Practical Spanish Grammar A Self-Teaching Guide

Preface ix

Spanish Sounds xii

Lesson 1 Saludos (greetings) y despedidas (farewells) 1

Grammar I Indefinite Articles Gender of Nouns 5

Grammar II Definite Articles and Contractions 8

Grammar III Subject Pronouns 10

Lesson 2 Nuevas generaciones (New Generations) 13

Grammar I The Three Conjugations Present Indicative of Regular - ar Verbs 18

Grammar II Regular Verbs Ending in - er and - ir 22

Grammar III Forms and Usage of ser and estar = to be 24

Lesson 3 Vidas ocupadas (Busy Lives) 29

Grammar I Adjective- Noun Agreement Plural of Nouns and Adjectives 34

Grammar ii Present Indicative of To Go, To Give, To See, To Know, and To Say 37

Grammar III Question Words Numbers in Spanish 39

Lesson 4 Una familia unida y activa (A Close and an Active Family) 46

Grammar I Present Indicative of to hear, to bring, to know, and to flee Contrasting saber and conocer 52

Grammar II Diminutives 55

Grammar III Negative Forms 57

Answers Lessons 1- 4 60

Lesson 5 En el aeropuerto internacional Adolfo Suárez Madrid- Barajas (At Adolfo Suárez Madrid- Barajas International Airport) 69

Grammar I Present Indicative of Irregular Verbs To Have, To Come, To Put, To leave, and To Do 75

Grammar II What time is it? 79

Grammar III Present Indicative of Stem- Changing Verbs 82

Lesson 6 Vamos de vacaciones (Let's Go on Vacation) 85

Grammar I Idiomatic Expressions with hacer and tener 93

Grammar II Demonstrative Adjectives and Pronouns 96

Grammar III Possessive Adjectives and Pronouns 98

Lesson 7 Una cena deliciosa (A Delicious Dinner) 101

Grammar I Direct Object Nouns and Pronouns Personal a 108

Grammar II Preterite of Regular Verbs 112

Grammar III The Written Accent 115

Lesson 8 Las tradiciones y las fiestas (Traditions and Celebrations) 118

Grammar I Preterite of Stem- Changing Verbs 124

Grammar II Preterite of Irregular Verbs 127

Grammar III The Indirect Object Pronouns 130

Answers Lessons 5-8 135

Lesson 9 La rutina diaria de la familia Mendoza (The Daily Routine of the Mendoza Family) 147

Grammar I Reflexive Constructions and Reflexive Pronouns 152

Grammar II Accidental SE for Unplanned Occurrences 156

Grammar III The Preterite of Reflexive Verbs 157

Lesson 10 Las finanzas y el presupuesto (Finances and Budgeting) 160

Grammar I The Indirect Object with Verbs like gustar 168

Grammar II The Imperfect Indicative 172

Grammar III Los Verbos Hacer Y Llevar Con Expresiones De Tiempo Los Números Ordinales Hacer + (time Expressions) + Que + (present Tense) Llevar + (time Expressions) + (de) (ordinal Numbers) 176

Lesson 11 Los problemas de salud (Some Health Problems) 181

Grammar I The Preterite and Imperfect in Contrast 189

Grammar II Future Indicative of Regular Verbs 193

Grammar III Comparisons of Inequality 198

Lesson 12 Los buenos hábitos y el deporte (Good Habits and Sport) 201

Grammar I Comparisons of Equality Superlatives 207

Grammar II Present Subjunctive of Regular and of Stem- Changing Verbs Uses of the Present Subjunctive 212

Grammar III Irregular Verbs in the Present Subjunctive 216

Answers Lessons 9-12 219

Lesson 13 Una entrevista importante de trabajo (An Important Job Interview) 230

Grammar I Conditional Tense of Regular Verbs 240

Grammar II Future and Conditional of Irregular Verbs 243

Grammar iii Formal Commands Conjunctions y, e, o, u, sino, pero Formation and Uses of Adverbs Ending in -mente 246

Lesson 14 Necesitamos comprar un nuevo carro (We Need to Buy a New Car) 252

Grammar I Indicative and Subjunctive in Contrast: Information vs. Influence 260

Grammar II Familiar Commands (tú form) 265

Grammar III a Review of the Written Accent the Uses of Por and Para 268

Lesson 15 Alojamiento para nómadas digitales (Accommodations for Digital Nomads) 274

Grammar I Indicative and Subjunctive in Contrast: Perception vs. Emotion 281

Grammar ii Indicative and Subjunctive in Contrast: Certainty vs. Doubt 284

Grammar iii Indicative and Subjunctive in Contrast: Adjectival and Adverbial Clauses 287

Answers Lessons 13- 15 292

Appendixes 301

Appendix 1 Los modos verbales en español (Verbal Moods in Spanish) 301

Appendix 2 Regular Verbs 302

Appendix 3 Irregular Verbs 305

Appendix 4 Stem- Changing Verbs Verbs with Spelling Changes 310

Spanish- English Vocabulary 313

English- Spanish Vocabulary 333