Let's talk about adverbs! In this lesson, we have a big match: afuera vs. fuera. Do you know the meaning of these two words? Let's explore how to use and pronounce these frequently used Spanish adverbs.
As an adverb, afuera refers to a place that is outside of where you are:
Todo lo malo me pasa dentro de esta casa, no afuera.
All the bad things happen to me inside this house, not outside.
Caption 20, Muñeca Brava - 18 - La Apuesta
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Similarly, the adverb fuera is used to talk about the exterior part of something:
Puedes ir a tomar café a una cafetería fuera de la escuela.
You can go to drink coffee at a cafe outside of the school.
Caption 17, El Aula Azul - Las actividades de la escuela
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If you want to indicate that someone is going outside, toward the exterior, or even abroad (with verbs of movement), you can use either afuera or fuera. Both forms are correct and are used indistinctly in both Spain and Latin America. Let's see some sentences:
Vení, vamos afuera.
Come, let's go outside.
Caption 28, Yago - 9 Recuperación
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Cuando los cuatro compañeros nos fuimos a estudiar fuera.
When we four friends went to study abroad.
Caption 7, Escuela de Pádel Albacete - Hablamos con José Luis
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When you want to indicate that someone or something is outside, or when you want to make a reference to the outside world, you use fuera in both Spain and Latin America. However, it is also very common to use afuera throughout the Americas. Let's hear the pronunciation of these two words one more time:
¡Qué lindo que está afuera! ¿No? El clima está divino.
How nice it is outside! No? The weather is divine.
Caption 15, Muñeca Brava - 1 Piloto
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Me doy una buena ducha aquí fuera.
I take a good shower here outside.
Caption 31, Amaya - "Mi camper van"
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Both afuera and fuera can be used as interjections. Generally speaking, you use these interjections when you ask someone to leave a place.
¡Suficiente, fuera de mi casa!
Enough, out of my house!
Caption 61, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 4
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There are several useful idiomatic expressions with the word fuera. Let's see some of them:
Este hombre vive fuera de la realidad, Señoría.
This man lives outside of reality, Your Honor.
Caption 36, Los casos de Yabla - Problemas de convivencia
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Su ropa está fuera de moda.
His clothes are out of fashion.
Caption 8, Extr@: Extra en español - Ep. 1 - La llegada de Sam
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No hay nada fuera de lo normal.
There isn't anything out of the ordinary.
Caption 38, Negocios - Empezar en un nuevo trabajo
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That's it for today. We hope this review helps you to use correctly the adverbs fuera and afuera. As you could see throughout this lesson, more than talking about afuera vs fuera, we should really treat this subject as afuera = fuera! Keep that in mind and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions.
If you recall, in the past we've discussed the use of estar harto when you are "fed up" with something of someone. We also talked about the use of aguantar to indicate that your tolerance is still intact. Well, we hope you're not yet sick of this subject! In this episode of Muñeca Brava Mili introduces us to yet two more ways to test our limits.
Mirá, flaco, la verdad es que no te banco y me voy a ir, porque no te soporto.
Look, dude, the truth is I can't stand you and I'm going to leave, because I can't put up with you.
Captions 53-54, Muñeca Brava - 18 - La Apuesta - Part 4
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The verbs bancar and soportar both have pretty much the same meaning as aguantar: "to tolerate," "to put up with," "to stand" etc. For emphasis, Mili is employing each verb, negated, in separate phrases "no te banco" and "no te soporto" -- she does not want to hang out with Ivo!
Bancar is the less formal, and you will probably only find it employed this way in "Southern Cone" countries, such as Argentina and Uruguay.
¡Estoy harta de Juan! No lo banco más.
I'm sick of Juan! I can't stand him anymore.
Should Milagros walk the streets dressed like THAT? In one of the episodes of Muñeca Brava, our long-legged heroine gets all dolled up in a tight outfit to go dancing. Sister Cachetes isn't so sure about this. She says:
Pero igual me voy a quedar rezando para que no te pase nada, ¡y ojo!
But I'll nonetheless stay here praying that nothing happens to you, and careful!
Captions 15-16, Muñeca Brava - 18 - La Apuesta
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Mili replies:
Ah, ¿sí? ¿Ojo con qué? ¿Ojo con qué? No me va a pasar nada.
Oh, yeah? Careful of what? Careful of what? Nothing is going to happen to me.
Captions 17-18, Muñeca Brava - 18 - La Apuesta
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In case you didn't realize that "ojo" literally means "eye," the good nun points to her eye as she speaks. In Argentina, this is a very common gesture that means, "careful!" or "watch out!".
In fact, you can silently point to your eye without saying a word and still be understood to be issuing a warning. Outside of Argentina, throughout Latin America and in Spain, the exclamation "¡Ojo!" is used and understood as well.
Note that Mili responds "¿Ojo con qué?" ("Careful of what?"). If you want to warn someone to be careful of something or someone in particular, use the preposition "con." Here are a few examples:
¡Ojo con los perros!
Careful of the dogs!
¡Ojo con los niños!
Watch out for the boys!
¡Ojo con los verbos irregulares en español!
Watch out for irregular verbs in Spanish!
Ojo could be replaced by guarda, and the meaning would be much the same.
¡Guarda con el escalón, te vas a tropezar!
Watch out for the step, you´re going to trip!
If you want to be more formal, you would go with cuidado. For example, you will often see this used on signs:
Cuidado con el perro
Beware of the dog
Here is another example of cuidado:
Pero cuidado con la máquina, ¿eh?
But, careful with the machine, OK?
Caption 12, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 7
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