SPANISH. OF LATIN AMERICA The Complete Course for Beginners. Roberto Rodríguez-Saona. CDs AND MP3s AVAILABLE MASTER THE EVERYDAY LANGUAGE

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1 CDs AND MP3s AVAILABLE C O L L O Q U I A L SPANISH OF LATIN AMERICA The Complete Course for Beginners Roberto Rodríguez-Saona MASTER THE EVERYDAY LANGUAGE UP-TO-DATE CULTURAL SITUATIONS ACCESSIBLE AND THOROUGH

2 Colloquial Spanish of Latin America

3 THE COLLOQUIAL SERIES Series Adviser: Gary King The following languages are available in the Colloquial series: Afrikaans French Portuguese of Brazil Albanian German Romanian Amharic Greek Russian Arabic (Levantine) Gujarati Scottish Gaelic Arabic of Egypt Hebrew Serbian Arabic of the Gulf and Hindi Slovak Saudi Arabia Hungarian Slovene Basque Icelandic Somali Breton Indonesian Spanish Bulgarian Irish (forthcoming) Spanish of Latin Cambodian Italian America Cantonese Japanese Swahili Catalan Korean Swedish Chinese Latvian Tamil Croatian Lithuanian Thai Czech Malay Turkish Danish Mongolian Ukrainian Dutch Norwegian Urdu English Panjabi Vietnamese Estonian Persian Welsh Filipino Polish Yoruba (forthcoming) Finnish Portuguese COLLOQUIAL 2s series: The Next Step in Language Learning Chinese German (forthcoming) Spanish Dutch Italian Spanish of Latin French Russian America All these Colloquials are available in book & CD packs, or separately. You can order them through your bookseller or via our website

4 Colloquial Spanish of Latin America Roberto Rodriguez Saona Senior Lecturer in Spanish, Trinity and All Saints, College of the University of Leeds Routledge Taylor & Francis Group LONDON AND NEW YORK

5 First published 1994 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY Second edition first published 2002 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group,an informa business 1994, 2002 Roberto Rodriguez Saona Typeset in Times Ten by Florence Production, Stoodleigh, Devon All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress ISBN13: (pbk) ISBN13: (CDs) ISBN13: (pack)

6 To Hazel, Emma and David

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8 Contents Introduction 1 1 Saludos Greetings 5 2 Salgo a las seis I leave at six 16 3 Reserva en el hotel Reserving a hotel room 27 4 Dόnde está? Where is it? 38 5 El clima y los viajes Weather and travel 52 6 De compras Shopping 64 7 Qué estás haciendo? What are you doing? 76 8 Qué tengo que hacer? What do I have to do? 89 9 He perdido... I have lost Qué vamos a hacer hoy? What are we going to do today? 113

9 viii 11 Se dice que... It is said that Qué hiciste? What did you do? Irán al mercado They will go to the market Yo estudiaba... I used to study Espero que puedas I hope you can Me gustaría... I would like Si yo tuviera... If I had Si hubieras enviado... If you had sent Ha sido... It has been Repaso Review 215 Grammar summary 226 Key to exercises 245 Dialogue translations 276 Spanish English glossary 285 English Spanish glossary 317 Index of language points 327 Please AcademiceBooksSupport@informa.com with proof of purchase to obtain access to the supplementary content for this ebook. An access code and instructions will be provided.

