Do you know the word lo in Spanish? You may have learned lo as a direct object pronoun, in which case it typically replaces a singular, masculine noun to mean "him" or "it."  The focus of today's lesson, however, will be two common Spanish phrases with lo that learners of the language sometimes confuse: lo que and lo de. Let's find out how they differ!

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Lo que

Lo que in Spanish is a neuter relative pronoun whose most common translations are "what," "which," "that which," or "the thing that." It is always followed by a conjugated verb and refers either to some concept, idea, or situation within the sentence or serves to add additional information about something that has been previously mentioned in it. Let's see some examples.

Ahora lo que vamos a hacer es dar un gran paseo por la playa

What we're going to do now is take a long walk along the beach

Caption 5, Amaya Mi camper van

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Marcela, ¿estás segura que esto es lo que quieres?

Marcela, are you sure that this is what you want?

Caption 1, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 1 - Part 2

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Solamente Estados Unidos produce setecientos treinta y cinco kilos de desechos por persona y año, lo que equivale a dos kilogramos diarios por persona y día.

Just the United States produces seven hundred thirty-five kilos of waste per person per year, which is equivalent to two kilograms daily per person per day.

Captions 14-17, 3R Campaña de reciclaje - Part 1

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Lo de 

In contrast to lo que, lo de can be followed by various parts of speech such as infinitive verbs, nouns, etc. While a formal translation for lo de might be "the matter concerning," it roughly corresponds to such English phrases as "the thing about" or "the ... thing," with possible additional implications depending upon the context. Let's look at some captions that include it.

¿Ya sabe lo de Casas y Cata?

Do you know the thing about Casas and Cata yet?

Caption 62, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 8 - Part 1

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Porque nos dices que es, eh... haces también lo de las motos, ¿no? -Sí.

Because you say to us that it's, um... you also do the motorcycle thing, right? -Yes.

Caption 16, Rueda de la muerte Parte 2

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Primero que nada, pedirte perdón por lo de ayer.

First of all, to apologize for [what happened] yesterday.

Caption 12, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 5 - Part 4

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Note that, in this last example, since the speaker is apologizing to the listener for something they both know happened, the implication could vary depending upon what it was, e.g., for "what happened," "what I did/said," etc. 

With that said, we hope that this lesson has helped you to learn the difference between the Spanish expressions lo que and lo de. If you want to learn more expressions that include the word lo in Spanish, we recommend this one on the formula lo + adjective. In the meantime, don't forget to write us with any questions or suggestions.

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Although the Spanish pronoun se is most typically associated with reflexive verbs or passive or impersonal constructions, there is a case in which the indirect object pronoun le actually converts to a se! Let's find out what it is. 

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Direct/Indirect Object Prounouns: A Quick Overview

While a lot can be said about the topic of direct and indirect object pronouns, we'll provide you with a very brief overview.

Direct Object Pronouns

Direct object pronouns (me, te, lo, la, nos, os, los, las) replace a direct object to convey the idea of "me, "you," "it," "we," and "them." Their form depends upon whether what is being replaced is masculine or feminine and singular or plural. For example, if instead of saying "I have the apples" (Tengo las manzanas), you wanted to say simply "I have them," you'd use the feminine plural las to agree with las manzanas to say, "Yo las tengo."

Indirect Object Pronouns

Indirect object pronouns let us know "to whom" an action happens. If you wished to say, for example, "I gave the apple to him," you'd say Yo le di la manzana since le is the indirect object pronoun that corresponds to the subject pronoun él (he). The indirect object pronouns and their corresponding subject pronouns are: me (yo), te (tú), le (él, ella, usted), nos (nosotros/as), os (vosotros/as), and les (ellos/as, ustedes).

Combining Direct and Indirect Object Pronouns

So, what if you want to both replace a direct object and indicate "to whom" something happens? You'd then use both a direct and an indirect object pronoun, starting with the latter. Let's see a couple of examples from our Yabla Spanish library: 

Y tengo acá las revistas. Si quieres te las enseño después. Y...

And I have the magazines here. If you want I'll show them to you later. And...

Captions 77-78, Gonzalo el Pintor Vida - Part 2

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Here, Gonzalo uses las to replace the feminine plural noun las revistas (the magazines) and te to indicate that he will show them "to you." Let's see one more example. 

Y yo voy a la huerta a buscar los tomatitos ya que nadie me los trae.

And I'm going to go to the garden to look for the tomatoes since no one's bringing them to me.

Caption 32, Muñeca Brava 41 La Fiesta - Part 5

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In this case, the speaker uses the masculine plural los to replace the masculine plural los tomatitos (the tomatoes), and the indirect object pronoun me (to me) to reflect that "no one's bringing them to me."

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When Le(s) Becomes Se

It seems pretty simple, right? The "problem" arises when the required indirect object pronoun is le or les. For example, if you wish to say, "I'm giving it to them," referring to el lapiz (the pencil), would you say: "Yo les lo doy"? The rules of the Spanish language state that whenever the indirect object pronoun in question is le or les, those words change to se to avoid the awkwardness of having two words that begin with "l" in a row. The correct manner of saying this would thus be Yo se lo doy. Let's look at a few more examples from our Yabla Spanish library. 

Voy a escribirle una carta y se la mando con el Señor Viento.

I'm going to write her a letter and I'll send it to her with Mister Wind.

Captions 56-58, Guillermina y Candelario El Mar enamorado

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Él... él se los dio a mi marido

He... he gave them to my husband,

Caption 76, Málaga Lourdes y la talabartería en Mijas Pueblo

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La quiero ver... con moñito y todo se lo regalo. -Bueno...

I want to see you... with a bow and everything, I'll give him to you. -Well...

Caption 14, Muñeca Brava 18 - La Apuesta - Part 7

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Pronoun Placement With Infinitives

Remember that, as with all direct and indirect object pronouns, se lo, etc. are typically placed directly before the verb. However, in the case of infinitive verbs, they are attached to the end of the infinitive to form a new word (with the appropriate placement of a written tilde according to the Spanish accent rules). Let's see a couple of examples:

Señor, esa información no puedo dársela yo.

Sir, I can't give you that information.

Caption 60, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 1 - Part 8

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El problema es que no era capaz de decírselo.

The problem is that I wasn't capable of telling it to him.

Caption 44, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 13 - Part 5

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We hope that this lesson has shed a bit of light on those cases in which the indirect object pronouns le and les change to se. Don't forget to write us with your questions and suggestions.

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Have you heard of the "no fault se" construction in Spanish? Do you know the "no fault se" formula and how to use it? Do you know which verbs are most commonly seen with the "no fault se"? Today's lesson will touch upon all of these topics!

What Is a "No Fault Se" Construction?

If you lose a lot of things, like many of us, you'll be happy to hear that, unlike English, the Spanish language doesn't think it's our fault! It tends to describe certain things happening "to us" rather than us carrying them out. For example, instead of saying Yo perdí el libro (I lost the book), it would be more common for a native Spanish speaker to say, Se me perdió el libro (literally "The book got lost to me"). And, instead of saying directly "I dropped the eggs," you might say Se me cayeron los huevos, which literally translates to something like "The eggs fell from me."

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How to Form a "No Fault Se" Construction 

Now that we have some idea about the "no fault se" construction, which might also be referred to as the "involuntary se," let's learn the necessary elements to create sentences that employ it: 

1. The pronoun se.

2. An indirect object pronoun (me, te, le, nos, os, or le) that indicates "to whom" the action "is happening" (or, depending on perception, who "did" it!).

3. A verb in the third person that is conjugated in either singular or plural in accordance with the subject (as in passive constructions). 

4. Optional: a (to) plus a prepositional pronoun (mí (me), ti (you), él (him), ella (her), usted (formal "you"), nosotros/as (we), vosotros/as (plural "you"), or ustedes (formal plural "you")), or a direct object to emphasize "the victim" of the action (see verbs like gustar).

Let's take a look at a couple of examples:

y se le cayó el trozo de carne.

and he dropped the piece of meat.

Caption 13, Club de las ideas La zorra y el cuervo

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In terms of our formula, we have 1. the pronoun se  2. the indirect object pronoun le to indicate that it happened "to him" (since le corresponds to the subject pronoun él (him)), and 3. the verb caer (to fall) conjugated in third person singular because la carne (the meat) is singular. Optionally, a él could have been added to emphasize the action's "victim" (a él​ se le cayó...). Let's see another example:

El martes se me perdieron las llaves de casa,

On Tuesday, my house keys got lost,

Caption 14, El Aula Azul La Doctora Consejos: El pronombre "se"

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Here, we see: 1. the pronoun se  2. the indirect object pronoun me to point towards the first person, yo (I), and 3. the verb perder (to lose) conjugated in third person plural to agree with the plural las llaves (the keys). A mí could be an optional addition before "se me perdieron..." 

A Note About Translation 

In terms of the translation of the examples above, while the "no fault se" construction with caer is most often translated as "to drop," our second example might also have been communicated with "I lost my house keys" since this is the more common way of talking about losing things in English— although "got lost" might arguably convey this idea of "no fault" more effectively. That said, because there is not always an equivalent of every "no fault" construction in English, their translations may vary, and we will thus attempt to give you various English options for the following examples. 

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Some Common "No Fault" Se Construction Verbs

Now, let's examine some additional verbs that commonly appear in the "no fault se" construction. 

1. Olvidarse (to forget)

Although a Spanish speaker could potentially say "Me olvidé" (I forgot), the idea of "forgetting" is more commonly expressed with the "no fault se" construction.

Por si se te olvidó, ¡soy tu madre! No, no se me olvidó. -Y si salí... 

In case you forgot, I'm your mother! No, I didn't forget. -And if I went out...

Captions 41-42, Muñeca Brava 8 Trampas - Part 12

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Or, to emphasize this "involuntary" aspect, you might choose the alternative translations: "In case it slipped your mind/It didn't slip my mind." 

2. Ocurrir (to happen)

While the verb ocurrir means "to happen," when used in the "no fault se" construction, common translations include both "to occur to" and "to think of":

No sé, se me ocurre que igual nos podríamos encontrar en otros sitios.

I don't know, it occurs to me that we could also meet in other places.

Captions 21-22, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 3 - Part 9

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Se me ocurrió una gran idea.

I thought of a great idea.

Caption 28, Guillermina y Candelario El paseo sobre el mar

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3. Acabarse (to run out)

Whereas in English, one might confess that he or she "ran out of money," the money literally runs out on the person in Spanish!

Porque se me acabó el dinero y...

Because I ran out of money, and...

