Have you ever wondered about the Spanish word ojalá and where it comes from? This beautiful expression is one of the most commonly used words in Spanish to express hopes and wishes, but its fascinating origins might surprise you. Today, we'll explore what ojalá means, how to use it correctly, and discover its amazing journey from Arabic to modern Spanish.
According to the Diccionario de la lengua española, ojalá is an interjection that expresses a strong desire for something to happen. Simply put, it means "I hope," "I wish" or "hopefully" in English, and it's used to express wishes, hopes, and desires.
¡Ojalá! ¿No?
I wish! Right?
Caption 15, Escuela BCNLIP Clase con Javi: el futuro - Part 21
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But here's what makes this word truly special: every time you say ojalá, you're actually using a word that has traveled through centuries and cultures to reach modern Spanish.
The word ojalá has an incredible history that takes us back to medieval Spain. It originated from the Arabic Hispanic expression "wa šá lláh," meaning "and God has willed it." Through centuries of linguistic evolution, this Arabic phrase gradually transformed into the Spanish ojalá we use today.
Originally, this expression carried strong religious significance, directly invoking divine will. However, as Spanish developed and the word became fully integrated into the language, most speakers today use ojalá without any awareness of its religious roots. In modern Spanish, it simply serves as a way to express hopes and wishes, regardless of the speaker's religious beliefs or background.
Interestingly, Spanish also has the expression si Dios quiere (God willing), which maintains its obvious religious meaning, making ojalá unique as a hope-expressing word whose divine origins have become invisible to most speakers.
Understanding how to use ojalá correctly is essential for expressing hopes and wishes in Spanish. Let's look at the different ways you can use this versatile word.
You can use ojalá by itself as a complete response to express hope or agreement:
¡Ojalá! ¡Dios te oiga!
I hope so! May God hear you!
Caption 79, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 4 - Part 2
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The most common way to use ojalá is followed by a verb in the subjunctive mood. This construction allows you to express specific hopes and wishes:
y ojalá disfruten del aprendizaje de nuestro idioma.
and I hope you enjoy learning our language.
Caption 56, Hispanoamericanos en Berlín Manuel y El barrilito
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You can optionally add que between ojalá and the subjunctive verb. Both forms are correct and widely used:
Ay, ojalá que sea un buen muchacho, ¿no?
Oh, I hope that he's a good guy, right?
Caption 12, Muñeca Brava 39 Verdades - Part 1
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In Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, you'll often hear ojalá y followed by the subjunctive:
Ojalá y pudiéramos llevarlos a un tribunal
I wish we could take them to court
Caption 12, Los casos de Yabla Errores gramaticales - Part 1
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When learning how to use ojalá in Spanish, it's important to avoid this common error: never use ojalá with an infinitive verb. This is grammatically incorrect in Spanish.
❌ Incorrect: Ojalá encontrar trabajo pronto (This is grammatically wrong - don't use infinitives with ojalá)
✅ Correct: Ojalá encuentre trabajo pronto (I hope I find a job soon)
✅ Correct: Ojalá pueda encontrar trabajo pronto (I hope I can find a job soon)
Now that you understand the origins and grammar rules, you can confidently use ojalá to express your hopes and wishes in Spanish. Remember that this word connects you to centuries of linguistic history, from its Arabic roots to its modern Spanish usage.
Whether you're hoping for good weather, wishing someone luck, or expressing a deep desire, ojalá is an essential word that will make your Spanish sound more natural and expressive.
We hope this lesson has helped you understand the fascinating origins and proper usage of ojalá in Spanish. Feel free to share your thoughts and let us know if you have any questions about this beautiful expression!
How do we talk about an action in progress in Spanish? We use the Spanish present progressive tense, which we'll explore in this lesson.
What is present progressive in Spanish? Simply put, the present progressive tense in Spanish describes actions that are unfolding as we speak, at this moment. Also called the present progressive, its English equivalent includes some form of the verb "to be" in present tense along with the gerund, or -ing form, of a verb. Some examples include: "I'm reading," "You are watching TV," or "We are eating dinner." The Spanish present progressive, which we'll learn to conjugate, takes a very similar form.
So, when exactly do we use the present progressive tense in Spanish? And, what's the difference between the simple present and the Spanish present progressive? This can be a bit confusing since there is some overlap in terms of their English translations at times. Let's take a look:
¿Qué hacés vos acá?
What are you doing here?
-¿Cómo qué hago? Corro.
-What do you mean, what am I doing? I'm running.
Captions 65-66, Cuatro Amigas - Piloto
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Although, much like the present progressive, the simple present tense in Spanish can sometimes be translated into English using the -ing form to say that one "is doing" something in the present, the Spanish simple present tense is also used to describe actions one does on a habitual basis:
¿Y los sábados y domingos, qué haces?
And on Saturdays and Sundays, what do you do?
Caption 19, Español para principiantes - Los días de la semana
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That said, if you really want to emphasize and/or remove any doubt that an action is in progress or happening at this moment, it's necessary to use the Spanish present progressive:
Silvia, ¿qué estás haciendo?
Silvia, what are you doing?
-Estoy cocinando.
-I'm cooking.
Captions 31-32, El Aula Azul - Actividades diarias: En casa con Silvia
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In fact, this last caption is from a video by El Aula Azul that simply and clearly demonstrates the difference between the simple present tense and the present progressive tense in Spanish.
