Pero no todo se trata de videos chistosos de gatos y de chismes de celebridades. (But not everything is about funny cat videos and celebrity gossip.)

YouTube is in fact a great tool for those who, like you, want to learn Spanish.

Our own Spring Spanish channel will tell you all the secrets you need to make the best out of the time that you spend on YouTUbe to learn Spanish.

1. Suscribirte a nuestro canal (Subscribe to our channel)

Lo primero que tienes que hacer es suscribirte a este canal.  (The first thing you have to do is subscribe to this channel.)

And other Spanish teaching channels of your liking. You want to make sure YouTube knows you want to see this kind of content, so it can recommend you more of it.

Aquí en Spring Spanish, ya hemos hecho videos con recomendaciones de canales de YouTube. (Here at Spring Spanish, we have already made videos with recommendations for YouTube channels.)

Muchos de los canales de YouTube para aprender español ofrecen cursos gratis. (Many of the YouTube channels to learn Spanish offer free courses.)

Hay de mucho tipos. (There are many kinds.)

Here at Spring Spanish, we have one on Spanish for traveling, and one for beginners.

Other channels offer different styles. ¡La idea es que te guste! (The idea is that you like it!) And remember to actually do the activities suggested in the Spanish lessons you take.

2. Otro tipo de canales (Other types of channels)

But there are other type of channels that can also help you a lot.) If your Spanish is advanced and you already understand lots of it.

For example:

• Canales de noticias en español (News channels in Spanish): You can benefit from their narration in “proper” and clear Spanish.
• Canales de tutoriales (Tutorial channels): On specific subjects that you like. Pueden ser canales de cocina, de maquillaje, de proyectos “hágalo usted mismo.” (It could be channels about cooking, make up, DIY projects.) Lo que sea que disfrutes ver. (Whatever you enjoy watching.)
• Canales populares en países hispanoparlantes. (Popular channels in Spanish-speaking countries.) Like Luisito Comunica o Badabun, where you can hear a lot of informal Spanish.
• Canales de noticias satíricas. (Satirical news channels.) To stay in the now with the street and internet culture of your Spanish speaking community. En México, por ejemplo, es muy popular y muy gracioso “El Deforma”. (In Mexico, for example “El Deforma” is very popular and very funny.)

Super special tip:
No tengan miedo de usar la sección de comentarios a su favor. (Don’t be afraid to use the comment section in your favor.)

La sección de comentarios es poderosa. (The comment section is powerful.)

Just put yourself out there and comment in Spanish. You’ll be surprised of how many people would actually take the time to correct you!

Let’s try something. Leave a comment in Spanish and let’s wait for the corrections!

3. El poder del karaoke: learn Spanish on YouTube with karaoke

One of my favorite ways to learn a language is through songs.

Checa el video que María Fernanda hizo sobre el tema aquí. (Check out the video Maria Fernanda made on the subject here.)

The great thing about YouTube is that it offers endless options for songs to sing along to.

Let’s do one together. Let’s do a slow song

Antología de Shakira. Primero busco la letra en Google. Hago esto porque no siempre está la letra en la descripción del video de YouTube. (Antology by Shakira. First I search the lyrics on Google. I do this because not all the times the lyrics are in the description of the YouTube video.)

Después, escribo en la barra de búsqueda de YouTube: (Then, I type in the search bar on YouTube:) Antología de Shakira CON LETRA (Antology by Shakira WITH LYRIC ).

Con letra, a chunk that means “with lyrics”.

See how in Spanish it’s a singular, “letra” and in English it’s lyricS, a plural. Concepts don’t always translate smoothly.

De español a inglés y viceversa. (From Spanish to English and vice versa.)

That’s why our experts in language acquisition use chunks. Combinaciones de palabras que los hablantes nativos de un idioma usan todo el tiempo. (Word combinations that native speakers of a language use all the time.)

Get your free copy with tons of useful Spanish chunks in the link in the description.

Cheat Sheet with 54 essential Spanish Chunks you’ll hear and use yourself in ANY Spanish conversation (and example sentences). Taken from our YouTube Teacher’s most popular videos!

2 Bonus Cheat Sheets with Travel Chunks and Dating/Relationship Chunks

A Spanish Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the Spanish from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE Spanish Chunking Kit

4. Transfórmalo en español (Transform it into Spanish)

Hay canales muy populares como Veritasium, que amo, que ya tienen su versión en español. (There are very popular channels like Veritasium, which I love, that already have a Spanish version.)

So, you can rewatch your favorite content in Spanish. Since you already watched it, you know what’s about and now you just listen to the way it “is said” in Spanish.

For all those other channels who don’t have a Spanish version, there’s the tool called Language Reactor which can help you so much trying to learn Spanish with YouTube (and it works for Netflix as well): It has a catalogue of YouTube content made in Spanish.

Para que selecciones lo que más te llame la atención. (So you can select the one that gets your attention the most.)

They have a Chrome plugin which allows you to have subtitles in two languages at the same time.

También se puede dar click a una palabra que no sepas y te la traduce de inmediato. (It’s also possible to click on a word you don’t know and you get a translation of it right away.

Esto te puede ahorrar mucho tiempo. (This can save you a lot of time.)

Necesitar (To need) is one of the most common verbs in Spanish. You’ll learn all that you need to know to use it like a pro in this necesitar conjugation video.

The best part is that we’re not going to use conjugation tables. Instead, we’re using the most commonly used chunks in Spanish.

Spring Spanish teacher Paulísima will explain everything you need to know about “necesitar“.

1. Yo necesito (I need)

Necesito ayuda. (I need help.)

Necesitar is equivalent to the English “to need”.

Güey, necesito tu ayuda.
(Dude, I need your help.)

¿Qué pasó? ¿Estás bien? ¿Qué necesitas?
(What’s up? Are you alright? What do you need?)

Todo bien, todo bien. Necesito el número de tu dermatólogo.
(All good, all good. I need the number of your dermatologist.)

Amiga, necesito un consejo.
(Girlfriend, I need your advice.)

A ver, dime.
(Let’s see, tell me.)

Disculpe, necesito esta blusa pero en talla chica.
(Excuse me, I need this blouse but in a small size.)

¿Qué es esto?
(What’s this?)

Es un disparador remoto para mi cámara.
(It’s a remote clicker for my camera.)

Lo amo. Necesito algo así.
(I love it. I need something like this.)

¿Qué es esto?
What’s this?)

De hecho, es un encendedor eléctrico.
(It’s actually an electric lighter.)

Lo necesito. Bueno, realmente no lo necesito pero… ¡lo quiero!
(I need it. Well, I don’t really need but… I want it!)

2. Tú necesitas (You need)

Lo que tú necesitas.
(What you need.)

Mami, me siento como inquieta.
(Mom, I feel like restless.)

Lo que tú necesitas es descansar y relajarte.
(What you need is to rest and relax.)

¿Qué necesitas?
(What do you need?)

Buenas tarde. ¿Trabajas aquí?
(Good afternoon. Do you work here?)

Sí. ¿Qué necesitas?
(Yes. What do you need?)

Necesito una copia de esto. Por los dos lados por favor.
(I need a copy of this. Both sides please.)

You could learn the whole conjugation table for the verb but that will be hard to remember when in a conversation.

That’s why it’s better to learn the conjugations through chunks.

Como los que estás aprendiendo en esta lección. (Like the ones you’re learning in this lesson.)

Get a free copy of a list with useful Spanish chunks for all situations in the link in the description.

Cheat Sheet with 54 essential Spanish Chunks you’ll hear and use yourself in ANY Spanish conversation (and example sentences). Taken from our YouTube Teacher’s most popular videos!

2 Bonus Cheat Sheets with Travel Chunks and Dating/Relationship Chunks

A Spanish Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the Spanish from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE Spanish Chunking Kit

Tía Peque, ¿me prestas tu teléfono?
(Aunt Peque, can I borrow your phone?)

¿Para qué lo necesitas?
(What do you need it for?)

Para compartirme datos.
(To share cell data to myself.)

3. Ella necesita, Él necesita, Ello Necesita (He needs, She needs, It needs)

Él necesita… Ella necesita. (He needs… She needs.)

Creo que a tu amigo Samuel le gustaría mi amiga Pamela.
(I think your friend Samuel would like my friend Pamela.)

¡Sí! Tienes razón. Él necesita una mujer muy dulce.
(Yes! You’re right. He needs a very sweet woman.)

¡Claro! Y ella necesita un hombre muy fuerte.
(Of course! And she needs a very strong man.)

