Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Dylan: Hola, hola a todos, ¿cómo están?. Habla Dylan.
Carlos: What’s going on Pod101 world? My name is Carlos – Spanish indefinite pronouns. Do you have some time? In this lesson you will learn about indefinite pronouns.
Dylan: Definitely indefinite.
Carlos: Hahaha. I thought I would say something like that, Dylan.
Dylan: Well, I beat you to it.
Carlos: You know, Andrea is giving some good advice to Pablo.
Dylan: And what’s that?
Carlos: He needs to rest.
Dylan: Well, that’s nice. I guess they’re talking informally, yeah?
Carlos: Yep. Ok, let’s get into today’s conversation.
DIALOGUE
PABLO: Me dieron cuatro días de vacaciones.
ANDREA: Ya le hacía falta un descanso.
PABLO: Debería sacar unos días libres también.
ANDREA: Creo que tengo unos acumulados.
PABLO: ¡Vamos! Pida permiso y nos vamos a la playa.
ANDREA: ¡Vale!
PABLO: They gave me four vacation days.
ANDREA: You've needed a break for a while now.
PABLO: You ought to take some free days too.
ANDREA: I think I have some saved up.
PABLO: Let's go! Get permission and we'll go to the beach.
ANDREA: You got it!
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Dylan: The beach, I want to go…
Carlos: You’re going tomorrow, aren’t you?
Dylan: No, Thursday.
Carlos: I want to go too but my friend’s coming for… Who comes to Costa Rica for like two days or?
Dylan: Nobody, people who don’t know where they’re going.
Carlos: Well, no, he’s like, “Yeah, I'm coming on Wednesday night.” I'm like, “When are you leaving?” He’s like, “My flight’s at 8 am in Saturday.” I'm like, “Does that make any sense?” It’s rainy season, I can't even, I want to go to the [inaudible 00:01:17] so that makes no sense to drive somewhere so far.
Dylan: Yeah, it makes no sense.
Carlos: Ok, let’s have a closer look at the vocabulary for this lesson.
Dylan: “Hacer falta”.
Carlos: “To be lacking something”, “in need of something”, “to miss something.”
Dylan: “Ha-cer fal-ta”, “hacer falta”. “Descansar”.
Carlos: “To rest.”
Dylan: “Des-can-sar”, “descansar”. “Acumulado”.
Carlos: “Accumulated.”
Dylan: “A-cu-mu-la-do”, “acumulado”. “Sacar”.
Carlos: “To take out”, “to pull out”, “to get out.”
Dylan: “Sa-car”, “sacar”. “Pedir”.
Carlos: “To ask for.”
Dylan: “Pe-dir”, “pedir”. “¡Vale!”
Carlos: “Ok!”
Dylan: “Va-le”, “¡vale!”
VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE
Carlos: Ok, Let’s have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson.
Dylan: The first phrase we'll look at is “hacer falta”.
Carlos: “Hacer falta”, I just learned what that means.
Dylan: What does it mean?
Carlos: It means “to be lacking in something”. You have “faltar” in there. “Faltar”, “to lack”.
Dylan: Well, you aren’t lacking in the meaning.
Carlos: Very clever, Dylan.
Dylan: I thought so. Now, you’re going to think the translation is interesting.
Carlos: Why?
Dylan: Listen to what Andrea says to Pablo. “Ya te hacía falta un descanso”.
Carlos: Ok, I noticed the tense but…
Dylan: “Well you’ve needed a break for a while.”
Carlos: See, I was trying to figure out the literal translation.
Dylan: You could say that Pablo was lacking rest or missing rest.
Carlos: You know, I see the difference but that’s not how I learned what “hacer falta” means.
Dylan: No? How did you learn what “hacer falta” means?
Carlos: Well, I learned what “hacer falta” means as being kind of the same as “extrañar”, “to miss”.
Dylan: Yes, you could use “hacer falta” to refer to a human being.
Carlos: Like “me hace falta mi mamá”, “I miss my mom”.
Dylan: Oh, how sweet. Exactly. You lack your mom, you’re without your mommy…
Carlos: As Pablo is in lack of rest.
Dylan: But we aren’t lacking a related word. We already linked “hacer falta” to “extrañar”, “to miss”.
Carlos: I think we have that down. Let’s move on.
Dylan: A verb, “descansar”, “to rest”.
Carlos: Pablo isn’t the only one lacking rest in his life.
Dylan: You don’t have to tell me twice.
Carlos: You know, we already heard the example and explained it.
Dylan: “Ya te hacía falta un descanso”.
Carlos: “You’ve needed a break for a while now.” I’ve heard “descansar” used in a different way.
Dylan: Oh yeah?
Carlos: Well, Andrea could have easily said to Pablo “debes descansar más”, “You should rest more”.
Dylan: Well, that would be the same and you could easily replace that sentence with the other one. But whoever told you that, Carlos, wasn’t lying. You really should rest more.
Carlos: What can I say? SpanishPod101.com has a hold of my life but it’s hard to escape from.
