Catching up after missed classes | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. He faltado a algunas clases últimamente y siento que me he quedado atrás.

   I missed some classes recently and feel behind.

   He faltado

   I have missed; I have been absent

   algunas

   some

   clases

   classes

   últimamente

   lately; recently

   siento

   I feel

   me he quedado atrás

   I have fallen behind

   More detail

   He faltado uses the present perfect: he is the first-person singular present form of haber, and faltado is the past participle of faltar. With a plus an activity or place, faltar can mean to miss it or be absent from it. Example: He faltado al trabajo. — “I have missed work / I have been absent from work.” algunas means “some” and is the feminine plural form agreeing with clases. It indicates an unspecified subset; it does not by itself state an exact number. Compare alguna clase — “some class / one class” in a singular context — and algunas clases — “some classes.” clases is the feminine plural noun clase, “class” or “lesson.” The plural ending -s shows that more than one class is meant here. Example: Tengo clases hoy. — “I have classes today.” últimamente means “lately” or “recently.” It places the situation in the recent period leading up to the present. It is an adverb, so it does not change to agree with a noun. siento is the first-person singular present form of sentir, “to feel.” Here it introduces the speaker’s feeling in siento que..., “I feel that...” The form is not the past-tense sentí (“I felt”). Example: Siento que necesito ayuda. — “I feel that I need help.” me he quedado atrás uses the reflexive construction quedarse atrás, “to fall behind” or “to be left behind.” me marks the first-person reflexive participant, he is again first-person singular haber, and quedado is the past participle of quedarse; atrás means “behind.” Together, the present perfect presents falling behind as a situation relevant now. Example: Me he quedado atrás en matemáticas. — “I have fallen behind in mathematics.” The sentence first says He faltado a algunas clases últimamente: “I have missed some classes recently.” Then y siento que connects that fact to the speaker’s present assessment, me he quedado atrás: “and I feel that I have fallen behind.” The complete meaning is therefore: “I missed some classes recently and feel behind.”

2. Puedes ponerte al día.

   You can catch up.

   Puedes

   can

   ponerte al día

   catch up

   More detail

   Puedes is the second-person singular present form of poder (“to be able to/can”): yo puedo, tú puedes, él/ella puede. Here it expresses that the listener is able to catch up, not a command. Example: Puedes descansar. — “You can rest.” ponerte al día is the useful expression “to catch up” or “to get up to date.” Ponerte combines the infinitive poner with te; in this expression, the reflexive pattern is ponerse al día. The te marks the listener as the person who gets up to date. The infinitive appears after puedes: poder + infinitive. Example: Necesito ponerme al día. — “I need to catch up.” Together, Puedes + ponerte al día means “You can catch up.” The surrounding context supports catching up on missed classes and material; it does not mean that everything must be learned at once.

3. Pero intentar aprenderlo todo de una vez lo hará más difícil.

   But trying to learn everything at once will make it harder.

   intentar

   to try

   aprenderlo

   to learn it

   todo

   everything

   de una vez

   all at once

   lo hará

   will make it

   más difícil

   harder

   More detail

   intentar is the infinitive “to try.” It can be followed by another infinitive: intentar + infinitive means “to try to do something.” Here it introduces aprenderlo. aprenderlo combines the infinitive aprender (“to learn”) with the direct-object pronoun lo. In this sentence, lo is part of the expression aprenderlo todo, meaning “to learn everything.” The pronoun is attached to the end of the infinitive; with a feminine or plural object, Spanish uses the corresponding form, such as aprenderla or aprenderlos. todo means “everything” here. In todo used this way, it refers to the complete set of material or things being learned, without specifying each item. aprenderlo todo is a reusable pattern for “learn it all/everything.” de una vez means “all at once”: the action is treated as happening in one go rather than in separate stages. For example, No leas el libro de una vez means “Don’t read the book all at once.” lo hará contains the future form hará, from hacer (“to make/do”), and the object pronoun lo. Hará is the third-person singular future form: “will make” or “will do,” depending on its complement. Here lo refers to the situation of trying to learn everything at once; it is not the same lo attached to aprenderlo. más difícil means “harder” or “more difficult.” Difícil is the base adjective, and más difícil is its comparative form. The pattern más + adjective expresses “more [adjective].” For example, Este ejercicio es más difícil means “This exercise is harder.” Together, intentar aprenderlo todo de una vez is the subject-like infinitive phrase “trying to learn everything all at once.” lo hará más difícil says that this situation “will make it harder.” Thus the whole sentence means: “But trying to learn everything at once will make it harder.”

