[MUSIC PLAYING] [SPEAKING SPANISH], The Future. You will need to tell your patients things that you are going to do, for example, "I'm going to call the doctor" or "I'm going to fill this when the order arrives," and so forth.
Now, you don't actually need to learn the future tense. You only need to use the verb "to go" and use another verb with it. So it seems like we're cheating, but we're really not, because if you think about it, in English, we hardly ever use the future tense of the verb. Instead, we say "I'm gonna" or "I'm going to," "he's going to," or "we're gonna," "we're gonna do this."
So this is extremely easy to put together. Instead of saying "I will eat at one," we normally say, "I'm going to eat at one" or "I'm going to eat at one." Same meaning, right? In Spanish, use the verb [SPEAKING SPANISH], which is "to go," followed by the preposition [SPEAKING SPANISH], which means "to," and then any verb at all in the infinitive form.
I would like for you to look away from the screen for now or away from your materials if you have them open, and try to see if you can figure out what these phrases mean. We know that [SPEAKING SPANISH] is "to go." [SPEAKING SPANISH] is the [SPEAKING SPANISH] form, "I go" or "I'm going." [SPEAKING SPANISH] is the form for [SPEAKING SPANISH], "he" or "she" or "you are going."
So what about this one? [SPEAKING SPANISH] Say what you think that means. "I'm going to call the doctor." OK, try this one. [SPEAKING SPANISH] "I'm going to prescribe the generic form of the medicine." [SPEAKING SPANISH] "I'm going to write the prescription."
You can add things on the end, like [SPEAKING SPANISH], "in an hour," or [SPEAKING SPANISH], "tomorrow." And the next one is [SPEAKING SPANISH]. "She is going to read the directions." [SPEAKING SPANISH] "He's going to pay with a check."
OK. Here's a question. [SPEAKING SPANISH]? "Are you going to give the medicine to your son?" Now see if you can create some new sentences with the things that you think you'll see the most often.
Using Two Verbs Together. In the previous section, you learned about various verbs that are extremely useful insofar as giving instructions, asking questions, and illustrating that something is important to do or what you are going to do in the future. And in all of these structures, two verbs are required.
The first verb is conjugated. These are represented in green on the screen. The second verb is in blue, and it is always in the infinitive. The second verb will not be conjugated. Finally, you'll use additional elements of the phrase that you see in pink on the screen to the right.
So putting these together is simple. Start with the conjugated verb followed by the non-conjugated verb and whatever else you need to say. So let's try to say "I want to." That would be [SPEAKING SPANISH]. Let's put that in front. And then let's use "to use," which would be [SPEAKING SPANISH], "the generic form," [SPEAKING SPANISH].
[SPEAKING SPANISH], OK. Now you try one. Say "it's necessary." Good, [SPEAKING SPANISH]. "To take," which verb would that be? [SPEAKING SPANISH], "the medicine with water." [SPEAKING SPANISH]
OK, let's try another one. "Is it possible," [SPEAKING SPANISH], "to return," so which infinitive in blue do you use? [SPEAKING SPANISH] Now let's say "tomorrow." "Is it possible to return tomorrow?" [SPEAKING SPANISH] "Is it possible to return tomorrow?" [SPEAKING SPANISH]
All right. "I'm going to" would be [SPEAKING SPANISH], "call," "I'm going to call," [SPEAKING SPANISH], "the doctor," [SPEAKING SPANISH].
[MUSIC PLAYING]
There is a very easy way to express future plans in Spanish without having to learn the future tense! In fact, you already do this in English.
EXAMPLE
Instead of saying, "I will eat at 1:00," we normally say, "I am going to eat at 1:00."The meaning does not change. In Spanish, simply use a form of the verb ir (to go), add the preposition a (to), and then add any verb in the infinitive form.
Example Sentence | English Translation |
---|---|
Yo voy a llamar al doctor. | I am going to call the doctor. |
Yo voy a escuchar su corazón. | I am going to listen to your heart. |
Yo voy a escribir sus síntomas. | I am going to write down your symptoms. |
Ella va a leer las direcciones. | She is going to read the directions. |
Él va a pagar con un cheque. | I You are going to pay with a check. |
¿Usted va a dar la medicina a su hijo? | Are you going to give the medicine to your son? |
If you are struggling with a concept or terminology in the course, you may contact SpanishforNursesSupport@capella.edu for assistance.
If you are having technical issues, please contact learningcoach@sophia.org.
Source: This content has been adapted from "Spanish for Nurses" by Stephanie Langston.