¡Hay que presentarlos!
(We should introduce them to each other!)

Mi abuelo es muy activo para su edad, pero necesita marcapasos.
(My grandpa is very active for his age, but he needs a pacemaker.)

¿Sí? Mi abuela también. Pero apenas se cayó y por ahora necesita usar muletas, ¡se está volviendo loca!
(Really? My grandma, too. But she recently fell, so now she needs to use crutches, it’s driving her crazy!)

¿Qué te parece? ¿Necesita más sal?
(What do you think? Does it need more salt?)

Sí, pero no necesita mucho, solo un poquito.
(Yes, but it doesn’t need much, just a little bit.)

4. Nosotros necesitamos (We need), Ustedes necesitan (You all need)

Necesitamos alguien que… (We need somebody that…)

Buenas tardes, llamo para pedir información sobre el trabajo de atención a cliente.
(Good afternoon, I’m calling about the customer service job.)

Sí señorita. Necesitamos una persona muy paciente. Y algo muy importante, necesitamos algui en que esté disponible los domingos.
(Yes ma’am. We need a very patient person. And something very important, we need someone who’s available on Sundays.)

Ah, ok, gracias. Creo que no soy la persona que necesitan.
(Oh, ok, thank you. I don’t think I’m the person you need.)

Necesitamos una mesa.
(We need a table.)

Buenas tardes, necesitamos una mesa para cinco.
(Good afternoon, we need a table for 5.)

The following ones are really common in an office environment:

Voy a la tienda. ¿Necesitan algo?
(I’m going to the store. Do you need anything?)

No, gracias.
(No, thank you.)

Voy al Oxxo. ¿Necesitan algo?
(I’m going to the Oxxo. Do you need anything?)

O simplemente: (Or simply:)

• ¿Necesitan algo de la tienda? (Do you need anything from the store?)
• ¿Necesitan algo del Oxxo? (Do you need anything from the Oxxo?)

Do you know what an Oxxo is? Have you been in one? ¿Qué compraste? (What did you get?)

5. Ellos necesitan (They need)

Ojo: ellos necesitan, ustedes necesitan. (Attention: they need, you all need.) Both use the conjugation “necesitan”.

We know who we’re talking about form the context.  

¿Necesitan algo de la tienda?
(Do you need anything from the store?)

No, yo no, ¿pero sabes qué? Escuché que los de ventas necesitan una vela para pastel.
(No, I don’t, but you know what? I heard that the sales team needs a candle for a cake.)

Las plantas necesitan sol y agua.
(Plants need sun and water.)

Para acelerar su aprendizaje de español, ustedes necesitan suscribirse a este canal.
(To accelerate your learning of Spanish, you need to subscribe to this channel.)  

7. Más chunks con necesitar (More chunks con necesitar)

Si necesitas algo, me dices. (If you need anything, let me know.)

Cómo sigues de la gripa?
(How’s your flu?)

Ya mucho mejor.
(Much better already.)

Si necesitas algo, me dices.
(If you need anything, let me know.)

In this chunk I also use the verb “decir”. I did another lesson where I tell you all about it.

Se necesita ____. (___ is needed.)

Para ser clavadista de La Quebrada, se necesita valor.
(To be a diver in La Quebrada, bravery is needed.)

¿Qué se necesita para la visa de residente?
(What is needed for a resident visa?)

Se necesita: pasaporte, documento que acredite la legal estancia, pago de derechos...
(You need: passport, a document that proves the legal stay, payment of fees…)

Lo que necesites. (Whatever you need.)

Qué clara salió la fotocopia señora, muchas gracias.
(How clear this photocopy came out, thank you ma’am.)

De nada. Lo que necesites.
(You’re welcome. Whatever you need.)

8. The table for necesitar conjugation

I know some of you need to see the words isolated and written down, so I will share the conjugation table.

¡Ahora mismo! (Right now!)

But please don’t learn it by heart. Promise?

Keep learning more important Spanish verbs in the playlist we’ve put together just for you!

In this lesson, we will show you 8 street Spanish slang expressions we took from actual Spanish textbooks.

¡Cien por ciento real! (100% real!) They will have you learn things that native speakers really don’t use. We’ll show you alternatives to make you sound like a true Latino.

Spring Spanish teacher Paulísima will

1. ¿Dónde está la estación de metro más cercana? (Where is the closest subway station?)

he problem with this one is that it is too formal.

No te preocupes. (Don’t worry.)

If you asked this question, people will totally 100% understand you.

Pero estás aquí porque quieres sonar más natural, ¿no? (But you’re here because you want to sound more natural, right?) You can use these alternatives:

¿El metro?
(The subway?)

Disculpe, ¿qué metro queda más cerca?
(Excuse me, what is the closest subway?)

Sí, el Allende. Está a dos cuadras.  
(Yes, the Allende. It’s 2 blocks away.)

¿Hay un metro por aquí?
(Is there a subway this way?)

Sí, el metro Balderas, está aquí a la vuelta.
(Yes, Balderas station, it’s around the corner.)

Disculpe, ¿el metro?
(Excuse me, the subway?)

No, no hay metro aquí en Puebla señorita.
(No, there’s no subway here in Puebla ma’am.)

2. ¿Cómo me cobra tan caro? (How come it’s so expensive?)

¿Cómo me cobra tan caro? (How come it’s so expensive? Lit.: How are you charging me so expensive?)

It sounds weird in English as well. This is just not the way people would ask how come something is so expensive. At least not in Mexico.

Me parece un poco “de mala educación” preguntar por qué algo es caro pero … (I find it a little “rude” asking why something is expensive but…) I can think of a couple situations where one might ask this question.

Por ejemplo, si estamos comparando entre dos productos similares. (For example, if we’re comparing between 2 similar products.)  

Disculpe, ¿estos cuánto cuestan?
(Excuse me, how much are these?)

Ciento cincuenta pesos.
(150 pesos.)

¿Y estos?
(And these?)

Seiscientos.
(600.)

¿Por qué tan caro?
(Why so expensive?)

Es que estos son originales y estos son imitación, por eso son más baratos.

(It’s just that these ones are original and these are imitation, that’s why they’re cheaper.)

Or in a taxi:

¿Cuánto le debo?
(How much do I owe you?)

Ciento veinte pesos.
(120 pesos.)

¿Por qué tan caro?
(Why so expensive?)

Es la tarifa.  
(It’s the fare.)

Disculpe, ¿por qué tan caro?
(Excuse me, why so expensive?)

Es lo que marca.
(It’s what the meters marks.)

Dos cosas, primera: (2 things, first:) Notice how I start most of my questions with: Disculpe (Excuse me). This is very common in Mexico and other parts of Latin America. It is the way we are. Learn more about our strange Mexican ways in this video.

Y segunda: (And second:) If a taxi doesn’t have a meter, you should ask the price before boarding. Learn more about taking a taxi in Spanish in this video.

3. Querría alquilar un coche (I would like to rent a car)

The “querría” is not that common, at least not in Mexico.

Buenos días, ¿para rentar un coche?
(Good morning, to rent a car?)

Claro que sí. ¿Qué tipo de auto?
Of course. What kind of car?)

Buenos días, ¿en qué le puedo ayudar?
(Good morning, how can I help you?)

Si, buenos días, vengo a rentar un auto.
(Yes, good morning, I’m here to rent a car.)

Learn street Spanish slang with Conversation Based Chunking

Okay, let’s stop here for a second!

This is all good and as we mentioned, you can learn these street Spanish slangs with chunks. But what are they really?

Well, lexical chunks are natural occurrences in the language and Spanish is no exception. If you learn with chunks, you’ll naturally learn and remember the most common Spanish phrases, so instead of remembering vocabulary lists, you will incorporate them in your Spanish sentences.

If you’re interested in this method, you can immediately request an Essential Spanish Chunking Kit, where we’ll explain everything there is to know about this method:

Cheat Sheet with 54 essential Spanish Chunks you’ll hear and use yourself in ANY Spanish conversation (and example sentences). Taken from our YouTube Teacher’s most popular videos!

2 Bonus Cheat Sheets with Travel Chunks and Dating/Relationship Chunks

A Spanish Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the Spanish from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE Spanish Chunking Kit

4. ¿Hay servicio de habitaciones? (Is there a room service?)

One would ask this question in a hotel, but we would ask: ¿Hay servicio a la habitación? (Is there room service?) Or you could also say: ¿Tienen servicio a la habitación? (Do you have room service?) Or even: ¿Tienen room service? (Do you have room service?)