4. ¿Podrías decirme qué tarea debería hacer primero?

   Could you tell me which assignment I should handle first?

   Podrías

   Could you

   decirme

   tell me

   qué

   which

   tarea

   assignment

   debería

   should

   hacer

   do / handle

   primero

   first

   More detail

   Podrías is the conditional form of poder meaning “could” here. With the omitted subject tú, it makes a singular, polite-sounding request: “Could you...?” The conditional softens the request; it is not a past-tense form. decirme combines the infinitive decir (“to tell”) with the attached pronoun me (“me”). This gives the reusable pattern decirme + information: “to tell me information.” For example, ¿Puedes decirme la hora? means “Can you tell me the time?” qué is the accented interrogative word meaning “which” here. It introduces the information being requested: qué tarea = “which assignment.” The accent distinguishes this question word from the unaccented relative/conjunction que used in other structures. tarea is a feminine noun meaning “assignment” or “task.” Its plural is tareas. In this sentence, the feminine singular form is compatible with the article or adjective that would modify it, for example una tarea difícil (“a difficult assignment”). debería is the first-person singular conditional form of deber, meaning “should” here: “I should.” The translation identifies the implied subject as the speaker. The same written form can also be third-person singular in other contexts, so the form alone does not always identify the subject; here, the intended meaning is fixed by the translation. hacer is the infinitive “to do” or “to handle.” It follows debería in the pattern debería + infinitive, which expresses what someone should do. For example, Debería descansar means “I should rest.” primero is the adverb “first.” It sets the order in which the assignment should be handled. It is separate from tarea: hacer primero means “handle first.” Together, qué tarea asks which assignment is meant, debería hacer expresses what the speaker should handle, and primero adds priority. The complete utterance means: “Could you tell me which assignment I should handle first?”

5. El resumen oral se entrega pronto, y la hoja de ejercicios puede esperar hasta después.

   The speaking summary is due soon, and the worksheet can wait until later.

   resumen

   summary

   oral

   spoken; oral

   se entrega

   is submitted; is handed in

   pronto

   soon

   hoja

   sheet

   ejercicios

   exercises

   puede esperar

   can wait

   hasta después

   until later

   More detail

   resumen means “summary.” It comes from the noun resumen; the plural is resúmenes. In this sentence it is the item that is to be handed in. oral describes resumen: it means “spoken” or “oral,” rather than written. The adjective agrees with the masculine singular noun here: resumen oral. Compare presentación oral for a feminine noun. se entrega expresses a passive event: “is handed in” or “is submitted.” entrega is the third-person singular present form of entregar (“to hand in,” “to deliver”), and se marks the passive construction here; the summary is the thing submitted. A reusable pattern is El formulario se entrega mañana — “The form is submitted tomorrow.” pronto means “soon.” It is an adverb, so it does not change form for gender or number. It places the submission in the near future without specifying an exact time. hoja means “sheet.” In la hoja de ejercicios, it is the noun for the sheet; the following phrase identifies its type or purpose. hoja is feminine, as shown by la hoja; its plural is hojas. ejercicios means “exercises.” It is the plural of ejercicio; the singular is ejercicio. In hoja de ejercicios, the plural noun follows de and specifies the contents or purpose of the sheet. puede esperar means “can wait.” puede is the third-person singular present form of poder (“can; be able to”), followed by the infinitive esperar (“to wait”). The subject here is la hoja, so the singular form puede is used. A reusable pattern is La respuesta puede esperar — “The answer can wait.” hasta después means “until later.” hasta sets the endpoint, while después means “later” in this context. Together they indicate that waiting is acceptable up to a later time; they do not specify exactly when that time is. As a whole, El resumen oral se entrega pronto says that the oral summary is to be submitted soon. y joins this with la hoja de ejercicios puede esperar hasta después, which says that the worksheet can wait until later. The complete meaning is: “The speaking summary is due soon, and the worksheet can wait until later.”

