LinguaAsking for a place you do not know
You already have the two verbs of the street. Hay presents something new – is there a…? – and está locates something both of you know – where is the…?. In a real conversation they come one after the other: first you ask whether a bank exists around here, then where exactly it is. Open with perdón or disculpe, and close with gracias.
| Step | You say | Example |
|---|---|---|
| get attention | Perdón / Disculpe | Perdón, ¿hay un banco por aquí? |
| ask whether one exists | ¿Hay … por aquí? / ¿Hay … cerca? | ¿Hay una parada de metro cerca? |
| ask where the known one is | ¿Dónde está …? | ¿Dónde está el hospital? |
| thank | Gracias / Muchas gracias | Muchas gracias, muy amable. |
Giving directions
The answer comes as short commands. You have not studied the command form yet, so take these as fixed phrases: sigue todo recto (go straight on), gira a la derecha / a la izquierda (turn right / left), cruza la plaza (cross the square), coge la primera calle (take the first street; in Latin America toma, because coger is rude there). The place itself is located with está: está en la esquina, está al final de la calle, está a cinco minutos.
| Direction | Meaning |
|---|---|
| sigue todo recto | go straight on |
| gira a la derecha | turn right |
| gira a la izquierda | turn left |
| la primera calle a la derecha | the first street on the right |
| la segunda a la izquierda | the second one on the left |
| cruza la plaza | cross the square |
| está en la esquina | it is on the corner |
| está al final de la calle | it is at the end of the street |
The neighbourhood
The places you will ask for most: la calle, la plaza, el banco, el supermercado, la farmacia, el hospital, la estación (de tren, de metro), la parada (de autobús), el café, la esquina. A street name goes straight after la calle, with no de: la calle Mayor, la plaza de España is the exception with de. To place something on a street: está en la calle Mayor.
Perdón, ¿hay una farmacia por aquí? – Sí, hay una en la calle Mayor, al lado del banco.Excuse me, is there a pharmacy around here? – Yes, there is one on Mayor Street, next to the bank.
¿Dónde está la parada de autobús? – Sigue todo recto y gira a la izquierda en la esquina.Where is the bus stop? – Go straight on and turn left at the corner.
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| la calle | street | Vivo en la calle Goya. I live on Goya Street. |
| la plaza | square | En la plaza hay un mercado los sábados. In the square there is a market on Saturdays. |
| el banco | bank | El banco cierra a las dos. The bank closes at two. |
| el supermercado | supermarket | El supermercado está abierto hasta las diez. The supermarket is open until ten. |
| la estación | station | La estación de tren está lejos del centro. The train station is far from the centre. |
| la parada | stop (bus, metro) | Hay una parada de metro delante del hotel. There is a metro stop in front of the hotel. |
| el hospital | hospital | Mi madre trabaja en el hospital. My mother works at the hospital. |
| todo recto | straight on | Sigue todo recto y cruza el puente. Go straight on and cross the bridge. |
| girar | to turn | Aquí giramos a la izquierda. Here we turn left. |
| la esquina | corner | El café de la esquina es muy bueno. The café on the corner is very good. |
| por aquí | around here | No hay ningún hotel por aquí. There is no hotel around here. |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- match the pairs: 1
- fill the gap: 2
- build the sentence: 1
- translate the sentence: 2
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
You want to know whether there is a bank somewhere near – any bank. What do you ask?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.