Asking About Dietary Restrictions | Learn Spanish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Uno de los invitados tiene una restricción alimentaria, así que necesitamos información clara antes de pedir.

   One guest has a dietary restriction, so we need clear information before ordering.

   Uno de los

   one of the

   invitados

   guests

   tiene

   has

   restricción

   restriction

   alimentaria

   dietary

   así que

   so

   necesitamos

   we need

   información

   information

   clara

   clear

   antes de

   before

   pedir

   to order

   More detail

   Uno de los introduces one member of a larger, definite group: uno de los invitados means “one of the guests.” Here it does assert one guest, while los marks the group as masculine plural (or a mixed group); uno is masculine singular because it refers to that guest. A useful pattern is uno de los + plural noun: Uno de los platos está frío means “One of the dishes is cold.” invitados is the plural noun “guests.” Its singular is invitado; feminine forms are invitada and invitadas when the referents require them. In this sentence, the form is plural because it names the group after uno de los. tiene is the present-tense form of tener (“to have”) for third-person singular: “has.” The subject here is the singular uno, not the plural invitados. Compare tiene “has” with tienen “have”: Los invitados tienen información means “The guests have information.” restricción is a feminine singular noun meaning “restriction.” Its plural is restricciones. The article and adjective in the sentence match this noun: una restricción alimentaria. alimentaria means “dietary” here and describes restricción. It is the feminine singular form of alimentario; the plural forms are alimentarios and alimentarias, and the masculine singular is alimentario. The adjective agrees with the noun it describes, so restricción alimentaria is feminine singular. Example: Necesito una opción alimentaria especial means “I need a special dietary option.” así que connects a situation to its consequence: “so” or “therefore.” It does not itself express the reason; the first clause gives the situation, and the following clause gives the result. necesitamos is the first-person plural present form of necesitar: “we need.” The ending identifies nosotros/nosotras as the understood subject. Necesito información means “I need information,” while necesitamos información means “we need information.” información is a feminine singular noun meaning “information.” Spanish commonly uses it as a mass noun, so this sentence does not need a plural form to express information in general. Its adjective is feminine singular here because it modifies información. clara means “clear” in this sentence and describes información. It is the feminine singular form of claro; the masculine singular is claro, and the plural forms are claros and claras. Example: La explicación es clara means “The explanation is clear.” antes de means “before.” When it is followed by a verb, Spanish uses the infinitive: antes de + infinitive. Example: Lávate las manos antes de comer means “Wash your hands before eating.” pedir is the infinitive “to order” in this context. The same verb can mean “to ask for” or “to request” in other contexts, but the fixed translation supports the ordering sense here. After antes de, the infinitive keeps the action general rather than marking a separate tense. In this sentence, the people who need the information are understood as the people ordering. Together, uno de los invitados tiene una restricción alimentaria says that one guest has a dietary restriction. Así que necesitamos información clara gives the consequence: therefore, we need clear information. Antes de pedir places the need before ordering. The complete meaning is: “One guest has a dietary restriction, so we need clear information before ordering.”

2. Podemos enumerar los ingredientes.

   We can list the ingredients.

   Podemos

   we can

   enumerar

   to list

   ingredientes

   ingredients

   More detail

   Podemos comes from poder, “to be able to/can.” In this form, the ending -emos marks present-tense first-person plural: “we can” or “we are able to.” A useful pattern is podemos + infinitive: Podemos esperar. — “We can wait.” enumerar is an infinitive meaning “to list” or “to enumerate.” After a conjugated form of poder, the second verb stays in the infinitive: Podemos enumerar... means “We can list...” rather than changing enumerar to match the subject. Enumerar focuses on naming items one by one; a related verb, mencionar, means “to mention,” which is broader. ingredientes means “ingredients.” It is the plural of ingrediente; the plural ending -s indicates more than one ingredient. The definite article los before it gives the meaning “the ingredients,” referring to a specific set understood in the situation. For example: Los ingredientes están aquí. — “The ingredients are here.” Together, Podemos enumerar los ingredientes. means “We can list the ingredients.” The sentence presents listing the specific ingredients as something the speaker and at least one other person are able to do. Its reusable structure is podemos + infinitive + noun phrase: Podemos revisar el menú. — “We can review the menu.”

3. Pero debo mencionar que las áreas de preparación son compartidas.

   But I should mention that the prep areas are shared.