10 Introduction Spanish in Latin America developed independently of, but at the same time in parallel to, that in Spain. There are lexical and some grammatical differences between the two main varieties of the language, but they share the same basic structure. Within Latin America regional accents have developed due to a number of factors, which include the influence of the language of Southern Spain and the Canaries, the language of the indigenous people of Latin America, African languages brought by the slaves and in recent times, American English. However, by acquiring the basic functions, notions, grammar and vocabulary of Spanish the learner should be able to communicate effectively in situations likely to be encountered as a visitor to one of the Spanish speaking countries of Latin America. The aim of this book is to help you achieve this level of fluency. This book is intended for learners with little or no knowledge of Spanish. The language in the book includes the kind of Spanish used in everyday life by native speakers in Latin America, especially in oral communication. In some Language Points sections an explanation is given regarding the use of an alternative form in Peninsular Spanish, i.e. that used in Spain. In the glossary at the back of the book you will find additional words with different uses in Latin America and in Spain. In each chapter with the exception of the last one, which is a revision chapter the language presented to the learner is focused on some specific functions, notions and grammar points. These concepts are explained in the Language Points section which usually appears after a dialogue. At the beginning of each chapter you will find a list of the main objectives expected to be achieved by the learner. The book deals with a number of situations in which you are likely to use Spanish, e.g. using the phone, booking a hotel room, eating in a restaurant, routine at work, etc. There are also a number of functions that will be learned in each chapter, e.g.

11 2 greeting people, apologizing, telling the time, expressing likes and dislikes, describing objects, and others. The Language points are illustrated in examples that follow each explanation. It is essential to read these examples carefully before proceeding to the exercises. It is advisable that you write all answers to the exercises in a notebook to keep a systematic record of your progress. There is a variety of exercises; some require completion of a sentence with a word, others involve rewriting sentences in different words, changing the word order or matching questions with answers, etc. With the exception of open exercises, i.e. those in which there is more than one possible answer, you will find answers to the exercises at the end of the book. It is advisable to consult these answers only after you have provided your own. The glossary at the end of the book lists, in alphabetical order, all the vocabulary introduced throughout the chapters. In some cases it provides a comparison between current terminology in Latin America which is different from that used in everyday Peninsular Spanish. The Grammar section at the end of the book gives a brief description of the main points of the Spanish language. It is not intended to be a comprehensive grammar but a quick, essential reference section. The recorded material for this book is optional, but you are advised to have access to it in order to improve your listening and understanding skills. The author would like to thank Katia Valdeos Ardiles, Carolina Alegre Bellasai, Lena Gazey, Juliet Wood, Penny Levene and Genista Horsley for their help in the preparation of this book. Pronunciation The following section on pronunciation is intended as a guide, comparing the sounds of Spanish to the closest equivalent in English. You would also find it useful to listen to the recorded material which accompanies this book. Vowels Vowels in Spanish are clearer than in English, and all are considered of the same quality, that is, they are pronounced whether they are stressed or unstressed. There are five vowels in Spanish:

12 3 a e i o u similar to the a in father, but shorter similar to the first e in elephant similar to the i in clean, but shorter similar to the o in cot, but shorter similar to the oo in boot casa elegir mirar moto cuna Consonants b c ch d f g h J k 1 11 m n ñ P q r similar to the English b but less explosive preceding e or i it is pronounced like the s in simple preceding a, o or u, it is pronounced like the c in cat like the ch in chair in initial position it is pronounced like the English d but not aspirated. The tip of the tongue is placed lower than in the production of the English d. When it is not in initial position it is practically imperceptible to English speakers like the English f preceding a, o, u, like the g in god preceding e or i, like the h in hen silent like the h in hen like the English k like the l in live like the y in young, but a bit stronger; in Argentina and Uruguay it is pronounced like the s in the English word vision like the English m, but with the lips not firmly closed when it is not in initial position like the English n like the n in onion like the English p but not aspirated like the unaspirated English k; found only in the groups que and qui in a word more rolled than in English; in initial position it is trilled twice between vowels it is rolled once baño, ambos ceder, hacer carga, coro chico, rancho dar, cada feria, garrafa ganar, gol general, ágil hacer, ahora jefe, caja kilo, káiser libro, papel llamar, pollo mar, América nada, pena caña, niño papa, tapa quince, porque rosa, ramo coro, pero

13 4 rr s t V w X y z strongly trilled like the s in sample less aspirated than in English; the tip of the tongue is placed against the back of the upper front teeth the same as the sound b described above like the English w; only found in a few words of foreign origin softer than the English x the same as the sound 11 described above the same as the sound s described above carro, perro santa, suero tomar, gato vaca, cueva whisky, Walter éxito, sexto mayo, yo zona, zapato

