Surely you've heard the word hecho in Spanish. But did you know that this Spanish word can function as a noun, a verb, or an adjective, as well as being a part of countless fixed expressions? Let's look into the many uses of the word hecho in Spanish!
The masculine noun el hecho in Spanish can mean "the fact," "the incident," or "the event." Let's see some examples:
El hecho es que a mí Vargas me asignó ese caso
The fact is that Vargas assigned me that case
Caption 22, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 2 - Part 3
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el microrrelato tenía que estar basado en un hecho o personajes históricos.
the flash fiction story had to be based on a historical event or figures.
Caption 15, Aprendiendo con Carlos El microrrelato - Part 3
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Hecho is the participle form of the verb hacer, which means "to do" or "to make." Since participles are used with the auxiliary verb haber to form the perfect tenses (the equivalent of English sentences like "I have spoken," "I had eaten," etc.), the translations for hecho in this context would be "done" or "made." Let's listen to two examples where hecho accompanies haber as part of the present perfect tense:
Pero, ya he hecho un montón de cosas.
But, I've already done a ton of things.
Caption 22, Clase Aula Azul La segunda condicional - Part 1
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Han hecho un viaje bastante largo.
They've made quite a long journey.
Caption 6, Amaya Mis burras Lola y Canija
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The Spanish word hecho can also be an adjective that means "done" or "made." Let's take a look:
Pero todo hecho con el material o tejidos andinos.
But all made with Andean material or fabrics.
Caption 31, Otavalo Zapatos andinos
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Remember that adjectives in Spanish must agree with the nouns they modify in terms of number and gender. Therefore, alternative forms of the masculine singular adjective hecho include the singular feminine hecha and the masculine/feminine plural forms hechos and hechas. Let's listen to two of these:
Es una masa redonda, hecha con harina,
It's some round dough made of flour,
Captions 5-6, El Aula Azul Adivinanzas de comidas - Part 3
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Quesos especiales hechos aquí en la región.
Special cheeses made here in the region.
Caption 32, Desayuno Puerto Escondido Frijoles Refritos
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The Spanish word hecho should not be confused with echo, which is the first person singular form of the verb echar (to throw, throw away, put in, etc.), as we hear in the following caption:
Primero echo casi más de la mitad.
First, I put in almost more than half [of the package].
Caption 45, Recetas de cocina Papa a la Huancaína
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Because the "h" in hecho is silent, the identical pronunciation of these two words lead even native Spanish speakers to confuse them. However, bear in mind that as there is no such verb as hechar in Spanish, echo in this context should always be spelled without an "h."
In its various incarnations, the word hecho also appears in too many Spanish fixed expressions to name! Below you will find a smattering of these, with lots of examples from our Yabla Spanish video library. Can you figure out how the word hecho, or one of its variants, is functioning in each of them?
dar por hecho: to presume, to be a given, to take for granted
puesto que se da por hecho que cuando lo comunicamos es porque nos gusta
since it's presumed that when we communicate it it's because we like it
Captions 39-40, Raquel y Marisa Español Para Negocios - Introducción
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de hecho: in fact
De hecho, es un sitio bastante tranquilo y pintoresco que vale la pena visitar.
In fact, it's a quite calm and picturesque place that's worth visiting.
Caption 23, Aprendiendo con Carlos América precolombina - El Dorado
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quiero recalcar el hecho de que todo pasa,
I want to emphasize the fact that everything passes,
Captions 74-75, Soledad Refranes - Part 2
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estar hecho polvo: to be exhausted (literally "to be made into dust")
"yo ya estoy hecho polvo.
"I'm exhausted already.
Caption 24, Pigueldito y Federico El cielo
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hecho a mano: handmade
son todas hechas a mano; bordados hechos a mano,
they're all handmade, handmade embroidery,
Captions 40-41, Málaga Lourdes y la talabartería en Mijas Pueblo
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hechos reales: a true story
basada en hechos reales.
based on a true story.
Caption 12, Aprendiendo con Silvia Nacionalidades y adjetivos - Part 1
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trato hecho: it's a deal, done deal
Trato hecho, ¿sí o no? -¡Trato hecho!
It's a deal, yes or no? -It's a deal!
Caption 60, La Sucursal del Cielo Capítulo 2 - Part 5
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That's all for today. We hope that this lesson has helped to give you a sense of the many ways that the word hecho can be used in Spanish, as well as the the one way in which it should not be. Don't forget to write us with your questions or comments.
The Spanish adverbial phrases hasta que and hasta que no are both useful to describe situations in which one action depends upon another, in other words, what will or won't be done or happen "until" something else happens. However, because the literal translations for phrases involving the latter construction don't make sense in English, the hasta que no construction can be confusing for English speakers. We hope this lesson will clarify this confusion.
The adverbial phrase hasta que means "until" and can be used with many different verb tenses. However, in the sentences we will be talking about today, the verb that follows hasta que refers to something that might happen in the future but has not yet happened and must thus be conjugated in a subjunctive tense. Let's take a look at several examples in the present subjunctive.
y lo dejaremos ahí hasta que hierva.
and we'll leave it there until it boils.
