Do you know how to say what you want in Spanish? |
Welcome to Three Step Spanish Practice by SpanishPod101.com. In this lesson, you will practice saying what you want in both polite and casual ways. |
Let's look at the main dialogue. |
Two people are having a conversation. |
¡Guau! Es una habitación grande. Esa pintura es muy bonita. |
"Wow! It's a big room. That painting is very pretty." |
A mi esposa también le gusta. Pero yo quiero una pintura diferente. |
"My wife likes it too. But I want a different painting." |
quiero una pintura diferente |
quiero |
¿Qué tipo de pintura te gustaría? |
"What kind of painting would you like?" |
Me gustaría una pintura interesante. |
"I would like an interesting painting." |
Me gustaría una pintura interesante. |
Me gustaría |
In Spanish, both quiero and me gustaría can be used to say that you want something, but they feel very different. |
Quiero is more direct. People often use it with friends or in casual situations. |
However, in many Spanish-speaking cultures, being polite and respectful is important, especially with strangers or in formal settings. |
That's why me gustaría is often preferred. It sounds softer and more polite. Using me gustaría shows good manners. |
Gustaría is the conditional form of gustar and is used to express what you would like in a polite way. |
We use it with things we want — food, places, activities. |
For example, |
Me gustaría un café. "I'd like a coffee." |
Me gustaría viajar. "I'd like to travel." |
If the thing you want is plural, change it to "me gustarían:" |
Me gustarían unas galletas. "I'd like some cookies." |
We use me, te, le, nos, and les to show who would like something. |
That's it! Let's practice. |
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