14 1 Saludos Greetings By the end of this chapter you should be able to: Use some greetings Use numbers up to 100 Make simple enquiries Use personal pronouns (I, you, etc.) Use some verbs in the present tense indicative (e.g. I live in Mexico) Dialogue 1 En la agencia de viajes Miguel is trying to find out the travel agent s fax number over the phone. He talks to a member of the staff called Cecilia CECILIA: MIGUEL: CECILIA: MIGUEL: CECILIA: MIGUEL: CECILIA: MIGUEL: CECILIA: CECILIA: MIGUEL: CECILIA: MIGUEL: A1ό, buenos días. Agencia de Viajes El Sol. Buenos días, señorita. Tienen fax? Sí, señor. Qué número es? Es el dos, noventa y dos, treinta y cinco, setenta y seis, noventa y ocho ( ). Y página Web? Sí, claro. el sol, punto, com (elsol.com) Gracias. De nada. Hello, good morning. El Sol Travel Agent. Good morning. Do you have a fax? Yes, sir. What s the number, please?

15 6 CECILIA: It s MIGUEL: What about a Web page? CECILIA: Yes, of course. elsol.com MIGUEL: Thank you. CECILIA: That s all right. Language points Numeros de teléfono When reading aloud telephone or fax numbers it is usual in Spanish to say them in pairs: e.g , treinta y cinco, sesenta y siete, noventa y uno; , cero, treinta y uno, setenta, cincuenta y cuatro, sesenta y seis. Correo electrόnico Two words are key to understand and/or provide e mail addresses in Spanish: arroba punto =. (a dot) For example, alberto@portal.com is read out: alberto, arroba, portal, punto, com. Por favor The use of por favor please in requests is not as common in Spanish as it is in English. De nada/no hay de qué When somebody thanks you, apart from the usual response De nada, you can use the expression No hay de qué, although it sounds slightly more formal. Both mean You re welcome. Números As in English, a number precedes the noun it refers to: dos boletos two tickets diez alumnos ten students

16 7 Uno becomes un before a masculine noun and una before a feminine noun (see Chapter 3 for information on masculine and feminine nouns): un diccionario una lecciόn 1 uno 2 dos 3 tres 4 cuatro 5 cinco 6 seis 7 siete 8 ocho 9 nueve 10 diez imás números! Note: in Spanish, an exclamation mark is used at the beginning as well as at the end of a sentence. The same rule applies to question marks. 21 veintiuno 60 sesenta 22 veintidos 63 sesenta y tres 25 veinticinco 70 setenta 30 treinta 77 setenta y siete 36 treinta y seis 80 ochenta 40 cuarenta 88 ochenta y ocho 49 cuarenta y nueve 90 noventa 50 cincuenta 91 noventa y uno 52 cincuenta y dos 100 cien Note: Numbers ending in uno, such as veintiuno, setenta y uno, become ventiún, setenta y un before a masculine noun. Examples: veintiún estudiantes, setenta y un años. Exercise 1 one dictionary one lesson 11 once 12 doce 13 trece 14 catorce 15 quince 16 dieciseis 17 diecisiete 18 dieciocho 19 diecinueve 20 veinte Arrange these numbers in order of value and write next to the word or phrase the corresponding figure. (a) cien (g) quince (b) noventa y tres (h) doce (c) uno (i) noventa y cuatro

17 8 (d) treinta y cuatro (e) trece (f) veintisiete (j) siete (k) sesenta y dos (1) setenta y nueve Exercise 2 Write the Spanish word for the answer to these operations. (a) = (c) = (e) = (b) 17 x 4 = (d) 39 3 = Exercise 3 These are the dates of birth of some people. How old were they on 1st January 2001? Write the Spanish words for the answers. (Note: años = years.) Carlos 27/07/1981 años Luisa 19/03/1978 años Milagros 02/12/1946 años Carolina 25/05/1974 años Esteban 28/07/1903 años Language points Saludos These are the phrases most frequently used to greet somebody: Hola Hello Buenos días Good morning Buenas tardes Good afternoon Buenas noches Good evening; Good night During the evening/night Buenas noches is used to say Hello or Goodbye. Sometimes in informal spoken language to greet somebody, Buenas replaces the phrases Buenos días, Buenas tardes, Buenas noches. Despedidas Saying goodbye Chao/Chau Adiόs Goodbye (informal) Goodbye (more formal)