Permítame verificar la disponibilidad.
(Allow me to verify the availability.)

Tenemos una habitación con vista al jardín, ¿está bien?
(We have one room with garden view, is that alright?)

Sí, está bien. Disculpe, ¿hay servicio a la habitación?
(Yes, that’s ok. Excuse me, is there room service?)

Claro que sí señorita. Solo tendría que marcar 0 desde la habitación.
(Of course ma’am. You’d just have to dial 0 from the room.)

Sí, está bien. Disculpe, ¿hay room service?
(Yes, that’s ok. Excuse me, is there room service?)

Sí señorita. Las veinticuatro horas.
(Yes, ma’am. 24 hours.)

5. ¿Puede recomendar un platillo típico de aquí? ¿Puede recomendar un buen vino? (Can you recommend…)

¿Puede recomendar un…? (Can you recommend a …?) is not a pattern that a native Spanish speaker would commonly use. I’ve never heard anyone in Mexico asking this question in this way. Instead of trying your own way to say something in Spanish you should try learning by chunks.

Chunks pueden ayudarte a hablar con fluidez más rápido. (Chunks can help you become fluent faster.) Download a list with important Spanish chunks in the link in the description.

We would say:

Si estás pidiendo una recomendación para ti mismo: (If you’re asking for a recommendation for yourself:) ¿Me podría recomendar…? (Would you recommend me…?) ¿Me puede recomendar un platillo típico? (Could you recommend me a typical dish?)

Si estás pidiendo una recomendación para más personas: (If you’re asking for a recommendation for more people:) we would say ¿Nos podría recomendar un vino, un platillo? (Could you recommend us a wine, a dish?) That ME and NOS is what makes all the difference.

Es mi primera vez aquí en Puebla. ¿Me podría recomendar un platillo típico?
(It’s my first time here in Puebla. Could you recommend a typical dish?)

Sí, claro, le recomiendo el mole o las cemitas.
(Yes, of course, I recommend the “mole” or the “cemitas”.)

6. Yo tengo una reserva a nombre de… (I have a reservation under the name of…)

The problem with this is that we wouldn’t put the “yo” (I) in it. Since it’s not necessary, because the conjugation “tengo” (have) implies that we’re referring to “yo” (I)

Buenas noches, tengo una reservación a nombre de Paulísima. Para dos personas.
(Good evening, I have a reservation under the name of Paulisima. For 2 people.)

I don’t use the word “reserva” but I do hear it a lot. It’s just short for “reservación”. Let me know in the comments if you have heard it or use it.

Buenos días, tengo una reserva a nombre de Paulísima. Para cuatro.
(Good afternoon, I have a reservation under the name of Paulisima. For 4.)

7. Una habitación con cama de matrimonio (A room with a “matrimonial bed”)

Nope. Nope. It just doesn’t sound right. Cama de matrimonio suena rarísimo. (“Matrimonial bed” sounds really weird.)

If you want a room with just one bed, that fits two people then you’ll ask for una habitación sencilla (a single room). If you wanted a room with two beds, then you want una habitación doble (a double room).

No tengo reservación, pero necesitamos una habitación doble.
(I don’t have a reservation, but we need a double room.)

Claro que sí, señorita.
(Of course, ma’am.)

¿Tienen habitaciones sencillas?
(Do you have any single rooms?)

No señorita, todas nuestras habitaciones son dobles.
(No, ma’am, all of our rooms are double.)

8. ¿Puedo solicitar una salida tardía? (Can I request a late check-out?)

No, no, no suena nada bien. Nunca he escuchado a alguien decir esta frase. (No, no, no, it doesn’t sound good at all. I have never heard anyone say this phrase.) This is supposed to mean “Can I get a late check-out?”. But it doesn’t sound right, though “salida tardía” literally means “late check-out” we actually use the English word. En México diríamos: (In Mexico, we would say:)

Disculpe, ¿sería posible hacer el check-out más tarde, por favor? Me siento un poco mal y necesito descansar un poco más.
(Excuse me, would it be possible to check out later, please? I’m feeling a little sick and I do need to rest a bit longer.)

Or:

Disculpe, ¿podría hacer el check-out más tarde?
(Excuse me, could I check out (Lit.: “do the check-out”) later?)

But how can you do this in Spanish? What does it look like when native Spanish speakers are getting to know each other by sending voice messages via WhatsApp?

See how Spring Spanish teacher Paulisima will get to know Spring Spanish teacher Maura, just by sending voice messages back and forth.

1. Meeting someone in Spanish: Poniendo el tono (Setting the tone)

PAULISIMA
¡Hola, Maura! ¡Oye, qué gusto conocerte! Lástima que estemos tan lejos, pero ya nos conoceremos en persona algún día.
(Hello, Maura! How nice to meet you! Too bad we’re so far away, but we’ll eventually meet in person some day.)

Ya nos conoceremos. (We will eventually meet.)

We love this construction to talk about the future: Ya nos conoceremos. (We will eventually meet.)

Learn it just like that! As a chunk of Spanish:

Cheat Sheet with 54 essential Spanish Chunks you’ll hear and use yourself in ANY Spanish conversation (and example sentences). Taken from our YouTube Teacher’s most popular videos!

2 Bonus Cheat Sheets with Travel Chunks and Dating/Relationship Chunks

A Spanish Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the Spanish from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE Spanish Chunking Kit

PAULISIMA
Oye, ¿está bien si te mando mensajes de voz? Es que se me hace mucho más fácil, pero a muchas personas no les gustan. Proceso mejor te pregunto porque
(Hey, is it okay if I send you voice messages? It just makes it so much easier, but I ask you because a lot of people don’t like them.)

¿Está bien sí…? (Is it ok if…?)

Another great chunk of Spanish to ask people for their consent. Chunks are phrases commonly used by native speakers, and because they don’t vary, they can do wonders for your fluency. You just learn it once, and you’re right all the time!

MAURA:
¡Hola, Paulísima! ¡Igualmente! ¡Mucho gusto! ¡Claro! Por mí están bien los mensajes de voz, solo que a veces no los puedo escuchar inmediatamente.
(Hi, Paulísima! You, too! Nice to meet you! Of course! Voice messages are fine with me, it’s only that I can’t listen to them right away sometimes.)  

Solo que (It’s only that) is a great chunk of Spanish to introduce an excuse.

2. Hablando sobre rutinas (Talking about routines)

PAULISIMA:
¡Claro! ¡Claro! Igual. Me pasa lo mismo. Pues ya, nos escuchamos cuando podamos. Oye, y cuéntame, ¿cómo organizas tu semana laboral?
(Of course! Of course! Likewise. The same happens to me. Well, we’ll listen to each other when we can. Hey, and tell me, how do you organize your work week?)

MAURA:
Trabajo todos los días de lunes a viernes. Suelo terminar sobre las 7:00 p.m., aunque luego tengo clases o alguna activad deportiva. Y hago todo lo posible por no trabajar los fines de semana. ¿Y tú?
(I work every day from Monday to Friday. I usually finish around 7:00 p.m., although I later have classes or some sport activity. And I try my best not to work on weekends. How about you?)

PAULISIMA:
¡Ay, qué organizada eres! Yo, no. Yo, por cuatro días, pienso mucho en lo que tengo que escribir y hago investigación. Después, tomo un solo día de la semana para realmente sentarme y escribirlo todo. ¡Por eso termino trabajando el domingo a las tres de la mañana! ¡Sí, amiga, creo que tengo que organizarme mejor!
(Oh, how organized you are! Not me. I, for 4 days, think a lot about what I have to write, and I do research. Then, I take only 1 day of the week to really sit down and write everything. That’s why I end up working on Sunday at 3 in the morning! Yes, girlfriend, I think I have to organize myself better!)

My people, did you notice how many words we said end with O:

• Pienso (I think)
• tengo (I have)
• hago (I do)
• tomo (I take)
• termino (I finish)

And this is because we’re conjugating lots of verbs for the grammatical person “yo” (I), I. Learn more about that subject of conjugating with yo in this video.

This is also a great time to subscribe to the Spring Spanish channel, mi gente (my people). In case you haven’t done it yet.

3. Hablando sobre pasatiempos (Talking about hobbies)

PAULISIMA:
¿Oye, me comentaste que estás viviendo en Madrid, verdad? ¡Qué lindo! Cuéntame,  ¿cómo te gusta pasar los días por allá? ¿Qué te gusta hacer para divertirte?
(Hey, you told me that you are living in Madrid, right? How nice! Tell me, how do you like to spend your days there? What do you like to do for fun?)