   Pero

   But

   debo

   I should

   mencionar

   mention

   áreas

   areas

   preparación

   preparation

   son

   are

   compartidas

   shared

   More detail

   Pero introduces a contrast. Here it means “but,” connecting this statement with something previously mentioned without cancelling the earlier point. debo is the first-person singular present form of deber: debo, “I should / I must”; debes, “you should / must.” With an infinitive, deber + infinitive expresses obligation or advice. In this sentence, debo mencionar presents mentioning it as something the speaker should do. mencionar is the infinitive “to mention.” After a conjugated form of deber, the second verb remains in the infinitive: debo mencionar = “I should mention.” Example: Debo revisar la lista. — “I should review the list.” áreas means “areas” and is the plural of área. It is a feminine noun, although the singular form commonly uses el in el área because of its initial stressed a; the plural uses las áreas here. The noun is specified by de preparación, literally “of preparation,” which identifies the type of areas. preparación is the feminine noun “preparation.” In áreas de preparación, de links the noun to the activity or purpose associated with the areas. Example: una zona de preparación — “a preparation area.” son is the third-person plural present form of ser, “to be.” It agrees with the plural subject las áreas: las áreas son, “the areas are.” The form son is also used with other plural subjects, such as los invitados son (“the guests are”). compartidas means “shared” here. It is a feminine plural adjective agreeing with áreas: áreas compartidas. Its base form is compartido, with feminine plural agreement changing it to compartidas; masculine and feminine forms differ, as in espacios compartidos (“shared spaces”) versus áreas compartidas. Together, Pero debo mencionar que means “But I should mention that.” The clause las áreas de preparación son compartidas says that the preparation areas are shared. The complete utterance is therefore: “But I should mention that the prep areas are shared.”

4. Eso ayuda; el invitado puede decidir qué nivel de riesgo le resulta aceptable.

   That helps; the guest can decide what level of risk is acceptable.

   Eso

   that

   ayuda

   helps

   invitado

   guest

   puede

   can

   decidir

   decide

   qué

   what/which

   nivel

   level

   riesgo

   risk

   resulta

   turns out / is

   aceptable

   acceptable

   More detail

   Eso is a neuter demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” here. It refers to an already established situation or piece of information, without identifying a masculine or feminine noun. Este/esta and ese/esa are related demonstrative forms used with nouns; eso is used when the referent is treated generally or is not named as a noun. ayuda is the third-person singular present form of ayudar, “to help.” Its singular form agrees with Eso. Example: La explicación ayuda. — “The explanation helps.” invitado means “guest” and is masculine singular here. The feminine form is invitada; the plural forms are invitados and invitadas, with the appropriate gender and number. Together, el invitado means “the guest.” puede is the third-person singular present form of poder, “can” or “is able to.” It agrees with el invitado. It is followed by the infinitive decidir, so puede decidir means “can decide.” Example: La persona puede elegir. — “The person can choose.” decidir is the infinitive “to decide.” After a modal such as poder, the following verb remains an infinitive: puede decidir, not a second finite verb form. qué is the accented interrogative word “what” or “which.” Here it introduces an embedded question: qué nivel de riesgo... — “what level of risk...” The accent distinguishes interrogative qué from unaccented que, which commonly introduces a statement or clause. nivel means “level.” The reusable pattern nivel de + noun expresses the level or degree of something: nivel de riesgo — “level of risk.” riesgo means “risk.” In nivel de riesgo, it identifies what is being measured. Another useful expression is correr un riesgo, “to take a risk.” resulta is the third-person singular present form of resultar, a verb that can mean “turn out” or “prove to be.” In the construction le resulta aceptable, le is an indirect-object pronoun marking the person for whom something is acceptable, while aceptable describes the thing being evaluated. The supplied sentence establishes the guest as the person who can decide, but it does not independently require naming the referent of le beyond this grammatical role. This construction is more accurate than treating resultarle as the observed verb form: the source has the separate sequence le resulta. aceptable means “acceptable.” It has the same written form with masculine and feminine singular nouns; its plural form is aceptables. Example: La condición es aceptable. — “The condition is acceptable.” Together, Eso ayuda means “That helps.” El invitado puede decidir means “the guest can decide.” The embedded question qué nivel de riesgo specifies what the guest decides, and le resulta aceptable expresses that the level is acceptable to the person indicated by le. The whole utterance means: “That helps; the guest can decide what level of risk is acceptable.”