Now that you know when to use the present progressive in Spanish, let's learn how to conjugate present progressive verbs in Spanish. To start, let's review (or learn!) the simple present conjugation of the verb estar (to be), which will convey the idea of "am" or "are":
Yo estoy (I am)
Tú estás (You are)
Él/ella/usted está (He, she is/you are)
Nosotros/nosotras estamos (We are)
Vosotros/vosotras estáis (You are [plural])
Ellos/ellas/ustedes están (They/you [plural] are)
Next, we'll need to break up infinitive Spanish verbs into two categories, verbs that end in -ar and verbs that end in either -er or -ir, in order to form their gerunds (gerundios).
To form the gerund for regular -ar verbs, we'll take the verb's stem (the part before the -ar) and add the suffix -ando. For example, for hablar (to talk), we take the stem habl- and add -ando to get hablando. Let's take a look at a few examples of regular -ar verbs in the present progressive tense in Spanish:
Entonces, en este momento, ¿veis?,
So, right now, you see?
está hablando con su madre por teléfono.
He's talking to his mom on the phone.
Captions 60-61, Clase Aula Azul - Información con subjuntivo e indicativo
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Eh... estoy buscando a Milagros.
Um... I am looking for Milagros.
Caption 6, Muñeca Brava - 39 Verdades
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Estamos caminando aquí en Bleeker Street
We are walking here on Bleeker Street
Caption 72, Eljuri - "Fuerte" EPK
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Conjugating regular -er and -ir verbs in the present progressive Spanish tense is just as easy! Simply take the stem (remove the -er or -ir) and add the suffix -iendo. Thus, for correr (to run), we have corr- plus -iendo to get corriendo, and for vivir (to live), we take viv- plus -iendo for viviendo. Let's look at a few more examples:
¿Por qué estás comiendo basura?
Why are you eating garbage?
Caption 9, Kikirikí - Agua
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Está subiendo, está subiendo la rama.
He's climbing, he's climbing the branch.
Caption 98, Animales en familia - Un día en Bioparc: Coatís
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¿Dónde estáis vendiendo aceite?
Where are you selling oil?
Caption 1, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa
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Although the Spanish present progressive tense is arguably one of the easier verbs to learn to conjugate in Spanish, there are some irregular verbs, of course, which fall into a few categories. Let's examine those categories of verbs with irregular conjugations in the Spanish present progressive.
Verbs with the endings -aer, -eer, -oir, and -uir change from -iendo to -yendo in the Spanish present progressive. Here are some examples:
traer: trayendo (to bring/bringing)
caer: cayendo (to fall/falling)
leer: leyendo (to read/reading)
creer: creyendo (to believe/believing)
construir: construyendo (to build/building)
huir: huyendo (to escape/escaping)
oír: oyendo (to hear/hearing)
Interestingly, the present progressive form of the verb ir (to go) is also yendo:
Sí, me venía a despedir porque ya me estoy yendo.
Yes, I came to say goodbye because I'm leaving now.
Caption 90, Muñeca Brava - 39 Verdades
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Some verbs that change stems in the Spanish simple present tense also have an irregular form in the Spanish present progressive. Verbs whose stems change from -e to -ie (e.g. sentir becomes yo siento, tú sientes, etc.) or -e to -i (vestir changes to yo visto, tú vistes, etc.) tend to change stems from an -e to an -i in the Spanish present progressive as well, while maintaining the suffix -iendo. Let's take a look at some common examples:
sentir: sintiendo (to feel/feeling)
preferir: prefiriendo (to prefer/preferring)
mentir: mintiendo (to lie/lying)
vestir: vistiendo (to dress/dressing)
seguir: siguiendo (to follow/following)
conseguir: consiguiendo (to get/getting)
On the other hand, verbs that change from an -o to a -ue in the simple present often change from an -o to a -u in the Spanish present progressive while maintaining their regular ending (-iendo). Examples include poder ("to be able," which morphs into yo puedo, tú puedes, etc.), dormir ("to sleep," which becomes yo duermo, tú duermes, etc.), and morir ("to die," which transforms to yo muero, tú mueres, etc.). Let's look:
poder: pudiendo (to be able/being able)
dormir: durmiendo (to sleep/sleeping)
morir: muriendo (to die/dying)
Verbs in this fourth category also change from -e to -i in the simple present (e.g. reír, or "to laugh," becomes yo río, tú ríes, etc.) but also have an -e before the -ir ending. In this case, the -e is dropped, while the ending -iendo is maintained, as follows:
reír: riendo (to laugh/laughing)
sonreír: sonriendo (to smile/smiling)
freír: friendo (to fry/frying)
The aforementioned irregular verbs in the present progressive in Spanish by no means constitute an exhaustive list, and although the rules that dictate which verbs are irregular might seem daunting, with increased exposure to Spanish, conjugating such irregular verbs in the present progressive in Spanish should become intuitive in no time!
Let's conclude today's lesson by looking at an example from each of the aforementioned categories of irregular present progressive verbs in Spanish:
Ellos están construyendo la puerta de entrada al santuario de burros.
They're building the entry gate to the donkey sanctuary.
Caption 25, Amaya - Voluntarios
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Esa mujer nos está mintiendo y quiero saber por qué.
That woman is lying to us and I want to know why.
Caption 42, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 4
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¡Aldo, tu hermano se está muriendo
Aldo, your brother is dying,
y a vos lo único que te interesa es la herencia!
and the only thing that interests you is the inheritance!
Caption 63, Yago - 3 La foto
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Se está riendo de todos nosotros.
He's laughing at all of us.
Caption 28, Los casos de Yabla - Problemas de convivencia
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That's all for today. For more information on the present progressive Spanish tense, check out our latest video from El Aula Azul on that very topic! And don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.
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