Here we used two phrases that you can use to ask a person about their favorite hobbies or activities:

We have more options of how to have a conversation about hobbies right in this video with Juan, see it here.

Let’s see what Maura says.

MAURA:
Madrid es una ciudad bellísima, con mucha vida de bares, así que vamos a alguno al menos una vez a la semana. Lo que sí pasa es que no tiene casi nada de naturaleza dentro de la ciudad, así que nos toca salir una hora o más hacia las afueras para hacer algo de senderismo y así. Igual como me encanta viajar, siempre aprovecho esas excusas para ir a conocer algún pueblito nuevo. ¿Y tú? ¿Qué tal la vida por México?
( Madrid is a beautiful city, with lots of bars, so we go to one at least once a week. What does happen is that there is almost no nature within the city, so we have to go out for an hour or more to the outskirts to do some hiking and such. Anyway, since I love to travel, I always take advantage of those excuses to see a new little town. How about you? How’s life in Mexico?)

PAULISIMA:
¡Ah, qué padre! O, ¡qué guay más bien! ¡Cómo dicen los españoles! ¡A mí me encanta salir a conocer la ciudad a pie! ¡Me gusta mucho caminar! Voy mucho a museos o exhibiciones o eventos artísticos. ¡Me fascina comer fuera! Es que la comida aquí en la Ciudad de México es increíble, increíble. ¿Te gusta la comida mexicana?
(Oh, “qué padre”! (Mexican for “how cool”) Or “¡qué guay!” (Spanish for “how cool”)  As the Spanish say! I love getting to know the city by foot! I really like walking! I go a lot to museums or exhibitions or art events. I love eating out! It’s just that the food here in Mexico City is incredible, incredible. Do you like Mexican food?)

4. Hablando sobre preferencias (Talking about preferences)

Did you notice the chunks we used to introduce our likes and preferences?

Let’s see if Maura uses any of these chunks.

MAURA:
¡Me fascina la comida mexicana! No te lo puedo explicar. Por lo menos dos o tres veces al mes salgo a algún restaurante mexicano. Me muero por ir a México para probar las cosas más auténticas. Es una de las mejores cosas de viajar, probar la comida autóctona.
(I love Mexican food! I can’t explain it to you. At least 2 or 3 times a month I go out to a Mexican restaurant. I’m dying to go to Mexico to try the most authentic things. That’s one of the best things about traveling, trying the local food.)

PAULISIMA:
¡Ay, qué bien! ¿Sabes qué? ¡A mí también me encantan los viajes! Soy muy afortunada de que como hago home office, tengo mucha flexibilidad para trabajar desde cualquier lugar. Si Dios quiere,este año  voy a ir a Malasia este año, así que si andas por Asia, pues podríamos conocernos o reunirnos en algún lugar.
(Oh, that’s great! You know what? I also love traveling! I am very lucky to work from home, I have the flexibility to work from anywhere. God willing, I’m going to Malaysia this year, so if you’re in Asia, we could meet up at some point.)
Notaste el “Si Dios quiere”? (Did you notice the “God willing?) It means “God willing” and it’s a phrase that is widely used in Mexico, especially amongst adults.

MAURA:
Uff, ¿te imaginas? Sería increíble irnos de viaje juntas. ¡Quizás a Bali!
(Pff, could you imagine? It would be amazing to go on a trip together. Maybe to Bali!)

PAULISIMA:
¡Ay, sí me encantaría! ¡Amo Bali! Oye, hablamos más tarde, es que ahora sí ya me tengo que poner a trabajar.
(Oh, yes I would love to! I love Bali! Hey, let’s continue talking later, because now I do have to get to work.)

In this video you’re learning everything you need to know to start teasing in Spanish.

I’m Paulísima, your Spanish teacher at Spring Spanish.

¿Estás listo? (Are you ready?)

1. ”Molestar” no es lo que tal vez estás pensando (“Molestar” is not what you might think)

Something important, the word in Spanish that we use to say “tease” or “teasing” is “molestar”. This can be very confusing.

Often times, we Spanish speakers, when speaking English, make the mistake of saying that someone is “molesting us” when we just mean “is teasing us”. That’s a false friend and you can find more of those in this video.

So, the most common word to say “tease” is molestar, but there are other ways which we shall we later on. Molestar can be translated as bothe “tease” and “bother”.

2. Molestar cuando a alguien le gusta alguien (Teasing in Spanish when they like someone else)

Like at the very beginning, teasing out friends about them liking someone is very common. You can do something that children do, like:

Actor 1
A Pau le gusta Alex.
(Pau likes Alex.)

Or simply make this sound: Uuu.

Whenever your friend mentions the person, you’re teasing them about just say: Uuu.

Actor 1
Vamos al cine mañana a ver Oppenheimer.
(Let’s go to the movies tomorrow to watch Oppenheimer.)

Actor 2
Ok, vamos. ¿Quiénes vamos? ¿Solo nosotras?
(Ok, let’s go. Who’s going? Just the two of us?)

Actor 1
No, también va Alex.
(No, also Alex is going.)

Actor 2
¿Alex? Uuu.
(Alex? Uuu.)

Actor 1
Ay, ¡no empieces!
(Oh, don’t start!)

3. Siempre caigo en esta broma (I always fall for this joke)

In Mexico, most people are “bromistas”.

That means that we have a great sense of humor and that we enjoy making jokes and making fun of each other. When I was little, a very common joke we used to make among my siblings was this:

Actor 1
¿Qué tienes ahí?
(What do you have there?)

Actor 2
¿Dónde?
(Looks down)

Actor 1
¡Ahí!
(There!)

(He gives him a little tap on the nose.)

Actor 1
¡Ay, no te enojes! ¡Es broma!
(Oh, don’t get mad! It’s a joke!)

Chunk alert: No te enojes. (Don’t get mad.) Double chunk alert: Es broma. (It’s a joke.)

4. ¿Cómo fue? ¿Cómo, cómo? (How was that? How, how?)

Learn a way to tease someone, but in a cute way.

For example, if you are with someone that you like and you want to emphasize something that you find adorable.

Actor 1
Sneezes

Actor 2
¿Cómo fue?
(How was it?) (Repeats the “cute way” she sneezed)

Actor 1
Estornuda de nuevo
Sneezes again

Actor 2
¿Cómo, cómo?
(How, how?)

Actor 1
Estornuda de nuevo

Actor 2
¿Cómo, cómo?
(How, how?)

Actor 1
No te burles de mí.
(Don’t make fun of me.)

Actor 2
No me estoy burlando de ti. Me parece muy lindo cómo estornudas, es todo, pero no me estoy burlando de ti. Te lo juro.
(I’m not making fun of you. I find it very cute how you sneeze, that’s all, but I’m not making fun of you. I swear.)

Actor 1
Bueno, ok. A mí no me gusta llevarme pesado con nadie.
(Well, ok. I don’t like to have a “teasing relationship” with anybody.)

Did you catch all the useful phrases to address teasing?

• No me estoy burlando de ti. (I’m not making fun of you.)
• A mí no me gusta llevarme pesado con nadie. (I don’t like to have a “teasing relationship” with anybody.)

Do you have a “teasing relationship” with anyone? When you were a kid, did you have a “teasing relationship” with your siblings?

5. Llevarse pesado (To heavily tease one another)

So “llevarse pesado” means “to heavily tease one another” But there are other ways to say this. You can simply say : “Levarse”, and the expression, more common in the North of Mexico: “echar carrilla” (tease one another).

Actor 1
¿Hola, me llamo Pau, y tú?
(Hello, my name is Pau, and you?)

Actor 2
Macarena.

Actor 1
Como la canción… me imagino que siempre te molestan con eso.
(Like the song… I imagine that people always tease you with that.)

Actor 2
Sí, un poco, pero no me molesta. Además, todos lo hacen con buena intención. No creo que lo digan por “llevarse”.
(Yes, a little, but it doesn’t bother me. Also, everybody does it with a good intention. I don’t think they say it just to “play rough”.)

Actor 1
Claro. Aunque hay mucha gente muy llevada.
(Of course. But there a lot of people who are “too much”.

Actor 2
Pues sí, pero el que se lleva se aguanta.
(Well yeah, but “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.”)

Actor 1
Exactamente. El que se lleva se aguanta. A mí me gusta echar carrilla, pero solo con la gente que también le gusta.
(Exactly. “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. I like to tease, but only with people who also like to tease.)