Caption 59, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 7: La gemela - Part 2

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Of course, one might also translate this construction as "my money run out."

4. Quemar (to burn)

Similarly, "I burned the cake" is most often expressed with the "no fault se" construction, as translated quite literally in the following example:

5. Quedar (to be left)

To talk about the idea of "leaving something behind" in the sense of "forgetting it" somewhere, native Spanish speakers frequently employ the "involuntary se" construction with the verb quedar:

Se te quedó esto. -Espera.

You left this behind. -Wait.

Caption 55, Salvando el planeta Palabra Llegada - Part 6

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These are just some of the verbs that are commonly utilized in the "no fault se" in Spanish. To see many more, check out El Aula Azul La Doctora Consejos: El pronombre se as well as Clase Aula Azul- Se involuntario, which explores this topic in depth... and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments. 

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How do you say "you" in Spanish? In contrast to English, where "you" just say "you," there are a plethora of different ways to say this in Spanish, which we'll explore today. 

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Spanish Subject Pronouns for "You"

Subject pronouns in Spanish (e.g. yo (I), tú (you), él/ella (he/she), etc.) are the most basic way to say "you." While in English, "you" is the only second person subject pronoun, in Spanish, there are five different ones, and the one you choose will depend on such factors as whether you are addressing one or more than one person, if the situation is more or less formal, and what region you are in. Let's take a closer look. 

1. Tú

Simply put, tú means "you" for speaking to just one person in less formal situations, such as speaking to someone you already know. This is the most common familiar second person subject pronoun in most Spanish-speaking countries.

Tú hablas obviamente muy bien el español, pero

You obviously speak Spanish very well, but

Caption 10, Carlos y Xavi Part 4 Tradiciones y comida de Barcelona

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2. Vos

Vos is used in a similar fashion as tú in certain countries/regions. It is heard predominantly in Argentina and Uruguay but also in certain areas of Paraguay, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Mexico, and Venezuela. 

¿Y vos hablás de mí?

And you talk about me?

Caption 51, Muñeca Brava 18 - La Apuesta - Part 11

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3. Usted

Usted is used to address just one person in more formal situations. Examples might be when you don't know someone and wish to be polite or, perhaps, when addressing an elder. 

¿Usted habla del ganso ese? -Sí.

Are you talking about that goose? -Yes.

Caption 54, Muñeca Brava 1 Piloto - Part 10

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4. Vosotros/Vosotras

Vosotros and vosotras are employed to address more than one person informally and are thus the plural equivalent of tú. Vosotros is used for a group of all males or a mixed male-female group, while vosotras is used for more than one person when everyone is female. Vosotros and vosotras are only used in Spain. 

Vosotros habláis.

You [plural] speak.

Caption 11, Fundamentos del Español 7 - Ser y Estar

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5. Ustedes 

Ustedes is used in all Spanish-speaking countries except Spain as the only plural form of saying "you," regardless of formality. However, in Spain, it is used more formally as the plural equivalent of usted (to distinguish it with the less formal vosotros/as). 

Y es que hay muchas diferencias entre la forma en que ustedes hablan el español

And it's just that there are a lot of differences between the way in which you guys speak Spanish

Captions 44-45, Carlos y Xavi Part 2 Ustedes y Vosotros

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All of the aforementioned subject pronouns in these clips have been translated as "you" with the exception of the last one, which was translated with the informal "you guys" to emphasize that it is directed to more than one person. However, it would be perfectly acceptable to translate ustedes as merely "you" since English often employs this pronoun to address multiple people.

For an abundance of additional information on these five subject pronouns for "you" in Spanish, we recommend Carlos' five-part video series on the Tuteo, ustedeo y voseo. 

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Verb Conjugation 

As you may have noticed in the examples above, all of which contain the simple present form of the verb hablar (to speak), the form of "you" utilized affects the verb conjugation. Although this happens in every verb tense in Spanish, let's start by taking a look at the simple present tense conjugations of three common Spanish verbs with their various "you" forms highlighted. 

You will note that the verb conjugations for all of the five forms of "you" in Spanish differ from one another. Additionally, the conjugation for usted is the same as the conjugation for the third person singular él/ella (he/she) while the conjugation for ustedes is the same as the third person plural conjugation for ellos/ellas (they). Additionally, the conjugations for vos and vosotros/as are the same for -ir verbs.

Remember that in Spanish, you don't necessarily need to explicitly say the subject pronoun in order to know which one is in use because the verb tenses themselves make that clear. That said, let's examine a few examples with different forms of "you" and the verb saber (to know). 

¿Sabéis qué es un volcán?

Do you know what a volcano is?

Caption 18, Aprendiendo con Silvia Los volcanes

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Ay, ¿sabes qué?

Oh, you know what?

Caption 21, Club 10 Capítulo 1 - Part 1

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¿Sabe que no me parece suficiente?

Do you know that it doesn't seem like enough to me?

Caption 62, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 3 - Part 3

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Despite the absence of subject pronouns, you can tell from the verbs' conjugation that the first example refers to vosotros, the second example refers to tú, and the third example refers to usted, and for this reason, all three have been translated with "you know." While the third example could technically refer to él or ella as well since the conjugations for all three are the same, the context (one person speaking directly to another rather than talking about anyone else) alerts you that the speaker is addressing the other person as usted. 

Alternative "You" Pronouns in Spanish

Subject pronouns are not the only way to represent the word "you" in Spanish. Other types of Spanish pronouns (direct object, indirect object, and prepositional) also mean "you." Let's see which of each of these types of pronouns correspond with which "you" subject pronouns:

While we won't delve too deeply into these topics, we will provide a brief summary of each of them and give you some examples.

Direct Object Pronouns

Direct object pronouns take the place of the direct object (the recipient of an action) in a sentence and answer the question of "what" or "who." Let's see a couple of examples:

Vale, no... no os veo... no os veo con mucha...

OK, I don't... I don't see you... I don't see you with a lot...

Caption 39, Escuela BCNLIP Clase con Javi: el futuro - Part 3

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Los veo en el próximo video.

See you in the next video.

Caption 44, Manos a la obra Postres de Minecraft

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In both examples, the translation of the direct object pronoun is "you." In the first, os takes the place of vosotros, and in the second, los takes the place of ustedes. 

Indirect Object Pronouns

Indirect object pronouns answer the question "to who/whom" or "for who/whom" an action is carried out. Let's take a look:

De verdad, yo le doy la plata que tengo ahí;

Seriously, I'll give you the money I have there;

Caption 25, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 1 - Part 1

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Otra recomendación que les puedo hacer es que traigan zapatos para el agua,

Another recommendation that I can give you is to bring water shoes,

Captions 35-36, Alan x el mundo Mi playa favorita de México! - Part 2

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In the first example, le lets you know that the speaker will give the money "to" usted, while in the second, the recommendation is being given "to" ustedes. While the indirect object pronouns in these two captions have been translated with simply "you," the translator might also have opted for "I'll give the money I have there to you" and/or "Another recommendation that I can give to you is to bring water shoes."

To learn more about indirect and direct object pronouns, check out this two-part lesson on How to Use Direct and Indirect Object Pronouns.

Prepositional Pronouns

Prepositional pronouns are pronouns that follow a preposition (words like para (for), de (of, about), en (in, about), etc.) in a sentence. 

Este libro es para ti. Este libro es para vos.

This book is for you. This book is for you.

Captions 47-48, Carlos y Cyndy Uso del Voseo en Argentina

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y hoy, he preparado para ustedes estos objetos

and today, I've prepared these objects for you

Caption 3, Ana Carolina El uso correcto de los adjetivos

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Interestingly, ti is the only prepositional pronoun meaning "you" that differs in form from its corresponding subject pronoun.

We hope that this lesson has made clear the many different ways that Spanish expresses the concept of "you." That's all for today... and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments. 

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What's the difference between the impersonal "se" construction and the passive "se" construction in Spanish? Although they look rather similar (and may be confused with reflexive verbs as well!), they function slightly differently, which we hope to illuminate for you today. 

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The Impersonal "Se" Construction in Spanish

“Impersonal se" constructions, which consist of the pronoun "se" plus a verb conjugated in the third person singular, are called such because they describe people in general rather than any specific person. In other words, no specific agent performs the action of the verb. For this reason, impersonal "se" constructions are used to describe, for example, the manner in which things are done customarily in a particular place or to convey general principles. In English, we tend to express such concepts by using the universal “you,” “they,” “one,” “people," or sometimes omitting the personal pronoun altogether. Let’s take a look at some examples from our Yabla Spanish library. 

1.

Bueno, se baila mucho, eh... se come bastante, y se espera hasta las doce para desear la feliz Navidad.

Well, people dance a lot, um... people eat quite a bit, and people wait until twelve to wish [people] Merry Christmas.

Captions 42-44, Cleer y Lida La Navidad en Colombia

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Note that all the verbs in this example are conjugated in the third person singular, and the speaker describes actions that are done customarily (by people in general rather than a specific person) during the Christmas season in Colombia. And, while the translator opted to employ "people" to express this idea, the same sentence could read, "you dance a lot... you eat quite a bit... and you wait..." or, more formally, "one dances... one eats... and one waits." Let's take a look at another example:

2.

Se duerme de noche y se vive de día

One sleeps at night and lives during the day

Caption 38, Calle 13 No hay nadie como tú

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The lyrics to this catchy tune by Calle 13 refer to the way things are in the world in general, where "one sleeps" (or "you" or "people sleep") at night and live during the day. Let's move on to the next example:

3.

Es mi furgoneta, una camper van, una furgoneta camperizada, que se dice en español.

It's my van, a camper van, a "furgoneta camperizada" [camper van], like you say in Spanish.

Captions 9-10, Amaya "Mi camper van"

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Alternative translations for se dice in this sentence include "like people say," "as is said," or "like they say" because its intention is to describe what something is customarily called in Spanish. Are you getting the hang of it? 

4.

Y juntas vamos a ver algunas de aquellas situaciones que os podéis encontrar en algunos de aquellos países en donde se habla español.

And together, we're going to look at some of those situations that you might encounter in some of those countries where Spanish is spoken.

Captions 4-6, Karla e Isabel Alquilar una habitación - Part 1

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Se habla español is impersonal because it explains that people in general speak Spanish in certain countries, rather than any specific person. An alternative choice here might have been" "in some of those countries where they speak Spanish." Let's look at one last one: 

5.

Ahora se llega a la cima bajando por la sierra

Now you reach the summit by going down the mountain

Caption 23, Calle 13 Ojos Color Sol ft. Silvio Rodríguez

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Note that directions are another common thing for which the impersonal "se" construction is utilized. This is similar to English, where we ask "How do you get there?" (¿Cómo se llega ahí?" in Spanish) when what we really want to find out is the objectively correct way to go. 