6. Entonces debería empezar con la tarea oral.

   Then I should start with the speaking task.

   Entonces

   then

   debería

   should

   empezar

   to start

   tarea

   task

   oral

   speaking; oral

   More detail

   Entonces means “then” here, linking this decision to what was just mentioned. It can also mean “so” when introducing a conclusion. Example: Entonces, empezamos. — “Then, we’ll start.” Debería is the conditional form of deber. In this sentence, the fixed translation identifies the subject as yo: “I should.” The conditional expresses a recommendation or expected choice, not a direct command. Useful forms include debo (“I must/should”), debería (“I should”), and debería empezar (“I should start”). Example: Debería estudiar hoy. — “I should study today.” Empezar is the infinitive “to start” or “to begin.” After debería, Spanish uses the infinitive: debería empezar, “I should start.” The same verb can introduce what is being started, as in empezar la tarea — “to start the task.” Example: Quiero empezar ahora. — “I want to start now.” Tarea is a feminine noun meaning “task” here. The article la agrees with it: la tarea. It can also mean “homework” in contexts where that is the intended activity, but this sentence specifically identifies a task. Example: La tarea es breve. — “The task is short.” Oral describes tarea: la tarea oral, “the speaking/oral task.” It has the same singular form with masculine and feminine nouns; its plural is orales, as in tareas orales. Here it specifies the task’s oral nature. The previous context separately mentions a worksheet that can wait. Example: Tenemos una presentación oral. — “We have an oral presentation.” Together, Entonces debería empezar means “Then I should start,” and con la tarea oral means “with the speaking task.” The preposition con marks the task as the thing to begin with. The complete utterance is: “Then I should start with the speaking task.”

7. Empieza por ahí y pídele a la profesora los apuntes de las clases a las que faltaste.

   Start there, and ask the teacher for notes from the classes you missed.

   Empieza

   start

   por ahí

   there

   pídele

   ask him/her

   profesora

   teacher

   apuntes

   notes

   clases

   classes

   a las que

   that/which

   faltaste

   you missed

   More detail

   Empieza is the affirmative command form of empezar for tú: “start.” The ending -a here signals a singular informal addressee; it is not an usted or plural command. Compare the reusable pattern Empieza por... (“Start with/by...”): Empieza por la tarea oral means “Start with the speaking task.” por ahí means “there” and presents that place or point as the starting point. With empezar, por commonly introduces what someone starts from or with: Empieza por aquí means “Start here.” pídele combines the affirmative tú command pide from pedir (“ask for/request”) with the indirect-object clitic le. The written accent preserves the stress when le is attached. Here le refers to la profesora, the person being asked. The pattern pídele a [persona] [thing] means “ask [person] for [thing].” profesora is the feminine noun “teacher.” profesor is the masculine-form counterpart, while profesora identifies a female teacher. The phrase a la profesora marks the person receiving the request; the repeated le in pídele is the matching indirect-object clitic. apuntes is the plural noun “notes,” especially notes taken for study. Its singular is apunte, “a note.” In los apuntes, los agrees with this masculine plural noun. The sentence asks for the notes, without specifying how many individual notes there are. de las clases means “from/of the classes.” clases is the plural of clase, “class” or “lesson.” The preposition de links the notes to the classes they come from: los apuntes de la clase can mean “the notes from the class.” a las que is a relative phrase meaning “that/which” after the preposition a. las agrees in feminine plural with clases, and que is the relative element. The preposition is important because Spanish uses faltar a for being absent from or missing a class: las clases a las que... means “the classes that...” with the a required by faltar a. faltaste is the tú preterite form of faltar, “to be absent from” or, with faltar a, “to miss.” In this sentence, faltaste a las clases means “you missed the classes”; it describes completed past absences. The same verb in the present, faltas, would mean “you miss/are absent from” or “you are missing,” depending on context. Together, pídele a la profesora los apuntes de las clases a las que faltaste means “ask the teacher for the notes from the classes you missed.” Empieza por ahí y connects that request to the initial instruction: “Start there, and...” The whole utterance therefore tells the listener to begin with that step and request those class notes.