Caption 19, Ana Carolina Ponche navideño
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y el jarabe se lo toma tres veces al día hasta que lo termine.
and you take the syrup three times a day until you finish it.
Caption 28, Cita médica La cita médica de Cleer - Part 2
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Note that these first two examples talk about what someone is going to do until something else happens. Now let's look at some examples of things one won't do until something else happens:
De momento no las saco fuera y las dejo que estén tranquilas, hasta que se sientan seguras
For now, I don't take them out, and I leave them alone until they feel safe
Captions 9-10, Amaya Mis burras Lola y Canija
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¿Ya? Y no voy a descansar hasta que atrape a esa rata.
OK? And I'm not going to rest until I catch that rat.
Caption 30, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 1 - Part 10
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Hasta que no functions in almost the exact same way as hasta que in such sentences. However, note that in contrast to hasta que, sentences with hasta que no always involve a double negative (i.e. what can't happen until something else does). Let's take a look:
pero de momento no puedo darle una respuesta hasta que no hayamos entrevistado al resto de candidatos.
but at the moment I can't give you an answer until we have interviewed the rest of the candidates.
Captions 61-62, Negocios La solicitud de empleo - Part 2
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Note that while the literal translation of "hasta que no hayamos entrevistado al resto de candidatos" would be "until we haven't interviewed the rest of the candidates," which wouldn't make sense, the actual meaning is "until we have interviewed the rest of the candidates." The word "no" is therefore an "expletive," which, in grammar, means an "empty word" that might add emphasis but doesn't add meaning. And interestingly, the form of this sentence with merely hasta que would work just as well with no difference in meaning, as follows:
pero de momento no puedo darle una respuesta hasta que hayamos entrevistado al resto de candidatos.
but at the moment I can't give you an answer until we have interviewed the rest of the candidates.
Let's see two more examples:
Pero vamos, eso nadie lo sabe hasta que no estemos en el terreno.
But come on, nobody knows that until we're in the area.
Caption 27, Los Reporteros Caza con Galgo - Part 2
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Sí. -...con él no podemos hacer nada... Ajá. -hasta que no desarrolle bien.
Yes. -...we can't do anything with him... Uh-huh. -until he develops well.
Captions 38-39, Animales en familia Un día en Bioparc: Coatís
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Once again, the literal translations "until we're not" and "until he doesn't develop" would be nonsensical, and hence the sentences have been translated in the same fashion as they would be if the word "no" weren't present since hasta que estemos/hasta que no estemos (until we're) and hasta que desarrolle/hasta que no desarrolle (until he develops) are synonymous.
In conclusion, although there has been some debate among linguists about the legitimacy of hasta que no, which is more likely to be heard in Spain (to learn more such differences, check out this lesson on A Few Outstanding Differences Between Castilian and Latin American Spanish), the constructions hasta que and hasta que no have been deemed interchangeable when talking about what can't or won't happen until something else takes place. That said, we hope that this lesson has brought some clarity regarding the somewhat confusing hasta que no construction... and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.
In this lesson, we would like to remind you of a very simple rule, which is nonetheless often forgotten even by native Spanish speakers. Let's start this lesson with a simple quiz. Which of the following sentences is incorrect?
Sentence A
Pero tenéis que entender que la mayoría de animales
But you have to understand that most animals
Captions 48-49, Amaya - Mis burras Lola y Canija
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Sentence B
"Cultivaremos la mayoría de los alimentos en los océanos".
"We'll grow most of [our] food in the oceans."
Caption 3, Escuela BCNLIP - Clase con Javi: el futuro
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If you're not sure which sentence is incorrect, we invite you to read this lesson.
In expressions in which a part of a group is mentioned, it is appropriate to keep the article (el, la, los, or las) after the preposition de. Let's look at a couple of examples with different expressions:
Correct:
La mitad de los artistas deberían estar presos
Half of the artists should be in jail
Caption 34, Calle 13 - Calma Pueblo
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Incorrect:
está limitado a la mitad de personas que pueden entrar habitualmente.
is limited to half the people who can usually enter.
Caption 32, Sergio - Socorrismo y COVID-19
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In this sentence, the article is missing after the preposition de. Considering that, the following would be the appropriate way of saying this sentence:
está limitado a la mitad de las personas que pueden entrar habitualmente.
Correct:
es uno de los principales problemas ambientales
is one of the main environmental problems
de la mayoría de los países del mundo,
of most countries in the world,
Captions 8-9, 3R - Campaña de reciclaje
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Incorrect:
En la mayoría de casos, el burro es incautado por la policía de los animales
In most cases, the donkey is confiscated by the animal police
Caption 51, Santuario para burros - Santuario
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As you can see, in this sentence, the article is also missing after the preposition de. That said, the appropriate form would be the following:
En la mayoría de los casos, el burro es incautado por la policía de los animales
Can you now answer the question we posed at the beginning of this lesson?
While this mistake is not a dramatic one, we invite you to keep this rule in mind so you can construct these kinds of sentences properly. That's all for now. We hope you have enjoyed this brief reminder, and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!
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