The near future, and joining sentences together
Ir a plus a verb gets you the future for almost no effort. Connectors then turn a list of sentences into a story.
The easiest tense in Spanish
Take ir in the present, add a, then a verb in its dictionary form. Voy a comer. No new endings, no participles. It is the exact equivalent of the French aller plus infinitive, and of the English I'm going to.
Ir a plus an infinitive
| Subject | ir | In a sentence | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | voy a | Voy a comer. | I'm going to eat. |
| usted | va a | ¿Va a visitar el museo? | Are you going to visit the museum? |
| nosotros | vamos a | Vamos a reservar una mesa. | We're going to book a table. |
| él / ella | va a | Va a llamar. | He's going to call. |
Connectors
Teal joins two ideas inside one sentence.
- yandHe comido y he bebido.I've eaten and I've drunk.
Becomes e before a word starting with i- or hi-.
- perobutEs bueno pero caro.It's good but expensive.
- porquebecause…porque estoy jubilado.…because I'm retired.
One word, no accent. ¿Por qué? with an accent is the question.
- así queso, and so
- entoncesthen, in that case
What the colours above mean
10 of 10 colours so farA thing, a person or a place.
An action or a state — what is happening.
Describes a noun.
Modifies a verb or an adjective.
the / a / some — and possessives like mon, ma.
Stands in for a noun — I, you, he, it.
Links words together — to, in, of, for.
Joins two parts of a sentence.
Opens a question — where, when, how, why.
Learn it whole. Do not take it apart.
Teal conjunctions and gold sequence adverbs do the heavy lifting. Adverbs also carry a dotted underline, so you can pick them out at a glance.
Sequence words
Gold puts your events in order. Four of these turn a heap of sentences into a narrative.
- primerofirstPrimero, tomé un café.First, I had a coffee.
- luegothenLuego, fui al parque.Then I went to the park.
- despuésafterwardsDespués, vi a mi hijo.Afterwards, I saw my son.
- por finfinallyPor fin, volví a casa.Finally, I went home.
Sentence frames
- 1
Voy a infinitive.
I'm going to ___.
- 2
clause, pero / porque / así que, clause
…, but / because / so, …
Any two clauses you already know, joined.
- 3
Primero … luego … después … por fin …
First … then … afterwards … finally …
The story spine. Hang anything you like on it.
A five-sentence story
Past, future and connectors together. Read it aloud, then rebuild it with your own day.
Primero, tomé un café.
Luego, fui al parque.
Después, vi a mi hijo.
Por fin, volví a casa.
Mañana, voy a reservar una mesa.
Before you read the translation
- 1How many different tenses are at work here?
- 2Which four gold words carry the whole shape of the story?
First I had a coffee. Then I went to the park. Afterwards I saw my son. Finally I went home. Tomorrow I'm going to book a table.
The personal a
Vi a mi hijo — I saw my son. Spanish puts a little a in front of a person who is the object of a verb, where English puts nothing at all. It has no translation and it is not optional. Vi el parque, but vi a mi hijo.
Daily mini-tasks
Listening this week
Easy Spanish or Español con Juan — someone recounting a day
YouTube and podcast apps
Listen for the primero … luego … después … por fin skeleton underneath the story.
Milestone
By the end of this week you should be able to:
- 01Conjugate high-frequency verbs in the present for yo, usted, él/ella and nosotros.
- 02Choose correctly between ser and estar in ordinary sentences.
- 03Ask for directions, prices and times using the question words.
- 04Recount today with the perfect and yesterday with the simple past.
- 05Talk about near-future plans using ir a plus an infinitive, and join clauses with y, pero, porque and así que.
What stuck?
Check it before you close the page.
Up to 10 of this week's words and frames. Say each one out loud before you look, and say whether you think you have it. Guessing first and then checking is what makes it stick — reading the answer feels better and does less.