Coordinating dinner timing when hosting | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Los invitados podrían llegar mientras el plato principal todavía se está cocinando.

   The guests may arrive while the main course is still cooking.

   invitados

   guests

   podrían

   may; might

   llegar

   to arrive

   mientras

   while

   plato

   dish; course

   principal

   main; principal

   todavía

   still; yet

   se está cocinando

   is cooking

   More detail

   invitados means “guests” here. It is the plural masculine form of invitado; masculine plural can also represent a mixed group when the language uses that agreement pattern. Singular: invitado; plural: invitados. Example: Los invitados llegan temprano. — “The guests arrive early.” podrían expresses possibility: “may” or “might.” It is the third-person plural conditional form of poder (“to be able to; may/can”): podrían llegar = “they might arrive.” The conditional presents the arrival as possible rather than certain. Example: Podrían venir mañana. — “They might come tomorrow.” llegar is the infinitive “to arrive.” After a conjugated form such as podrían, Spanish uses the infinitive: podrían llegar, not a separately conjugated verb after it. Example: Quieren llegar pronto. — “They want to arrive soon.” mientras introduces an event occurring at the same time as another: “while.” It connects the possible arrival with the cooking process. Example: Lee mientras espera. — “She reads while she waits.” plato means “dish” or, in a meal context, “course.” It is a masculine noun: el plato; its plural is los platos. In this sentence, plato is part of the noun phrase el plato principal, referring to the main course. principal means “main” here. It is an adjective modifying plato, so it is masculine singular: el plato principal. The adjective has the same form for masculine and feminine singular in this use; with a plural noun it becomes principales: los platos principales. Example: la comida principal — “the main meal.” todavía means “still” here. It shows that the cooking is continuing at the relevant time: the main course has not finished cooking yet. Example: Todavía está trabajando. — “She is still working.” se está cocinando means “is cooking” in the fixed sentence. está is the third-person singular present form of estar, and cocinando is the gerund of cocinar; together they form the progressive construction está cocinando. The se belongs to the cooking construction and presents el plato principal as the thing undergoing or participating in the cooking process, without naming a cook. The observed form is singular because it relates to el plato principal; the gerund itself does not show that number. Example: La sopa se está cocinando. — “The soup is cooking.” The sentence combines Los invitados podrían llegar (“The guests might arrive”) with mientras (“while”) and el plato principal todavía se está cocinando (“the main course is still cooking”). Thus, it says that the guests’ arrival is possible during the ongoing cooking of the main course.

2. Entonces sirve un entrante sencillo para que la gente se acomode.

   Then serve a simple starter so people can settle in.

   Entonces

   then

   sirve

   serves; works

   entrante

   starter

   sencillo

   simple

   para que

   so that

   gente

   people

   se acomode

   settles in

   More detail

   Entonces comes first and links this suggestion to what came before: “then” or “in that case.” It can also introduce a consequence in other sentences. Sirve means “serve” here as an affirmative command addressed to one person with tú. The form is the tú command of servir; it is not the usted form sirva or the ustedes form sirvan. Example: Sirve el pan. — “Serve the bread.” Entrante is the noun “starter” or “appetizer,” here referring to a dish served before the main course. In un entrante, the article and the adjective show masculine singular agreement. Example: El entrante está listo. — “The starter is ready.” Sencillo means “simple” here and describes entrante. It is the masculine singular form of the adjective; compare sencilla with a feminine singular noun and sencillos/sencillas with plural nouns. Example: una ensalada sencilla — “a simple salad.” Para que introduces a purpose clause: “so that.” It is followed by a subjunctive verb because the clause expresses the intended result of the action. This construction is different from para plus an infinitive when the subject remains the same: Cocino para descansar — “I cook in order to rest.” Gente means “people” and is grammatically singular in Spanish. Therefore, the verb referring to it is singular: la gente se acomoda, not a plural verb. Example: La gente llega temprano. — “People arrive early.” Se acomode means “settle in” here. The base verb is acomodarse, “to settle in” or “to get comfortable”; acomode is present subjunctive, third-person singular, required here by para que and agreeing with singular la gente. Se is the reflexive pronoun belonging to acomodarse. Example: Espero que la gente se acomode pronto. — “I hope people settle in soon.” Together, sirve un entrante sencillo gives the command to serve a simple starter. para que la gente se acomode gives its purpose: people can settle in or get comfortable. Thus the whole utterance means: “Then serve a simple starter so people can settle in.”

