Shared kitchen rules | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Soy nuevo en esta cocina compartida. ¿Qué debo saber?

   I'm new to this shared kitchen. What should I know?

   Soy

   I am

   nuevo

   new

   esta

   this

   cocina

   kitchen

   compartida

   shared

   Qué

   what

   debo

   should

   saber

   know

   More detail

   Soy is the first-person singular present form of ser, “to be.” It identifies the speaker: soy = “I am.” The form changes with the subject: soy (I am), eres (you are, informal singular), and es (he, she, or you formal are). Example: Soy estudiante. — “I am a student.” nuevo means “new” here and describes the speaker’s status or experience. It is the masculine singular form of nuevo; the feminine singular form is nueva. The adjective agrees with the person or noun it describes, so a male speaker can say Soy nuevo, while a female speaker can say Soy nueva. Example: Ella es nueva aquí. — “She is new here.” esta means “this” and points to one nearby or contextually identified feminine singular noun. It agrees with cocina, which is feminine singular. The corresponding masculine singular form is este; plural forms include estas and estos. In this sentence, esta does not identify a person; it points to the kitchen. cocina means “kitchen.” It is a feminine noun, so the phrase uses esta cocina, “this kitchen.” The same word can also mean “cooks” in another context, but here it is the noun because it names a place. Example: La cocina está limpia. — “The kitchen is clean.” compartida means “shared.” It is the feminine singular form of the adjective compartido, agreeing with cocina. The ending changes for agreement: cocina compartida (one feminine noun), espacio compartido (one masculine noun), and cocinas compartidas (feminine plural). Here it describes a kitchen used by more than one person; it does not change the speaker’s role. Qué is the accented question word “what.” In ¿Qué debo saber?, it asks for information about what the speaker ought to know. The accent marks its interrogative use; que without an accent is used in other grammatical roles, such as “that” in Sé que vienes — “I know that you are coming.” debo is the first-person singular present form of deber, “to owe” or, with an infinitive, “should / must.” Here debo saber means “I should know” or “what should I know,” not “I owe.” The subject is the speaker, shown by the form debo; debes means “you should” and debe means “he, she, or you formal should.” Example: Debo limpiar la mesa. — “I should clean the table.” saber is the infinitive “to know,” specifically knowing information or a fact. After deber, the second verb remains in the infinitive: debo saber = “I should know.” This differs from conocer, which is commonly used for knowing or being acquainted with a person or place. Example: Quiero saber la regla. — “I want to know the rule.” Together, Soy nuevo en esta cocina compartida means “I’m new to this shared kitchen.” Soy nuevo describes the speaker’s newness, and en places that situation in the kitchen. The question ¿Qué debo saber? asks what information the speaker should know. The complete utterance is therefore: “I’m new to this shared kitchen. What should I know?”

2. Mantén las encimeras despejadas y limpia todo justo después de cocinar.

   Keep the counters clear and clean up right after cooking.

   Mantén

   keep; leave

   encimeras

   counters; worktops

   despejadas

   clear; uncluttered

   limpia

   clean up

   todo

   everything

   justo después de

   right after

   cocinar

   cook

   More detail

   Mantén is the affirmative tú command of mantener (“to keep/maintain”). The accent is part of this command form: mantener → mantén. A reusable pattern is mantén + object + adjective, meaning “keep the object [in a state].” encimeras means countertops or worktops. It is the plural of the feminine noun encimera: la encimera → las encimeras. despejadas means clear or free of objects here. It is the feminine plural form of despejado, agreeing with las encimeras. The adjective describes their state; it does not mean that the counters are physically absent. For example: Mantén la mesa despejada. — “Keep the table clear.” Together, mantén las encimeras despejadas means “keep the countertops clear.” limpia is another affirmative tú command, this time from limpiar (“to clean”). In this sentence it means “clean up,” with todo as its object. The same spelling can also be a present-tense form meaning “he/she cleans” or “you formal clean,” but the coordinated command context makes the tú-command reading appropriate here. todo means “everything” and functions as the object of limpia. It is a masculine singular form used here as a general pronoun, not as a noun that identifies one particular item. The pattern limpia todo means “clean everything up.” justo después de means “right after.” después de introduces what follows, and justo strengthens the timing to “immediately/right after.” cocinar is the infinitive “to cook.” After después de, Spanish uses an infinitive when the action is expressed generally or when its understood subject is the same as the command’s subject: después de cocinar — “after cooking.” The two commands are joined by y: first, keep the countertops clear; second, clean everything right after cooking. The complete utterance is therefore: “Keep the counters clear and clean up right after cooking.”

3. ¿Dónde debo poner una sartén después de lavarla?