6. Ser “chingaquedito” (To be “chingaquedito”)

In Mexico we have this lovely word: “chingaquedito” made up of “chingar”, which in this context means “tease” and “quedito”, meaning “softly”. Do you know anyone “chingaquedito”? What we mean is someone that always gives backhanded comments.

Actor 1
¿Y el novio?
(And the boyfriend?)

Actor 2
No tengo novio, tía.
(I don’t have a boyfriend, aunt)

Actor 1
¿Y el muchachito afeminado que me presentaste el otro día? ¿Ariel?
(What about that effeminate young boy you introduced me to the other day? Ariel?)

Actor 2
Ariel, es mujer, tía. Es mi mejor amiga.
(Ariel is a woman, aunt. She is my best friend.)

Actor 1
Ah, es que ahora no se sabe. Oye, qué bonita te ves.
(Oh, it’s just that now we can’t now. Hey, look how pretty you look.)

Actor 2
Gracias, tía.
(Thank you, aunt.)

Actor 1
Sí, mira que bien te ves con ese peinado. Así es como tú te ves bien, bien peinadita. No como con esas greñas horribles que luego te dejas.
(Yes, look how good you look with that hairstyle. That is what looks good on you, neat hair. Not like when you leave your hair unkept.)

Actor 2
Gracias, tía.
(Thank you, aunt.)

Do you know anyone like this? ¿Alguien “chingaquedito”? (Someone who “backhanded insults you”?)

How to learn phrases for teasing in Spanish

Now, the best way to learn all of these Spanish phrases for teasing in Spanish is Conversation Based Chunking. Use this method know to learn all of this in context.

We can give you a head start now, you just have to request the Essential Spanish Chunking List now:

Cheat Sheet with 54 essential Spanish Chunks you’ll hear and use yourself in ANY Spanish conversation (and example sentences). Taken from our YouTube Teacher’s most popular videos!

2 Bonus Cheat Sheets with Travel Chunks and Dating/Relationship Chunks

A Spanish Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the Spanish from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE Spanish Chunking Kit

It’s the diminutive of an easy Spanish word: ahora (now)… but don’t let that fool you! Because every time Mexicans use it, it seems to have a different meaning, like:

• Just now
• Right now
• Not anytime soon
• In a bit
• Probably never

I’m going to show you the 5 most common situations in which we Mexicans use ahorita, and how you can recognize what we mean exactly based on our tone of voice…

What does Ahorita in Spanish mean?!

1. Just Now (The immediate past)

Ahorita in Spanish sometimes alludes to the immediate past, like in this conversation between Samuel and Amanda:

SAMUEL
Se me antoja un elote.
(I’m craving for a cob of corn.)

AMANDA
¡Uy! ¡Acaba de pasar!
(Oh! He has just passed by! (=the elote vendor))

SAMUEL
¿Cuándo?  
(When?)

AMANDA
¡Ahorita! 
(Just now!)

Intonation is key here!

2. Right now! (For Real!) 

If you ever hear a Mexican saying the word ahorita in Spanish like dragging each syllable, they actually mean “do it right now”… No wonder it’s usually moms or dads that would use this tone. 

If you ever heard it while growing up, you knew you’d have to stop whatever you were doing and go do whatever they wanted you to do:

MOTHER: Niña, ¡los trastes! ¡Ven a lavarlos A-HO-RI-TA! (Child, the dishes! Come do them RIGHT NOW!) 

3. Not any time soon! 

So, what if we’re a little more rebellious when someone asks you to do the dishes? Then, you can also use the word ahorita to your advantage… like this:

MOTHER
Paulina, ¡ven a lavar los trastes! 
(Paulina, come do the dishes!) 

PAULINA
¡Ay, ma! ¡Ahorita! 
(Oh, mom! “Ahorita”!) 

Lo voy a hacer a mi ritmo y a mi tiempo, ¡a la mexicana! (I’m going to do it at my own rhythm and at my own time, the Mexican way!) 

Let’s see another example featuring Samuel… Remember Samuel, who still can’t roll his R’s? 

GRANDMOTHER
Samuel, ¿a qué hora vas a levantar tus juguetes? 
(Samuel, when are you picking up your toys?)

SAMUEL
¡Ahorita, abuela! 
(In a bit, grandmother!)

By the way, if you are ever dealing with Mexican bureaucrats, and they say something is going to happen “ahorita”, they mean this one… Not any time soon! That’s right!

4. In a bit 

Sometimes, ahorita means “in a bit”. Let’s say you’re in a restaurant, and you have to go to the bathroom, or you’re at a club and want to let your friends know that you’ll be gone for a little while and that they shouldn’t worry if your absence is noticed for 15-20 minutes tops! 

You might want to say this chunk: 

• ¡Ahorita vengo! (I’m coming in a bit)

Let’s say you want to go to the convenience store: 

• ¡Ahorita vengo! ¡Voy al Oxxo! (I’m coming in a bit! I’m going to the Oxxo!)

Or let’s say you’re taking the dog out and you want to let the people you live with know:

• ¡Ahorita vengo! ¡Voy a sacar al perro! (I’m coming in a bit! I’m taking the dog out!)

¡Ahorita vengo! (I’m coming in a bit!)

No, of course, I’m not going anywhere… Learn it by heart! This chunk of Spanish is going to help you communicate with ease when you’re speaking with locals! 

By the way, for more useful chunks like this, get our free Essential Spanish Chunking Kit! It gives you a collection of the most important Spanish chunks we use in our lessons.

Cheat Sheet with 54 essential Spanish Chunks you’ll hear and use yourself in ANY Spanish conversation (and example sentences). Taken from our YouTube Teacher’s most popular videos!

2 Bonus Cheat Sheets with Travel Chunks and Dating/Relationship Chunks

A Spanish Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the Spanish from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE Spanish Chunking Kit

5. Never – When ahorita in Spanish means never

Lo siento, mis amigos, pero (I’m sorry, my friends, but) if somebody ever tells you ahorita after you ask them like 3 times in a row… Bad news! I don’t think that whatever you’re asking for is ever going to happen, like nunca (never)!

AMANDA
Víctor, ¿me dejas jugar? 
(Victor, would you let me play?)

VÍCTOR
Ahorita.
(“Ahorita”)

10 minutes later …

AMANDA
¿Ya me dejas jugar?
(Can I play now?)

VÍCTOR
Ahorita, Amanda. ¡Espera!
(“Ahorita”, Amanda. Wait!)

2 hours later

AMANDA
¿Ya me dejas jugar? 
(Will you let me play yet?)

VÍCTOR
Ahorita 
(“Ahorita”)

Unfortunately for Amanda, my little niece, Victor, my nephew and godson, I don’t think she will get to play at all. 

6. Bonus lesson with ahorita in Spanish

If you’re still here, congratulations! As a bonus, I want to share another way to use ahorita with you…

The infamous: ¡Ahorita es ahorita!

HUSBAND
¿Bueno?
(Hello?)

WIFE
¿Hola?
(Hello?)

HUSBAND
¡Hola, chuli!
(Hi, chuli!)

WIFE
Hola, nené. Oye, me dijiste que ya venías.
(Hello, baby. Hey, you said you were on your way.)

HUSBAND
Sí, sí.
(Yes, yes.) 

WIFE
¿A qué horas? 
(What time?)

HUSBAND
Sí, ahorita ya voy.
(Yes, I’m on my way now.)

WIFE
Ahorita es ahorita. 
(Now means now.)

HUSBAND
Sí, sí, ahorita.
(Yes, yes, in a bit.)

I love Mexican Spanish! See the translation? It’s so weird and tremendously cute! This would be like saying “little now is little now”, but it really means, “you’re serious about time now”. We double it in the sentence because: 

You understand how “ahorita” is commonly used, you understand that we’re talking about waiting between 20 minutes to 2 hours every time a Mexican says “ahorita”, so you’re not falling for that and you say:

• ¡Ahorita es ahorita!

And then, there’s one more way to double the “ahorita”. You do this when you want to be precise about timing. You add many “ti” to the word, like this: Ahoritititita —The more “tis”, the more precise you come across!

Did you see what Maura did there? Se used conditional tense Spanish, which is the equivalent of if-sentences in Spanish that always start with “si”.

In this lesson, you’ll learn all you need to know about conditionals in Spanish; the most challenging part is getting the verb conjugations right.

• Si quieres aprender español conmigo, tienes que ver este video. (If you want to learn Spanish with me, you have to see this video.)

¡Empecemos! (Let’s get started!)

What is conditional tense Spanish?