Dylan: Well, we have an easy related word. A noun related to the verb “descansar”.
Carlos: “Descansó”.
Dylan: “A rest”, exactly.
Carlos: We are always painfully aware of that which we lack in life, Dylan.
Dylan: So true. And you know, after you take a break and you get your rest, you can be the adjective “descansado”.
Carlos: “Rested”?
Dylan: Yes.
Carlos: That would be wonderful.
Dylan: Ok. “Acumulado”.
Carlos: Hmm, I'm getting an inkling.
Dylan: Come on, it’s close.
Carlos: “Accumulate”?
Dylan: Exactly. Slowly but surely you gain more and more of something, and in this case it is Andrea who is gaining time.
Carlos: Right, when she says “creo que tengo unos acumulados”.
Dylan: “I think I have some saved up.”
Carlos: Or “accumulated”.
Dylan: Do you have any vacation time saved up?
Carlos: You are a very, very funny woman, Dylan. Funny, funny, funny.
Dylan: Carlos, are you a pack rat?
Carlos: At times. I wouldn’t make a habit of it.
Dylan: I know we are at my house. We used to live in this old house and you know I like to read.
Carlos: Right. And you know that “los libros están acumulados en las cajas viejas”, “The books are accumulating in the old boxes”, they always do.
Dylan: Carlos, do you know the verb form of “acumulado”?
Carlos: I’ll take a crack. “Acumular”?
Dylan: “To accumulate”, ¡exactamente!
Carlos: Let’s move on to our next one cause I'm getting really excited that I'm getting this stuff.
Dylan: Ok, well, we’ll take it out of the background.
Carlos: The verb “sacar”?
Dylan: Was my hint a little too blatant?
Carlos: You could say that, Dylan, you could say that.
Dylan: Yes, “sacar”, “to take out”, “to pull out”, “get out”.
Carlos: Now my first association, “taking out the trash” comes to mind.
Dylan: Sí, “saca la basura” is a very common use, but it is used differently in our conversation.
Carlos: “Deberías sacar unos días libres también”.
Dylan: “You ought to take some free days too.”
Carlos: Shouldn’t we all…
Dylan: That’s the nature of the beast.
Carlos: Now, I'm happy we’re studying this verb.
Dylan: More than usual? Why?
Carlos: Because now I won't be confused with the verb “tomar”.
Dylan: Well, “tomar” is “to take” or “to drink”.
Carlos: Right. And “sacar” is “to take out”. Now I get the difference.
Dylan: Well, you asked for it, you got it.
Carlos: That’s another hint, isn’t it?
Dylan: Yeah.
Carlos: “Pedir” is our next word, isn’t it?
Dylan: You are getting so quick.
Carlos: “Pedir”, “to ask for”. Well, come on, Dylan, you make it pretty obvious.
Dylan: But do you notice “pedir” in the conversation?
Carlos: It took me a little time but yeah, I see the command. Pablo tells Andrea “pide permiso y nos vamos a la playa”.
Dylan: “Get permission and we’ll go to the beach.” That sounds nice.
Carlos: Yeah, especially now with all the clouds.
Dylan: Rainy season is here, Carlos.
Carlos: My second one and I'm not very happy about that.
Dylan: Hah, can you think of a sample sentence with “pedir”?
Carlos: Ah, one that I have to say too often. “No me pidas más dinero, ¡ya no tengo!”
Dylan: “Don’t ask me for more money! I don’t have any!” That’s not only you, Carlos.
Carlos: Just felt it would be a fitting example.
Dylan: So we know “pedir” is a verb. Do you know what “pedido” is?
Carlos: A noun?
Dylan: Exactly. But if “pedir” means “to ask for”…
Carlos: Then “pedido” is “an order” or “a request”.
Dylan: I can’t get that by you.
Carlos: Sometimes I catch them, sometimes I don’t.
Dylan: Ok, Carlos, last but certainly not least is a word that you are very familiar with.
Carlos: Ok, there are quite a few, but which?
Dylan: “¡Vale!”
Carlos: “¡Vale!” Yeah, yeah. I'm familiar with “¡vale!”, a little more familiar than I’d like.
Dylan: It’s an interjection that means…
Carlos: Ok.
Dylan: Or in our conversation, “you go it!”
Carlos: Same thing, you know context and all that.
Dylan: Well, I know if someone asked me to go to the beach, my answer if I could would be “¡vale!”.
Carlos: Ok, you know mine too, but this will give you away as someone that speaks European Spanish, almost like using “vosotros”.
Dylan: Right, we don’t really use “¡vale!” in Latin America.
Carlos: But if you find yourself in Spain, I guarantee you won't get out of the airport before you hear “¡vale!”.
Dylan: In Latin America we would simply say “bueno” or “está bien”, but “¡vale!” that would just get said and said.
Carlos: I think I might start saying it.
Dylan: You go right ahead. Start now. “¿Quieres comer afuera?”
Carlos: “¡Vale!”

