CLASE 4. Planes – Plans. Pragmática

Giving thanks

In order to give thanks we say:

Gracias – Thanks
Muchas gracias – Thank you
Muchísimas gracias – Thank you very much

To answer, say

De nada – You welcome

How to apologize

We apologize saying

Lo siento – Sorry
Perdona (de tú) – Excuse me
Perdone (de usted) – Excuse me, please

And we answer saying

No pasa nada – It´s Ok
Tranquilo / Tranquila – Don´t worry, it´s Ok

In Spanish you can´t say no without giving a good reason for it. Sometimes, you should even apologize for it. To explain the reason, use es que:

– ¿Vamos a comer juntas? – Let´s have a lunch together!
– No puedo, es que tengo clase a las 3... – I can´t, sorry, I have a lesson at 3 o´clock

Being late

If you are late, you can write a message saying:

Voy a llegar tarde – I am late

If you have arrived late, say

Siento llegar tarde – Sorry for being late

If you enter a classroom late, say:

Perdone, ¿puedo entrar? – Can I enter, please?

Your plans

When we are speaking about our plans, we use tener, quedar and ir + a + infinitivo.

We use tener when our plans do not depend on us:

Esta tarde tengo una clase, y mañana tengo un examen – This afternoon I have a lesson, and tomorrow I have an exam

The expression he quedado means "arrange to meet":

He quedado con Miguel a las nueve en el Prado –  I have arranged to meet Miguel at 9 o´clock in Prado

Ir + a + infinitivo:

Esta noche mi novia y yo vamos a cenar en un chino (= en un restaurante chino) – This evening I´m going to have dinner with my girlfriend in a Chineese restaurant
Hoy voy a salir con unos amigos (= vamos a un bar, a una discoteca, al cine, a un restaurante...) – Today I´ll go out