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The difference here lies in the correct structure for expressing this idea in French, as well as how certain verbs (like demander) interact with objects. Let me explain:

Why "J'ai demandé mes parents pour un livre" is Incorrect

1. Verb Usage with Direct and Indirect Objects:
   In French, the verb demander (to ask) requires a direct object (the thing being asked for) and an indirect object (the person being asked). The correct structure is:

   demander [something] à [someone]

   • Example:
     • J'ai demandé un livre à mes parents. = "I asked my parents for a book."

   In your first attempt, "mes parents" was treated as the direct object, but this isn’t how demander works. Instead, the thing you are asking for (e.g., "un livre") should be the direct object, and the person you are asking (e.g., "mes parents") is the indirect object introduced by à.

Why "à" and Not "pour"?

• "À" is used because the French construction "demander à quelqu'un" directly means "to ask someone." It introduces the person receiving the request.

• "Pour" would mean "for," which suggests you're asking on behalf of someone or for their benefit—not directly addressing them with the request.

  • Example:
    • Je demande un livre pour toi. = "I am asking for a book for you."

Correct Sentence:

J'ai demandé un livre à mes parents.

• un livre = direct object (the thing you asked for)
• à mes parents = indirect object (the people you asked)

I hope this clears things up! Let me know if you have more questions.

Thank you for your question!

While both "entonces" and "así" can sometimes be translated as "so" or "then," they have distinct uses depending on the context. Here's how to distinguish between them:

"Entonces"

1. Temporal Meaning (Then):

   • Refers to a point in time, either in the past or future.
   • Example:
     • Fui al cine y entonces cené. = "I went to the movies and then I had dinner."

2. Logical Connector (So/Therefore):

   • Used to connect ideas, indicating a conclusion or result.
   • Example:
     • No había entradas, entonces no pudimos entrar. = "There were no tickets, so we couldn’t go in."

"Así"

1. Manner (Like This/That):

   • Describes the way something is done or happens.
   • Example:
     • Hazlo así. = "Do it like this."
     • Así es como se hace. = "That’s how it’s done."

2. Result or Confirmation (So):

   • Sometimes used to indicate a result, especially in combination with other words (e.g., "así que" = "so").
   • Example:
     • Estaba cansado, así que me fui a dormir. = "I was tired, so I went to sleep."

Quick Tip to Differentiate:

• Use "entonces" when referring to time or drawing a conclusion.
• Use "así" when describing how something happens or is done.

I hope this helps clarify the difference! Let me know if you have more questions.

@Linda-Lemkes said in Spanish Upgrade:

Thank you but I'll stick with the Castilian. Are there any plans to upgrade Castillian?

Thank you for your message!

We’re glad to hear you’re enjoying the Castilian course. At the moment, there are no immediate plans to upgrade Castilian, but we’re always working on ways to improve and expand our offerings. If there are specific areas you’d like to see enhanced or added, we’d love to hear your feedback!

Thank you for your question!

This is a great observation, and the choice of "me encantó" (preterite) instead of the imperfect "me encantaba" does hinge on nuance. Let me clarify:

Why the Preterite Is Used Here:
A Completed Experience:
The preterite "me encantó" suggests that your love for Argentina is tied to a specific experience or period of time that has a clear beginning and end. For example, if you're referring to a particular trip to Argentina, the preterite emphasizes the entirety of that event as a finished, singular experience.

Example:
Me encantó Argentina. = "I loved Argentina (during my trip or visit)."
Emphasis on the Overall Impression:
The preterite is often used when describing an emotional reaction or impression as a whole. It reflects how you felt about Argentina during a particular instance, rather than describing an ongoing state of loving it.

When to Use the Imperfect:
The imperfect "me encantaba" would instead emphasize an ongoing emotional state or repeated actions over time, such as a habitual love for Argentina in a broader sense.

Example:
Me encantaba Argentina cuando vivía allí. = "I loved Argentina when I lived there."
Siempre me encantaba su cultura. = "I always loved its culture."
Emotional States and Time in Spanish
You’re absolutely correct that emotional states often use the imperfect, but the choice between preterite and imperfect depends on whether the speaker frames the emotion as ongoing or tied to a specific event or moment.