18 9 Hasta luego Nos vemos See you later (slightly formal) See you (informal) In Latin America the most common way of saying goodbye is chao or chau, while in Spain it is adiόs. Exercise 4 Write in your notebook what you would say to greet somebody in Spanish at these times: (a) a.m. (b) 2.00 p.m. (c) 6.00 a.m. (d) p.m. (e) p.m. Language points The infinitive The infinitive is the form of a verb given in a dictionary. It is also the form that you will find in the glossary at the back of this book. According to the ending of the infinitive there are three types of verbs in Spanish: verbs ending in ar verbs ending in er verbs ending in ir Examples: ar comprar trabajar estudiar also called verbs of the first conjugation also called verbs of the second conjugation also called verbs of the third conjugation to buy to work to study er ir comer vender comprender vivir escribir subir to eat to sell to understand to live to write to go up

19 10 The present tense indicative The present tense indicative is used with actions which are habitual or timeless. Examples: habitual Siempre voy en tren. Teresa no trabaja los sábados. I always go by train. Teresa does not work on Saturdays. timeless Mi gato come mucho queso. My cat eats a lot of cheese. Martha es peruana. Martha is Peruvian. Subject pronouns Usually, it is not necessary to use the words for T, you, he, etc. to indicate who performs the action. For example, tengo means I have. You do not need to include yo I. Pronouns may be used to emphasize the subject of a verb or to avoid ambiguity. For example: Yo trabajo en Lima, María no. I work in Lima, María doesn t. There are two ways of addressing a second person in Spanish. Tú for friends, relations, people of the same age group as you, your classmates. Usted for people you do not know, somebody you have just met, somebody much older than you, your superior. Usted is abbreviated as Ud. In the plural ustedes, abbreviated as Uds., is used for both formal and informal situations. (In Spain the abbreviated forms are written Vd. and Vds.) yo I nosotros we tú you (informal) ustedes you (formal and informal) usted you (formal) ellos they (masculine) él he ellas they (feminine) ella she Unlike Peninsular Spanish, Latin American Spanish does not use the vosotros form of a verb for the informal second person plural. Compare these sentences:

20 11 Vosotros trabajáis en Guatemala. (Spain) Ustedes trabajan en Guatemala. (Latin America) You (pl.) work in Guatemala. Habéis visto a Juan? (Spain) Have you seen Juan? Han visto a Juan? (Latin America) A qué hora os vais? (Spain) What time do you leave? A qué hora se van? (Latin America) Regular verbs Most Spanish verbs are regular. They follow a certain pattern or rule when changing their endings, depending on which person performs the action. Here are three examples of regular verbs: trabajar, comer and escribir. trabajo trabajas trabaja trabajamos trabajan trabajan como comes come comemos comen comen escribo escribes escribe escribimos escriben escriben Irregular verbs I work you work (informal) you work (formal); he/she works we work you work (formal and informal) they work I eat you eat (informal) you eat (formal); he/she eats we eat you eat (formal and informal) they eat I write you write (informal) you write (formal); he/she writes we write you write (formal and informal) they write Some verbs do not follow the pattern or rule of regular verbs. For that reason they are called irregular. Here is one example: tener.

21 12 tengo tienes tiene tenemos tienen tienen I have you have (informal) you have (formal); he/she/it has we have you have they have See Chapter 2 for more irregular verbs. Forming questions Both regular and irregular verbs form questions by adding question marks to affirmative and negative statements. When speaking you sound as if you are asking a question. Unlike English, you do not need an auxiliary word like do. Trabajan mucho. Trabajan mucho? No tienes tiempo. No tienes tiempo? They work hard. Do they work hard? You don t have time. Don t you have time? As in English, questions can begin with a question word (who, what, etc.) as shown below: qué (what) quién (who) cuál (which) cόmo (how) cuándo (when) dόnde (where) Exercise 5 Qué tienes ahí? Quién tiene uno? Cuál tienes? Cόmo es? Cuándo es? Dόnde está? Give the Spanish equivalent for these expressions: 1 Arturo has a car. 2 Lupe works in Mexico. 3 The travel agency has a fax. 4 Do you work? What have you got there? Who has one? Which one have you got? What is it like? When is it? Where is it?