3. Puedo tener la ensalada y el pan listos antes de que lleguen.

   I can have salad and bread ready before they get here.

   Puedo

   I can

   tener

   have

   ensalada

   salad

   pan

   bread

   listos

   ready

   antes de que

   before ...

   lleguen

   arrive

   More detail

   Puedo is the first-person singular present form of poder, “can” or “be able to.” It expresses the speaker’s ability or possibility here. Poder is followed by an infinitive: Puedo tener = “I can have.” Tener is the infinitive “to have.” After a conjugated form of poder, the second verb stays in the infinitive rather than being conjugated separately. For example: Puedo ayudar. — “I can help.” ensalada is a feminine singular noun meaning “salad,” and pan is a masculine singular noun meaning “bread.” The articles la and el mark these nouns as singular and identify their grammatical gender. They are joined by y, “and,” so both items are included in what the speaker can have ready. Listos is the masculine plural form of the adjective listo, “ready.” It describes the coordinated noun phrase la ensalada y el pan, not just the nearest noun. Spanish uses masculine plural agreement for this mixed-gender plural combination. Compare La ensalada está lista. — “The salad is ready.” Antes de que introduces a subordinate clause meaning “before …”. It is a reusable time pattern: antes de que + a conjugated verb. Unlike antes de + an infinitive, this form is used when the following clause has its own expressed or understood subject. Lleguen is the present subjunctive, third-person plural form of llegar, “to arrive.” Here it means “they arrive/get here,” matching the plural “they” in the fixed translation. The subjunctive appears after the time expression antes de que; this does not make lleguen a command. For example: Llámame antes de que lleguen. — “Call me before they arrive.” Together, Puedo tener la ensalada y el pan listos means “I can have the salad and bread ready.” Antes de que lleguen adds the deadline “before they get here.” The complete utterance therefore means: “I can have salad and bread ready before they get here.”

4. Eso le da un poco más de tiempo al plato principal sin que parezca que la cena se retrasa.

   That gives the main course a little extra time without making dinner seem delayed.

   Eso

   that

   da

   gives

   un poco más de

   a little more

   tiempo

   time

   plato

   dish; course

   principal

   main

   sin que

   without ...

   parezca

   seem

   cena

   dinner

   se retrasa

   is delayed

   More detail

   Eso is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that.” It points to an already mentioned situation or thing; here, the fixed translation supports the reading “that” without requiring a more specific referent. Unlike a noun-modifying demonstrative, it stands on its own. da is the third-person singular present form of dar (“to give”). In this sentence, the thing given is extra time, and le marks the singular recipient or beneficiary: le da tiempo al plato principal means “gives the main course time.” The indirect-object clitic le does not show masculine or feminine gender. dar can be reused in patterns such as dar tiempo a algo (“give something time”) or dar una respuesta (“give an answer”). un poco más de expresses a small additional amount: “a little more.” más is the comparative form meaning “more”; its opposite is menos (“less”). The article in un poco does not by itself assert a count of one; the whole expression describes a small quantity. tiempo is the noun “time.” Here it is the amount being given, not a countable event. Example: Necesito más tiempo. — “I need more time.” plato means “dish” and, in a meal context, can mean “course.” principal is an adjective meaning “main” or “principal.” The adjective modifies plato, so el plato principal is “the main course.” al is the contraction of a plus el, used here in the phrase dar tiempo al plato principal: “give time to the main course.” sin que introduces something that does not happen as a consequence or accompanying result: “without ...” It is followed here by the subjunctive. This construction is reusable with a complete clause, for example, Se fue sin que yo lo notara. — “He left without me noticing.” parezca is the third-person singular present subjunctive form of parecer, “to seem.” The subjunctive is used after sin que; this form is not a command. In parezca que ..., the following clause supplies what may seem to be the case. cena is the noun “dinner.” In la cena, it is the subject of the following clause, as shown by the singular verb se retrasa. se retrasa means “is delayed” here. It is the third-person singular present form of the pronominal verb retrasarse, meaning “to become delayed” or “to be delayed” in this use. This se is part of the pronominal verb, not an object clitic whose gender or number would match la cena. Compare La cena se retrasa (“Dinner is delayed”) with El ruido retrasa la cena (“The noise delays dinner”), where retrasar directly takes an object. Together, Eso le da un poco más de tiempo al plato principal says that “that” gives the main course a little extra time. sin que parezca que la cena se retrasa adds that this happens without making it seem that dinner is delayed. The whole utterance therefore means: “That gives the main course a little extra time without making dinner seem delayed.”

