Spanish · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 7 of 12
My day
Mi día
Tell the time in Spanish, talk about your daily routine and use the present tense of regular verbs and levantarse.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Ask and tell the time
- Say at what time you do things
- Describe your day with regular verbs in the present
Listen
Paula and Marcos work in the same office in Barcelona. They chat during a morning break. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Paula
Marcos, ¿a qué hora te levantas?
Marcos, what time do you get up?
Marcos
Me levanto a las seis y media.
I get up at half past six.
Paula
¡Qué pronto! Yo me levanto a las ocho y desayuno en casa.
That's early! I get up at eight and have breakfast at home.
Marcos
Yo vivo lejos, en Sabadell. Tomo el tren a las siete y cuarto.
I live far away, in Sabadell. I take the train at a quarter past seven.
Paula
¿Y comes aquí, en la oficina?
And do you have lunch here, in the office?
Marcos
Sí, normalmente como aquí a las dos. ¿Y tú?
Yes, I usually have lunch here at two. And you?
Paula
Yo como en casa. Vivo muy cerca.
I have lunch at home. I live very close.
Marcos
Oye, ¿qué hora es?
Hey, what time is it?
Paula
Son las once menos cuarto.
It's a quarter to eleven.
Marcos
Uf, tengo una reunión a las once. Hasta luego.
Oh, I have a meeting at eleven. See you later.
Understand
Telling the time
Ask (What time is it?). For one o'clock say . For all other hours say …: , .
Add minutes with (past) and take them away with (to). A quarter is and half is . To say at what time something happens, use … or …: , .
Add (in the morning), (in the afternoon or evening) or (at night) when it isn't clear.
| Time | Spanish |
|---|---|
| 1:00 | |
| 2:00 | |
| 3:10 | |
| 4:15 | |
| 5:30 | |
| 6:45 | |
| 7:50 |
The present tense of regular verbs
Spanish verbs end in -ar, -er or -ir in the dictionary form, the “infinitive”: (to work), (to eat), (to live). To use a verb, take off the ending and add a new one that shows who is doing the action.
The Spanish present covers both “I work” and “I'm working”. -er and -ir verbs share most of their endings.
| Person | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| / / | |||
| / | |||
| / | |||
| / / |
Levantarse: verbs with me, te, se
Some verbs have an extra little word before them: , , , or . In the dictionary they end in -se: (to get up). They are called “reflexive” verbs, because the action goes back to the person doing it: literally “I raise myself”.
You already know one from chapter 1: (my name is) comes from . Another common one is (to have a shower):
| Person | |
|---|---|
| / / | |
| / | |
| / | |
| / / |
More in the grammar: Spanish numbers: from 0 to a million · The present tense of regular verbs · Reflexive verbs: me llamo, me levanto
New words
- ¿A qué hora…?At what time…? / What time…?
- levantarseto get up · , …
- y mediahalf past
- prontoearly
- desayunarto have breakfast
- en casaat home
- vivirto live
- tomar el trento take the train
- comerto eat; in Spain also to have lunch
- oyehey, listen (to get a friend's attention) · informal ()
- ¿Qué hora es?What time is it?
- menos cuartoa quarter to
- la reuniónmeeting · feminine
- trabajarto work
Practise
1.It's 8:30. What do you say?
2.Complete with : “I live in Seville.”
I live in Seville.
3.Complete the question with .
What time do you get up?
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.I get up at seven.
5.Match the times.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
6.Choose the right verb form: “Nosotros … en la oficina.”
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
¿Qué hora es?
What time is it?
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.