Organizing account activity | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: At a banking support desk, two adults discuss organizing account activity so recurring services and unusual payments are easier to notice..

EN → ES / Level: B2

About This Lesson

Use Organizing account activity to practice Spanish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Estoy intentando separar la actividad habitual de mi cuenta de los pagos ocasionales.

eh-STOY een-tehn-TAHN-doh seh-pah-RAHR lah ahk-tee-vee-DAHD ah-bee-TOO-ahl deh mee KWEHN-tah deh lohs PAH-gohs oh-kah-see-oh-NAH-lehs I'm trying to separate routine account activity from occasional payments.
B

Eso puede ayudarte a ver qué servicios se renuevan automáticamente.

EH-soh PWEH-deh ah-yoo-DAHR-teh ah BEHR keh sehr-BEE-see-ohs seh reh-NWEH-bahn ow-toh-mah-TEE-kah-MEHN-teh That can help you see which services renew automatically.
A

Lo difícil es notar los cambios antes de que queden ocultos.

loh dee-FEE-seel es noh-TAHR lohs KAHM-byohs AHN-tehs deh keh KEH-dehn oh-KOOL-tohs The hard part is noticing changes before they get buried.
B

Agrupar los pagos similares puede ayudar más que depender de los recordatorios.

ah-groo-PAHR lohs PAH-gohs see-mee-LAHR-es PWEH-deh ah-yoo-DAHR mahs keh deh-pehn-DEHR deh lohs reh-kor-dah-TOH-ryos Grouping similar payments may help more than relying on reminders.
A

Podría usar una tarjeta exclusiva para los servicios habituales.

poh-DREE-ah oo-SAHR oo-nah tahr-HEH-tah ehk-skloo-SEE-bah pah-rah lohs sehr-BEE-see-ohs ah-bee-TOO-ah-lehs I could use one dedicated card for regular services.
B

Entonces, la actividad inusual destacaría más rápido.

ehn-TOHN-sehs lah ahk-tee-vee-DAHD ee-noo-SWAHL deh-stah-kah-REE-ah mahs RAH-pee-doh Then unusual activity would stand out more quickly.
A

También podría mantener mi cuenta principal menos desordenada.

tahm-BYEHN poh-DREE-ah mahn-teh-NEHR mee KWEHN-tah preen-see-PAHL MEH-nohs deh-sohr-deh-NAH-dah It might also keep my main account less cluttered.
B

Unos registros más ordenados pueden facilitar las decisiones futuras.

OO-nohs reh-HEES-trohs mahs or-deh-NAH-dohs PWEH-dehn fah-see-lee-TAHR lahs deh-see-SYOH-nehs foo-TOO-rahs Cleaner records can make future decisions easier.