5. Le pediré a la cocina que revise cada componente en lugar de hacer suposiciones.

   I'll ask the kitchen to check each component instead of guessing.

   Le pediré

   I will ask

   cocina

   kitchen

   revise

   check

   componente

   component

   en lugar de

   instead of

   hacer

   to make

   suposiciones

   assumptions

   More detail

   Le pediré combines pedir (“to ask/request”) with the future form pediré: first person singular, “I will ask.” Le is an indirect-object clitic; here it refers to la cocina, understood in the fixed translation as the party being asked. The future ending -é marks the speaker’s future action. Example: Le pediré ayuda. — “I will ask them for help.” cocina means “kitchen.” In this sentence, la cocina is treated as the entity being asked, so the phrase can refer to the kitchen staff or kitchen operation without changing the wording. The noun is feminine singular, shown by la. revise is the present subjunctive form of revisar, “to check/review.” It is third-person singular, matching la cocina, and appears after pedir que because the speaker is requesting that another party perform an action. Example: Pido que revise el documento. — “I ask them to check the document.” componente means “component.” In cada componente, it remains singular because cada presents the items one by one: “each component.” The plural is componentes. Example: Revisa cada componente. — “Check each component.” en lugar de is a reusable construction meaning “instead of.” It is followed here by the infinitive hacer, rather than by a conjugated verb. Example: Camina en lugar de conducir. — “Walk instead of driving.” hacer is the infinitive “to do/make.” In hacer suposiciones, it forms the expression “to make assumptions.” Its irregular first-person present form is hago, but the infinitive is required here after en lugar de. suposiciones is the plural of suposición, “assumptions.” With hacer, it describes forming assumptions rather than checking the facts. Example: No hagas suposiciones. — “Don’t make assumptions.” Together, Le pediré a la cocina que revise cada componente means “I will ask the kitchen to check each component.” The structure pedirle a alguien que + subjunctive expresses asking someone to do something. en lugar de hacer suposiciones adds the contrast: the checking will happen instead of making assumptions. The complete meaning is: “I’ll ask the kitchen to check each component instead of guessing.”

6. Incluyan también las salsas y los ingredientes adicionales, porque es fácil pasarlos por alto.

   Please include sauces and toppings too, since those are easy to miss.

   Incluyan

   please include

   también

   also; too

   las salsas

   the sauces

   los ingredientes

   the ingredients

   adicionales

   additional

   porque

   because

   es fácil

   is easy

   pasarlos por alto

   to overlook them

   More detail

   Incluyan is the affirmative command form for ustedes (plural “you”): it asks a group of listeners to include something. The tú command is incluye. Here, Incluyan también... means “Please include ... too.” También adds “also” or “too.” It adds these items to what is already being considered; it does not exclude or replace anything. Las salsas means “the sauces.” Salsas is the plural of salsa, and las is the feminine plural definite article used with it. Example: Incluyan las salsas. — “Include the sauces.” Los ingredientes means “the ingredients.” Ingredientes is the plural of ingrediente, and los is the masculine plural definite article. In the fixed translation, the additional ingredients are rendered as “toppings.” Adicionales means “additional” and describes ingredientes. It is plural to agree with that noun; the singular form is adicional. It has the same form for masculine and feminine plural nouns. Example: ingredientes adicionales — “additional ingredients.” Porque introduces the reason: “because.” It differs from por qué, written as two words with an accent, which asks “why.” Es fácil means “is easy.” Spanish uses ser fácil + infinitive to describe an activity as easy, as in Es fácil entenderlo. — “It is easy to understand it.” Here, es is the third-person singular present form of ser; fácil is singular because this is a third-person-singular impersonal construction, not because it agrees in gender with a noun. Pasarlos por alto means “to overlook them” or “to miss them.” Pasar por alto is a fixed expression meaning “to overlook.” Los is a plural masculine direct-object clitic attached to the infinitive pasar; here it refers to the coordinated items, the sauces and additional ingredients. With a singular feminine object, pasarla por alto means “to overlook it,” referring to a feminine singular noun. Together, las salsas y los ingredientes adicionales names the items to include. Incluyan también makes a request to plural ustedes, and porque es fácil pasarlos por alto gives the reason: those items are easy to miss. The complete meaning is: “Please include the sauces and toppings too, since those are easy to miss.”

7. Me aseguraré de que los revisen por separado.

   I'll make sure they check those separately.