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The Passive "Se" Construction in Spanish 

In contrast to the impersonal "se" construction in Spanish, in the passive "se," although a specific agent usually does perform the action, said agent is often unknown or unmentioned. Furthermore, the verb in this construction must be a transitive verb, or verb that transmits some action to a direct object. So, this would describe something that "is" or "was" done, for example, to something else, which is most typically inanimate (non-living). Additionally, the verb can be singular or plural depending upon whether the noun/direct object in question is singular or plural, which is not the case with the impersonal "se" construction, where the verb is always singular. Let's look at some examples:

1.

Here, someone specific is renting out a room in a shared apartment; we just don't know who it is. The verb alquilar is a transitive verb because a direct object (una habitación, or "a room") receives its action. And, since the noun una habitación is singular, the verb has been conjugated in its third person singular form: alquila. 

2.

Aquí se venden barcos, ¿no?

Here boats are sold, right?

Caption 78, 75 minutos Gangas para ricos - Part 20

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This example is similar in that the agent who is selling boats is unknown, and the verb vender (to sell) is transitive because it exerts its action onto the noun (los) barcos. However, because the noun los barcos is plural, the verb has been conjugated in the third person plural: venden. 

3.

In this lesson, we're going to look at todos los usos y significados (all of the uses and meanings) of the word todo in Spanish. Well, maybe not all of them... but a lot!

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What Part of Speech is the Word Todo in Spanish?

Primero que todo (first of all), we'd like to say that the Spanish word todo and its feminine and plural equivalents have many meanings including "all," "whole," "every," "each," "everyone," and more, depending upon the context in which they are utilized. Actually, while todo and its alternate forms most commonly function as an adjective or a pronoun, they can also function as an adverb or even a noun. Let's examine how this word works in each of these cases, its various translations into English, and several idiomatic expressions that employ it. 

Todo as an Adjective

Let's recall that an adjective modifies, or describes, a noun. When the word todo functions as an adjective, it must agree in number and gender with the noun it modifies. We must thus choose between its masculine singular (todo), masculine plural (todos), feminine singular (toda) or feminine plural (todas) forms, placing it either directly in front of either a noun, a noun's direct article, or a possessive adjective. Let's look at some examples:

No, en España, el español se parece mucho en todo el país.

No, in Spain, Spanish is a lot alike in the whole country.

Captions 5-6, Carlos y Xavi Part 4 Tradiciones y comida de Barcelona

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Although the literal translation of todo el país would be "all the country," common ways to say todo el in English include "the whole" or "the entire." Thus, an alternative translation for this sentence might be: "No, in Spain, Spanish is a lot alike in the entire country." Let's look at an additional example:

La asistente le dará una tarjeta con toda la información

The assistant will give you a card with all the information

Caption 42, Cita médica La cita médica de Cleer - Part 2

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Note that in this example, the feminine singular form toda has the more straightforward translation "all." Let's move on to some plural examples:

Invitamos a todos sus amigos al karaoke

We invite all her friends to karaoke

Caption 44, Blanca y Mariona Planificación de cena

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Note that while, in the sentence above, the plural form is translated to "all," in other cases, it can be translated as "every":

Salimos todas las noches.

We go out every night.

Caption 20, Clara y Cristina Hablan de actividades

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In other cases, either translation could suffice:

Feliz tarde, amigos de Yabla de todos los países del mundo.

Happy afternoon, Yabla friends from every country in the world.

Caption 2, Adícora, Venezuela El tatuaje de Rosana

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An alternative translation could, of course, be: "Happy afternoon, Yabla friends from all the countries in the world."

Todo as a Pronoun

The definition of a pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. Hence, when the word todo is used a pronoun in Spanish, it must match the number/gender of the noun to which it refers. Let's look at a simple example: 

¿Cuá​nta torta comiste? -Me la comí toda.

How much cake did you eat? -I ate it all. 

But:

 

¿Cuá​ntos caramelos comiste? -Todos.

How much candies did you eat? -All of them. 

Let's take a look at an example from the Yabla video library where todas replaces a plural feminine noun (las estaciones/the seasons):

Todo on its own is also the equivalent of the English word "everything":

Sí, Lucio me cuenta todo.

Yes, Lucio tells me everything.

Caption 30, Yago 12 Fianza - Part 2

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The plural todos, on the other hand, means "everybody" or "everyone":

porque es información nueva para todos.

because it's new information for everyone.

Caption 60, Clase Aula Azul Información con subjuntivo e indicativo - Part 4

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In fact, the title of a recent Yabla video, Todo es de todos (Everything Belongs to Everyone) employs both of those terms. However, note the difference in translation for todos in the following example:

Todo as an Adverb

When todo functions as an adverb, it is typically used to make emphatic statements. Possible translations include "really," "completely," "all," or "totally." For example, one might say: El chico se veía todo lindo (The guy looked really good) or Mi habitación está toda desordenada (My room is totally messy). Let's look at an example from the Yabla video library:

¡Yo te vi, yo te vi toda llena de barro!

I saw you! I saw you all covered in mud!

Caption 41, Yago 3 La foto - Part 5

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Todo as a Noun

As a noun, el todo means "the whole" and can be seen in the translation for Aristotle's famous sentence:

El todo es más que la suma de las partes.

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. 

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Top Ten Common Spanish Expressions with Forms of the WordTodo

And speaking of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts, let's examine some common Spanish idioms that include forms of the word todo with meanings beyond their literal words.

1. Todo el mundo

While todo el mundo literally means "all the world" or "the whole/entire world," this phrase is an extremely common way of expressing the idea of "everybody" or "everyone" in Spanish:

Todo el mundo puede tocar el tambor donde, cuando y como quiera- mayores, niños, mujeres,

Everybody can play the drum wherever, whenever, and however they want- older people, children, women,

Captions 47-49, Viernes Santo en Tobarra ¡La Cuna del Tambor! - Part 1

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2. Todo el día

Literally "all the day," the notion of "all day" is encompassed by the Spanish expression todo el día:

¿Todo el día? El tiempo que quieras.

All day? As long as you want.

Captions 103-104, Alan x el mundo Mi playa favorita de México! - Part 2

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3. Todos los días

The plural form todos los días ("all the days"), on the other hand, means "every day":

Además, la vemos todos los días.

Besides, we see it every day.

Caption 11, Guillermina y Candelario Una aventura extrema - Part 2

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4. Sobre todo

Like it sounds, the Spanish phrase sobre todo can indeed mean "above all" or "above everything." Additional, frequent translations include "mostly," "mainly," and "especially":

Primero, sobre todo si es tu primera tarjeta de crédito, eh... es recomendable que el... que el límite no sea mayor a tus ingresos. 

First, especially if it is your first credit card, um... it is recommendable for the... for the limit not to be greater than your income.

Captions 51-52, Cuentas claras Sobreviviendo enero - Part 3

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5. En todo caso 

6. Por todos lados 

Por todos lados might seem to mean "around all sides," but it really means "everywhere": 

Mili, ¿Dónde estabas? Te estuve buscando por todos lados.

Mili, where were you? I was looking for you everywhere.

Caption 16, Muñeca Brava 45 El secreto - Part 10

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7. De todas formas

De todas formas in Spanish means not "of all shapes," but is rather a manner of saying "anyway":

Bueno, de todas formas, mire, el tipo se está haciendo pasar por Pierre Bernard.

Well, anyway, look, the guy is posing as Pierre Bernard.

Caption 7, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 1 - Part 8

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The similar Spanish expressions de todas maneras and de todos modos also mean "anyway," "anyhow," or "in any case." 

8. De todo

The phrase de todo ("of everything") is another way to say "everything" in Spanish:

Aquí tiene de todo, perro, oveja...

Here, they have everything: [a] dog, sheep...

Caption 1, 75 minutos Del campo a la mesa - Part 6

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9. Del todo

Del todo ("of the whole"), on the other hand, means "completely" or "entirely"':

Quizás l'... la relación más equilibrada que yo he buscado no ha pasado del todo y ahora me siento un poquito sola

Maybe th'... the more balanced relationship that I've looked for hasn't completely happened, and now I feel a little bit lonely

Captions 19-20, El reencuentro Las amigas hablan del trabajo y el amor.

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For additional examples of this expression and more, we recommend the lesson En absoluto, de ninguna manera, del todo.

10. Todo recto

And finally, if you want to tell someone to go "straight ahead," todo recto (literally "all straight") is the way to go in Spanish:

Tiene que ir todo recto. -Sí.

You have to go straight ahead. -Yes.

Caption 17, Curso de español ¿Hay una escuela por aquí?

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These are just a smattering of the many Spanish expressions that incorporate forms of todo that can be heard in everyday Spanish. ¡Sería imposible nombrarlos todos (It would be imposible to name them all)! That said:

Eso es todo por hoy, amigos. 

That's all for today, friends.

Caption 56, Ana Carolina Símbolos de Navidad

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For additional information on expressions that include the Spanish word todo, we recommend the additional lesson When Nada (Nothing) is Todo (Everything). In the meantime, gracias por todo (thanks for everything), and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.

What are reflexive verbs in Spanish? A reflexive verb is a verb in which the subject (person or thing that completes the action) and object (person or thing that receives the action) are one in the same. In other words, the action "reflects back" onto the subject, or entails something one does to or for him or herself. It is no wonder then, that many of the things we "do to ourselves" in our daily routines (e.g. shaving ourselves, washing ourselves, etc.) fall into the category of reflexive Spanish verbs. 

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Recognizing Spanish Reflexive Verbs 

How can we recognize Spanish reflexive verbs? The main way to distinguish reflexive verbs in Spanish is by the fact that they all end in the pronoun se in their infinitive form. To take a very simple example, while the verb hablar means "to talk," hablarse is a reflexive verb meaning "to talk to oneself." However, the translations for reflexive verbs in Spanish aren't always so straightforward. 

As we often say just "I shave" or "I wash" in lieu of "I shave/wash myself," the English translations of Spanish reflexive verbs won't always include pronouns like "myself," "yourself," etc. In other cases, the meanings of verbs like parecer (to seem) completely change in their reflexive forms (parecerse means "to look like"). And so, as there are a lot more reflexive verbs in Spanish than in English, many of which may not "seem" reflexive, with increased exposure to Spanish, we will learn which English concepts are expressed with Spanish reflexive verbs.