   Where should I put a pan after I wash it?

   ¿Dónde

   where

   debo

   should

   poner

   put

   sartén

   pan

   después de

   after

   lavarla

   wash it

   More detail

   ¿Dónde asks for a place: “where?” It is used to ask about location or destination. For example, ¿Dónde está la llave? means “Where is the key?” debo is the first-person singular present form of deber, “to have to” or “should.” Here it refers to what the speaker should do. deber can be followed by an infinitive: debo esperar means “I should wait,” while debes esperar means “you should wait.” poner is the infinitive “to put” or “to place.” After debo, the infinitive stays unchanged: debo poner means “I should put.” In another common use, poner can also mean “to set” or “to turn on,” depending on its object and context. sartén is a feminine noun meaning “pan.” The phrase una sartén presents one non-specific pan as the object being discussed; the indefinite article does not by itself state a numerical count as the main point. The noun is feminine, so a later feminine singular direct-object pronoun can refer back to it: la. después de means “after” and introduces what happens later. Before a verb, it is followed by an infinitive: después de cocinar means “after cooking.” It can also introduce a noun phrase, as in después de la comida, “after the meal.” lavarla combines the infinitive lavar, “to wash,” with the attached direct-object pronoun la: lavar + la. Here la refers to the pan, giving “to wash it.” Because the referent is feminine singular, Spanish uses la; with a masculine singular object, the corresponding form would be lo, as in lavarlo (“to wash it”). Together, ¿Dónde debo poner asks for the destination where the speaker should place something. una sartén identifies the pan, and después de lavarla specifies that the placement happens after washing the pan. The whole utterance means: “Where should I put a pan after I wash it?”

4. Usa el estante de abajo junto al fregadero cuando la sartén esté seca.

   Use the lower shelf beside the sink, after the pan is dry.

   Usa

   use

   estante

   shelf

   de abajo

   lower

   junto al

   beside

   fregadero

   sink

   cuando

   when

   sartén

   pan

   esté

   is

   seca

   dry

   More detail

   Usa is the affirmative command form of usar for tú singular: “use!” or “you use!” as an instruction to one person. It is different from use, which addresses usted, and usen, which addresses ustedes. estante means “shelf.” It is a masculine singular noun; its plural is estantes. The location description de abajo identifies this as the lower shelf. Here de abajo functions as a compact way to specify the shelf’s position, rather than naming a separate object. junto al means “beside the.” It combines junto a (“beside”) with el; the preposition and article contract to al. fregadero means “sink,” so junto al fregadero means “beside the sink.” cuando introduces a time clause meaning “when.” In this sentence, the clause after it gives the condition for using the shelf. sartén means “pan” and is feminine singular in this use, as shown by la in the surrounding sentence context and by the adjective seca. Its plural is sartenes. esté is a form of estar, “to be,” and agrees here with the singular subject la sartén. The subjunctive form appears in this time clause because the pan’s being dry is a condition viewed as pending or not yet established at the time of the instruction. The present indicative form would be está in a statement such as La sartén está seca (“The pan is dry”). seca is the feminine singular form of the adjective seco, “dry,” agreeing with sartén. The masculine singular form is seco, and the plural forms are secos and secas according to the noun’s gender and number. Together, Usa el estante de abajo junto al fregadero gives the instruction “Use the lower shelf beside the sink.” cuando la sartén esté seca adds the time condition “when the pan is dry.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Use the lower shelf beside the sink, after the pan is dry.”

5. ¿Debo limpiar la encimera antes de irme?

   Should I wipe the counter before I go?

   Debo

   should I; must I

   limpiar

   to clean; to wipe

   la encimera

   the counter

   antes de

   before

   irme

   to leave; to go

   More detail

   Debo is the first-person singular present form of deber, whose base form means “to owe” or, as here, “to have to / should.” In this question, the speaker asks whether cleaning is required or advisable: ¿Debo ...? = “Should I ...?” / “Do I have to ...?” The subject is the speaker, even though Spanish does not state a separate subject pronoun. limpiar is the infinitive “to clean.” After debo, the following verb stays in the infinitive: debo limpiar = “I should/must clean.” In this context, with the counter and the following reference to wiping it with a cloth, “wipe” is a natural translation; the broader verb is still “clean.” Example: Debo limpiar la mesa. — “I should clean the table.” la encimera means “the counter” or “the countertop.” Encimera is a feminine singular noun, so it appears with the feminine singular definite article la. The article marks a specific counter in the situation; it does not itself assert a numerical quantity. Example: La encimera está seca. — “The counter is dry.” antes de introduces something that happens earlier: “before.” Before a verb, Spanish uses antes de + infinitive, as in antes de salir (“before leaving”). Here it connects the required cleaning with the speaker’s leaving, not with a replacement of one action by the other. irme is the infinitive ir (“to go”) with the attached first-person singular pronominal clitic me: ir + me → irme. In this use, irse means “to leave / go away,” so antes de irme means “before I leave” or “before I go.” The me identifies the speaker as the person leaving. Example: Voy a irme temprano. — “I am going to leave early.” Together, Debo limpiar la encimera asks whether the speaker is expected to clean the specific counter, and antes de irme places that action before the speaker’s departure. The complete meaning is: “Should I wipe the counter before I go?”