Word by Word

Estoy “Estoy” means “I am” in “Estoy intentando”: it introduces the speaker’s current effort. It is the form of estar used with a current state or activity, as in “Estoy intentando separar”.
intentando “Intentando” means “trying” here and describes the effort currently being made to separate account activity. It comes from intentar and is used after “Estoy” in “Estoy intentando separar”.
separar “Separar” means “to separate” the routine account activity from the occasional payments. As an infinitive, it follows “Estoy intentando” in “Estoy intentando separar”.
la “La” identifies “actividad” as the specific feminine singular activity being discussed. It is used before a feminine singular noun, as in “la actividad”.
actividad “Actividad” means “activity,” specifically the activity recorded in the account. It is used with “de mi cuenta” in “la actividad habitual de mi cuenta” to specify whose activity it is.
habitual “Habitual” means usual or routine in “la actividad habitual de mi cuenta.” It describes a repeated or normal kind of activity and follows the noun “actividad” here.
de “De” links “actividad habitual” to “mi cuenta” and means “of” in “la actividad habitual de mi cuenta.” It commonly connects a noun with the person, thing, or place associated with it.
mi “Mi” means “my” and shows that the account belongs to the speaker. It comes directly before “cuenta” in “mi cuenta”.
cuenta “Cuenta” means “account” in this banking context. The expression “mi cuenta” identifies the speaker’s account, and “cuenta” is commonly used for a bank account.
los “Los” identifies “pagos” as the specific masculine plural payments being separated from the account activity. It is used before a masculine plural noun, as in “los pagos ocasionales”.
pagos “Pagos” means “payments,” referring here to occasional transactions. It is used with “ocasionales” in “los pagos ocasionales” to describe the type of payments.
ocasionales “Ocasionales” means occasional or not routine in “los pagos ocasionales.” It describes plural payments and contrasts them in the dialogue with “la actividad habitual”.
Eso “Eso” means “that” and points back to the organization just discussed. In “Eso puede ayudarte,” it makes that previous idea the thing that may help.
puede “Puede” means “can” or “may” in “Eso puede ayudarte,” expressing that the proposed organization has the possibility of helping. It is a form of poder used before an infinitive, here “ayudar”.
ayudarte “Ayudarte” means “help you” in “puede ayudarte.” It combines ayudar, “to help,” with te, “you,” and is used after “puede” to identify who receives the help.
a “A” connects “ayudar” with the following action in “ayudarte a ver,” giving the pattern “help someone to see.” It appears before the infinitive “ver” in this construction.
ver “Ver” means “to see” what services renew automatically. It is the infinitive after “ayudarte a” in “ayudarte a ver”.
qué “Qué” means “which” in “qué servicios se renuevan automáticamente,” introducing the information the speaker can identify. It comes directly before the noun “servicios” in this question-like embedded clause.
servicios “Servicios” means “services,” referring to recurring services connected with the account. It is the subject of “se renuevan automáticamente” in “qué servicios se renuevan automáticamente”.
se “Se” is part of the construction “se renuevan automáticamente,” which presents the services as renewing automatically. It appears directly before “renuevan” in this expression.
renuevan “Renuevan” means “renew” in the sense that the services renew automatically. It is used with “se” and “automáticamente” in “se renuevan automáticamente”.
automáticamente “Automáticamente” means “automatically,” explaining that the services renew without a separate action being mentioned. It modifies the renewal in “se renuevan automáticamente” and commonly describes an action that happens on its own.
Lo “Lo” turns “difícil” into the idea of “what is difficult” in “Lo difícil.” Together, “Lo difícil” means “the difficult part,” and it is followed by “es”.
difícil “Difícil” means “difficult” or “hard” in “Lo difícil es notar los cambios.” It describes the part of the task that presents the problem and follows “Lo” in “Lo difícil”.
es “Es” means “is” and links “Lo difícil” with the action that is hard: “notar los cambios.” It is the form of ser used in “Lo difícil es...” to define or identify the difficult part.
notar “Notar” means “to notice” changes before they become hidden. It is an infinitive after “Lo difícil es” in “Lo difícil es notar los cambios”.
cambios “Cambios” means “changes,” referring to changes in account activity. It is the object of “notar” in “notar los cambios” and is introduced by “los”.
antes “Antes” means “before” and places the noticing of changes earlier than their becoming hidden. In “antes de que,” it introduces the following event or state.
que “Que” completes the time expression “antes de que” in “antes de que queden ocultos.” Together, the expression means “before,” followed by the event described in the next clause.
queden “Queden” describes the changes as becoming or remaining hidden in “queden ocultos.” It follows “antes de que” and expresses the state that the speaker wants to notice them before reaching.
ocultos “Ocultos” means “hidden” in “queden ocultos,” referring to the plural “cambios.” It describes the state in which changes may no longer be easy to see.
Agrupar “Agrupar” means “to group” the similar payments. At the beginning of “Agrupar los pagos similares puede ayudar,” the infinitive names the proposed activity as the subject of the sentence.
similares “Similares” means “similar” in “los pagos similares,” describing payments that resemble one another. It follows the plural noun “pagos” and helps identify which payments should be grouped.
ayudar “Ayudar” means “to help” in “puede ayudar,” referring to making account activity easier to manage. It is an infinitive after “puede” and is followed here by “más que depender...”.
más “Más” means “more” in “puede ayudar más que depender de los recordatorios,” comparing the usefulness of grouping with relying on reminders. It appears before “que” to introduce the comparison.
depender “Depender” means “to rely” or “depend” in “depender de los recordatorios.” It is an infinitive after “más que” and is followed by the preposition “de”.
recordatorios “Recordatorios” means “reminders,” referring to reminders used to remember account activity. It follows “de” in “depender de los recordatorios,” a common pattern for saying what someone relies on.
Podría “Podría” means “could” and presents a possible plan: using one dedicated card. It is a form of poder used before the infinitive “usar” in “Podría usar”.
usar “Usar” means “to use,” specifically to use one card for regular services. It is the infinitive after “Podría” in “Podría usar una tarjeta exclusiva”.
una “Una” means “a” or “one” and introduces “tarjeta” as one feminine singular card. In “una tarjeta exclusiva,” it comes before the noun and its description.
tarjeta “Tarjeta” means “card,” here a card intended for regular services. The phrase “una tarjeta exclusiva para los servicios habituales” specifies both the card and its purpose.
exclusiva “Exclusiva” means dedicated or exclusive in “una tarjeta exclusiva para los servicios habituales.” It describes the card as reserved for that purpose and agrees with the feminine noun “tarjeta”.
para “Para” means “for” and introduces the purpose of the dedicated card in “para los servicios habituales.” It links the card with the services it is intended to cover.
habituales “Habituales” means regular or usual in “los servicios habituales.” It describes the recurring services and follows the masculine plural noun “servicios”.
Entonces “Entonces” means “then” and shows that the next result follows from using a dedicated card. It introduces “la actividad inusual destacaría más rápido” as a consequence.
inusual “Inusual” means unusual in “la actividad inusual,” referring to activity that does not fit the regular pattern. It describes the feminine singular noun “actividad” and comes after it.
destacaría “Destacaría” means “would stand out,” describing how unusual activity would become easier to notice. It is a form of destacar used with “más rápido” to express the expected result.
rápido “Rápido” means “quickly” in “destacaría más rápido,” describing the speed at which unusual activity would stand out. It follows “más” to express a greater speed.
También “También” means “also” and adds another possible benefit of using a separate card. In “También podría mantener,” it connects this benefit with the previous one.
mantener “Mantener” means “to keep” the main account less cluttered. It is the infinitive after “podría” in “podría mantener mi cuenta principal menos desordenada”.
principal “Principal” means “main” in “mi cuenta principal,” identifying the account that is the primary one for the speaker. It follows and describes “cuenta”.
menos “Menos” means “less” in “menos desordenada,” expressing a reduced degree of clutter. It comes before “desordenada” to form the comparison.
desordenada “Desordenada” means less organized or cluttered in “mantener mi cuenta principal menos desordenada.” It describes the feminine noun “cuenta” through the state the account is kept in.
Unos “Unos” means “some” and introduces “registros” as records considered together. In “Unos registros más ordenados,” it begins the subject of the sentence.
registros “Registros” means “records,” referring to organized records of account activity. It is the subject in “Unos registros más ordenados pueden facilitar las decisiones futuras”.
ordenados “Ordenados” means organized or orderly in “unos registros más ordenados.” It describes the masculine plural noun “registros” and indicates that the records are easier to use.
pueden “Pueden” means “can” or “may” in “pueden facilitar,” expressing the possible effect of cleaner records. It is a form of poder used before the infinitive “facilitar”.
facilitar “Facilitar” means “to make easier” or “facilitate” the future decisions. It is the infinitive after “pueden” in “pueden facilitar las decisiones futuras”.
las “Las” identifies “decisiones” as the specific feminine plural decisions being made easier. It is used before a feminine plural noun, as in “las decisiones futuras”.
decisiones “Decisiones” means “decisions,” referring to choices the speaker may need to make later. It is the object of “facilitar” in “facilitar las decisiones futuras”.
futuras “Futuras” means “future” in “las decisiones futuras,” describing decisions that will come later. It follows and agrees with the feminine plural noun “decisiones”.