5. ¿Debería cocinar las verduras cuando haya llegado todo el mundo?

   Should I cook the vegetables once everyone has arrived?

   Debería

   should / ought to

   cocinar

   to cook

   verduras

   vegetables

   cuando

   when

   haya llegado

   has arrived

   todo el mundo

   everyone

   More detail

   Debería is the conditional form of deber. In this question, with the fixed translation, it expresses a first-person suggestion or uncertainty: “should I…?” The same form can also mean “he/she should” when the subject is third-person singular, so the subject is understood from context here rather than from the verb form alone. A useful pattern is ¿Debería + infinitive...? — “Should I ...?” cocinar is the infinitive “to cook.” After debería, the infinitive names the action being considered: debería cocinar — “I should cook.” The infinitive does not show the person here; debería carries the finite verb form. verduras is the plural of verdura, “vegetable.” The plural form refers to more than one vegetable or to vegetables as a group. In this sentence, las verduras is the direct object of cocinar: the vegetables are what is cooked. cuando introduces a time condition, “when” or “once.” The following clause states the point at which the cooking is to happen. A reusable pattern is cuando + clause: Te llamo cuando llegue. — “I’ll call you when I arrive.” haya llegado is a compound subjunctive form of llegar: haya is the present subjunctive form of haber for a third-person singular subject, and llegado is the past participle of llegar. Together, after this time expression, it means “has arrived” and presents the arrival as a condition that is expected to be completed before the cooking. The singular haya agrees with todo el mundo, which is grammatically singular. The subjunctive is used because the arrival is a future or not-yet-established condition in the time clause. todo el mundo literally contains “all” and “the world,” but as a unit it means “everyone.” Despite its meaning, it is grammatically singular: Todo el mundo ha llegado — “Everyone has arrived.” That singular agreement explains haya llegado, not a plural form such as hayan llegado. Together, ¿Debería cocinar las verduras cuando haya llegado todo el mundo? asks whether the speaker ought to cook the vegetables once everyone has arrived. The question combines the first-person suggestion expressed by debería cocinar with the timing condition cuando haya llegado todo el mundo.

6. Saben mejor recién cocinadas, así que espera hasta que falte poco para servirlas.

   They taste better freshly cooked, so wait until you are close to serving.

   Saben

   taste

   mejor

   better

   recién

   freshly

   cocinadas

   cooked

   así que

   so

   espera

   wait

   hasta que

   until

   falte poco

   little time remains

   servirlas

   serve them

   More detail

   Saben means “taste” here, describing the vegetables mentioned in the previous sentence. It is the present indicative, third-person plural form of saber; in this use, saber can describe flavor, not only knowledge. Example: Estas frutas saben bien. — “These fruits taste good.” mejor means “better” and compares the taste with an understood alternative, such as when the vegetables are not freshly cooked. Here it is the comparative adverb related to bien: bien → mejor. A relative superlative is a different use; for example, el mejor is an adjective phrase meaning “the best” and agrees with the noun it describes. recién means “freshly” or “just.” It commonly appears before a past participle to show that an action has happened very recently: recién preparado — “freshly prepared.” cocinadas means “cooked” in this sentence. It is the feminine plural form of the participle/adjective cocinado, agreeing with the feminine plural noun verduras from the preceding sentence. The ending belongs to cocinadas, not to saben; the base verb is cocinar. Example: Las patatas están cocinadas. — “The potatoes are cooked.” Together, recién cocinadas means “freshly cooked,” and saben mejor recién cocinadas means “they taste better when freshly cooked.” así que is a connector meaning “so” or “therefore.” It introduces the consequence of the preceding statement: because they taste better freshly cooked, the speaker gives the instruction that follows. espera is the affirmative command for tú singular: “wait.” The exact form is therefore addressed to one informal listener. It comes from esperar. Unlike the indicative esperas (“you wait”), espera has the same form as the third-person singular present indicative and serves here as the affirmative tú command. Example: Espera aquí. — “Wait here.” hasta que means “until” and introduces the point at which the waiting ends. It is followed here by falte, a subjunctive form because the clause refers to a future condition that has not yet been reached. falte poco literally expresses that little remains. Falte is the present subjunctive, third-person singular form of faltar, “to be lacking” or “to remain”; poco indicates a small amount. In this context, the remaining amount is understood from the serving process, so the phrase means “there is little time left” or “you are close.” Example: Avísame cuando falte poco. — “Let me know when there is not much time left.” servirlas combines the infinitive servir, “to serve,” with the attached direct-object clitic las, “them.” Las is feminine plural and refers to the vegetables supported by the preceding context. The same clitic appears before a conjugated verb as las sirves — “you serve them”; attached to an infinitive, it forms servirlas. The full structure is Saben mejor [recién cocinadas], así que espera [hasta que falte poco para servirlas]: “They taste better freshly cooked, so wait until you are close to serving them.” The first clause gives the basis for the instruction, and the second gives a singular informal command about when to stop waiting.