Conjugating Spanish Reflexive Verbs: Reflexive Pronouns

To conjugate reflexive verbs in Spanish, we must memorize the reflexive pronouns that correspond to each personal pronoun: yo (I), tú (you), etc.. Reflexive pronouns are most often placed before the verb, which is conjugated "as usual" (in the same way as its non-reflexive form). To demonstrate this, let's take a look at the reflexive pronouns and the simple present conjugation of the regular verb hablar. We will then show you the conjugation of its reflexive form (hablarse).

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Reflexive Verbs in Spanish for Your Daily Routine

Now that you know the Spanish reflexive pronouns and how to conjugate reflexive Spanish verbs, let's take a look at some examples of reflexive verbs in Spanish for describing things that many of us do on a daily basis, with lots of instances from our Yabla video library as always! Here is our list of Spanish reflexive verbs for your daily routine: 

3. Bañarse

The Spanish noun baño means "bath," and the verb bañarse can mean "to take a bath" as well. However, as bañarse can also be the more general "to bathe," a person might even use this verb to express the fact that they are taking a shower! Let's look at an example of this reflexive Spanish verb: 

Uno se baña todos los días, mijita.

One bathes every day, my girl.

Caption 41, Muñeca Brava - 33 El partido

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On the other hand, if a person at the beach expresses their desire to bañarse, rather than wanting to wash the sand off of themselves, they are letting you know they would like to take a dip! The Spanish reflexive verb bañarse can also mean "to go swimming," a translation that often comes as a surprise to English speakers:

No hay muchas olas grandes como en Atacames.

There aren't many big waves like in Atacames.

Es más tranquilo para bañarse.

It's more peaceful to go swimming.

Captions 62-63, Pipo - Un paseo por la playa de Atacames

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4. Ducharse

In the morning, at night, or after the beach, indeed, one might need to ducharse (to take a shower):

¿Qué está haciendo Silvia?

What is Silvia doing?

Silvia se está duchando.

Silvia is taking a shower.

Captions 11-12, El Aula Azul - Actividades diarias: En casa con Silvia

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Note that, in this example, the verb ducharse is conjugated in the present progressive tense. As with the present indicative and all other tenses, verbs are conjugated in the exact same way as they would be were they non-reflexive, with the addition of the appropriate reflexive pronoun. 

5. Lavarse

The reflexive verb in Spanish lavarse generally means "to wash (oneself)." Let's look at an example: 

Por ejemplo, "Yo me lavo".

For example, "Yo me lavo" [I wash myself].

La acción recae sobre la persona

The action falls back upon the person

que realiza la acción.

who carries out the action.

Pero, "Yo lavo los platos".

But, "Yo lavo los platos" [I wash the dishes].

Captions 45-48, Lecciones con Carolina - Verbos reflexivos

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In this informative video about Spanish reflexive verbs, Yabla fan favorite Carolina explains the difference between reflexive and non-reflexive verbs, in this case the verbs lavar (to wash) and lavarse (to wash oneself). Let's look at an additional example: 

Yo me lavo las manos. Tú te lavas las manos.

I wash my hands. You wash your hands.

Captions 19-20, Fundamentos del Español - 9 - Verbos Reflexivos

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Unlike in English, where we express the idea of washing one's hands or some other body part with a possessive pronoun (my, your, etc.), this is not the case in Spanish. Instead, we use the definite article for the noun in question, manos (hands), in this case, las (the). Because the reflexive pronoun already indicates that the action is something we do to ourselves, it would be redundant in Spanish to say: Yo me lavo mis manos. As the correct way to express this is "Yo me lavo las manos," it might help you to remember the literal but non-sensical translation: "I wash myself the hands."

That said, let's move on to something else that's expressed with the notion of "washing" in Spanish: lavarse los dientes (to brush one's teeth). 

6. Lavarse/cepillarse los dientes

Lavarse los dientes (literally "to wash one's teeth") is one of saying "to brush one's teeth" in Spanish: 

Después, ehm... suelo lavarme los dientes en el baño,

After that, um... I usually brush my teeth in the bathroom,

Caption 3, El Aula Azul - Actividades Diarias

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Different countries, regions, or individuals might instead use cepillarse los dientes, which also means "to brush one's teeth." Let's check out an example in the preterite tense: 

Se cepilló los dientes,

He brushed his teeth,

Caption 20, Aprendiendo con Carlos - El microrrelato

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7. Cepillarse el pelo/cabello

By extension, the noun el cepillo means "the brush," and we might have a cepillo de dientes (toothbrush) as well as a cepillo de pelo/cabello (hair brush), as in the following caption:

Sí... -¿Qué necesitamos para ir allí?

Yes... -What do we need to go there?

El cepillo de dientes.

A toothbrush.

El cepillo del pelo.

A hair brush.

Captions 49-51, Un Viaje a Mallorca - Planificando el viaje

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So, you've probably surmised by now that the verb cepillarse el pelo/cabello means "to brush one's hair."

8. Peinarse

The verb peinarse can mean "to comb one's hair" with a comb (un peine), "to brush one's hair," or "to do" or "style" one's hair in general:

Por eso paró en la playa

That's why she stopped on the beach

para mirarse en el espejo y peinarse.

to look at herself in the mirror and comb her hair.

Captions 21-22, Guillermina y Candelario - Mi Amiga la Sirena

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9. Afeitarse

Afeitarse is the verb for "to shave" (oneself, of course)!

Vos sabés lo que es todas las mañanas...

Do you know what it's like every morning...

mirarse en el espejo cuando uno se afeita

to look at oneself in the mirror when one's shaving,

Captions 30-31, Muñeca Brava - 8 Trampas

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10. Maquillarse

The next step in one's morning routine might be maquillarse (to put on makeup):

Aquí, siempre me maquillo para mis conciertos.

Here, I always put on makeup for my concerts.

Caption 47, Ariana - Mi Casa

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Alternatively, one might say Aquí, siempre me pinto para mis conciertos, as pintarse (literally "to paint oneself") also means "to put on makeup." 

11. Vestirse

Vestirse is the way to say "to get dressed" in Spanish. 

Yo salgo y... y te vistes.

I'll leave and... and you get dressed.

Caption 30, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 2

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Another way to say this might be ponerse la ropa (to put on one's clothes). 

12. Sacarse la ropa

Although sacarse la ropa is one manner of saying "to get undressed" or "take off one's clothes," there are many other examples of reflexive verbs in Spanish that mean the same thing, including: quitarse la ropa, desvestirse, and desnudarse. Let's look at a couple of examples: 

Si "Libertinaje" te saca...

If "Libertinaje" takes off your.....

te invita a sacarte la ropa,

invites you to take off your clothes,

Captions 4-5, Bersuit Vergarabat - EPK

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Y se desnuda poco a poco y se convierte en tu piel

And she gets naked little by little and she becomes your skin

Caption 6, Reik - Inolvidable

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As you can see, the more literal "to get naked" might be an alternate translation for desnudarse. 

13. Acostarse 

We're finally getting to the end of our daily routine, when it's time for us to acostarnos (go to bed): 

Tranquilícese, vaya a acostarse y deje de pensar en imposibles.

Calm down, go to bed, and stop thinking about impossible things.

Caption 31, Muñeca Brava - 48 - Soluciones

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14. Dormirse

And finally, once in bed, it's time to fall asleep! While the non-reflexive dormir means "to sleep," dormirse means "to fall asleep." 

Me dormí pensando en ti; pensando en ti, me desperté

I fell asleep thinking about you; thinking about you, I woke up

Caption 10, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa

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More Reflexive Verbs in Spanish 

Of course, this is just a partial list of reflexive verbs in Spanish that might be applicable to our daily routines. There are a lot more common reflexive verbs in Spanish that describe things one might do on a daily basis, including secarse (to dry oneself off), sentarse (to sit down), sentirse (to feel), emocionarse (to get excited), encontrarse con alguien (to meet with someone), acordarse de (to remember), olvidarse (to forget), sonreírse (to smile), reírse (to laugh), despedirse (to say goodbye), irse (to leave), and many, many more! 

For additional information on Spanish reflexive verbs, check out this video from the series Fundamentos del Español. And don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.

Should you use mucho or muy? Do you know how to say the Spanish words muy and mucho in English? What is the difference between muy vs. mucho in Spanish? 

Definitions of Muy vs. Mucho

Simply put, muy in English would be "very" or "really," while mucho in English means "many," "much," or "a lot." However, as these words can wear muchos sombreros (a lot of hats), muy vs. mucho can be un concepto muy difícil (a very difficult concept) for many English speakers. 

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Muy + Adjective

When muy is accompanied by an adjective, the adjective that modifies the noun must agree with that noun in terms of gender and number. The "good news," however, is that the word muy itself always stays the same, regardless of whether the noun it modifies is singular or plural or masculine or feminine. Let's take a look:

es un artista plástico español muy reconocido.

is a very famous fine art artist.

Caption 14, Amaya - Vínculo: un mural muy especial

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Kristen, por ejemplo, tú has dicho, muy rápidamente,

Kristen, for example, you've said, very quickly,

Caption 11, Clase Aula Azul - Pedir deseos

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When constructing or understanding sentences with muy in Spanish, how will you know whether you are contending with an adjective or an adverb? When you see a word that ends with the suffix -mente (equivalent to -ly in English), as in the examples above, you can be sure you have an adverb. However, as not all adverbs take this form and some words can function as either adjectives or adverbs, depending upon the context, it can sometimes be tough to tell the difference. Let's take a look at an example with the word rápido, which may be used as an adverb in lieu of rápidamente:

​porque lo hacen muy rápido. 

because they do it very quickly.

Caption 46, Animales en familia - Señales de calma y cosquillas en los perros

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Like the English word "fast," rápido can function as an adjective when describing a noun (e.g. un carro rápido/a fast car) or an adverb when describing an action (el carro va rápido/the car goes fast) to talk about something that happens "fast" or "quickly." The tricky aspect of this is that, while rápido would need to agree in terms of gender and number when employed as an adjective (e.g. unos carros rápidos), as an adverb, it remains the same (in its masculine singular form) regardless of the number of people or objects performing the action. Let's see one more example:

Vamos a trabajar muy fuerte.

We're going to work very hard.

Caption 29, Documental de Alejandro Fernandez - Viento A Favor

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Note that as always, the word muy is unchanging, and because fuerte (strong, hard, etc.) works as an adverb here, it remains unchanged, in its singular form, as well. Were it an adjective, on the other hand, gender and number would need to be taken into account, as in the example "Somos muy fuertes" (We are very strong). 