I hope this clears things up! Feel free to ask if you have more questions.

Hi @Keats and @irahandler

The use of "de" in front of "aquí" and "allá" can indeed be tricky, as it depends on the context in which you're describing movement, origin, or a relationship to a location. Here's a breakdown:

When to Use "de" with "aquí" and "allá"

1. Indicating Origin or Departure:
   Use "de" when referring to something coming from or originating from here/there.

   • Example with aquí:
     • Salió de aquí. = "He/She left from here."
   • Example with allá:
     • Viene de allá. = "He/She is coming from over there."

2. Describing Possession or Reference to a Place:
   "De" can also indicate something belonging to or associated with a place.

   • Example with aquí:
     • La gente de aquí es muy amable. = "The people from here are very kind."
   • Example with allá:
     • Los paisajes de allá son hermosos. = "The landscapes over there are beautiful."

When "de" Is Not Used

• If you're simply stating a location or direction without referencing movement, origin, or possession, "de" isn’t necessary.
  • Estoy aquí. = "I am here."
  • Voy allá. = "I’m going over there."

Why "over here" and "over there" Don't Always Work

While "over here" and "over there" can sometimes align with "de aquí" or "de allá," they don’t always capture the same nuance of origin or association that "de" provides in Spanish.

I hope this helps clarify the usage! Let me know if you have further questions—I’d be happy to help.

Hi @irahandler
Thank you for your question!

The word "cuándo" is accented here because it is being used as an interrogative or exclamatory term, even though it appears in an indirect context rather than a direct question.

In your example:
"Yo ya sé cuándo salió esa película, fue en 2003."

The phrase "cuándo salió esa película" indirectly refers to a specific point in time when the movie came out. Even though the sentence is a statement, the clause retains its interrogative nature because it refers to the implied question of "when" the movie came out.

In Spanish, whenever "cuándo" is used to convey a question—whether direct or indirect—it requires an accent. If it were a non-interrogative usage (e.g., "cuando" meaning "when" in a time conjunction), it would not carry the accent.

For example:

Direct question: ¿Cuándo salió esa película?
Indirect question: Yo ya sé cuándo salió esa película.
Time conjunction (no accent): Cuando salió esa película, nadie fue a verla.
I hope this clears up the confusion! Feel free to ask if you have more questions.

Hi @Christine-Johnson
We've fully transitioned to a subscription-based model, so I’ve activated a free one-year subscription to Spanish Upgraded for you as part of your previous purchase. You can access it through our website and mobile apps. Just login again and you will be able to access the program.

Hi @irahandler Thank you for your question!

In this case, the difference lies in the nuance and context of "algún" and "cualquier", even though both can translate to "any" in English.

"Algún" (shortened form of "alguno") implies a specific but undefined option from a group or category. In this example, "¿Tiene algún libro de aventuras?" asks whether the person has at least one adventure book in mind.

"Cualquier", on the other hand, means any at all, without specificity and is often used when expressing that any option is acceptable. However, it doesn't fit in this context because the question isn't about any book, but rather if the person has some adventure book available.

To summarize, use "algún" when referring to an unspecified but defined option, and use "cualquier" when the choice is open-ended or indifferent.

I hope this helps clarify the difference! Feel free to reach out if you have more questions.

In Spanish 1, Lesson 26, Sonia mentions checking out all her travel videos. If you're interested, here’s the link:

https://www.youtube.com/soniastravels

We hope you enjoy them!

Hi @irahandler
Great observation! The reason dónde is accented in this sentence is because it introduces an indirect question. Even though the sentence is not phrased as a direct question, it still expresses uncertainty about a location (where it is).

Here’s the breakdown:

Direct Question:
Example: ¿Dónde está el mouse?
Translation: "Where is the mouse?"

Dónde has an accent because it’s a question word indicating location.
Indirect Question:
Example: No sé dónde está el mouse.
Translation: "I don’t know where the mouse is."

Dónde retains the accent because it introduces an implied question embedded in the sentence.
In contrast, donde (without an accent) is used in declarative statements that indicate a place, not a question:

Example: El lugar donde lo dejé está vacío.
Translation: "The place where I left it is empty."
In your example, dónde is accented because the phrase dónde está functions as an indirect question embedded within the larger statement.