Lesson focus

Dylan: Carlos, what do you know about nouns?
Carlos: Nouns. A noun is a person, place or thing.
Dylan: And pronouns?
Carlos: A pronoun replaces a noun while at once referring to it and agreeing with it. Got more? Come on, ask me.
Dylan: Indefinite pronouns.
Carlos: Indefinite pronouns lack definite terms.
Dylan: And what do they express.
Carlos: Well, they express the notions of quantity, identity and other kinds of vague or undetermined manner.
Dylan: And?
Carlos: Hold on, I'm thinking. Right. They take the place of a non-concrete person or thing, or one who’s determination is not in the interest of the speaker, correct?
Dylan: Right. Since indefinite pronouns take the place of a noun, they work like nouns.
Carlos: Even though they can also work as adjectives. Dylan, if we are going through indefinite pronouns, I know there are quite a few.
Dylan: You’re right, Carlos, and each one tends to have a number of different forms. So let’s just go over the most common.
Carlos: Phew, I thought we were going to go over all of them.
Dylan: No, no, no, no. Let’s go through the most common with the masculine version, feminine version and neutral version.
Carlos: Sounds good.
Dylan: “One.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “uno”, feminine singular “una”, neutral singular “uno”.
Dylan: “Some”, “someone”, “something.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “alguno”, feminine singular “alguna”, neutral singular “algo”.
Dylan: “None”, “no one”, “not”, “any”, “nothing.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “ninguno”, feminine singular “ninguna”, neutral singular “nada”.
Dylan: “Few.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “poco”, feminine singular “poca”, neutral singular “poco”.
Dylan: “Many.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “mucho”, feminine singular “mucha”, neutral singular “mucho”.
Dylan: “Too many.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “demasiado”, feminine singular “demasiada”, neutral singular “demasiado”.
Dylan: “All”, “everyone.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “todo”, feminine singular “toda”, neutral singular “todo”.
Dylan: “Another.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “otro”, feminine singular “otra”, neutral singular “otro”.
Dylan: “The same one.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “mismo”, feminine singular “misma”, neutral singular “mismo”.
Dylan: “So much”, “so many.”
Carlos: Masculine singular “tan, tanto”, feminine singular “tanta”, neutral singular “tanto”.
Dylan: That takes care of the singular forms of the most common.
Carlos: Yeah, and now that you’ve mentioned it, these are very, very, very important.
Dylan: That they are.
Carlos: Ok, so let’s look at the same examples, only with the masculine and feminine plural versions.
Dylan: Same order?
Carlos: Exactly the same.
Dylan: “Some.”
Carlos: “Unos, unas”.
Dylan: “Some.”
Carlos: “Algunos, algunas”.
Dylan: “No one”, “none.”
Carlos: “Ningunos, ningunas”.
Dylan: “Few.”
Carlos: “Pocos, pocas”.
Dylan: “Many.”
Carlos: “Muchos, muchas”.
Dylan: “Too many.”
Carlos: “Demasiados, demasiadas”.
Dylan: “All”, “everyone.”
Carlos: “Todos, todas”.
Dylan: “Others.”
Carlos: “Otros, otras”.
Dylan: “The same ones.”
Carlos: “Mismos, mismas”.
Dylan: “So much, so many.”
Carlos: “Tantos, tantas”.
Dylan: Still with us, audience? The examples are coming, but to get these definitions out in this way is very important.
Carlos: There are more commons, right?
Dylan: Yes, those with two forms, singular and plural.
Carlos: Which are?
Dylan: “Close”, “whichever.”
Carlos: Ah, right. “Cualquiera, cualesquiera”.
Dylan: “Whoever.”
Carlos: “Quienquiera, quienesquiera”.
Dylan: And then, finally, those with the singular form. “Someone.”
Carlos: “Alguien”.
Dylan: “No one.”
Carlos: “Nadie”.
Dylan: “The rest.”
Carlos: “Demás”.
Dylan: That’s the list.
Carlos: That’s it?
Dylan: That’s it. But we should get some example sentences.
Carlos: Ok.
Dylan: So if you want to ask someone what they want, you could say…
Carlos: “¿Te sirvo algo?”
Dylan: “Can I serve you something?”
Carlos: Or I could say “¿buscas a alguien en particular?”
Dylan: “Are you looking for someone in particular?” You remember when you were having a hard time?
Carlos: Yes, I do.
Dylan: What did I say?
Carlos: Right. “Algunos dicen que el problema se va a resolver solito”.
Dylan: “Some say the problem will resolve itself.” And was that good advice?
Carlos: Yes, it was. But I remember you were only one with positive advice.
Dylan: That’s because “todos dicen lo mismo”.
Carlos: “Everyone says the same thing.”
Dylan: I like to be different.
Carlos: Remember, guys, that indefinite pronouns are very similar to indefinite adjectives/
Dylan: Do you remember what the main difference is?
Carlos: The main difference, aside from formation, is that adjectives modify the noun in an indefinite way.
Dylan: Right. And the pronouns replace the noun and express the same sense of vagueness.
Carlos: For example?
Dylan: For example we could say “algunas personas dicen”, in which case we use the indefinite adjective, “algunas”.
Carlos: Oh, I see. It modifies “personas”, or we could say “algunos dicen” in which we’re using the masculine plural form, which acts as the neuter.

Outro

Carlos: Ok, guys, that just about does it for today.
Dylan: ¡Chao!
Carlos: Nos vemos!

Grammar

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