8. Tengo menos confianza porque los demás practicaron juntos.

   I feel less confident because the others practiced together.

   Tengo

   I feel / I have

   menos

   less

   confianza

   confidence

   porque

   because

   los demás

   the others

   practicaron

   practiced

   juntos

   together

   More detail

   Tengo is the first-person singular present form of tener (“to have”). Here, tener confianza is the Spanish way to express feeling confident or having confidence: Tengo confianza = “I feel confident.” The same form can also mean literal possession in other contexts, such as Tengo un libro (“I have a book”). menos means “less” and introduces a comparison. It is invariable: it does not change for gender or number. In menos confianza, it says that the speaker’s confidence is lower than a relevant comparison point, without specifying that point in this sentence. The opposite comparison is más (“more”): Tengo más confianza = “I feel more confident.” confianza is a feminine noun meaning “confidence” here. Its useful base form is the noun itself; the adjective confiado/confiada is a different word, meaning “confident” in suitable contexts. Spanish commonly uses tener confianza for “to feel/be confident,” while tener poca confianza means “to have little confidence.” porque is a conjunction meaning “because.” It introduces the reason for the statement before it. Example: Estoy cansado porque trabajé mucho. — “I am tired because I worked a lot.” los demás means “the others” or “the rest [of the people].” Demás is used with a definite article here, and los marks the masculine plural form of the group expression. The fixed translation identifies this group as “the others”; the sentence does not specify exactly which people beyond that shared context. practicaron is the third-person plural preterite form of practicar, “to practice.” The preterite presents the practice as a completed event in the past: Ellos practicaron = “They practiced.” The ending -aron here marks third-person plural in this tense; it does not identify the group’s gender. juntos means “together” here. It is an adjective used to describe the group’s shared action, and its masculine plural form agrees with the masculine-plural group expression los demás. With a feminine plural group, the corresponding form would be juntas, as in Las estudiantes practicaron juntas — “The female students practiced together.” Together, Tengo menos confianza means “I feel less confident,” and porque los demás practicaron juntos gives the reason: “because the others practiced together.” The complete utterance is therefore: “I feel less confident because the others practiced together.”

9. Podemos repasar la tarea después de clase.

   We can run through the task after class.

   Podemos

   we can

   repasar

   review; run through

   tarea

   task

   después de

   after

   clase

   class

   More detail

   Podemos is the first-person plural present form of poder, “to be able to” or “can.” Its verb ending identifies “we,” so Spanish can omit a separate subject pronoun: Podemos repasar = “We can review.” Compare puedo = “I can” and pueden = “they/you all can.” Example: Podemos empezar ahora. — “We can start now.” Repasar is an infinitive meaning “to review” or “to run through.” After podemos, the infinitive names the action that is possible; it does not take a separate subject ending here. The useful pattern is poder + infinitive: Puedo leer — “I can read.” La tarea means “the task” here. Tarea is a feminine singular noun, so the definite article is la. Example: La tarea es difícil. — “The task is difficult.” Después de is a time expression meaning “after.” It introduces the event or period that comes later in time: después de clase = “after class.” It can also be followed by an infinitive, as in después de comer — “after eating.” Clase means “class” here. It is a feminine singular noun. In the time expression después de clase, Spanish uses the noun without an article; this omission is part of the expression and is not caused by the noun’s gender. Example: Después de clase, camino a casa. — “After class, I walk home.” Together, Podemos repasar la tarea says “We can review the task,” and después de clase places that possible action after class. The complete utterance means: “We can run through the task after class.”

10. Así sabrás qué esperar.

    So you know what to expect.

    Así

    so; in this way

    sabrás

    you will know

    qué esperar

    what to expect

    More detail

    Así means “so” or “in this way.” Here it presents the knowing in the next part as a consequence of the preceding idea. For example: Haz una lista; así no olvidarás nada. — “Make a list; that way you won’t forget anything.” sabrás is the future form of saber (“to know”) for tú: saber → sabrás. The irregular future stem is sabr-, followed by the future ending -ás. In this sentence, the form presents the knowing as a result that will follow. For example: Mañana sabrás la respuesta. — “Tomorrow you will know the answer.” qué esperar means “what to expect.” The accented qué introduces an embedded question, and esperar is an infinitive. Here, esperar means “to expect,” not “to wait.” Compare: No sé qué esperar. — “I don’t know what to expect.” Together, Así + sabrás + qué esperar means “So you know what to expect.” The sentence connects the preceding idea with the result of having that knowledge.