Mucho as an Adjective: Mucho + Noun

Moving on to the word mucho in Spanish, taking into account what we have learned thus far regarding adjectives and adverbs, let's examine how this word can function as either of these parts of speech. To start, when mucho functions as an adjective, it must agree in terms of number and gender with the noun it modifies. Let's look:

La verdad es que yo he tenido muchos perros,

The truth is that I've had many dogs,

Caption 50, Tu Voz Estéreo - Laura

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As you can see in these examples that employ masculine singular/plural and feminine singular/plural nouns, the form mucho takes (mucho, muchos, mucha, or muchas) changes in accordance with the noun it modifies. 

Mucho as an Adverb: Mucho + Verb

In contrast, when mucho functions as an adverb, modifying a verb, it is always mucho in the singular/masculine form, and the gender/quantity of the noun or verb has no effect on it. Let's look at some examples:

¿Se utiliza mucho el ajo en los platos peruanos?

Is garlic used a lot in Peruvian dishes?

Caption 19, Recetas de cocina - Papa a la Huancaína

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Estos ejercicios ayudan mucho

These exercises really help

Caption 59, Bienestar con Elizabeth - Relajación

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Me gusta mucho este parque.

I really like this park.

Caption 9, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 5: Me gusta mucho este parque.

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Sí, me gustan mucho las uvas.

Yes, I like grapes a lot.

Caption 21, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 5: Me gusta mucho este parque.

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Mucho/os/a/as as a Pronoun

To conclude our discussion on muy vs. mucho, note that the word mucho and its corresponding feminine/plural alternatives can be used as pronouns to replace nouns that have been mentioned or implied. Notice that the pronoun forms of mucho must agree in gender and number with the nouns they replace, as follows:

¿Se encuentran aquí buenas cositas o no,

Can you find good stuff here or not,

buenas gangas? -Sí, sí, sí. -¿Sí? -Muchas. 

good bargains? -Yes, yes, yes. -Yes? -Many.

Captions 102-103, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos - Part 14

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While you can clearly see in the first two examples that the word mucho changes forms (to mucha and muchas) to agree with the feminine singular and plural nouns it replaces (cositas/gangas and gente), the third example is notable because the noun being replaced by the masculine plural form muchos is not immediately apparent. However, since the conversation in question, which began several captions earlier, involves cars (the masculine plural noun, los coches), the masculine plural form muchos must be utilized to express the idea of "many" in this context. 

We hope that this lesson has helped to clarify the difference between muy vs. mucho in Spanish since sus muchos usos y matices pueden resultar muy difíciles (their many uses and nuances can be very difficult) for English speakers. We welcome any insight you might have on mucho vs. muy in Spanish, and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments. 

Let's start today's lesson with a quote from the Argentinean telenovela, Yago:

Pero si no te casás,

But if you don't get married,

no tenés nada para aportar a la sociedad.

you don't have anything to contribute to the company.

No sos nadie, Melina. No sos nada. 

You're nobody, Melina. You're nothing.

Captions 27-29, Yago - 9 Recuperación

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What's going on here (aside from a seemingly very dramatic situation)? Since the speaker is addressing this character as "you," shouldn't these verbs be conjugated as (tú) te casas, tienes, and eres?

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What's going on here, grammatically speaking, is that in Argentina, Uruguay, and many other regions (including parts of Paraguay, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Mexico, and Venezuela) vos is used in place of tú as the informal second person singular pronoun ("you"), causing some of the verb conjugations to vary slightly. 

The Good News About Vos

"Do I really have to learn another verb tense?!" you might be saying. However, even though el voseo (the use of vos instead of tú) might seem intimidating at first, there is a lot of "good news" regarding vos, particularly if you are already familiar with el tuteo (the use of tú):

1. The verb conjugations for vos only differ from those with tú in two tenses: the present indicative and the informal imperative (command). All of the other verb tenses (preterite, imperfect, etc.) are exactly the same as with tú, as are many of its pronouns (e.g. direct object, indirect object, reflexive, and possessive). 

2. The formulas for conjugating verbs with vos in both present indicative and imperative are extremely simple.

3. With the voseo, there are a lot less irregular verbs than with tú. In fact, in the present indicative of vos, there are only three irregular verbs, while in the present indicative of tú, there are over one hundred irregular/stem changing verbs to memorize.

Conjugating Verbs with Vos in the Present Indicative 

Let's start with how to conjugate -ar, -er, and -ir verbs with vos in the present indicative: Simply take the infinitive, replace the "r" with an "s," and add an accent to the final vowel. Let's look at some examples with the infinitives escuchar (to listen), saber (to know), and subir (to go up). 

Qu'... Vos no me escuchás ni cuando yo te estoy contando

Wh'... You don't listen to me, not even when I'm telling you

una cosa que para mí es importante.

something that is important to me.

Caption 50, Yago - 2 El puma

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Si vos sabés muy bien que yo me sé adaptar.

You know very well that I know how to adapt.

Caption 43, Cuatro Amigas - Piloto

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En el segundo piso, de ahí subís y ahí es tu salón.

On the second floor, you go up there and there's your classroom.

Caption 49, La Sucursal del Cielo - Capítulo 1

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In the case of these regular -ar and -er verbs, you will note that their conjugations with vos are virtually identical to their tú forms (escuchas and sabes) with the addition of their written (and spoken) accents. However, regular -ir verbs like subir, which are typically conjugated with -es in their tú form (subes), retain their-i vowel plus an accent. 

As previously mentioned, verbs that are irregular or stem-changing with tú are regular with vos. To get an idea, let's take the common verbs comenzar (to begin), tener (to have), and decir (to say), all of which have irregular forms when conjugated with tú. With vos, on the other hand, these verbs follow our regular pattern of replacing the "r" with "s" and adding an accent to the final noun: 

Let's look at a couple of these in action:

Y decís: "Bueno, pará que mañana tenés que seguir."

And you say, "Hey, hold on 'cause tomorrow you have to continue."

Caption 66, Biografía - Natalia Oreiro

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Irregular Verbs with Vos

There are only three irregular verbs in the vos form of the present indicative, one of which we already saw (ser) and two of which share their forms with tú (haber and ir). All three of these appear in the following clip: 

Además, vos ni vas al colegio, has perdido un montón de años.

Besides, you don't even go to school, you have missed a ton of years.

Vos no sos nadie.

You're [a] nobody.

Captions 33-34, La Sucursal del Cielo - Capítulo 1

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Now, let's take a look at these captions again, substituting the verb tú for vos:

Además, tú ni vas al colegio, has perdido un montón de años. Tú no eres nadie.

Besides, you don't even go to school, you have missed a ton of years. You're [a] nobody.

While the vos form of ser, sos, does differ from the tú form (eres), the verb conjugations for ir (vas) and haber (has) are exactly the same for both tú and vos.

Conjugating Verbs with Vos in the Imperative

Conjugating verbs with vos in the imperative (command) form is even easier: Simply take the infinitive, remove the r, and add an accent over the final vowel. Let's look at some examples of the vos command forms for each type of verb ending, utilizing the verbs tomar (to drink), tener (to have), and venir (to come).

Sabés que no tomo whisky. -¡Pero tomá!

You know that I don't drink whiskey. -But, drink it!

Caption 22, Muñeca Brava - 2 Venganza

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Este... tené un poquito de paciencia.

Umm... have a little bit of patience.

Caption 7, Muñeca Brava - 45 El secreto

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Vení, vamos a bailar.

Come, let's go dance.

Caption 33, Muñeca Brava 7 El poema - Part 6

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Once again, verbs like tener and venir that are irregular in the imperative form with tú (ten and ven, respectively) are regular in the imperative form with vos. While ir (to go) is the only irregular verb in this category, its formal conjugations, id or ite, are almost never heard, and the command form of andar (to walk/go), andá, is often used in its place. 

Keep in mind that, due to the Spanish accent rules, the addition of a pronoun to a command form with vos may lead to the omission of the written accent:

Olvidate, divertite, hacé algo. -No quiero,

Forget about it, have fun, do something. -I don't want to,

Caption 8, Muñeca Brava 46 Recuperación - Part 7

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To conclude, remember that in all of the other tenses besides the present indicative and informal imperative, vos is conjugated in exactly the same way as tú. In the following example, we see the preterite form of ser (to be) fuiste as well as the imperfect form of estar (to be), taking into account that the indirect object pronoun te is also identical for both vos and tú:

Porque a vos no te hice absolutamente nada.

Because I've done absolutely nothing to you.

Todo lo contrario.

On the contrary.

Fuiste la protagonista de la fiesta, estabas maravillosa.

You were the star of the party, you were looking wonderful.

Captions 15-17, Muñeca Brava - 41 La Fiesta

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We hope that this lesson has made conjugating verbs with the informal second person pronoun vos seem a bit less daunting. For more information on this topic, we recommend this Yabla series on the Voseo, ustedeo, and tuteo as well as this video on the use of vos in Argentina— and don't hesitate to contact us with your comments and suggestions.

A recent Yabla video entitled La Doctora Consejos: parecer y parecerse demonstrated the difference between the verb parecer (to seem) and the reflexive verb parecerse ("to look like" or "be similar"). Although, at first glance, the difference between these two verbs might seem simple, this can be confusing when pronouns are thrown into the mix.

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When no pronouns are present, it will be quite obvious that the verb in question is parecer. Let's take a look:

La verdad es que pareces cansado.

To be honest, you seem tired.

Caption 11, El Aula Azul - La Doctora Consejos: parecer y parecerse

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Las cosas son más fáciles de lo que parecen.

Things are easier than what they seem.

Caption 25, Carlos explica - Acentuación Cap. 3: La división en sílabas

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On the other hand, when a sentence does involve pronouns, these two verbs become a bit harder to distinguish. One reason for this is that, although parecerse employs reflexive pronouns, while parecer is often accompanied by indirect object pronouns, there is some overlap in terms of the forms of these two pronoun types. Let's take a look:

Should we encounter se then, we will know it is reflexive, while we will recognize le or les as indirect object pronouns. However, as you will notice that the reflexive and indirect object pronouns that correspond to four out of the six personal pronouns appear identical (me, te, nos, and os), how can we tell whether an instance of parecer accompanied by one of these pronouns is indeed parecer or its reflexive counterpart? 

Let's start with the verb parecerse. Keeping in mind that this is a reflexive verb, note that it is conjugated "as usual" to agree with its subject's corresponding personal pronoun: in other words, just like the verb parecer with the addition of the appropriate reflexive pronoun. With this in mind, let's take a look at the present indicative forms of parecer and parecerse:

Now, let's look at some examples of the verb parecerse in action:

En eso me parezco mucho a mi madre. 

