Spanish · Elementary (A2) · Chapter 8 of 12
Plans and invitations
Planes e invitaciones
Make plans with friends in Spanish: suggest, accept, decline and change a plan, and say what you're doing right now with estar + gerund.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Say what you're doing right now with estar + gerund
- Suggest a plan with ¿Quedamos…?, ¿Qué tal si…? and ¿Por qué no…?
- Decline politely and suggest another day
- Talk about plans with ir a, the present and the future
Listen
Rubén phones his friend Claudia in Murcia on a Thursday evening. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Rubén
Hola, Claudia. ¿Qué estás haciendo?
Hi, Claudia. What are you doing?
Claudia
Hola, Rubén. Estoy preparando la cena. ¿Qué pasa?
Hi, Rubén. I'm making dinner. What's up?
Rubén
¿Quedamos el sábado? Hay un concierto de jazz en el parque.
Shall we meet up on Saturday? There's a jazz concert in the park.
Claudia
¡Qué bien! Pero el sábado no puedo. Es que trabajo todo el día.
Sounds great! But I can't on Saturday. The thing is, I'm working all day.
Rubén
Vaya. ¿Y el domingo? ¿Qué tal si vamos al cine?
Oh dear. What about Sunday? How about going to the cinema?
Claudia
El domingo sí puedo. ¿Qué película quieres ver?
On Sunday I can. Which film do you want to see?
Rubén
¿Por qué no vemos una película española? Hay una muy buena en el cine del barrio.
Why don't we see a Spanish film? There's a very good one at the local cinema.
Claudia
Vale. ¿A qué hora es?
OK. What time is it on?
Rubén
A las siete. ¿Quedamos a las seis y media en la puerta del cine?
At seven. Shall we meet at half past six outside the cinema?
Claudia
Perfecto. Y después podemos cenar algo por allí.
Perfect. And afterwards we can have something to eat around there.
Rubén
Buena idea. Hasta el domingo, entonces.
Good idea. See you on Sunday, then.
Claudia
Hasta el domingo.
See you on Sunday.
Understand
Estar + gerund: what's happening right now
To stress that something is happening at this moment, use + a “gerund” (the -ing form). For -ar verbs, the gerund ends in -ando ( → ). For -er and -ir verbs, it ends in -iendo ( → , → ).
A few gerunds are irregular: → (reading), → (sleeping).
Don't use it for future plans, as English does with “I'm working on Saturday”. Spanish uses the simple present there: .
- ¿Qué estás haciendo?What are you doing (right now)?
- Estoy preparando la cena.I'm making dinner.
- Los niños están durmiendo.The children are sleeping.
- Estamos comiendo en un restaurante.We're having lunch in a restaurant.
Suggesting, accepting and saying no
is the everyday verb for arranging to meet: (Shall we meet up?), (What time shall we meet?). ¿Qué tal si…? and ¿Por qué no…? are followed by a verb in the present.
To say no, … (The thing is…) introduces a reason in a friendly way. Then suggest another day, so the other person knows you'd like to go.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Shall we meet up on Saturday? | |
| How about going to the cinema? | |
| Why don't we have dinner together? | |
| Let's go for a drink. | |
| / / | Good idea. / OK. / Perfect. |
| The thing is, I'm working on Saturday. | |
| Shall we make it Sunday instead? |
Talking about plans
For plans, Spanish uses + infinitive (A1): . For fixed arrangements with a day or time, the simple present is very common: (On Sunday I'm meeting Rubén).
The future tense (chapter 6) is used more for predictions and promises: (I'll call you tomorrow).
- Esta noche voy a cenar con Claudia.Tonight I'm going to have dinner with Claudia.
- El domingo quedamos a las seis y media.On Sunday we're meeting at half past six.
- Después iremos a cenar algo.Afterwards we'll go and have something to eat.
More in the grammar: The present tense of regular verbs · The future: ir a and the future tense
New words
- ¿Qué estás haciendo?What are you doing (right now)?
- prepararto prepare, to make (a meal)
- la cenadinner · feminine; : to have dinner
- ¿Qué pasa?What's up? / What's happening?
- quedarto meet up, to arrange to meet · Shall we meet up?
- es que…the thing is… · to give a reason or an excuse
- vayaoh dear, what a pity
- ¿Qué tal si…?How about…? / What if…? · + present: ¿Qué tal si vamos…?
- el cinecinema · masculine
- la películafilm · feminine
- verto see, to watch · present: , , …
- ¿Por qué no…?Why don't we / you…?
- despuésafterwards, later
- Buena idea.Good idea.
Practise
1.Which sentence means “I'm having dinner right now”?
2.Complete with the gerund of : “Ana is working.”
Ana is working.
3.Complete the suggestion: “Why don't we go to the cinema?”
Why don't we go to the cinema?
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.Shall we meet at seven at the entrance?
5.Match the Spanish with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
6.A friend suggests the cinema on Saturday, but you can't go. What's a good answer?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
¿Quedamos el viernes?
Shall we meet up on Friday?
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.