The conditional tense in Spanish is used to express hypothetical situations, polite requests, past probabilities, and future actions from a past perspective.

It’s formed by adding specific endings to the infinitive form of the verb, similar to the future tense but with different endings.

For regular verbs, these endings are:

• -ía
• -ías
• -ía
• -íamos
• -íais and
• -ían.

Some irregular verbs have special stems in the conditional tense, but they follow the same ending pattern.

This tense is essential for expressing the tiniest details in Spanish, particularly when discussing uncertain or imaginary scenarios. Let’s take a look at all the use cases!

1. General aspects of Spanish conditional tense

Conditional sentences present a scenario that is likely to occur if a condition is satisfied. Conditional sentences have two parts:

A subordinated phrase. This one we can recognize because it starts with the word “SI”. Equivalent to the English IF.

This subordinated phrase sets the condition.

The other part is the main clause. This tells you the outcome, the result.

In Spanish there are 3 types of conditional sentences.

Depending on whether the subordinate clause manifests possibility, probability, or unreality. So conditional sentences can be:

• real,
• potential, or
• unreal.

For each kind (real, potential, and unreal) we use different verbal tenses. Let’s start with the real ones.

2. Use the conditional tense in Spanish in real situations

For this case, you conjugate both the subordinate and the main clause in the indicativo (indicative).

For example:

¡Si hay boletos, voy contigo al concerto
(If there are tickets, I’ll go to the concert with you!)

It’s likely/realistic that I would go to the concert if there are tickets. So you say “voy” in indicativo (indicative)

In this case we are using the present indicativo (indicative). In real conditionals, the future indicative is also used.

Si tengo chance, iré al concerto.
(If I get a chance, I will go to the concert.)

Let’s practice with dialogues:

¿Vas a ir a la fiesta?
(Are you going to the party?)

No sé, es que no he llegado a mi casa, pero si me da tiempo, sí voy.
(I don’t know, I haven’t gotten back home, but if I have time, I’ll go.)

It’s likely/realistic that I would have the time. Notice the subjunctive “sí voy”.

¿Vas a ir de vacaciones este año? (Are you going on a vacation this year?)

Si tengo dinero y si me dan vacaciones, iré a Acapulco.
(If I have money and if I get time off from work, I will go to Acapulco.)

¿Vas a ir al festival?
(Are you going to the festival?)

Si consigo boleto.
(If I can get a ticket.)

The next one is a classic phrase brought to you by all Mexican moms whenever they sent us to look for something and we would say that it was nowhere to be found.

Y si yo voy y lo encuentro… ¿qué te hago?
(And what if I go and find it…  what do I do to you?)

Mexicans can be quite controversial when it comes to the way we bring up children. Know more about it in this video:

Let’s continue with more examples:

¿Quieres aceitunas en la pizza?
(Do you want olives in your pizza?)

Sí, pero solo si son aceitunas negras, si no tienen aceitunas negras, no quiero.
(Yes, but only if they are black olives, if they don’t have black olives, I don’t.)

3. Use the Spanish conditional tense in improbable or imaginary sentences

These kind of sentences set an imaginary or hypothetical scenario in the present or the future that is not likely to take place.

The subordinate sentence is conjugated in imperfect subjunctive. Meanwhile, the main sentence is conjugated in conditional.

How confusing!

This is why at Spring Spanish we don’t rely on grammar. Our team of polyglots, experts in language acquisition, know for a fact that the best way to speed your way into fluency is through the use of chunks. Phrases and word combinations that native speakers use all the time. Download your free copy of a list of the most popular Spanish chunks in the link in the description.  

Cheat Sheet with 54 essential Spanish Chunks you’ll hear and use yourself in ANY Spanish conversation (and example sentences). Taken from our YouTube Teacher’s most popular videos!

2 Bonus Cheat Sheets with Travel Chunks and Dating/Relationship Chunks

A Spanish Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the Spanish from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE Spanish Chunking Kit

In any case, to summarize: for conditional sentences like this, you need to use imperfecto de subjuntivo (imperfect subjunctive) for the “if- clause”, and condicional (conditional) for the main clause.

Amiga, ¿me ayudas a pintar mi casa?
(Girlfriend, would you help me paint my house?)

Ay amiga, no tengo tiempo. Te juro que si tuviera tiempo te ayudaría.
(Oh girlfriend, I don’t have time. I swear that if I had the time I would help you.)

Si tuviera tiempo (if I had the time) is the subordinate “if-clause”, in subjuntivo because it’s unlikely to happen. Te ayudaría (I would help you) is the main clause, with the verb conjugated in conditional.

Si te ganaras la lotería, ¿qué harías?
(If you won the lottery, what would you do?)

Si me ganara la lotería, lo primero que haría sería ¡dejar de llevarme contigo!
(If I won the lottery, the first thing I would do would be to stop hanging out with you!)

¿Qué harías si fueras millonaria?
(What would you do if you were a millionaire?)

Si yo fuera millonaria… llevaría a toda mi familia de vacaciones y de compras una vez al año.
(If I were a millionaire… I would take my whole family on a holiday and shopping once a year.)

Attention to all the “ría” ending. ¿Qué harías?, sería, llevaría. That’s key to identifying a conditional sentence.

¿Si pudieras viajar en el tiempo, ¿a dónde irías?
(If you could time-travel, where would you go?)

Si yo pudiera viajar en el tiempo, iría al future.
(If I could travel in time, I would go to the future.)

Si pudieras cenar con cualquier persona, viva o muerta, ¿con quién cenarías?
(If you could have dinner with anyone, dead or alive, with whom would you have dinner?)

Si pudiera cenar con cualquier persona, cenaría con Michael Faraday.
(If I could have dinner with any person, I would have dinner with Michael Faraday.)

Now let’s break into song…

Si te pudiera mentir, te diría que aquí todo va marchando muy bien, pero no es así…
(If I could lie to you, I would tell you that everything is going very well, but it’s not like that…)

Oh this is such a good song.

Se llama “Si Te Pudiera Mentir” de Marco Antonio Solís, pero también hay una versión más moderna de Calibre 50. (It’s called “If I Could Lie to You” by Marco Antonio Solis, but there’s also a more modern version by Calibre 50.)

4. Form the conditional tense in impossible or unreal conditional sentences

Impossible or unreal conditional sentences express a past hypothetical scenario that did not take place.

Attention: In the past.

But instead let’s see some examples:

Si hubiera tenido tiempo, habría ido a la fiesta.
(If I would have had the time, I would have gone to the party.)

“Si hubiera tenido tiempo”, If I would have had the time… BUT I DIDN’T.

So you use the past tense subjunctive. Habría ido a la fiesta (I would have gone to the party), BUT I DIDN’T, so you use the past conditional.

Si hubiera tenido la oportunidad, habría estudiado la universidad en la ciudad de México y no en Cancún.
(If I had had the chance, I would have studied university in Mexico City and not in Cancun.)

Si hubiera sabido que estarías en la ciudad, te habría invitado a salir.
(If I had known that you were going to be in the city, I would have asked you out.)

¿Cómo estuvo el festival?
(How was the festival?)

Increíble.
(Incredible.)

Ajá, pero ¿cómo estuvo? Cuéntame detalles.
(Ok, but how was it? Give me details.)

Bueno, ok, pero si hubieras ido, no te tendría que contar nada.
(Well, ok, but If you had gone, I wouldn’t have to tell you anything.)

Pay attention to that “hubiera”. It’s crucial in the construction of unreal conditional sentences.

Si me hubiera casado con un millonario, otro gallo me cantara.
(If I had married a millionaire, things would be different for me (Lit.: another rooster would sing to me).

Ay amiga, el hubiera no existe.
(Oh girlfriend, “what ifs” doesn’t exist.)

El hubiera no existe. Esta es una frase muy usada en el mundo hispanoparlante. (”What ifs” don’t exist. This phrase is quite used in the Spanish-speaking world.)

We use to say “there is no use in asking what if”.

You’ll hear it a lot!

Te tengo buenas noticias. (I have good news for you.) Today, I am teaching you the 25 lifesaver chunks that you need if you’re traveling to Spain, Mexico, or another country, without knowing a word in Spanish.

1. Trip to Spanish speaking country: at the airport and on board

When we were at the airport, these are the chunks that you will need:

People would ask: 

¿Me permite ver sus documentos: certificado de vacunación,  pasaporte y pase de abordar?  (May I see your documents: vaccination certificate, passport, and boarding pass?)

You would need to say: 

¡Claro, aquí tiene! 
(Sure, here you are!) 

