Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Notes

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
John: Leaving the Office Early in Mexico. John here.
Laura: Hola. I'm Laura.
John: In this lesson, you’ll learn some leave-taking expressions in a business setting. The conversation takes place at the office.
Laura: It's between Fernando Rojas and Alejandra Soto.
John: The speakers are boss and employee; therefore, they will speak formal Spanish. Okay, let's listen to the conversation.
DIALOGUE
Fernando Rojas: Disculpe, Licenciada.
Alejandra Soto: Sí dígame. ¿En qué puedo ayudarle?
Fernando Rojas: Tengo que dejar la oficina un par de horas antes. Tengo una emergencia familiar.
Alejandra Soto: Claro, no hay problema. ¿Está todo bien? Dígame si puedo apoyarlo en algo.
Fernando Rojas: Gracias, no es nada grave. Mi hija cachó un resfriado y quiero llevarla a ver a un médico.
Alejandra Soto: Ya veo, no se preocupe. Dele mis saludos.
Fernando Rojas: Sí. Gracias, con permiso.
Alejandra Soto: Pase.
John: Listen to the conversation one time slowly.
Fernando Rojas: Disculpe, Licenciada.
Alejandra Soto: Sí dígame. ¿En qué puedo ayudarle?
Fernando Rojas: Tengo que dejar la oficina un par de horas antes. Tengo una emergencia familiar.
Alejandra Soto: Claro, no hay problema. ¿Está todo bien? Dígame si puedo apoyarlo en algo.
Fernando Rojas: Gracias, no es nada grave. Mi hija cachó un resfriado y quiero llevarla a ver a un médico.
Alejandra Soto: Ya veo, no se preocupe. Dele mis saludos.
Fernando Rojas: Sí. Gracias, con permiso.
Alejandra Soto: Pase.
John: Listen to the conversation with the English translation
Fernando Rojas: Disculpe, Licenciada.
Fernando Rojas: Excuse me, Ms. (Soto).
Alejandra Soto: Sí dígame. ¿En qué puedo ayudarle?
Alejandra Soto: Yes, how may I help you?
Fernando Rojas: Tengo que dejar la oficina un par de horas antes. Tengo una emergencia familiar.
Fernando Rojas: I have to leave the office a couple hours early. I have a family emergency.
Alejandra Soto: Claro, no hay problema. ¿Está todo bien? Dígame si puedo apoyarlo en algo.
Alejandra Soto:Of course, no problem. Is everything okay? Let me know if I can help you with anything.
Fernando Rojas: Gracias, no es nada grave. Mi hija cachó un resfriado y quiero llevarla a ver a un médico.
Fernando Rojas: Thank you. It's nothing serious. My daughter caught a cold and I want to take her to the doctor.
Alejandra Soto: Ya veo, no se preocupe. Dele mis saludos.
Alejandra Soto: I see, don't worry. Give her my greetings.
Fernando Rojas: Sí. Gracias, con permiso.
Fernando Rojas: Yes. Thank you, excuse me.
Alejandra Soto: Pase.
Alejandra Soto: Go ahead.
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
John: It’s lucky that Fernando has an understanding boss and could get time off.
Laura: Yes. It helped that his request was phrased in a very respectful and cordial way.
John: That definitely makes a difference. Do you have any more tips for making a request like this?
Laura: Start with a greeting appropriate to the time of day, such as Buenos días, and follow it with Señor or Señorita.
John: That’s a good start. If you’re calling an office to make a request, is there a time of day to avoid?
Laura: Don’t call right before lunch, which is usually around 2pm. Don’t call after 6pm, either.
John: If it’s a personal phone, don’t call before 10am.
Laura: Try to make your request at least one day in advance if you can.
John: Also, make sure there are no important meetings scheduled during your time off and that you have appropriate coverage.
Laura: If you need several days off, try to ask a week in advance.
John: Try to give your boss time to cover your absence and make sure there are outstanding tasks.
Laura: Yes, try to minimize the impact on those around you.
John: Okay, now onto the vocab.
VOCAB LIST
John: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is..
Laura: saludos [natural native speed]
John: regards
Laura: saludos[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: saludos [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: poder [natural native speed]
John: to be able to, can
Laura: poder[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: poder [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: preocupar [natural native speed]
John: to worry
Laura: preocupar[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: preocupar [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: decir [natural native speed]
John: to say, to tell
Laura: decir[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: decir [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: apoyar [natural native speed]
John: to support
Laura: apoyar[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: apoyar [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: cachar un resfriado [natural native speed]
John: to get a cold
Laura: cachar un resfriado[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: cachar un resfriado [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: No es nada grave. [natural native speed]
John: It's nothing serious.
Laura: No es nada grave.[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: No es nada grave. [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: ya veo [natural native speed]
John: I see
Laura: ya veo[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: ya veo [natural native speed]
John: Next we have..
Laura: con permiso [natural native speed]
John: excuse me
Laura: con permiso[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: con permiso [natural native speed]
John: And last..
Laura: pase [natural native speed]
John: go ahead
Laura: pase[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Laura: pase [natural native speed]
KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES
John: Let's have a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first word is..
Laura: dígame
John: meaning "tell me"
John: What can you tell us about this word, Laura?
Laura: It comes from the word decir.
John: That means “to tell.” It is a compound of the formal, second-person singular, imperative form...
Laura: Which is diga. Added to that is is the pronoun me.
John: You can use this when you’re asking someone to speak or tell you something.
Laura: Use it in formal settings or when you want to show respect.
John: Can you give us an example using this word?
Laura: Sure. For example, you can say.. Dígame, ¿necesita algo?
John: ..which means "Tell me, do you need anything?"
John: Okay, what's the next phrase?
Laura: no se preocupe
John: meaning "do not worry"
John: Let’s break this phrase down.
Laura: First is no which means “no.” Next is se
John: This is a reflexive pronoun. The final word means “worry.”
Laura: Yes, which is preocupe.
John: You can use this phrase in formal settings to tell someone not to worry about something.
Laura: If you change se to te, you can use it in informal settings.
John: Can you give us an example using this word?
Laura: Sure. For example, you can say.. No se preocupe Licenciado Ruíz, todo estará bien.
John: .. which means "Do not worry, Mr. Ruiz, all will be ok. "
John: Okay, what's the next word?
Laura: dele mis saludos
John: meaning "give him/her my greetings"
John: Let’s break down this phrase, too.
Laura: First is dele, which means “give her” or “give him.” The next word is mis
John: That means “my.” The last word means “greetings, regards.”
Laura: Yes, saludos. Now, de comes from the verb dar.
John: You can change this formal phrase into an informal one by changing the conjugation of that verb.
Laura: The informal version is Dale mis saludos.
John: Can you give us an example using this phrase?
Laura: Sure. For example, you can say.. Dele mis saludos a su profesora por favor.
John: .. which means "Give my greetings to your teacher please. "
John: Okay, now onto the lesson focus.