I'm a lot like my mother in that way.

Caption 38, El Aula Azul - La Doctora Consejos: parecer y parecerse

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¡Nos gustan las mismas cosas!

We like the same things!

Nos parecemos. 

We are similar.

Captions 40-41, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 2: Cafe y bocadillos

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pero entonces tienes que decir, "Mis ojos se parecen a los ojos de mi madre", 

but then you have to say, "My eyes look like my mother's eyes,"

Caption 28, Clase Aula Azul - El verbo parecer

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Note that with the verb parecerse, the conjugations agree with the sentence's subjects, or who or what is performing the action of the sentence: in these cases yo (I), nosotros (we), and mis ojos (my eyes). In other words, we conjugate them in accordance with who or what "looks like" or "is similar to" something else.   

In contrast, when the verb parecer is accompanied by an indirect object pronoun, this verb falls into a class of verbs that function in a manner similar to the verb gustar. While we use the same conjugations of parecer (present indicative, etc.), the person or thing to whom or which something seems a certain way becomes the object of the sentence (receiver of the verb's action), while what seems that way to that entity is the subject. Let's take a look at some examples:

¿Qué cosas te parecen muy importantes en tu día a día? 

What things seem very important to you in your daily life?

Caption 25, El Aula Azul - La Doctora Consejos: parecer y parecerse

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Here, parecer is conjugated in accordance with las cosas (the things) that seem important rather than the person to whom they are, and the indirect object pronoun te tells us that the person they seem important to is tú (you). In addition, when parecer is accompanied by an indirect object pronoun, it entails an opinion, similar to the idea in English that someone "thinks" something. So, although, in the above example, parecer is translated as "to seem," an additional translation might be: "What things in your daily life do you think are important?" Let's look at another example:

A ti te parece bonita. 

You think it's pretty [literally "To you it seems pretty"].

Caption 11, Clase Aula Azul - El verbo parecer

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Were this the verb parecerse utilized with the reflexive pronoun te, the conjugation would instead be: te pareces (you look like). However, this is an instance of the verb parecer conjugated in the third person singular (parece) and accompanied by the indirect object pronoun te to indicate that what "seems" pretty to "you'" is "it'" (we know from the previous sentences that the "it" is the city of San Sebastian, Spain). And as with the verb gustar, adding a mí (to me), a ti (to you), a ellos (to them), etc. is optional but not essential for adding emphasis to this construction. 

Let's conclude with one last example:

y además podéis aprovechar para dar vuestra opinión

and you can also take the opportunity to give your opinion

sobre qué os parece este espacio y qué os parecen mis recetas.

about what you think of this space and what you think of my recipes.

Captions 36-37, La cocina de María - Tortilla de patatas

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Again, remember that although os parece and os parecen have both been translated as "you think" here, which tends to be the more common way to express this idea colloquially, the more literal translations of sentences like this one (in this case, "and you can also take the opportunity to give your opinion about how this space seems to you and how my recipes seem to you") are useful to keep in mind when attempting to decipher or create such structures.

We hope this lesson has helped you to better differentiate the verbs parecer vs. parecerse when pronouns are present, particularly since many of the reflexive and indirect object se parecen (look alike). For an even more in-depth exploration of this topic, check out Clase Aula Azul's series entitled El verb parecer (The Verb Parecer).

That's all for today, and don't forget to send us your questions and comments. 

In an interview appearing in the Spanish series, 75 minutos, we can hear a beautiful gypsy voice singing the following:

Me dormí pensando en ti; pensando en ti, me desperté

I fell asleep thinking about you; thinking about you, I woke up

Soñé contigo, estoy sin ti y así llevo to' mi vi'a

I dreamed about you, I am without you, and I carry on like that all my life

Captions 10-11, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa

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Do you see that "ti" in the example above? That's a prepositional pronoun, or pronoun that follows a preposition. As prepositional pronouns may have been outshone in your studies by the complexity of object pronouns (me, te, se, le, etc.), let’s focus on them for a change.

A Look at Prepositional Pronouns in Action

When pronouns follow prepositions, they take on a special form in the first and second person singular, as follows:

Tú sabes que una fiesta sin mí no es una fiesta

You know that a party without me is not a party

porque yo soy el alma de las fiestas.

because I am the soul of parties.

Caption 19, Club 10 - Capítulo 1 - Part 2

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He sentido un flechazo por ti.

I felt love at first sight with you.

Caption 7, Cortometraje - Flechazos

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Note that, unlike the possessive adjective mi (e.g. Mi nombre, or "My name"), the prepositional pronoun mí has a graphic accent (tilde) whereas ti does not. 

In contrast to the first and second persons, the other persons utilize the same form as the subject pronoun (él, ella, nosotros, etc.) and do not require any special form:

Es un poco estresante para nosotros.

It's a bit stressful for us.

Caption 6, Animales en familia - Un día en Bioparc: Cachorro de leopardo

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No, estoy hablando de ella.

No, I'm talking about her.

Caption 22, Muñeca Brava - 41 La Fiesta

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O en los brazos de ella.

Or in her arms.

Caption 21, El Ausente - Acto 3 - Part 8

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Reflexive Use of the Third Person

The third person is the only grammatical person to employ a specific form exclusively for reflexive use: sí. Although this form does not indicate gender or number, these aspects are apparent (and the agreement with the subject achieved) with the words mismo(s) and misma(s), which often follow the prepositional pronoun sí when expressing the idea of "himself" or "herself." 

Agente, Pierre Bernard no habló mucho de sí mismo.

Agent, Pierre Bernard didn't talk much about himself.

Caption 24, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 4

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Sí can also come after the preposition entre in the third person plural to express the idea of "with each other," as follows:

Entonces, ellas son amigas entre sí, también.

So, they are friends with each other also.

Caption 48, Clase Aula Azul - Información con subjuntivo e indicativo

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However, entre can be also followed by the subject pronouns yo and tú:

Pues lo que está sucediendo

Because what's happening

es entre tú y yo

is between you and me

Captions 26-27, Vivanativa - Si tú me quieres

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Conmigo, Contigo, and Consigo

Soñé contigo, estoy sin ti / I dreamed about you, I am without you

Considering the fact that pronouns do not often merge with the prepositions that preceed them, you may have wondered why conmigo, contigo and consigo are written as a single word. The fact is that the prepositional pronouns mí, ti, and sí have special forms when used with the preposition con.

Quédate conmigo

Stay with me

Caption 42, Carlos Baute y Marta Sanchez - Colgando en tus manos

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Bailar contigo y perdernos esta noche

Dancing with you and losing ourselves tonight

Caption 9, Monsieur Periné - Bailar Contigo

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Porque si no, muchas personas

Because otherwise, many people

tienen conflictos consigo mismas.

have conflicts with themselves.

Captions 2-3, Natalia de Ecuador - Los tipos de temperamento

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Some years ago, a politician in Latin America gained notoriety after saying conmigo o sinmigo, an egregious error for a native speaker of Spanish, let alone a public figure! Now that you have read this lesson, you can rest assured that contigo no tendremos ese problema (we won’t have that problem with you). We hope you liked this lesson, and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!

Most of the time, we use the word nada in Spanish as an indefinite pronoun that can be translated as either "nothing" or "anything." In this lesson, we will examine how to use this word to mean one vs. the other. Let's take a look.

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Using Nada  with Adjectives

Before we jump into the "nothing" vs. "anything" uses of nada, it's important to state the following: When an adjective appears next to nada, the adjective must be masculine. Let's look at a few examples:

No es nada malo, es algo natural.

It's nothing bad, it's something natural.

Caption 12, La Cocaleros - Personas y políticas

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Tenemos que devolver a la madre y esperamos

We have to return it to the mother and hope

que la madre no encuentre nada raro en su cachorro.

that the mother doesn't find anything strange with her cub.

Captions 90-91, Animales en familia - Un día en Bioparc: Cachorro de leopardo

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Que haya jóvenes que realicen pequeños hurtos no es nada nuevo.

That there are young people who commit petty thefts is nothing new.

Caption 16, Los Reporteros - Crecen los robos en tiendas

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Nada as "Anything"

If nada comes after a verb, it must be expressed in a negative form with either no or some other negative element such as jamás/nunca (never) or nadie (nobody). Although such "double negatives" are incorrect in English (for example, you can't say "I don't have nothing"), in such cases in Spanish, nada becomes the positive "anything" in the English translation. Let's look at a couple of examples:

Juan no ha comido nada desde que llegó al aeropuerto.

Juan hasn't eaten anything since he arrived at the airport.

Caption 41, Carlos explica - El pretérito Cap 3: Perfecto compuesto II

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No, no como nada frito.

No, I don't eat anything fried.

Caption 40, Cata y Cleer - En el restaurante

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In the example above, you can see how the adjective frito is masculine (just to check whether you remember our aforementioned rule!). 

Me encanta también cocinar.

I also love to cook.

Nunca me has hecho nada, ni un plato.

You have never made anything for me, not even one dish.

Captions 74-75, Cleer - Hobbies

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Nada as "Nothing"

On the other hand, if nada goes before a verb, the verb does not need to be accompanied by a negative element. In this case, nada functions like the word "nothing" in English. Let's take a look:

Mi primo vive en una casucha en donde nada funciona bien.

My cousin lives in a "casucha" [awful house] where nothing works well.

Caption 54, Carlos explica - Diminutivos y Aumentativos Cap 2: Definiciones generales

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Nada me detendrá

Nothing will stop me

Caption 32, Ednita Nazario - Después De Ti

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Nada as a noun

Finally, keep in mind that when nada is used as a noun meaning "the void" or "nothingness," it is a feminine noun:

Era el frío de la nada

It was the cold of nothingness

Caption 41, Acercándonos a la Literatura - José Asunción Silva - "Nocturno III"

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Notice how in this case, the word nada is preceded by the definite female article "la."

That's all for this lesson. We invite you to keep these rules in mind, and don't forget to send us your suggestions and comments. 

In this lesson, we will talk about Spanish subject pronouns. Let’s first review what subject pronouns are and enumerate the subject pronouns in English.

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What is a subject pronoun in Spanish?

Since the definition of a subject pronoun is "a word that takes the place of a noun acting as the subject of a clause or sentence," we must first understand what a subject is.

Most simply stated, the subject of a sentence is what it's about, the noun that is being or doing something. Here are some examples of sentences with their subjects indicated beneath them: 

Samantha is studying Spanish.         

Subject:  Samantha 

    

The tango is a beautiful dance.        

Subject: Tango

 

Marina, Liam and I went to the movies.    