Grammar Points

se + verbo en plural

Los servicios se renuevan automáticamente.

lohs sehr-BEE-see-ohs seh reh-NWEH-bahn ow-toh-mah-TEE-kah-MEHN-teh

The services are renewed automatically.

The passive se shows that the services receive the action; the verb agrees with servicios in the plural.

depender de + sustantivo

La decisión depende de los registros ordenados.

lah deh-see-SYOHN deh-PEHN-deh deh lohs reh-HEES-trohs or-deh-NAH-dohs

The decision depends on the organized records.

Spanish uses the preposition de after depender, unlike English, which uses on.

Spanish Vocabulary

actividad noun
ahk-tee-vee-DAHD activity

la actividad habitual de mi cuenta

automáticamente adv
ow-toh-mah-TEE-kah-MEHN-teh automatically

se renuevan automáticamente

ayudar verb
ah-yoo-DAHR to help ayudarte

puede ayudarte

cuenta noun
KWEHN-tah account

mi cuenta

difícil adj
dee-FEE-seel difficult; hard

Lo difícil es notar los cambios.

habitual adj
ah-bee-TOO-ahl routine; usual

la actividad habitual

notar verb
noh-TAHR to notice

es notar los cambios

ocasional adj
oh-kah-see-oh-NAHL occasional ocasionales

los pagos ocasionales

pago noun
PAH-goh payment pagos

los pagos ocasionales

renovarse verb
reh-noh-BAHR-seh to renew; to be renewed se renuevan

los servicios se renuevan automáticamente

separar verb
seh-pah-RAHR to separate

Estoy intentando separar la actividad habitual de mi cuenta.

servicio noun
sehr-BEE-see-oh service servicios

qué servicios se renuevan automáticamente

Quiz

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

account

Show Answercuenta

service

Show Answerservicios

to separate

Show Answerseparar

to help

Show Answerayudarte