiqueta dice...” it gives the information about taking the medicine, and in “si la etiqueta no está clara” it may be unclear. The reusable pattern is “la etiqueta + verb” when describing what a label says or whether it is clear.
dice In “La etiqueta dice que...,” “dice” means “says” and presents the information written on the label. It is the present form of decir used with the label as the subject. A useful reuse pattern is “dice que + clause” for reporting information.
que The dialogue uses “que” in two ways: “dice que hay que tomarlo” introduces the content of what the label says, while “más seguro que adivinar” means “safer than guessing.” Its exact meaning depends on the construction around it, so do not treat the two uses as one fixed translation.
hay In “hay que tomarlo,” “hay” forms the impersonal expression “hay que,” which expresses what must or should be done. Here the whole expression gives the instruction to take the medicine. The reusable pattern is “hay que + infinitive” for a general obligation or instruction.
tomarlo “Tomarlo” means “to take it,” referring to the medicine. It combines tomar with the attached object pronoun lo, and it appears after “hay que” in “hay que tomarlo.” The reusable pattern is “hay que tomarlo” when giving an instruction to take the referred-to item.
después In “después de las comidas,” “después” means “after” and places the action later than the meals. It is part of a time expression that tells when to take the medicine. The reusable pattern is “después de + time or event.”
comidas “Comidas” means “meals” in “después de las comidas.” It identifies the events that should come before taking the medicine. The plural form is useful when the instruction applies after meals generally rather than after one named meal.
Entonces “Entonces” means “then” and introduces the conclusion drawn from the label’s instruction. In “Entonces, no lo tomes...,” it connects the previous information with the next instruction. It is commonly used at the beginning of a sentence to mark a consequence or next step.
no In “no lo tomes,” “no” makes the instruction negative, meaning “do not.” It works with the verb form tomes to tell one person not to take the medicine. The reusable pattern is “no + verb,” with object pronouns placed before the verb in this command.
lo Here, “lo” means “it” and refers back to the medicine. In “no lo tomes,” it is placed before the verb and identifies what must not be taken. A useful reuse pattern is “lo + verb” when the object is already known from the conversation.
tomes In “no lo tomes,” “tomes” is the form used to tell one person not to take the medicine. Together with no, it expresses a negative command. The reusable pattern is “no + object pronoun + tomes” for telling one person not to take a referred-to item.
antes In “antes del desayuno,” “antes” means “before” and places the action earlier than breakfast. It is part of a time expression. The reusable pattern is “antes de + event or time.”
del “Del” is the contraction of de and el in “antes del desayuno.” Here the whole expression means “before breakfast.” Use del before a masculine singular noun when the meaning requires de followed by el.
desayuno “Desayuno” means “breakfast,” the meal used as the time reference in “antes del desayuno.” It follows del in this expression. It can be used after a time expression to identify when an action should happen.
tengo In “No tengo clara la dosis,” “tengo” contributes the meaning “I have” within the expression for not having the dose clear. It is the first-person form of tener used with the speaker as the subject. The reusable pattern is “tener claro or clara + information,” depending on the noun being described.
clara In “No tengo clara la dosis,” “clara” means “clear” in the sense of being understood. It describes the dose within the whole expression “tener clara la dosis,” so the uncertainty belongs to the speaker’s understanding of the dose. A useful reuse pattern is “tener clara + feminine noun” when something is clear to you.
dosis “Dosis” means “dose,” the amount of medicine that should be taken. In the dialogue, the speaker is unsure about it, and later the pharmacist can give “la dosis correcta.” It is useful with expressions that ask about, clarify, or specify the amount of medicine.
Llama “Llama” means “call” as an instruction addressed to one person. In “Llama a la farmacia,” it tells the listener to contact the pharmacy. The reusable pattern is “Llama a + person or place” when giving this instruction.
a In “Llama a la farmacia,” “a” marks the destination or recipient of the call. It connects the command llama with the pharmacy. The reusable pattern is “llamar a + person or place.”
si “Si” means “if” and introduces the condition “si la etiqueta no está clara.” The call is recommended only when the label is unclear. The reusable pattern is “si + clause” for stating a condition.
está In “la etiqueta no está clara,” “está” means “is” and describes the label’s current state. It is a form of estar used with the adjective clara. A useful reuse pattern is “estar + adjective” for describing a condition.
Eso “Eso” means “that” and refers back to calling the pharmacy rather than guessing. In “Eso es más seguro,” it is the subject of the evaluation. A useful reuse pattern is “Eso es + description” when commenting on an action or situation just mentioned.
es In “Eso es más seguro que adivinar,” “es” means “is” and links Eso with the evaluation más seguro. It is the present form of ser used to describe what the action is like. The reusable pattern is “Eso es + adjective or description.”
más In “más seguro que adivinar,” “más” means “more” and forms the comparison “safer.” It increases the degree of the adjective seguro. The reusable pattern is “más + adjective + que” for comparing two actions or situations.
seguro “Seguro” means “safe,” and with más in “más seguro” it means “safer.” The dialogue compares calling the pharmacy with guessing the dose. A useful reuse pattern is “más seguro que + action” when saying one option is safer than another.
adivinar “Adivinar” means “to guess,” referring here to guessing the dose without confirming it. It follows que in the comparison “más seguro que adivinar.” The reusable pattern is “más seguro que + infinitive” for comparing a safe action with an uncertain one.
puede In “El farmacéutico puede decirte...,” “puede” means “can” and expresses the pharmacist’s ability to provide the information. It is the present form of poder used before the infinitive decirte. The reusable pattern is “puede + infinitive” for saying what someone can do.
decirte “Decirte” means “tell you” in “puede decirte cuál es la dosis correcta.” It combines decir with the attached pronoun te, which refers to the person being addressed. The reusable pattern is “puede decirte + information” when someone can provide information to you.
cuál In “cuál es la dosis correcta,” “cuál” means “which” or “what” and introduces the embedded question about the correct dose. The accent marks this interrogative use. The reusable pattern is “cuál es + noun or description” when asking which one something is.
correcta “Correcta” means “correct” in “la dosis correcta.” It describes the dose that the pharmacist can identify for the listener. The reusable pattern is a noun followed by an adjective, as in “la dosis correcta.”