Hi @irahandler This is a great question, and it highlights the subtle nuances in Spanish verb tenses. Let’s break it down:

In the sentence "Yo podía verlo todos los días, pero ahora ya no vive aquí", the verb podía is in the imperfect tense because it describes a habitual or ongoing ability in the past. In other words, podía here implies "I was able to (repeatedly)" or "I used to be able to," reflecting a continuous or repeated condition rather than a specific moment.

Here’s how this works:

Imperfect (Podía): Used to express a habitual or ongoing ability in the past.

Example: Yo podía verlo todos los días.
Translation: "I could (used to be able to) see him every day."
Indicative Conditional (Podría): Used to express a hypothetical ability or possibility, often tied to "I could" or "I would be able to" in English.

Example: Yo podría verlo si viviera aquí.
Translation: "I could see him if he lived here."
In the context of your example, podía is appropriate because it refers to an ability that was possible regularly or habitually in the past. The conditional (podría) would not fit here because it suggests a hypothetical or conditional situation, which is not the case in this sentence.

I hope this clarifies the difference!

Hi Linda,

Yes, the Spanish Upgrade version is for Spanish (Latin America). Please contact us at usersupport@fluenz.com and let us know if you’d like to switch to this version and receive a one-year free license.

Best regards,

Great question! The use of "es" in this sentence, even though it's referring to the future, is because "es" expresses a scheduled or planned event, which is common in Spanish when talking about events in the near future.

In Spanish, the verb "ser" (in its present form "es") is often used to talk about events that are considered certain or scheduled, especially when talking about things like plans or appointments. It’s similar to how we might say "Our trip is next week" in English to describe something scheduled for the future.

So, even though the trip is in the future, it is being treated as a scheduled event, and "es" is used to express this.

Here’s a comparison:

Nuestro viaje a Argentina es la semana que viene ("Our trip to Argentina is next week" – planned/scheduled event)
Nuestro viaje será la semana que viene ("Our trip will be next week" – future event, but more general)
Both are correct, but using "es" makes it feel more like a confirmed plan.

We received an interesting question from a Fluenz user recently:

I'm curious why the verb in the example below is 'es' when it refers to something in the future.

Our trip to Argentina will be next week
Nuestro viaje a Argentina es la semana que viene

In this case, "qué" is used with an accent because it is functioning as an interrogative word (meaning "what") in a direct or indirect question.

Here’s the breakdown:

Qué with an accent is used in direct or indirect questions to ask for specific information. It translates to "what" or "which" when asking about something.

Example: "¿Qué detalles son necesarios?" (What details are necessary?)
Que without an accent is used as a relative pronoun or conjunction, meaning "that," "which," or "who."

Example: "Los detalles que son necesarios..." (The details that are necessary...)
In your sentence:
"Debería saber qué datos son necesarios para la visa de trabajo argentina,"
The qué is used because it's asking about the specifics of which details are necessary. Even though it’s not a direct question, the structure suggests an indirect question, which is why the accent is used.

We received an interesting question from a Fluenz user recently:

(You) should know what details are necessary for the Argentinean work visa
Debería saber qué datos son necesarios para la visa de trabajo argentina

In general, unos/unas and algunos/algunas both mean "some," but they are used slightly differently.

Unos/unas are more often used with countable nouns and imply an approximate quantity. For example: "unas semanas" (some weeks) suggests a non-specific number of weeks.
Algunos/algunas can be used in similar contexts, but they are often used to express "some" in a more general or uncertain way, and they can be used with both countable and uncountable nouns.
In your example, "unas semanas" is correct because it's referring to a countable, but unspecified, number of weeks.

So, the difference is subtle, but unos/unas tends to be used more when you're talking about a quantity that can be counted, and algunos/algunas is a bit more flexible for a wider range of situations.

We received an interesting question from a Fluenz user recently:

I am unclear as to when to use unos/unas and when to use algunos/algunas. From a previous lesson (don't remember which), here is an example:

We arrived two days ago and (we)’re going to stay here (for) some weeks

nosotros llegamos hace dos días y vamos a quedamos unas semanas

How does one distinguish between the use of these two words?

Thanks for your help!

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