Do you know how to say that something "is necessary" in Spanish? Do you like telling people what "has to" be done? We'll teach you a simple formula!
To say something "is necessary" in Spanish, you might use the literal phrase es necesario (it's necessary) plus a verb's infinitive, or "to" form:
Es necesario usar papel, carbón o madera para encenderlo.
It's necessary to use paper, charcoal, or wood to light it.
Caption 22, El Aula Azul Adivina qué es - Part 1
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And, to tell someone what they "have to" do, you could use verbs like tener que (to have to) or deber (must) plus the infinitive:
Tienes que mejorar esto.
You have to improve this.
Caption 28, El Aula Azul La Doctora Consejos: Hay y estar
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Bueno, primero debemos hacer la lista de invitados
Well, first, we must make the guest list
Caption 15, Cleer y Carolina Organizando la fiesta del abuelo
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However, if you are looking for a non-literal, conjugation-free alternative (to conjugate just the present indicative tense of tener que, for example, you have to memorize tengo que, tienes que, tiene que, tenemos que, tenéis que, and tienen que), we invite you to use the following, very simple formula, which can express the same thing as the previous three options in various contexts:
Hay que + infinitive
Don't get us wrong— you are going to have to learn those verb conjugations sooner or later! But, perhaps while you do, or as a viable alternative that native speakers often employ, you could opt for hay que + infinitive.
Hay comes from the Spanish verb haber, which is an auxiliary, or helping, verb that means "to have" or "to be" and appears in its conjugated forms as part of different verb tenses (e.g. the present perfect, pluperfect, etc.). Hay is haber's impersonal form, which never changes (it is always just hay in the present tense) and can mean "there is" or "there are." However, when hay is combined with que + infinitive, it becomes a fixed expression that means "it's necessary" (to do something). Let's see a couple of examples:
hay que darle la oportunidad de defenderse.
it's necessary to give him the opportunity to defend himself.
Caption 22, Los casos de Yabla Problemas de convivencia - Part 2
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¡Hay que reclamar el premio antes de las diez de la noche!
You have to claim the prize before ten p.m.!
Caption 61, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 6: El día de la Primitiva - Part 4
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Note that the second example has been translated with "you have to," a more colloquial equivalent of "it's necessary" that includes the "universal you," implying "people" or "everyone." "One has to" or "one must" would also be valid translations.
The construction hay que + infinitive can be used in basically any context in which you want to say that "it's necessary" to do a particular thing. That said, we have included below a few scenarios in which you are likely to come across it. When reading the translations, keep in mind that while this impersonal construction has no specific subject, in cases in which the context or sentence makes clear who the speaker feels "has to" or "must" act in a particular way, the construction is often translated as if the subject were explicitly stated.
Since the construction hay que + infinitive explains what "people have to do," it only makes sense that it is often heard when talking about perceived wisdom about life:
En la vida hay que saber relajarse,
In life, you need to know how to relax,
Caption 44, Ana Teresa 5 principios del yoga
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El pasado hay que olvidarlo, hay que enterrarlo,
The past, you have to forget it, you have to bury it,
Captions 38-39, Yago 2 El puma - Part 1
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As we mentioned earlier, you might use the expression hay que + infinitive to tell someone what to do without explicitly saying "you must," as in these two examples from the popular series Confidencial: Asesino al Volante:
Yo sé que les dijimos que no vinieran por acá pero hay que darles la buena noticia.
I know we told them not to come here, but we have to give them the good news.
Captions 65-66, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 2 - Part 11
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Hay que demostrar que tú no eres ningún criminal,
You have to show that you're no criminal,
Caption 61, Confidencial: Asesino al Volante Capítulo 3 - Part 10
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In other cases, one might give a suggestion as to what they generally feel that "people" should do:
pues, hay que ir a México.
well, you have to go to Mexico.
Caption 32, World Travel Market en Londres Raúl nos habla de México
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Since giving directions entails explaining what "has to be done," you will often hear the construction hay que + infinitive in this context:
Después hay que torcer la primera calle a la izquierda.
Then you have to turn to the left on the first street.
Caption 34, Curso de español Disculpe, ¿hay un cine por aquí?
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Primero hay que ir todo derecho, ¿sí?
First you have to go straight ahead, right?
Caption 23, Curso de español Direcciones en la ciudad
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Similarly, hay que + infinitive will often be heard in contexts where specific instructions are given, such as cooking a particular recipe or for some other process:
Hay que añadir el agua poco a poco y vamos amasando hasta obtener una mezcla homogénea.
It's necessary to add the water little by little and we start kneading until obtaining a homogeneous mixture.
Captions 11-12, Recetas de cocina Arepas colombianas
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Cuando se bañan, hay que estar seguros de que no se mojen,
When they are bathed, you have to make sure they don't get wet,
Caption 39, La veterinaria "Huesos" visita a la doctora - Part 1
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These are, of course, just a few of the many situations in which you might use or encounter the construction hay que + infinitive.
While haber que + infinitive is probably most commonly seen the present indicative tense, it can also be found in other tenses. Let's see some examples in the imperfect tense , the preterite tense, and the future tense:
Definitivamente había que dejar el trabajo para dedicarme al restaurante.
I definitely had to leave my job to dedicate myself to the restaurant.
Caption 13, La Sub30 Familias - Part 9
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hubo que salir corriendo porque la Señora Di Carlo se moría.
we had to leave running because Mrs. Di Carlo was dying.
Caption 84, Muñeca Brava 2 Venganza - Part 6
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En fin, supongo que habrá que esperar hasta el lunes.
