Modern Spanish Grammar: A Practical Guide

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67 Giving advice and making suggestions In the sections below you will find the most commonly used expressions to give advice an ...

Yo, en tu lugar, me quejaría a la gerencia. If I were you, I’d complain to the management. Si estuviera en tu lugar, no la perdo ...

67.1.5 Debería(s)/tendría(s) que/haría(s) bien en+ infinitive Like the previous construction, these expressions are common in al ...

67.2 Suggesting a course of action involving the speaker 67.2.1 Vamos a+ infinitive Vamos a... , ‘Let’s go and.. .’, corresponds ...

a less forceful form of suggestion than that with podríamos, leaving more ground for dissent, and it can be used in informal and ...

67.3.2 Question word +poder+ infinitive Like the construction above, this expression with poder is commonly used in the spoken l ...

68 Making requests In this chapter you will learn how to request others to do something and to say things like ‘Could you help m ...

Por favor, no se lo digas. Please don’t tell him/her. Por favor tráigame un sándwich de jamón y una cerveza. Please bring me a h ...

¿Podrías decirle a tu madre que me escriba? Could you tell your mother to write to me? ¿Podría usted explicármelo? Could you exp ...

68.1.9 Le(s) agradecería/agradeceríamos (que)+ imperfect subjunctive This expression with agradecer, ‘to be grateful’, is, after ...

69 Giving directions, instructions and orders This chapter covers the language of directions, instructions and orders, from basi ...

Bájese (usted) en la próxima estación. Get off at the next station. Sube por esta calle. (fam.) Go up along this street. Cruza a ...

69.2 Giving instructions Instructions are given in much the same way as directions, except that to soften the command one often ...

69.2.4 The infinitive Antes de usar este aparato, leer detenidamente las instrucciones de este manual. Before using this applian ...

69.3.3 The future tense The use of the future tense instead of the present tense lends more force to the command. No hablarás má ...

70 Making an offer or invitation and accepting or declining This chapter considers the main expressions used by Spanish speakers ...

Vamos a tomar una copa. Let’s go and have a drink.
 16.1.1.6 (p. 62); 17.13 (p. 81) 70.1.3 ¿Por qué no+ present? ¿Por qué no.. ...

Quiero que vengas a mi fiesta de cumpleaños. I want you to come to my birthday party.
 18.1.1 (p. 84) 70.1.7 Poder+ infinitive ...

70.1.10 Me/nos gustaría+ infinitive Also very formal is this construction with me gustaría or nos gustaría, followed by an infin ...