Lesson focus

John: In this lesson, you'll learn about leave-taking expressions in a business setting.
John: Let’s begin by looking at indirect object pronouns. An indirect object refers to whom or for whom an action is being carried out. The pronoun that replaces the indirect object is an indirect object pronoun. Let’s introduce the indirect object pronouns
Laura: First is me
John: In English this is “to me, for me.”
Laura: te
John: “to you, for you.” This is the informal “you.”
Laura: le
John: “to” or “for, him, her, it” and the formal “you.”
Laura: nos
John: “to us, for us”
Laura: les
John: “to” or “for them, you all.” These pronouns don’t tell us what happened, but they do tell us for whom, to whom, for what, or to what it happened to.
Laura: The indirect object pronoun does not change depending on gender. Feminine and masculine pronouns are the same.
John: Can you give us some examples of indirect object pronouns in a sentence, Laura?
Laura: Sure. Te daré un regalo.
John: “I will give you a present.”
Laura: La universidad le mandó su diploma.
John: “The university sent him his diploma.” If the verb isn’t conjugated, then the indirect object pronoun is placed after it.
Laura: For example, Ella quiere decirte la verdad.
John: “She wants to tell you the truth.” If the verb is conjugated, then it goes before.
Laura: For example, Ella me dijo que vendría.
John: “She said to me that she would come.” Now, note that Spanish uses redundant indirect object pronouns to specify the person to whom the speaker is referring to.
Laura: Right, in Spanish we include both, the pronoun and the indirect object, in the sentence. For example, Ella le dio un boleto a Alma.
Jonh: “She gave a ticket to Alma.”
Laura: It would be incorrect to say Ella dio un boleto a Alma. You must include the indirect object pronoun le, le dio a Alma...
Jonh: You can find further explanation in the Lesson Notes PDF. Now, let’s move onto leave-taking expressions in a business setting.
Laura: A useful phrase is Quiero pedir permiso...
John: “I want to ask permission…” Can we have an example sentence?
Laura: Quiero pedir permiso para salir temprano.
John: “I want to ask permission to leave early.” What’s the next phrase?
Laura: Me gustaría solicitar...
John: “I would like to request…” And an example?
Laura: Me gustaría solicitar una extensión a mis vacaciones.
John: “I would like to request an extension on my vacation.” Our final phrase is...
Laura: ¿Estaría bien si...
John: “Would it be alright if...” And our last example sentence of this lesson is...
Laura: ¿Estaría bien si pido un día más de descanso?
John: “Would it be alright if I ask for an extra day off?” Listeners, remember that in every lesson you will find a chart in the Lesson Notes with more useful phrases and examples to help you complete the Lesson Focus of each lesson.

Outro

John: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye!
Laura: Hasta la próxima.

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