11. Eso haría que el siguiente paso fuera más fácil de manejar.

    That would make the next step feel more manageable.

    Eso

    That

    haría

    would make

    siguiente

    next

    paso

    step

    fuera

    were

    más fácil

    easier

    manejar

    handle

    More detail

    Eso is a neuter demonstrative pronoun meaning “that.” It points to an already understood situation, action, or idea; the sentence itself does not identify a specific noun as its referent. The neuter form is used for this kind of non-noun-specific reference. haría is the conditional form of hacer for a third-person singular subject: hacer → haría. Here it means “would make” and expresses a possible result rather than a definite present fact. With que, the reusable pattern is hacer que + clause (“to make/cause something to be…”). siguiente means “next” or “following.” It is an adjective placed before paso here and agrees with that masculine singular noun. Related sequence words include anterior (“previous”) and último (“last”), but they express different positions. paso is a masculine singular noun meaning “step” here, in the sense of a stage or action in a process. Its plural is pasos. The same word can have other context-dependent meanings, such as “passage” or “I pass,” but those are not the meaning in this sentence. fuera is an imperfect subjunctive form of ser for a third-person singular subject: ser → fuera. In haría que el siguiente paso fuera..., the clause introduced by que states the result that would be caused. Although fuera resembles a past form, here it is selected by the conditional haría and the hacer que construction; it does not by itself assert that the step was in the past. más fácil means “easier.” Fácil is the base adjective, and más fácil is its comparative form. The comparison is with an understood alternative or with the step’s condition without this effect; it does not say that the step is the easiest of all. Más modifies the adjective fácil, not the noun paso. manejar is an infinitive meaning “to handle” or “to manage” in this context. The pattern fácil de + infinitive describes what is easy to do: fácil de manejar means “easy to handle.” For example, Es fácil de usar means “It is easy to use.” Together, Eso haría que means “That would make,” el siguiente paso means “the next step,” and fuera más fácil de manejar means “were easier to handle.” The whole utterance therefore means: “That would make the next step feel more manageable.” The Spanish wording presents the next step as becoming easier to handle; the conditional keeps this as a possible result.

12. Una sesión de práctica enfocada es mejor que evitar el trabajo.

    One focused practice session is better than avoiding the work.

    sesión

    session

    práctica

    practice

    enfocada

    focused

    mejor

    better

    evitar

    to avoid

    trabajo

    work

    More detail

    sesión is a feminine singular noun meaning a session or period devoted to an activity. Its plural is sesiones. In this sentence, sesión de práctica means “practice session”; de links the session with the activity it is for. práctica is a feminine noun meaning practice or training here. It names the activity rather than describing the session as an adjective. Example: La práctica ayuda. — “Practice helps.” enfocada means “focused” here and describes sesión. It is the feminine singular form agreeing with that noun; the masculine singular form is enfocado, and the plural forms are enfocados and enfocadas. Example: Una tarea enfocada puede ser útil. — “A focused task can be useful.” mejor is the comparative form meaning “better.” It compares the first option with the alternative introduced by que. Its positive counterpart is bueno, with the irregular comparative mejor; mejor does not change for gender, though its plural is mejores. Example: Esta opción es mejor que la otra. — “This option is better than the other one.” evitar is an infinitive meaning “to avoid.” An infinitive can name an activity or action, so evitar el trabajo functions as the alternative in the comparison. Example: Prefiero evitar el ruido. — “I prefer to avoid the noise.” trabajo is a masculine noun meaning “work” here. In el trabajo, the definite article presents the work as identified in this context. Its plural is trabajos when referring to multiple jobs, tasks, or pieces of work. The opening Una sesión de práctica enfocada means “a focused practice session.” Una is an indefinite article introducing a singular session; it does not by itself assert a numerical count. The copula es links that subject to mejor que evitar el trabajo, “better than avoiding the work.” Thus the whole utterance says that a focused practice session is better than avoiding the work. The sentence does not specify who performs either activity.