If you’re not sure of what they are talking about, you could ask: 

¿Qué documentos necesita? 
(What documents do you need?)

In the airplane, we were asked: 

¿Gustaría algo de comer o de beber? 
(Would you like something to eat or drink?) 

For that, you could reply: 

¡Sí, me gustaría comprar un sandwich! 
(Yes, I would like to buy a sandwich!) 

Or 

¡No, por el momento no quiero nada, gracias! 
(No, for the moment I don’t want anything, thank you!) 

We didn’t have any luggage, but I told her that if she ever gets lost and needs directions, you just need to know ¿Dónde está…? (Where is…?) And then you add whatever you’re looking for, i.e.: 

• ¿Dónde está…el baño (the bathroom)
• ¿Dónde está…el área de equipaje? (the luggage area)
• ¿Dónde está…el transporte terrestre? (the land transport) 

2. Hotel and restaurant chunks in Spanish

If you arrive at the hotel or to a restaurant, and they only speak Spanish, no worries: just use this chunk: tengo una reservación a nombre de (I have a reservation under the name of) and insert your name. También, apréndete estas frases que son muy útiles. (Also, learn these phrases that are very useful.) 

• No tengo reservación. (I don’t have a reservation.)
• Mesa para dos, por favor. En el área de fumar. (Table for 2, please. In the smoking area.)  
• Soy alérgico a los mariscos. (I’m allergic to seafood.) 
• Soy alérgico a los lácteos. (I’m allergic to dairy.)
• Soy alérgico al gluten. (I’m allergic to gluten.) 

Disculpe, soy alérgico al gluten.
(I’m allergic to gluten.) 

Gracias por decirme. 
(Thanks for telling me.) 

Chunk alert! Gracias por decirme (Thanks for telling me) is a good chunk to learn by heart as a whole. For more chunks like this that will be super useful when speaking Spanish, download the free Essential Chunking Kit! 

Continuemos. Imagínate que estás interesado en comprar el buffet, o que quieres saber qué beneficios trae tu habitación de hotel.  (Let’s continue. Imagine that you are interested in buying the buffet or want to know what perks your hotel room includes.) 

¿Qué incluye? 
(What does it include?)

Todo, pero no incluye bebidas alcohólicas. 
(Everything, but it doesn’t include alcoholic drinks.) 

¿Qué incluye? 
(What does it include?)

Incluye desayuno.  
(It includes breakfast.) 

¿Acepta tarjeta de crédito? 
(Do you accept credit card?) 

No, solo efectivo. 
(No, just cash.) 

Claro, Visa y Mastercard, pero no aceptamos American Express. 
(Sure, Visa and Mastercard, but we don’t accept American Express.) 

¿Me puede traer…?
(Can you please get me…?) 

¿Me puede traer una piña colada por favor? 
(Can you please get me a piña colada?) 

¿Me puede traer una margarita por favor?
(Can you please bring me a margarita?) 

¿En las rocas o frozen? 
(On the rocks or frozen?)

¿Tiene alguna promoción o descuento? 
(Do you have any promotion or discount?)

Ofrecemos descuentos para turistas nacionales. 
(We offer discounts for national tourists.)

3. General Lifesavers in Spanish for your first trip to Spanish speaking country

This one you’ll need everywhere: 

¿Cuánto cuesta? 
(How much is this?) 

Cuesta 20 pesos. 
(It’s 20 pesos.) 

Las siguientes preguntas las puedes preguntar en la recepción de tu hotel o al administrador de tu Airbnb (These next questions can be asked to the front desk of your hotel or to the administrator of your Airbnb): 

Necesito ayuda, por favor. 
(I need help, please.)

Sí, claro, ¿qué necesitas? 
(Yes, sure, what do you need?) 

¿Dónde está…? 
(Where is.?) 

¿Dónde está el hospital?
(Where is the hospital?)

¿Dónde está la farmacia?
(Where is the pharmacy?)

¿Dónde está el baño, el restaurante, la piscina, mi habitación? 
(Where is: the hospital, the pharmacy, the nightclub, the bathroom, the restaurant, the pool, my room?) 

Possible answers: 

• Está en la esquina (It’s on the corner)
• Está al fondo a la derecha (It’s at the end to the right)
• Está al fondo a la izquierda (It’s at the end to the left)
• A la derecha (To the right)
• Todo derecho (Straight ahead) 

And in a real-life Spanish conversation, it could sound like this:

¿Cuál es el número de teléfono de: la policía, la embajada, emergencias? 
(What is the phone number for: the police, the embassy, emergencies?) 

¿Cuál es el número de teléfono de emergencias?
(What is the phone number for emergencies?)

Claro, el número es 911. 
(Sure, the number is 911.)

¿Es seguro caminar por aquí? 
(Is it safe to walk around here?) 

Si, puede caminar y tomar el autobús sin problema. 
(Yes, you can walk and take the bus without a problem.) 

Psst… Also:

if you decide to throw a Mexican influenced Christmas party, you’ll discover what to make and to buy today, too. Lo único que les pido, es que por favor no olviden invitarme. (The only thing I ask for, is to please don’t forget to invite me.) 

A. Los platos fuertes. 

1. Pavo relleno

¡El pavo es el rey de la cena de Navidad! Antes de que mis compatriotas se quejen de que no incluí en este video los platillos de su estado. (Turkey is the king of Christmas dinner! And before my fellow Mexicans complain about me not including in this video  the dishes from their state.) Here is a little disclaimer… Mexico is huge! And our foods vary from state to state. 

The foods and drinks that I’ll refer to in this video are mainly from central Mexico. This, and the kind I myself grew up having on Christmas in Cancun.

Como les iba diciendo: ¡El pavo es el rey de la cena de Navidad! O al menos lo es en mi casa. (As I was telling you: Turkey is the king of Christmas dinner! Or at least it is in my family.) Unlike Thanksgiving turkey, the stuffing is not made with bread, but with meat. ¡Miren nada más qué belleza! (Look at this beauty!) 

Here’s a great chunk of Spanish to learn when you’re invited to a Mexican dinner: 

¿Le ayudo? (May I help you?)

You use this when you’re talking to someone who is older than you. How do we know that? Because we’re using the indirect pronoun “LE” not “TE”. But don’t think too much about it, it is very difficult to memorize rules and try to apply them. We don’t do this at Spring Spanish. 

Instead, we use Conversation Based Chunking, a system that allows people to expedite their way into fluency. To learn more about it and to download our free essential Spanish Chunking Kit, check out the link in the description. 

Continuemos… (Let’s continue…)

So, you’re sitting at the table and the head of the family is going to cut the turkey. You could say: 

• ¿Le ayudo a servir el pavo? (May I help you serve the turkey?)
• ¿Le ayudo a servir el relleno? (May I help you serve the stuffing?) 

2. Pierna

El siguiente platillo fuerte que seguramente encontrarás en una cena navideña mexicana, es la pierna. Es pierna de cerdo. (The next dish that for sure you’ll find at a Mexican Christmas dinner is leg. It’s pork leg.) Usually, it is marinated with a chili sauce and spices. 

Since you’re a guest, you’re free to ask about every delicious item you’re looking at. How do we do this? Learn this: 

¡Ay! Eso se ve muy rico. ¿Qué es?
(Oh! That looks very good. What is it?)

Practiquemos (Let’s practice) 

¡Ay! Eso se ve muy rico. ¿Qué es?
(Oh! That looks very good. What is it?)

Pierna. ¿Te sirvo? 
(Pork leg. Do I “serve” you?)

3. Bacalao 

Bacalao o bacalao a la vizcaína. Es un platillo hecho de bacalao con tomate, aceitunas, alcaparras, cebolla, chiles güeros. (Cod or cod “a la vizcaína”. It is a dish made of cod with tomato, olives, capers, onion, and “güero” chili peppers.)

Children usually don’t like this dish. ¡Mejor! ¡Más para nosotros! ¡A mí me encanta el bacalao! Especialmente en un sandwich. (Better! More for us! I love bacalao! Especially in a sandwich.) You might like it too, so learn this chunk of Spanish to ask for more:

• ¿Me puedes servir más bacalao, por favor? (Can you serve me more cod, please?)
• ¿Me puedes servir más….? (Can you serve me more…?) 
• ¿Me puedes servir más pavo, por favor? (Can you serve me more turkey, please?) 
• ¿Me puedes servir más relleno, por favor? (Can you serve me more stuffing, please?) 

Do stay until the end to learn what Christmas drink got me drunk for the first time in my life! 

