ReVerb Spanish

Andar vs. Estar

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It may seem odd, but the verb ANDAR, which literally means “to walk” can be used as a replacement verb for ESTAR, which means “to be.”

A common expression in Spanish is ¿Qué tal andamos? or ¿Cómo andamos?

In English that is translated as “How are we doing?” or “What’s new?”

“¿Cómo andamos?” is just another way of asking “¿Cómo estás?”

But ¿Cómo andamos? es muy informal. That means it’s a very casual phrase you would typically use with people you know, like friends and family. It’s not an expression that you would use in a formal setting, for example, on a job interview. You wouldn’t greet the job interviewer with the line ¿Cómo andamos? but rather ¿Cómo está usted?

So, how do you know when it’s OK to use ANDAR as a substitute for ESTAR? Fortunately, there are some specific rules to this.

ANDAR + a gerund

Click here for an explanation of what a gerund is.

Normally, a Spanish gerund is paired with the verb ESTAR. In English, we say, “I am working” and, in Spanish that would be “Estoy trabajando.”

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Podcast: Download (Duration: 8:09 — 7.5MB)

Spanish gerunds vs. English gerunds

In Spanish, gerunds are used to refer to an action in progress. There are 3 distinct gerund endings.  I know what I said in the “Andar vs. Estar” podcast but I was trying to keep things super simple.

The Spanish gerund endings are:

-ando (for verbs that end in -ar)

-iendo (for verbs that end in -er or -ir)

-yendo (A few -er and -ir verbs use this ending)

A gerund is used in both the present continuous and past continuous tenses. It is a way to emphasize an action that is happening in the moment. Estoy leyendo (I am reading). Estaba leyendo (I was reading).

To be more precise, the Spanish phrase “estoy leyendo” means “I am reading (right now)” while “yo estaba leyendo” means “I was reading (right then, at that very moment in the past).”

In English, we tend to use the -ing form a lot. In fact, English uses the continuous tense (also called the progressive tense) more frequently than Spanish does. As a result, it is very common for English speakers to use this form excessively when they speak Spanish.

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SER: Audio Verb Drill

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The complete set of conjugations of the verb SER is now available. It contains over 30 minutes of audio covering the present tense, preterite, imperfect past tenses as well as the present subjunctive and imperfect subjunctive conjugations.

This podcast is the audio verb drill for the imperfect past tense of SER. Purchase the complete set of audio verb drills for SER on this page. The price is $7.99.

As always, I’m open to receiving your suggestions and feedback. You can contact me directly through this blog’s contact page.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 7:24 — 6.8MB)

Conocer vs. Saber, past tense

Everything that I’ve told you about CONOCER and SABER in an earlier post was related to the present tense of these verbs. When you use these verbs in the preterite past tense (el pretérito indefinido) and the imperfect past tense (el pretérito imperfecto) their meanings change once again.

What’s the distinction between the preterite and the imperfect past tenses in Spanish? The preterite past tense is used for “terminated actions” in the past. That means actions that started and ended at a specific point in the past. The imperfect past tense is used for describing actions in the past. This is an extremely simplified definition. There are numerous chapters in grammar books written on the subject of Spanish past tenses, so I don’t want this one particular 400-word blog entry to get bogged down. Suffice it to say that the imperfect past tense in Spanish is used for descriptions, for narration, for talking about an ongoing state of being or feeling in the past.

Conocer in the preterite tense generally is translated as “met,” as in the first time you met someone. If you use the preterite with a thing or a place, you’re emphasizing that moment of initial contact in the past.

For example:  ¿Conoces a Miguel? Do you know Miguel? Sí, lo conozco. Lo conocí anoche.   Yes, I know him. (I know who he is. I am acquainted with him.) I met him last night.

Conocer in the imperfect past tense means “knew,” but in the sense of used to know, used to be familiar with someone or something. Conocía ese restaurante cuando vivía en Barcelona. I used to know that restaurant (I was familiar with that restuarant) when I was living in Barcelona.

Saber, in the preterite tense, means “knew” or “found out.”
Let’s say that you’re talking to a friend who asks you if you heard that a mutual acquaintance of yours has gotten engaged. This is old news to you because you heard about the engagement before. So in Spanish you would say, Sí, ya lo sé. Lo supe ayer. (Yes, I already know. I found out [I heard] about it yesterday.)

In the imperfect past tense, saber still means “knew” but in a more general, descriptive sense. You can also translate it as “used to know.” For example: Cuando yo era niña, sabía tocar al piano. When I was a kid, I knew how to play the piano. I used to know how to play the piano.

A general rule of thumb that, while not 100% foolproof, will help you out the majority of the time:

If the action of knowing is something that can be pinned down to a specific period of time in the past: Use the preterite tense.

If the state of knowing is being described in the past: Use the imperfect tense.

Conocer vs. Saber

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Both of these verbs mean “to know” in Spanish. However they are not exact synonyms. That means they are not verbs that can be used interchangeably. Since knowledge is power, which one of these verbs is king? Let’s find out.

Conocer is intangible knowledge in the sense of to be familiar with someone or something. Use this verb with people, places and things.
Example: ¿Usted conoce Madrid? Do you know Madridl? ¿Conoces a Felipe? Do you know Phillip? Are you acquainted with Phillip? ¿Conoce usted ese café? Do you know that café? Are you familiar with that cafe?

Saber, meanwhile, means to know a fact, to have specific knowledge about something.

Examples:

¿Sabes a qué hora empieza la película? Do you know what time the movie starts? ¿Sabes el título de la película? ¿Sabe María mi nombre? Do you know the title of the movie? Does Mary know my name?

You can get additional mileage out of saber by adding an infinitive to it. An infinitive is an unconjugated verb. Here is the formula for saying “to know how” to do something in Spanish. Saber + infinitve = to know how (in English)

Here are some examples:

¿Sabe cocinar tu compañero de piso? (Does your roommate know how to cook?

Sí, él sabe cocinar. (Yes, he knows how to cook.)

Notice that this construction in Spanish doesn’t require the adverb “cómo” (how).

So, to summarize, conocer and saber both mean “to know” but with distinct usages.
Use CONOCER when referring to people, places or things that you know or are familiar with. Use SABER when referring to facts, information, specific know-how.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 8:26 — 7.8MB)

How to use the ReVerb Spanish Audio Verb Drills

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Here is how to get the most out of the ReVerb Spanish audio verb drills:
1. First listen to the audio of Marie Soleil reading the verb conjugations and repeat the conjugations out loud. While you are doing this, do not read or look at the conjugations written down. The idea is to get your mind accustomed to hearing the sound of the conjugated verb and then saying it aloud without first having to see it written.

2. Once you’ve listened to the audio drill at least once or twice, then look at the written form of the conjugated verb so that you can see and memorize the spelling. Do the audio drill again, this time reading and repeating the conjugated verb. A good online Spanish verb conjugator is available at Word Reference.com. Just type in the verb you need in the search box and once you land on that verb’s  page, click on “CONJUGATOR” to see a full table of conjugations for that specific verb.

Remember, you have to practice using these verbs for them to stick in your memory. Each audio verb drill is five minutes or less, so it doesn’t take much time for you to sneak in a little Spanish verb practice every single day. ¡Suerte! and Happy Re-Verberating!

Podcast: Download (Duration: 6:37 — 6.1MB)