22 13 Exercise 6 Complete the sentences with the correct form of tener. 1 Yo el asiento 7D y María el 7C. 2 (Nosotros) problemas en el hotel. 3 Ustedes un periόdico? 4 La impresora no papel. 5 Silvia y Luisa clase. asiento impresora papel clase seat printer paper lesson, class Dialogue 2 Cambia dόlares? While reading the dialogue below, see if you can find answers to these questions: How much money does Amalia want to change? Does she have traveler s checks to change? AMALIA: Buenas tardes. JAVIER: Buenas tardes. Qué desea? AMALIA: Cambia dόlares? JAVIER: Sí, señora. Billetes o cheques de viajero? AMALIA: Billetes. JAVIER: Cuántos dόlares? AMALIA: Doscientos cuarenta. JAVIER: Un momento, por favor. Acá tiene. Doscientos cuarenta dόlares en moneda nacional. AMALIA: Gracias. JAVIER: A usted. AMALIA: JAVIER: AMALIA: JAVIER: AMALIA: JAVIER: AMALIA: JAVIER: Good afternoon. Good afternoon. Can I help you? DO you change dollars? Yes, madam. Notes or traveler s checks? Notes. HOW many dollars? TWO hundred and forty. One moment, please. Here you are. Two hundred and forty dollars in local currency.

23 14 AMALIA: Thanks. JAVIER: Thank you. Language points Qué desea? The polite expression Qué desea? Can I help you? is usually used by assistants in shops to greet you as a potential customer. Cuánto?/ Cuántos? To find out amounts you use cuánto? how much and cuántos? how many masculine or cuánta? and cuántas? feminine. Cúanta plata tienes? Cuántos empleados trabajan acá? Addressing people How much money do you have? How many employees work here? Señor is the usual polite expression to address a man, joven if it is a young man, señora for a lady and señorita for a young lady. In the case of children, niño is for a boy and niña for a girl. In everyday language there are several ways of referring to children, for example: chamaco/chamaca in Mexico; pibe/piba in Argentina; chiquillo/ chiquilla in Peru. Acá tiene/aquí tiene Acá tiene/aquí tiene Here you are is an expression said when you hand over something to another person, e.g. money to the taxi driver, passport to the immigration officer, etc. Acá tienes/aquí tienes is used when addressing somebody informally. Reading While reading the passage below, see if you can find answers to these questions:

24 15 Is Spanish the only language in Latin America? Are any indigenous languages spoken? Idiomas de Latinoamerica La mayoría de la poblaciόn de Latinoamérica habla castellano. En Brasil hablan portugués y en algunos países del Caribe, inglés o francés. Los indígenas del Perú y Bolivia hablan quechua y aymara. Note: In Paraguay guarani is widely spoken. idiomas languages quechua mayoría majority poblaciόn population habla speaks castellano Spanish aymara portugués Portuguese inglés English francés French nahuatl indígenas indigenous people indigenous language spoken in the Andes indigenous language spoken in Peru and Bolivia indigenous language spoken in Mexico and Guatemala

25 2 Salgo a las seis I leave at six By the end of this chapter you should be able to: Use some Irregular verbs In the present tense Identify and use colors Use numbers over 100 Ask and give information about times Make negative statements using no Dialogue 1 A que hora sales? MARINA: A que hora sales? GABRIEL: Salgo a las seis. A esa hora podemos discutir el plan para mañana. MARINA: Muy bien. Yo vengo a la cafeteria de abajo a las seis y cuarto. GABRIEL: Muy bien. Hasta mas tarde. MARINA: What time do you leave? GABRIEL: I leave at six. Then we can discuss our plan for tomorrow. MARINA: Fine. I ll come to the cafe downstairs at a quarter past six. GABRIEL: Fine. See you later. Language points The present tense indicative of irregular verbs Apart from the verb tener studied in Chapter 1, there are other irregular verbs. The irregularity of these verbs is sometimes only in