Subject: Marina, Liam and I

 

Edison is from the Dominican Republic.    

Subject: Edison

 

The chocolates taste amazing.

Subject: The chocolates

In order to avoid, for instance, repeating “the chocolates” over and over in a paragraph where we wish to thoroughly describe them, we could replace the subject, “the chocolates,” with the subject pronoun, “they.” Below, within the structures of the previous sentences, the subjects have been replaced with their equivalent subject pronouns:

She is studying Spanish.

 

It is a beautiful dance. 

 

We went to the movies.

 

He is from the Dominican Republic.

 

They taste amazing. 

Subject pronouns in English and Spanish

A complete list of the English subject pronouns is as follows: I, we, you, he, she, it, they. 

Now, let’s take a look at how the English subject pronouns correspond to their Spanish counterparts:

- First person (singular / plural): EN: I / we | SP: yo / nosotros, nosotras

- Second person (singular / plural): EN: you / you | SP: tú, usted, vos / vosotros, vosotras, ustedes

- Third person (singular / plural): EN: he, she, it / they | SP: él, ella / ellos, ellas

Looking at them side by side, you may notice that there are far more Spanish subject pronouns than English ones due to the many nuances they express when compared to their less specific English equivalents. Some differences you may notice between the English subject pronouns and the Spanish ones are as follows: 

1. The first person plural (“we” in English) in Spanish distinguishes between masculine and feminine in the sense that, if the “we” refers to a group of only males or a mixed group of males and females, nosotros is used, whereas if the group is all female, nosotras is employed. Since English does not make this distinction, nothing can be told about the gender of the group upon simply hearing a sentence beginning with “we.”

2. The second person singular (“you” in English) has three different Spanish translations: tú, usted, and vos. So, what’s the difference between them? Generally speaking, tú and vos are employed similarly to address people with whom one is more familiar — a less formal “you” — whereas usted is a more formal and respectful “you,” typically reserved for people we don’t know as well or, for example, for our elders.

Keep in mind that while tú is more commonly employed as the informal “you” in many Spanish-speaking countries, vos is typically used in other countries or regions. In contrast, the English subject pronoun “you” can be employed regardless of the relationship we have with the person we are addressing, their age, or the formality of the situation.

3. The second person plural also has several distinctions in Spanish not present in English. Whereas “you” is both singular and plural in English, Spanish requires a different subject pronoun to indicate that more than one person is being spoken to. Ustedes, vosotros and vosotras are the three second-person plural subject pronouns in Spanish, which take both gender and formality/familiarity into account.

In most Spanish-speaking countries, ustedes is the only second person plural subject pronoun utilized and can thus be used regardless of the formality of the situation or the gender of the people being addressed. Things are different in Spain, where usted would be used to address a single person in a more formal situation. Ustedes would then be its extension when addressing more than one person.

Speaking familiarly, with tú, the plural used in Spain would be vosotros and vosotras. These second person plural pronouns work the same way as the first person plural pronouns, nosotros and nosotras: ​​Vosotros ​is used to address more than one male or a mixed group, familiarly,​ while vosotras will refer to more than one female. 

4. The same kind of situation presents itself in the third person plural. The English “they” does not consider gender, but its Spanish equivalents ellos and ellas, do take gender into account, just as nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras do. Ellos is used for an all-male or mixed group, while ellas is used for more than one female. 

What about "it" in Spanish?

The English subject pronoun “it” generally replaces a subject that isn't a person or animal. Since there is no such subject pronoun in Spanish, how is the idea of “it” expressed? Let’s look at an example from a Yabla Spanish video: 

¿El favorito mío? Y el dulce de leche bombón. Es mi debilidad.

My favorite? "Dulce de leche bombon." It's my weakness.

Captions 35-36, Buenos Aires - Heladería Cumelen

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You can see that, although we would say “It’s my weakness” in English when referring to the yummy dulce de leche ice cream, “it’s” being a contraction of “it is,” in Spanish, the “it” is simply omitted, and the verb, “es” (the third person singular conjugation of ser, or “to be”) is sufficient.

Because of this, a common error for Spanish speakers learning English is to try to replicate this structure in English by saying or writing something like, “Is my weakness.” However, this is not grammatically sound and, although it is often acceptable to omit a subject pronoun in Spanish, the same is not so in English, where the “it” is indeed necessary. 

Let’s look at one more example:

Pero cuando llueve no hay otro remedio.

But, when it rains, there isn't any other choice.

Caption 86, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa

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Note that in English, since “it” in this example does not actually refer to anything concrete (does not replace a particular word), it is known as a “dummy” (or expletive or pleonastic) pronoun, which is still necessary to express this idea correctly. In contrast, in Spanish, the verb “llueve” (the third person singular conjugation of llover, or “to rain”) can simply be used without a pronoun to express the idea of “it.”

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Omitting the subject pronoun

Even in cases which don’t involve “it,” due to the more specific manner in which Spanish verbs are conjugated according to their subject pronouns, it is not always necessary to write out the subject pronoun:

Mientras leo el diario, respondo los correos electrónicos.

While I read the newspaper, I respond to emails.

Caption 9, GoSpanish - La rutina diaria de Maru

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Although this could also be written as Mientras yo leo el diario, yo respondo los correos electrónicos, the first-person singular verb conjugations leo and respondo let us know that the subject pronoun is yo, and thus, it's not necessary to include it.

This is not the case in English, as the subject pronoun “I” is indeed necessary in order for the sentence to make sense (“While read the newspaper, respond to e-mails” would definitely not fly). One reason for this is that verb tenses in English tend to be much less specific to their subject pronouns. 

To reiterate this idea, let’s contrast the English present and past verb tenses with their Spanish equivalents:

ENGLISH (present / past):

I speak / spoke

You speak / spoke

He speaks / spoke

She speaks / spoke

It speaks / spoke

We speak / spoke

You speak / spoke

They speak / spoke

SPANISH (present / preterite):

Yo hablo / hablé

Tú hablas / hablaste

Vos hablás / hablaste 

Él, ella, usted habla / habló

Nosotros/as hablamos / hablamos

Vosotros/as habláis / hablasteis

Ellos/as, ustedes haban / hablaron

You may notice that the English present tense conjugations are limited to just “speak” (for “I,” “you,” “we” and “they”) and “speaks” (for “he,” “she” and “it”), while there is no variation whatsoever for the past tense, which regardless of the subject pronoun, is “spoke.”

In Spanish, on the other hand, we see a total of seven different conjugations in the present tense and six in the preterite, a revelation which may seem daunting to many English-speaking students of Spanish! And those are just two out of the fourteen Spanish verb tenses.

To conclude, let’s look at one last example:

Y, ¿va a pedirle a Lisa Bernal que sea su pareja en la fiesta?

And, are you going to ask Lisa Bernal to be your date at the party?

Caption 1, Los Años Maravillosos - Capitulo 6

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Unlike the previous case in which the verb conjugations leo and respondo were specific to the Spanish subject pronoun, yo, this one is a bit more ambiguous, as the verb conjugation va (of the verb ir, or “to go”) could correspond to the Spanish subject pronouns él, ella, or usted. So, if this sentence were encountered in isolation, the possible translations could be as follows: 

- And, is he going to ask Lisa Bernal to be his date at the party?

- And, are you going to ask Lisa Bernal to be your date at the party?

- And, is she going to ask Lisa Bernal to be her date at the party?

- And, is it going to ask Lisa Bernal to be its date at the party?

Although the last option does not seem logically plausible, how do we know which one of the others is correct in the absence of a subject pronoun? Context. Often in print or video media or even in conversation, the subject is introduced in a previous sentence.

However, since this is the first sentence in this video, we are left to infer from the characters’ subsequent dialogue that the correct translation is, “And, are you going to ask Lisa Bernal to be your date at the party?” where Kevin’s friend, Fede, is addressing him as “usted” (as a side note, even close friends and family members often address one another as “usted” in certain parts of Colombia). 

Although many beginning Spanish students might feel overwhelmed by the multitude of Spanish subject pronouns and the task of having to conjugate verbs based upon them, we hope that this lesson has shed some light on some of the many fascinating differences between subject pronouns in English and Spanish. And don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions.

Let's talk about pronouns. In English, when we talk with someone we use the second person singular pronoun ‘you’. In Spanish, we have three different options for that same pronoun: tú, usted and vos. Which one we use depends on things like the relationship that we have with the person we are talking to or the place where we are. Generally speaking, we use usted when we want to talk in a more respectful way with someone:

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¿Usted qué... qué me recomienda, doctor?

What do you... what do you recommend to me, Doctor?

Caption 14, Los médicos explican - El tratamiento de las fracturas

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However, if you are following the Colombian series Los Años Maravillosos, you have probably noticed that people usually use usted even when talking with family members or close friends. Why? That’s just how people speak in Bogota, Colombia:

¿Y a usted qué le pasa, mi hijito?

And what's going on with you, my little boy?

Caption 35, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 1

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Regardless of its use, there is something quite unique about using usted:  we conjugate usted as we would conjugate él (he) or ella (she):

Él trabaja entre las nueve de la mañana

He works between nine in the morning

Caption 48, La casa - De Chus

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¿Dónde trabaja usted?

Where do you work?

Caption 9, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos 

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As you can see in the captions above, the conjugation of the verb trabajar (to work) with él (he) and usted (you) is exactly the same (trabaja), something that doesn’t occur with tú and vos:

Tú trabajas | You work
Vos trabajás | You work
Él/Ella/Usted Trabaja | He/She/You work

To wrap things up, we use usted as a second person singular pronoun. However, we conjugate it as a third person singular pronoun!
 
And don’t forget that this also occurs with the plural form ustedes (you all), which we conjugate as the third person plural pronoun ellos/ellas (they). Notice how ustedes and ellos share the same conjugation of the verb saber (to know) in the following captions:

Toda la vida he estado en el PAN, como ustedes saben, y he estado muy contento.

All my life I have been in PAN, as you know, and I have been very happy.

Caption 37, Felipe Calderón - Publicidad

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Ellos saben de los sitios que son hábitat de reproducción,

They know about the places that are reproduction habitats,

Caption 31, Instinto de conservación - Parque Tayrona

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That's it for now. If you want to learn more things about the use of tú, usted, and vos, make sure to check out our series about Tuteo, Ustedeo y Voseo. And don’t forget to send us your feedback and suggestions.

The Spanish word lo can be used as a subject pronoun, an object pronoun or a definite article. We have several lessons on the topic, which you can read by clicking here. Lo is a very useful word, and there're many common phrases that use this particle. Let's study some examples. 