   Me aseguraré

   I will make sure

   de que

   that

   los

   them

   revisen

   check

   por separado

   separately

   More detail

   Me aseguraré is the first-person singular future of asegurarse: “I will make sure.” The me belongs to the verb and marks the person who takes responsibility for ensuring something. Compare me aseguro (“I make sure / I ensure”) with me aseguraré (“I will make sure”). de que introduces the content being ensured: “that …”. With asegurarse, the preposition de is part of the construction asegurarse de que + clause; it is not the same as leaving out de. los is a masculine plural direct-object pronoun meaning “them” here. It refers to the things being checked, while the people who do the checking are expressed by the subject of revisen; the fixed sentence does not uniquely identify those people or give a more specific referent for los. revisen is the third-person plural present subjunctive of revisar, “to check” or “to review.” The subjunctive fits the subordinate clause governed by the speaker’s assurance: asegurarse de que + [subject] + revisen + [object]. The plural form indicates that the implied checkers are “they”; it is not the form for one person (revise). por separado is an adverbial phrase meaning “separately,” indicating that the items are checked individually or apart rather than together. Together, Me aseguraré de que + los revisen + por separado means: “I’ll make sure they check those separately.” The speaker commits to ensuring that a plural group checks the relevant items separately.

8. Así, todos pueden pedir sin presionar al invitado.

   Then everyone can order without putting pressure on the guest.

   Así

   Then

   todos pueden

   everyone can

   pedir

   to order

   presionar

   to pressure

   invitado

   guest

   More detail

   Así means “then” here, linking this sentence to what follows from the preceding situation. It can also mean “this way” or “so” in other contexts, so its exact meaning comes from the sentence. todos pueden expresses “everyone can.” Todos is a plural form meaning “everyone” or “all [people]” in this context. Pueden is the present-tense third-person plural form of poder (“to be able to”); poder + an infinitive gives “can” or “be able to”: pueden pedir = “can order.” pedir is the infinitive “to ask for” or “to order.” In this sentence, the fixed translation supports the meaning “to order.” The same verb can refer to making a request in other contexts: Quiero pedir un café. = “I want to order a coffee.” presionar is the infinitive “to pressure” or “to put pressure on.” Here it appears after sin, forming sin presionar = “without putting pressure on.” The infinitive is used because sin is followed by an action rather than a conjugated verb. invitado is a masculine singular noun meaning “guest,” specifically a person who has been invited. Its feminine counterpart is invitada, and the plural forms are invitados and invitadas according to the people referred to. Together, Así, todos pueden pedir sin presionar al invitado means “Then everyone can order without putting pressure on the guest.” Al combines a + el; in presionar al invitado, it marks the guest as the person affected by the pressure. The sentence presents ordering as possible for everyone while excluding pressure on the guest as part of that action.

9. Cuando tenga los detalles, volveré para explicárselos.

   Once I have the details, I'll come back and walk you through them.

   Cuando tenga

   once I have

   detalles

   details

   volveré

   I’ll come back

   explicárselos

   explain them to you

   More detail

   Cuando tenga introduces a future or pending time condition: “once/when I have.” Tenga is the first-person singular present subjunctive of tener; the subjunctive appears because this possession is viewed as not yet realized at the time of speaking, within the time clause. Compare: Cuando tenga tiempo, te llamaré. — “When I have time, I’ll call you.” This is not a command. detalles means “details.” It is the plural of detalle; the plural ending -es is part of the noun form. Here it is the thing the speaker will have. Example: Necesito más detalles. — “I need more details.” volveré means “I’ll come back” here. It is the first-person singular future of volver (“to return/come back”): volveré, volverás, volverá. The ending -é identifies the speaker as the future subject. Example: Volveré mañana. — “I’ll come back tomorrow.” explicárselos combines the infinitive explicar (“to explain”) with two attached object pronouns: se for the recipient and los for the masculine plural thing being explained. Los refers to detalles, so the form means “explain them”; se represents “to you” in the intended translation, while this form alone does not specify whether you is singular or plural. The written accent in explicárselos preserves the stress pattern when the pronouns attach to the infinitive. Compare: Voy a explicárselos. — “I’m going to explain them to you.” Together, Cuando tenga los detalles sets the future condition “once I have the details.” volveré states the speaker’s future return, and para explicárselos gives the purpose of returning: “to explain them to you.” The whole utterance therefore means: “Once I have the details, I’ll come back and walk you through them.”