26 17 the first person singular (the I form), sometimes in several forms. The following are the most commonly used irregular verbs in the present tense. decir to say digo dices dice Example: Rosario dice la verdad. hacer to do, to make hago haces hace Examples: Qué haces los sábados? Quiero hacer una torta. ir to go voy vas va Example: Vas al colegio? salir to leave, to go out salgo sales sale Example: Salgo de casa a las seis. venir to come vengo vienes viene vamos van van salimos salen salen venimos vienen vienen decimos dicen dicen hacemos hacen hacen Rosario tells the truth. What do you do on Saturdays? I want to make a cake. Do you go to school? I leave home at six.

27 18 Example: A qué hora viene Eduardo? What time is Eduardo coming? Negative statements The particle no is always used before a verb to make a negative statement: Gabriela no trabaja. Hugo no habla inglés. Exercise 1 Gabriela doesn t work. Hugo doesn t speak English. Complete the sentences below with the correct present indicative form of the verb in brackets. 1 Delia (venir) temprano al trabajo. 2 A qué hora sales de la reuniόn? (Yo) (salir) a las siete. 3 Víctor no (ir) a clases de noche. 4 Oscar no (hacer) sus tareas. 5 Nosotros (decir) lo mismo. Language points Qué hora es? Qué hora es? is the question to ask the time. Sometimes the plural version Qué horas son? is used, especially in spoken Spanish in Latin America. In Spain, only Qué hora es? is used. las doce

28 19 la una las cuatro y media las tres y cuarto las ocho y veinte diez para las nueve un cuarto para las doce

29 20 Note: in Latin America the expression para is used to indicate minutes to the hour. In Spain, menos is used. Examples: Son veinte para las cuatro. (Lat. Am.) It s twenty to four. Son las cuatro menos veinte. (Spain) La cita es a un cuarto para las once. The appointment is at a (Lat. Am.) quarter to eleven. La cita es a las once menos cuarto. (Spain) A qué hora? A qué hora...? is the question you ask to find out at what time something takes place. A qué hora es el concierto? At what time is the concert? A qué hora terminas? At what time do you finish? As in British English, Spanish speakers sometimes use the 24 hour clock for departures and arrivals of trains,flights, etc las doce cero cinco las diecisiete cincuenta y dos las veintitres diez las cero siete quince Exercise 2 Look at the departure and arrival chart below and then ask and answer questions as in the example. Example: A qué hora sale el aviόn a Miami? Sale a las once. A qué hora llega el aviόn de La Habana? Llega a las quince cero cinco. Salidas Llegadas Miami La Habana Caracas Madrid Lima Santiago Quito Mexico D.F

30 21 sale it leaves salida departure llega it arrives llegada arrival Dialogue 2 En la tienda While reading the dialogue below, see if you can find answers to these questions: Does Pablo ask for a particular color of shirt? Does he buy the shirt? Pablo sees a shirt he likes in a shop in Lima. PABLO: EMPLEADA: PABLO: EMPLEADA: PABLO: EMPLEADA: Buenas tardes, tiene esta camisa para caballero en talla 15? Sí, tengo en bianco, azul, verde o marrόn. Cuánto cuesta? 35 soles. Muy cara! Pero... muy fina. PABLO: Good afternoon, have you got this shirt in size 15? ASSISTANT: Yes, I have it in white, blue, green or brown. PABLO: How much is it? ASSISTANT: 35 soles. PABLO: That s very expensive! ASSISTANT: But... it is very good quality. Language points Cuánto cuesta? Cuánto cuesta? is used to find out the price of an item. If it is more than one item, you use Cuánto cuestan? Cuánto cuestan las blusas? How much are the blouses? Cuánto es? is the expression used to find out how much it all adds up to at the end.