6. Pásale un paño y guarda todo lo que usaste.

   Wipe it down and put away anything you used.

   Pásale

   wipe it down

   paño

   cloth

   guarda

   put away

   todo lo que

   everything that

   usaste

   used

   More detail

   Pásale is the affirmative tú command of pasar, with the clitic le attached. In this construction, pasarle un paño means “to wipe something with a cloth”; le refers to the thing being wiped and does not show its gender. The accent preserves the required stress after the clitic is attached. Example: Pásale un paño a la mesa. — “Wipe the table with a cloth.” paño means “cloth” here, specifically a cloth used for wiping. The phrase pasar un paño is a reusable way to express wiping a surface, while paño itself is the noun for the cloth. guarda is the affirmative tú command of guardar. Here guardar means “to put away” or “store,” rather than simply “to keep” in the abstract. Example: Guarda las herramientas. — “Put the tools away.” todo lo que introduces the complete set of things that meet the following description: “everything that” or “everything which.” lo que is a neutral relative expression; it is not a masculine noun referring to a specific object. usaste is the preterite form of usar for tú: usar → usaste. It means “you used,” referring to a completed past action. Example: Lava todo lo que usaste. — “Wash everything you used.” Together, Pásale un paño gives the instruction to wipe the relevant thing with a cloth, and guarda todo lo que usaste adds the instruction to put away every item used for the task. The whole utterance is therefore: “Wipe it down and put away anything you used.”

7. ¿Debo revisar algo más?

   Anything else I should check?

   Debo

   should / must

   revisar

   to check / review

   algo más

   anything else

   More detail

   Debo is the first-person singular present form of deber (“to have to / should”). Here it expresses the speaker’s obligation or need: “I should” or “Do I need to…?” The subject is not stated separately because the verb form identifies it as yo. Compare debo (“I should / must”) with debes (“you should / must”). Example: Debo salir. — “I have to leave.” revisar is the infinitive “to check” or “to review.” After deber, Spanish uses the infinitive: debo revisar means “I should check” or “I need to check.” The infinitive does not itself mark the speaker; debo carries the first-person form. Example: Debo revisar el informe. — “I should review the report.” algo más means “anything else” in this question. algo refers to an unspecified thing, while más adds the meaning “else” or “additional.” Together they ask whether there is another thing to check, without naming what it is. Example: ¿Necesitas algo más? — “Do you need anything else?” The question begins with ¿Debo, followed by the infinitive revisar, and ends with algo más. Spanish can omit the subject pronoun, so the sentence does not need yo. The full utterance asks whether the speaker has any additional checking to do: “Anything else I should check?”

8. Deja el espacio listo para la próxima persona.

   Leave the space ready for the next person.

   Deja

   leave

   espacio

   space

   listo

   ready

   próxima

   next

   persona

   person

   More detail

   Deja is the affirmative command form of dejar for tú (one person addressed informally): “leave” or “let.” The same spelling can also be a third-person singular present form in another context, but the fixed translation identifies a command here. Example: Deja la puerta abierta. — “Leave the door open.” espacio is a masculine singular noun meaning “space.” The article el marks it as masculine singular: el espacio. Example: Necesito más espacio. — “I need more space.” listo is an adjective meaning “ready.” It is masculine singular here because it describes espacio: el espacio listo. Its base form is listo; feminine and plural forms include lista, listos, and listas. Example: La sala está lista. — “The room is ready.” próxima is the feminine singular form of the adjective próximo, meaning “next” here. It agrees with persona, which is feminine singular in Spanish: la próxima persona. The masculine singular form is próximo, as in el próximo tren. Example: La próxima reunión es el lunes. — “The next meeting is on Monday.” persona is a noun meaning “person.” It is grammatically feminine singular, even when the person referred to has another gender; the adjective therefore appears as próxima in this phrase. Example: La persona llega mañana. — “The person arrives tomorrow.” The chunks combine as Deja + el espacio + listo + para + la próxima persona: “Leave the space ready for the next person.” The command asks the addressed person to leave the space in a ready state so it is prepared for the next person.