Anyway, I guess that it will have to wait until Monday.
Caption 86, Negocios La solicitud de empleo - Part 2
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And remember that, just like for the present, you only have to remember one form of haber for each tense: había que for the imperfect, hubo que for the preterite, and habrá que in the future. Yabla's lesson entitled Había o habían muchos libros? elaborates further.
As you've probably surmised from our plethora of examples, the construction haber que + infinitive is extremely common and useful, and now that you're familiar with it: hay que practicarlo mucho (you have to practice it a lot)! And don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.
Let's learn some common expressions to talk about being hungry or thirsty in Spanish (or to say we're not)!
The most common way to talk about "being hungry" in Spanish is with an idiomatic expression with the verb tener, which is tener hambre (literally "to have hunger"). So, if you wanted to say "I'm hungry," in Spanish, you'd say "Tengo hambre."
Fede, tengo hambre. Tengo hambre, Fede.
Fede, I'm hungry. I'm hungry, Fede.
Captions 34-35, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 1 - Part 7
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Now, let's listen to this verb in question form, conjugated with tú (the single familiar "you"):
¿Tienes hambre?
Are you hungry?
Caption 39, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 1 - La llegada de Sam - Part 4
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An alternative way to talk about hunger in Spanish is with the verb estar (to be) plus the adjective hambriento/a(s). Remember that in the case of adjectives, they must agree in terms of both gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) with the subject in question. Let's take a look at an example with a single, female speaker:
Y yo estoy hambrienta.
And I am hungry.
Caption 7, Cata y Cleer En el restaurante
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Now, let's look at some more dramatic ways to say "I'm hungry" in Spanish (something more akin to "I'm starving").
Sí, ¿y viene la comida o no? Pues yo estoy muerto de hambre.
Yes, and is the food coming or not? I am dying of hunger.
Caption 35, Muñeca Brava 44 El encuentro - Part 6
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The adjective muerto/a(s) literally means "dead," of course, but the expression estar muerto/a(s) de hambre is roughly equivalent to the English "dying of hunger." Let's see a couple more:
¿por qué no me invita a desayunar algo que estoy que me muero de hambre?
why don't you serve me something for breakfast since I'm dying of hunger?
Captions 37-38, Tu Voz Estéreo Embalsamado - Part 5
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¿Pero será que podemos comer ya, por favor, que me estoy desmayando de hambre?
But could we please start eating since I'm passing out from hunger?
Caption 45, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 12 - Part 3
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Tener sed (literally "to have thirst") is probably the most common way to say "I'm thirsty" in Spanish. In the first person this would be: "Tengo sed" (I'm thirsty). Now, let's look at an example with tú:
Es muy útil si tienes sed y necesitas beber agua.
It's very useful if you're thirsty and need to drink water.
Caption 29, El Aula Azul Adivina qué es - Part 1
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And, in the same way you could say you are "dying with hunger," you could also use estar muerto/a(s) de sed to say you are "dying of thirst":
¡Estabas muerta de sed!
You were dying of thirst!
Caption 1, Muñeca Brava 47 Esperanzas - Part 5
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Another way to say "to be thirsty" in Spanish is estar sediento/a(s):
y yo... yo estoy muy, muy sedienta.
and I... I'm very, very thirsty.
Caption 42, Kikirikí Agua - Part 3
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To ask you if you're thirsty, someone might say "¿Tiene(s) sed?" (Are you thirsty?) or simply ask:
¿Quieres tomar algo, Pablo?
Do you want something to drink, Pablo?
Caption 28, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 1 - La llegada de Sam - Part 2
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Although this might initially sound like "Do you want to take something?" to a non-native speaker, remember that the verb tomar additionally means "to drink" in Spanish. The common expression "¿Quiere(s) tomar algo?" is thus used to ask someone in Spanish if he or she would "like something to drink."
So, what if you want to say you're not hungry in Spanish? You can simply use the verb tener hambre with the word "no" in front of it:
Pero igual no tengo hambre.
But anyway, I'm not hungry.
Caption 58, Muñeca Brava 3 Nueva Casa - Part 6
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Another option would be the verb llenarse (to be full). So, if someone asks you if you're hungry, you might use this verb in the preterite (simple past) tense to say:
No, gracias. Ya me llené.
No, thank you. I'm full (literally: "I already got full").
Now let's listen to this verb in the present:
Se infla, como que se llena,
You get bloated, like, you get full,
Caption 44, Los médicos explican Consulta con el médico: la diarrea
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An additional way to say you are full in Spanish is with the verb estar (to be) plus an adjective. Although you might hear satisfecho/a(s) (literally "satisfied") or, in some regions, repleto/a(s), lleno/a(s) is the most common adjective that means "full" in Spanish, as we see in the following example:
Estoy lleno. No puedo comer más.
I'm full. I can't eat any more.
This adjective might also be used with the verb sentirse (to feel):
y para mantenerte y sentirte lleno.
and to stay and feel full.
Caption 29, Natalia de Ecuador Alimentos para el desayuno
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This brings us to a popular Spanish saying that is reminiscent of the English idiom "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach":
Barriga llena, corazón contento.
Full belly, happy heart.
Caption 36, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 2 - Part 1
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To learn a lot more fun Spanish phrases, check out this lesson on Yabla's Top 10 Spanish Idioms and Their (Very Different!) English equivalents.
We hope that this lesson has helped you to learn several ways to talk about hunger and thirst in Spanish, and don't forget to leave us your suggestions and comments.
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