31 22 Muy Muy is used to intensify the meaning of the adjective which follows. Here are some examples: muy inteligente muy interesante muy bonita/o muy barata/o Colores very intelligent very interesting very nice very cheap bianco negro rojo azul Examples: blusa blanca auto verde Exercise 3 white black red blue verde amarillo marrόn white blouse green car green yellow brown The following products are reduced. What is their new selling price? Give the answers in full, in Spanish. artículo precio normal descuento precio de venta Camisas $ % Blusas $ % Abrigos $ % Pañuelos $ % Pantalones $ % Camisetas $ % Exercise 4 Arrange the following words in three groups under the headings Hombres (items usually worn by men), Mujeres (items usually worn by women) and Ambos (items usually worn by either sex).

32 23 camisa zapatos corbata medias vestido falda sueter/chompa blusa calzoncillo pañuelo aretes lápiz labial Dialogue 3 Hay un problema While reading the dialogue below, see if you can find answers to these questions: Is the problem something to do with the room itself? Can the problem be solved at once? Mr Carter explains to the receptionist at the hotel where he is staying that something is not working SR CARTER: Disculpe. Hay un problema. El televisor no fun ciona. RECEPCIONISTA: Qué número de habitatiόn? SR CARTER: Cuarenta y uno. RECEPCIONISTA: Bien. Vamos. (They go in the room, and the receptionist tests the TV.) Un momento, por favor. (He leaves the room and comes back after a few minutes with another TV set.) Aca tiene. Otro televisor. SR CARTER: A ver... Funciona! Gracias. RECEPCIONISTA: De nada. MR CARTER: RECEPTIONIST: MR CARTER: RECEPTIONIST: MR CARTER: RECEPTIONIST: Excuse me. There is a problem. The TV doesn t work. Which room number is it? Forty one. Right. Let s go. One moment, please. Here you are. Another TV set. Let me see. It works! Thank you. You re welcome.

33 24 Language points Disculpe Disculpe Excuse me is one way of catching other people s attention (formal). There is also the form disculpa (informal). Disculpe, habla castellano? Excuse me, do you speak Spanish? Disculpa, eres mexicano? Excuse me, are you Mexican? Disculpe/Disculpa also mean I am sorry (apology) The expression por favor, which literally means please, is also frequently used with the meaning of Excuse me in order to catch somebody s attention. For example: Por favor. Haymenúeconόmico? Excuse me. Is there a set menu? Hay Hay indicates existence or presence. The same word is used in singular or plural, in question or statement. hay there is hay? is there? hay there are hay? are there? Examples: Hay un problema en el hotel. There is a problem at the hotel. Hay clases de castellano? Are there Spanish lessons? No funciona To explain that something is not working, you use the expression no funciona. In the dialogue above, the television doesn t work. Here are more examples: El teléfono no funciona. The phone is not working. La máquina no funciona. The machine does not work. *El computador no funciona. The computer is not working. * To refer to a computer some Latin American countries use the feminine noun computadora, e.g. Peru, and others prefer the masculine computador, e.g. Mexico.

34 25 Exercise 5 You cannot say no funciona when something goes wrong for all things listed below. But for some, you can. Which ones? 1 la máquina de escribir 2 el pasaporte 3 la motocicleta 4 el carro 5 el diccionario Language point iy más números! 200 doscientos 2,000 dosmil 300 trescientos 10,000 diezmil 400 cuatrocientos 50,000 cincuenta mil 500 quinientos 100,000 cien mil 600 seiscientos 500,000 quinientos mil 700 setecientos 1,000,000 unmillόn 800 ochocientos 900 novecientos 1,000 mil BANCO COMERCIAL. Fecha Paguese a la suma de Exercise 6 You have to pay Viajes El Sol (El Sol Travel Agent) a bill for 245 dollars (dόlares). You are paying by cheque. Rewrite the cheque in your notebook including the amount in words. páguese a payable to firma signature la suma the amount, the sum fecha date