7. Recibir invitados resulta estresante porque coordinar los tiempos de todo es más difícil que cocinar.

   Hosting feels stressful because timing everything is harder than cooking.

   Recibir

   to host

   invitados

   guests

   resulta

   is; turns out to be

   estresante

   stressful

   coordinar

   to coordinate

   tiempos

   timing; times

   todo

   everything

   más difícil

   harder

   cocinar

   to cook

   More detail

   Recibir is an infinitive, meaning “to receive” here and contributing to the idea of hosting guests. Spanish infinitives can function as the subject of a sentence. The following noun makes the intended activity clear: recibir invitados = “hosting guests.” invitados means “guests” here. It is the plural form of invitado; the masculine plural form can refer to male guests or to a mixed group. The noun is the direct object of recibir. resulta is the third-person singular present form of resultar. With an infinitive phrase as its subject, it means “turns out to be” or, naturally here, “feels/is.” The useful pattern is X resulta + adjective: El plan resulta sencillo = “The plan turns out to be simple.” estresante means “stressful.” It is an adjective describing the hosting activity in this sentence. Its form does not change for masculine or feminine nouns: un trabajo estresante, una tarea estresante. porque introduces the reason for the preceding assessment: “because.” It connects resulta estresante with the explanation that follows. coordinar is another infinitive, meaning “to coordinate.” Here it functions as the subject of es: coordinar los tiempos de todo means “coordinating the timing of everything.” Infinitives do not show a person or number; the understood person comes from the situation rather than from the form coordinar itself. los tiempos means “the timing” in this context, literally using the plural noun tiempos, the plural of tiempo. Here it refers to organizing when things happen, not simply to clock times. Los tiempos de la comida can mean “the timing of the meal.” de todo means “of everything.” Todo is the singular masculine form used here as a pronoun-like word referring inclusively to all the relevant things being coordinated. The preposition de links those things to los tiempos. es is the third-person singular present form of ser. It links the subject coordinar los tiempos de todo with the description más difícil: “coordinating everything is harder.” Because the subject is an infinitive phrase, singular es is used. más difícil means “harder.” Difícil is the adjective’s base form, and más difícil is its comparative form, “more difficult/harder.” The comparison pattern is más + adjective + que: Caminar es más difícil que correr = “Walking is harder than running.” que cocinar supplies the comparison point: “than cooking.” Cocinar is an infinitive, just like recibir and coordinar. It names the activity being compared with coordinating the timing; it is not a command here. Together, Recibir invitados resulta estresante says “Hosting guests feels stressful.” porque coordinar los tiempos de todo es más difícil que cocinar gives the reason: “because coordinating the timing of everything is harder than cooking.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Hosting feels stressful because timing everything is harder than cooking.”

8. Haz un plan sencillo para servir: bebidas, entrante y luego el plato principal.

   Make a simple serving plan: drinks, starter, then the main course.

   Haz

   make; create

   plan

   plan

   sencillo

   simple

   servir

   serve

   bebidas

   drinks

   entrante

   starter

   luego

   then; afterward

   plato

   dish; course

   principal

   main; principal

   More detail

   Haz is the affirmative command form of hacer for tú singular: “make” or “create.” The imperative addresses one person informally. Compare haces (“you make” in a statement) with haz (“make!” as a command). plan is a masculine singular noun meaning “plan.” Its plural is planes. In this sentence it is the thing being created. sencillo describes plan. It is the masculine singular form of the adjective sencillo (“simple”); it agrees with the masculine singular noun plan. For example, una idea sencilla means “a simple idea,” where the adjective is feminine singular because idea is feminine. para servir expresses the purpose of the plan: “for serving” or “to serve.” servir is the infinitive, whose basic meaning is “to serve.” After para, Spanish commonly uses an infinitive when the purpose is not presented with a separate subject. For example, una mesa para comer means “a table for eating.” bebidas is the plural of bebida, meaning “drinks” or “beverages.” Here it is the first item in the plan. entrante means “starter” or “appetizer,” the course served before the main course. As a noun, its plural is entrantes; the singular form in this sentence names the second item in the sequence. luego is an adverb meaning “then” or “afterward.” Here it marks the next step in the serving order: the main course comes after the drinks and starter. plato principal means “main course.” plato is a masculine singular noun meaning “dish” or, in this meal context, “course.” Its plural is platos. principal is the adjective meaning “main” or “principal.” It has the same form for masculine and feminine singular nouns, and its plural form is principales; therefore platos principales has plural agreement in both words. In this sentence, principal modifies masculine singular plato. Together, Haz un plan sencillo para servir means “Make a simple plan for serving.” The following list gives the planned order: bebidas, entrante and luego el plato principal—drinks, starter, then the main course. The indefinite article un presents plan as an unspecified plan; by itself, it does not assert a numerical count of plans in the wider situation.