The phrase por lo tanto means "as a result" or "therefore"

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Este puerro, no lo he limpiado previamente, por lo tanto,

This leek, I haven't cleaned it previously, therefore,

vamos a limpiarlo.

we are going to clean it.

Caption 55, Cómetelo - Crema de brócoli

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The phrase por lo pronto means "for now" or "for the time being"
 

...y yo por lo pronto pienso avisarle a toda la familia.

...and I for the time being plan to let the whole family know.

Caption 18, Yago - 9 Recuperación

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The phrase por lo visto means "apparently"
 

Por lo visto fue en una perfumería.

Apparently it was in a perfume shop.

Caption 42, Yago - 12 Fianza

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The phrase por lo general is equivalent to the adverb generalmente. It means "generally"
 

Pero por lo general encontramos sistemas de alarmas.

But generally we find alarm systems.

Caption 11, Los Reporteros - Crecen los robos en tiendas

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The phrase a lo largo de means "throughout"
 

al menos va cambiando a lo largo de las estaciones.

at least is changing throughout the seasons.

Caption 10, Clara explica - El tiempo

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While a lo lejos means "at a distance" or "in the distance"

El cielo está nublado y a lo lejos tú

The sky is cloudy and in the distance you

Hablando de lo que te ha pasado.

Speaking of what has happened to you.

Captions 5-6, Christhian canta - Hombres G - Temblando

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In fact, you can add the phrase a lo to certain adjetives to talk about the way something is being done or someone is doing something. For example, a lo loco means "like crazy." 

Yo echo un poco de pintura ahí

I put a bit of paint there

a lo loco

like crazy [spontaneously]

Captions 92-93, Zoraida en Coro - El pintor Yepez

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Another common example is a lo tonto (like a dumb, in a dumb way, for nothing). 

Hazlo bien. No lo hagas a lo tonto.
Do it right. Don't do it foolishly.

¿Para qué esforzarse a lo tonto?
Why go to all that trouble for nothing?

This phrase always uses the neutral singular form of the adjective. Even if you are talking to a girl or a group of people, you will always use the same. For example:

Lucía siempre se enamora a lo tonto del primer hombre que cruza su camino.
Lucia always falls in love inanely with the first man that crosses her path.

In Mexico, you will also hear the expression al ahí se va (literally, "in a there-it-goes way"). It means to do things without care, plan, or thinking. This is pronounced quite fast, by the way, almost as a single word. Translations vary: 

Completé el examen al ahí se va porque no estudié.
I completed the exam with mediocrity because I didn't study.

Tienen más hijos al ahí se va y sin planear en el futuro.
They have more kids without thinking and planning for the future.

Finally, there's the expression a la buena [voluntad] de Dios (leaving it to God's goodwill). You may find it in phrases involving the idea of entrusting what you do to God, but it's more commonly used to express that something is done rather haphazardly, without care, skill, effort and or plan.

El aeropuerto se construyó a la buena de Dios.
The airport was built haphazardly.

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Is there a topic you'd like covered in our lessons? You can send your suggestions to newsletter@yabla.com.

Do you remember reflexive verbs? A verb is reflexive when the subject in a sentence performs an action on itself, in other words, when the subject and the object are the same. In Spanish reflexive verbs use reflexive pronouns (me, te,se, nos, etc.), which play the role of direct object in the sentence:
 

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Yo me veo en el espejo.
I look at myself in the mirror.
 
Since they involve a direct object, reflexive verbs are also transitive verbs (verbs that take a direct object). Many transitive verbs can be transformed into reflexive verbs. Peinar (to comb), for example, is a classic example of a transitive verb:

Yo peino a mi bebé

I comb my baby's hair

Caption 21, Lecciones con Carolina - Verbos reflexivos

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that can also be transformed into a reflexive verb, peinarse:

Yo me peino

I comb my hair [literally, "I comb myself"]

Caption 20, Lecciones con Carolina - Verbos reflexivos

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On the other hand, intransitive verbs are action verbs that, unlike transitive verbs, don't take a direct object receiving the action. Examples are llegar (to arrive), estornudar (to sneeze), morir (to die), caer (to fall), etc. Consequently, these verbs can't really be transformed into reflexive verbs. So why do we always hear Spanish speakers using reflexive pronouns with these verbs? For example:
 

Si me caigo, me vuelvo a parar

If I fall, I stand up again

Caption 8, Sondulo - Que te vaya mal

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Obviously, me caigo doesn't mean “I fall myself." It just means "I fall," because the verb caer[se] is part of a group of verbs that use reflexive pronouns but are not reflexive verbs. These verbs are called verbos pronominales, verbs that are typically conjugated using a reflexive pronoun that doesn't have any syntactic function. It's just the way these verbs are typically constructed! Another example is the verb morir (to die). Me muero doesn't mean "I die myself"; it just means "I die." The following example uses it as part of an idiomatic expression:
 

No hablemos más de comida

Let's not talk about food

que me muero de hambre.

since I'm starving hungry [literally, "I'm dying of hunger"].

Captions 40-41, Salvando el planeta Palabra - Llegada

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Now, while reflexive verbs like peinarse always need to be used with reflexive pronouns, verbs like caer (to fall) and matar (to kill) can be used either as pronominales (caerse and morirse), or as simple intransitive verbs (caer, morir), that is, without the reflexive pronouns. Therefore, the following expressions are also correct (though maybe just a little less common in everyday speech):
 
Si caigo, me vuelvo a parar. 
If I fall, I stand up again.
 
No hablemos más de comida que muero de hambre.
Let's not talk about food since I'm starving [literally, "I'm dying of hunger"].
 
The really tricky aspect of reflexive pronouns is how to use them, either with verbos reflexivos like peinarse or verbos pronominales like caerse and morirse. Typically, you will use the pronoun before the verb, for example me caigo (I fall), te peinas (you comb your hair). But how do you use reflexive pronouns in a sentence that uses more than one verb, for example an auxiliary verb such as the verb ir (to go) combined with a verb in the infinitive?
 
Voy a caer
I'm going to fall
 
Juan va a morir
Juan is going to die
 
Well, the rule is simple. You either use the reflexive pronoun right before the auxiliary verb:
 
Me voy a caer 
I'm going to fall
 
Juan se va a morir
Juan is going to die
 
Or you use it after the verb in infinitive as a suffix:
 
Voy a caerme
I'm going to fall
 
Juan va a morirse
Juan is going to die
 
And the same rule applies to reflexive verbs like peinarse:
 
Ella se va a peinar = Ella va a peinarse
She is going to comb her hair
 
In fact, this rule applies to all pronouns, even pronouns that are not reflexive (that are used to substitute the direct object in any given sentence), like lo, la, los, las, and te:
 
Como sandía / La como
I eat watermelon / I eat it
 
Voy a comer sandía
I'm going to eat watermelon
 
Voy a comerla = La voy a comer
I'm going to eat it
 

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Coincidentally, comer (as well as other "ingestion verbs") is an excellent example of a verb that is transitive in nature but that is also used as a pronominal verb with reflexive pronouns. For example, it’s also correct to say voy a comérmela (I’m going to eat it).

In one of Yabla's videos, Spanish veterinarian, Jesús López, uses two interesting and very similar words:

Cualquiera puede traer cualquier animal.

Anyone can bring any animal.

Caption 8, Centro de Recuperación de la Fauna Salvaje - Veterinario Jesús López

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The Spanish words, cualquiera (anyone) and cualquier (any), may look very much alike, but their functions happen to be very different. While cualquiera is an indefinite pronoun, cualquier is an indefinite adjective.

For that reason, whenever the adjective, cualquier, is used, it must be accompanied by a noun, e.g. cualquier animal (any animal). Let's take a look at these examples:

En cualquier caso, los datos de España no son nada alentadores.

In any case, the data from Spain is not encouraging at all.

Captions 27-28, 3R - Campaña de reciclaje

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Mira los niños, juegan con globos de cualquier color

Look at the kids, they play with balloons of any color

Caption 9, Café Tacuba - Mediodía

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¿Puede venir cualquier persona aquí? -Sí.

Can any person come here? -Yes.

Caption 5, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos

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On the other hand, the pronoun, cualquiera (anyone), should not be used to accompany a noun, but rather to substitute it, as cualquiera means "anyone." For example, you can use the pronoun, cualquiera, to substitute the phrase, cualquier persona, in the previous example:

¿Puede venir cualquiera aquí? -Sí.
Can anyone come here? -Yes.

Here is another example containing the pronoun, cualquiera:
 

No cualquiera podía ser caballero. O sea...

Not just anyone could be a knight. I mean...

Caption 17, Antonio Vargas - Artista - ilustración

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Now, to further complicate the matter, Spanish has a common plural form for both the adjective, cualquier, and the pronoun, cualquiera, which is cualesquiera. Although the use of this plural form for both the adjective and the pronoun is uncommon in everyday speech, let's go ahead and transform the previous examples into their plural forms as an excercise. You will note that their English translations are identical to their singular equivalents. 

For the adjective, cualquier:

¿Pueden venir cualesquiera personas aquí? -Sí.*
Can any person come here? -Yes.

For the pronoun, cualquiera:

No cualesquiera podían ser caballeros.
Not just anyone could be a knight.

* As a side note, a shorter version for the adjective, cualesquier, also exists, but this is even less common and can generally only be found in old literature.

Finally, and very interestingly, there is one instance in which the word, cualquiera (and its plural, cualesquiera), can be used as a qualitative adjective meaning "insignificant" or "irrelevant." When used in this manner, the adjective always comes after the noun rather than before it. This use is equivalent to the English expression "any old" or "just any."  Let's see an example. 
 

Sólo espera, que hoy no será un día cualquiera

Just wait, because today won't be any old day

Caption 49, Cuarto poder - Aquí no se está jugando

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This adjective is most commonly used in negative phrases:
Este no es un perro cualquiera; es el perro de mi padre.

This is not just any dog. It's my father's dog.

No era un tipo cualquiera; era el jefe de la tribu.

He wasn't just any guy. He was the tribe's chief.

By extension, however unfairly, the expressions, un cualquiera and una cualquiera, can mean "a nobody" and "a prostitute" (or low class or sexually promiscous woman), respectively. You can find an example in our Argentinian telenovela, Muñeca Brava:

Pero a mí no me va a ofender porque yo no soy una cualquiera.

But you're not going to disrespect me because I am not a floozy.

Captions 83-84, Muñeca Brava - 43 La reunión

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This is the end of the lesson. Thank you for reading, and don't forget to send us you comments and suggestions.