Grammar Points

hay que + infinitivo

Hay que tomarlo después de comidas.

EYE keh toh-MAR-loh dehs-PWEHS deh koh-MEE-dahs.

You have to take it after meals.

Hay que expresses a general necessity without naming the person who must act.

antes de que + subjuntivo

Antes de que tomes desayuno.

AHN-tehs deh keh TOH-mehs deh-sah-YOO-noh.

Before you have breakfast.

After antes de que, Spanish uses the subjunctive for an action that has not happened yet.

Spanish Vocabulary

comidas noun
koh-MEE-dahs meals
después adv
dehs-PWEHS after
dice verb
DEE-seh says
etiqueta noun
eh-tee-KEH-tah label
explicó verb
ehks-plee-KOH explained
farmacéutico noun
far-mah-SEH-oo-tee-koh pharmacist
farmacia noun
far-MAH-syah pharmacy
hay que phrase
EYE keh one must; it is necessary to
instrucciones noun
een-strook-SYOH-nehs instructions
medicamento noun
meh-dee-kah-MEN-toh medicine
recogí verb
reh-koh-HEE picked up
tomarlo verb
toh-MAR-loh to take it

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

I picked up this medicine at the pharmacy.

Show AnswerRecogí este medicamento en la farmacia.

Did the pharmacist explain the instructions?

Show Answer¿El farmacéutico explicó las instrucciones?

I am not sure about the dose.

Show AnswerNo tengo clara la dosis.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

medicine

Show Answermedicamento

says

Show Answerdice

picked up

Show Answerrecogí

explained

Show Answerexplicó