9. Puedo guardar esa lista de control cerca de la cocina.

   I can keep that checklist near the stove.

   Puedo

   I can

   guardar

   keep; store

   esa

   that

   lista

   list

   cerca de

   near

   cocina

   stove

   More detail

   Puedo is the first-person singular present form of poder (“to be able to”): puedo, “I can.” It is followed by an infinitive, so puedo guardar means “I can keep/store.” Other present forms include puedes (“you can”) and puede (“he, she, or you formal can”); the subject changes the form of poder. guardar is an infinitive meaning “to keep,” “store,” or “save.” After a conjugated modal such as puedo, the second verb stays in the infinitive: Puedo guardar... = “I can keep...” Example: Puedo guardar el documento aquí. — “I can save the document here.” esa is the feminine singular form of the demonstrative “that.” It agrees with the feminine singular noun lista, not with the speaker. The corresponding masculine singular form is ese; plural forms include esas and esos. Here, esa lista identifies that checklist. lista is a feminine noun meaning “list.” In lista de control, it forms the expression “checklist,” matching the fixed translation. The feminine demonstrative agrees with it: esa lista; for example, la lista means “the list.” cerca de is a reusable prepositional expression meaning “near” or “close to.” It introduces the place relative to which something is located: El libro está cerca de la ventana. — “The book is near the window.” cocina is a feminine noun. It commonly means “kitchen,” and it can also mean “stove” in the relevant context. Here, the fixed translation selects the “stove” meaning, in la cocina (“the stove”). Together, Puedo guardar expresses the speaker’s ability or possibility to keep something. esa lista de control identifies that checklist, and cerca de la cocina gives its location. The complete utterance therefore means: “I can keep that checklist near the stove.”

10. Debería ayudarte a mantener la concentración mientras llega la gente.

    It should help you stay focused while people arrive.

    Debería

    should

    ayudarte

    help you

    mantener

    keep; maintain

    la concentración

    focus; concentration

    mientras

    while

    llega

    arrives

    la gente

    people

    More detail

    Debería comes from deber and is the conditional form for “it/he/she should” (third-person singular). Here it expresses an expected or intended benefit, not a firm promise. The subject is understood from the sentence rather than stated. Ayudarte combines ayudar “to help” with the attached direct-object pronoun te “you” (singular, informal). Spanish can attach this pronoun to an infinitive: ayudarte = “to help you.” Compare ayudarme “to help me” and ayudarle “to help him/her or you formally,” though the exact choice depends on the intended person and regional usage. Mantener is an infinitive meaning “to keep” or “to maintain.” After ayudar, Spanish commonly uses ayudar a + infinitive: ayudarte a mantener = “to help you keep.” The infinitive does not itself mark tense or person here; debería carries the finite verb form. La concentración means “focus” or “concentration.” The noun is feminine singular, shown by la; its useful plural is las concentraciones, though “concentration” is normally singular in this expression. Mantener la concentración is a reusable pattern for “to stay focused” or literally “to maintain concentration.” Mientras introduces an action occurring during the time of another action: “while.” It links the focus-related action with the arrival of the people. It does not mean that one action replaces the other. Llega is the present indicative, third-person singular form of llegar, “to arrive.” In this sentence, the present is used for an event expected to occur while the main situation continues. Its subject is la gente, which is grammatically singular even though it refers collectively to people, so the verb is singular: la gente llega. La gente means “people” as a collective noun. Spanish uses the singular article and singular agreement with it: la gente llega, not la gente llegan. For individual plural people, Spanish can instead use las personas llegan. Together, Debería ayudarte a mantener la concentración means “It should help you stay focused,” and mientras llega la gente adds “while people arrive.” The complete utterance is therefore: “It should help you stay focused while people arrive.”