4. Pozole 

Pozole is a soup made with hominy and meat, usually pork or chicken. Se sirve con rábanos, cebolla, lechuga, aguacate, limón, orégano, chilito. (It is served with radish, onion, lettuce, avocado, lime, oregano, chili flakes.) 

En mi familia, cenamos pozole no en Navidad, sino en Año Nuevo. El pozole es mi comida favorita. (At home, we have pozole for dinner not on Christmas, but on New Year’s Eve. Pozole is my favorite meal.) 

Since it is served with plenty of garnishing, learn this phrase: 

• ¿Me pasas…? (Can you pass me…?) 
• ¿Me pasas la cebolla, por favor? (Can you pass me the onion, please?)
• ¿Me pasas los limones, por favor? (Can you pass me the limes, please?) 

¿Te está gustando este video? Si es así, suscríbete al canal. (Are you liking this video? If so, subscribe to the channel.) Ándale (Come on), subscribe to the channel, ahorita (“little now”).

5. Tamales 

I’m pretty sure that you know about this dish made with corn dough and meat, but I bet that you didn’t know that “tamale” is not a word! Just one piece is called a “tamal” not “tamale”. Tamal. The plural is “tamales”. Un tamal, dos tamales. (1 tamal, 2 tamales.) 

¿De qué son los tamales? 
(What’s in the tamales?)

De salsa verde con pollo. 
(Green salsa with chicken.) 

6. Romeritos 

Esta receta es 100% del centro de México. (This recipe is 100% from central Mexico.) It’s a dish that consists of tender sprigs of seep weed, which are boiled and served in a “mole” sauce that’s been seasoned with dehydrated shrimp. También lleva nopales y papas, y la verdad es que a mí no me encanta. (It also goes with nopales and potatoes, and the truth is that I don’t love it.) 

Very important: Mexicans can get very sensitive about their food, so rejecting something you’re not crazy about has to be done sensitively.

Pro-tip: If you blame your lack of enthusiasm about a certain food to the fact that you’re crazy about other food, you’re in the clear.  

¿Eso qué es perdón?
(Excuse me, what is that?)

Son romeritos. Están riquísimos. ¿Te sirvo? 
(They’re romeritos. They’re delicious. Do you want some?)

Un poquitititito, por favor. Es que quiero dejar espacio para la ensalada de manzana. 
(Just a tiny little bit, please. I want to leave aroom for the apple salad.) 

B. Crazy Mexican Christmas food: Side dishes 

1. Ensalada rusa 

Ensalada rusa. It’s a Latin American interpretation of the Russian Olivier salad. En mi familia la hacemos solo con papas, zanahorias, chícharos, mayonesa y chiles en vinagre. (At home, we make it only with potatoes, carrots, peas, mayonnaise, and pickled jalapeños.) 

C. Dessert 

1. Ensalada de manzana 

¡Este postre le encanta a mis hermanas! Lleva manzanas, crema, nueces, uvas, leche condensada, pasitas y durazno y ya… y uvas y uvas… (My sisters love this dessert! It goes with apples, sour cream, walnuts, grapes, condensed milk, raisins, and peaches, and grapes, and grapes…) 

Hey, I love talking about food, and when we did a video about cooking, it seemed you guys liked it. Let me know in the comments if you would like us to make more of those. 

2. Buñuelos. 

This is like a churro but flat. Check it out! ¡A mí la verdad casi no me gustan, pero a mucha gente sí! (The truth is I don’t like them that much, but a lot of people do!) It’s like a disk, made of a crunchy dough that is covered with molasses and cinnamon syrup. 

Next dessert is… I’m joking, there’s no more! What?! ¿Por qué Paulísima, por qué?  (Why Paulísima, why?) I mean, I’m pretty sure that there are, some families would order a Christmas cake… Yeah, but Mexican food in general and Latin American food are not known for its desserts. 

Like yeah, we like them and have them, but they’re really supporting characters, not the main characters of the feast! What do you think about desserts in Latin America? Let me know in the comments! 

D. Drinks 

1. Ponche

El ponche de frutas navideño. (The Christmas fruit punch.) It is a hot infusion that is usually made in large quantities. Lleva caña de azúcar, ciruela pasa, manzana, tejocote, guayaba, tamarindo, jamaica y piña, y va sazonado con piloncillo y canela. (It goes with sugar cane, prune, apple, “tecojote”, guava, tamarind, hibiscus flowers, and pineapple, and it is seasoned with “piloncillo” and cinnamon.) 

Just like punch in the US, ponche can be spiked, we call it “piquete”. 

¿Quieres ponche? 
(Do you want ponche?)

¿Tiene piquete? 
(Is it spiked?)

¡Sí!
(Yes!)

Entonces, sí quiero.
(Then, I do want it.) 

2. Sidra

¡La sidra! La famosa sidra. (The apple cider! The famous cider.) In Latin America, cider is a big part of the end of the year festivities. When I was 15, I got drunk on cider! I had like 3 glasses and I lost it! My sisters had to shower me with cold water! Oops! 

Now, you know about Mexican Christmas food and drinks, but what about other Mexican traditions surrounding Christmas?

Chances are you’ve been taught to reply “de nada” when somebody says “gracias” to you. But en este artículo vas a aprender (in this article you will learn) 4 alternatives to de nada that will elevate your Spanish! 

You’re welcome in Spanish is ‘de nada‘.
This phrase can be used to politely acknowledge someone for expressing their gratitude. It is an informal way of saying you’re welcome in Spanish and can be used in practically any situation.

I also added a fifth one that is a bit cheeky and will make you sound más mexicano que el tequila (more Mexican than tequila)! 

1. Instead of de nada: ¡Es un placer! (It is a pleasure!)

So, I have a friend who hates saying “de nada”, which literally translates as “of nothing”. 

She thinks that, when somebody is expressing gratitude, we shouldn’t say that the very act for which they are thanking us was NADA (NOTHING). It was something! It meant something! 

So, we can say: ¡Es un placer! (It is a pleasure!)

2. When you’re the one thankful: Gracias a ti! (Thanks to you!)

We could use this when there was an actual exchange of favors, but also when we want to emphasize that whatever it is we did for the other person, it was a good experience for us, so it is actually us who are thankful to the other person. 

Repite después de mi (repeat after me): ¡Gracias a ti! (Thanks to you!) 

3. Learn how to say no problem: No te preocupes. (Do not worry about it.)

You can always use “no te preocupes” (do not worry about it), but it can be particularly useful when the favor in question was something a little difficult or a little personal or something that involved an embarrassing situation.

This way, we can remind the other person that they should not feel like they owe us anything. 

4. Say thank you in Spanish only when you mean it: Cuando gustes. (Whenever you want.)

Please use this one only if you mean it!!! I like using it when people ask me favors that involve me doing something that I actually enjoy.

Por ejemplo, si me piden explicar (if they ask me to explain) anything related to Mexico, feminism, or food. They’re my favorite topics and I would actually love to do this favor again! So, yeah… ¡cuando gustes!  

By the way, if you’re interested in elevating your Spanish even more, we have a free Spanish training on our website that shows you the 4-step method to stop translating in your head and have fluent Spanish sentences roll off the tongue… without memorizing words lists and grammar rules! 

5. Gracefully say you’re welcome in Spanish: ¡Las que te adornan! (The ones that flatter you!) 

Gracias is both thank you and the quality of gracefulness or flattering characteristics. 

So, let’s assume you’re talking to a Mexican when they say “GRACIAS”… and you are on good terms with them, which I assume you are! Otherwise, ¿por qué le haces favores? (Why do you do favors to them?) 

You can perform this little pun and tell them that the only gracias (the only flattering characteristics) worth mentioning are theirs!!! 

You’re gonna make any Mexican chuckle with this phrase. Feel free to add a cheeky gesture as you say it… to round it all up! 

Remember: 

• ¡Gracias!
  • ¡Las que te adornan! 

6. Con gusto, por nada and other way to says You’re welcome with FREE Spanish Training

¡Muy bien! Now you can respond to “gracias” in 4 different ways and a particularly Mexican one!!! Consider your Spanish officially elevated!! ¡¡¡Felicidades!!! 

For some free sample Spanish lessons and a detailed explanation of Conversation Based Chunking, the method we use at Spring Spanish Academy, sign up for our free Spanish training. Te lo voy a agradecer muchísimo (I’m going to be very thankful for it). 
This was Paulísima y fue un placer estar con ustedes. ¡Hasta la próxima!

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