Spanish · Intermediate (B1) · Chapter 3 of 12
News and current events
Noticias y actualidad
Understand and talk about local news in Spanish: the passive with ser and se, and reporting what people said with dice que and dijo que.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Understand simple news about your town
- Use the passive: fue vendido, se construyen hoteles
- Report what someone said with dice que and dijo que
- React to news in a conversation
Listen
At breakfast in Palma, Marga is reading the local news on her phone. Her husband Jaime asks what's new. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Jaime
¿Algo interesante en las noticias?
Anything interesting in the news?
Marga
Sí, mira: hablan de nuestra calle. Dicen que las obras van a terminar en mayo.
Yes, look: they're talking about our street. They say the roadworks are going to finish in May.
Jaime
¿En mayo? En enero el alcalde dijo que terminaban en marzo.
In May? In January the mayor said they would finish in March.
Marga
Ya, como siempre. Y hay otra noticia: el viejo mercado del barrio fue vendido ayer a una empresa de Madrid.
I know, as always. And there's another story: the old market in our neighbourhood was sold yesterday to a company from Madrid.
Jaime
¿Vendido? ¿Y qué van a hacer allí?
Sold? And what are they going to do there?
Marga
Según el artículo, se va a abrir un hotel.
According to the article, a hotel is going to open.
Jaime
¡Otro hotel! En esta ciudad se construyen hoteles por todas partes.
Another hotel! In this city they're building hotels everywhere.
Marga
Los vecinos no están contentos. Dicen que el mercado es parte de la historia del barrio.
The residents aren't happy. They say the market is part of the neighbourhood's history.
Jaime
Claro. Fue construido hace más de cien años. Yo iba allí con mi madre de pequeño.
Of course. It was built more than a hundred years ago. I used to go there with my mother as a child.
Marga
Pues aquí dice que el edificio se va a conservar.
Well, it says here that the building is going to be preserved.
Jaime
Bueno, algo es algo. Pero no creo que sea suficiente para los vecinos.
Well, it's better than nothing. But I don't think it's enough for the residents.
Marga
Yo tampoco. Mañana hay una reunión de vecinos en el ayuntamiento. ¿Vamos?
Neither do I. There's a residents' meeting at the town hall tomorrow. Shall we go?
Understand
The passive: fue vendido, fue construido
The news often says what happened to something, not who did it: (The market was sold yesterday). This is the “passive”: in any tense + the past participle. In the passive, the participle agrees with the subject, like an adjective: , , .
To say who did it, add (by): . In everyday speech the passive with sounds formal. People prefer (below) or an active sentence with “they”: (They sold the market yesterday).
- El mercado fue vendido a una empresa de Madrid.The market was sold to a company from Madrid.
- Estas casas fueron construidas en 1950.These houses were built in 1950.
- La noticia fue publicada ayer.The story was published yesterday.
Se: se va a abrir, se construyen
A very common way to say that something is done, without saying who does it, is + the verb in the or form. The verb agrees with the thing: (a hotel is being built), (hotels are being built). You already know this from (How is it spelled?).
also works with + infinitive: (a hotel is going to be opened). On signs and in adverts you'll see (For sale) and (To let).
- En esta ciudad se construyen hoteles por todas partes.In this city hotels are being built everywhere.
- Aquí se habla inglés.English is spoken here.
- Se vende piso.Flat for sale.
Reporting what someone said
To report what someone says, use (to say that). After or , the verb usually stays the same. After (the preterite), a present usually becomes an imperfect: → . In the same way, becomes .
… (they say, people say) and … (according to…) are very common in the news.
| What someone said | Reported |
|---|---|
More in the grammar: The passive and se: fue construido, se vende · The pluperfect and reported speech: había hecho · Reported speech: dijo que vendría
New words
- las obrasroadworks, building works · feminine plural; : work (of art), building site
- el alcalde / la alcaldesamayor
- viejo / viejaold · : the old market
- el mercadomarket · masculine
- la empresacompany, firm · feminine
- segúnaccording to
- construirto build · , …; participle:
- por todas parteseverywhere
- el vecino / la vecinaneighbour; resident (of a street or area)
- contento / contentahappy, pleased · with :
- de pequeño / de pequeñaas a child, when I was little
- el edificiobuilding · masculine
- conservarto keep, to preserve
- Algo es algo.It's better than nothing. · literally “something is something”
Practise
1.Complete the passive: “La casa fue … en 1950.”
2.Complete with the right form of : “Hotels are being built everywhere.”
Hotels are being built everywhere.
3.In January the mayor said: Report it.
The mayor said they would finish in March.
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.The market was sold to a company.
5.Match the Spanish with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
6.You see a sign on a flat: . What does it mean?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
¿Algo interesante en las noticias?
Anything interesting in the news?
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.