Grammer questions....

Do these have slightly different meanings or perhaps get used in different situations? Are they examples of variations between countries? 1. Cinco para las tres versus tres menos cinco 2. Número telefónico versus número de teléfono 3. Me gustaría versus quisiera 4. Tal vez versus quizás Más preguntas…. 1. Why is “hable” (with the “e”) used in “hable más despacio” yet “repita” (with the “a) in “repita por favor”? It seems inconsistent. 2. In English, the infinitive form of verbs are represented by adding the “to” in front of the verb as in “to eat”. If I think of including the “to” in the verb when working in Spanish then “quiero comer”, I want “to” eat, makes a lot of sense to me. However, “voy a comer” doesn’t work to well. Is this just one of those things…? 3. Why is “salir” used in “me gustaría salir contigo“? Is it because it has something to do with “leaving” together rather than “going to” someplace together? 4. I hear “¿qué haces?” used to mean “what are you doing?”, sometimes even as a greeting. I have never heard it used to ask someone about their job. How common is that? It seems confusing because both meanings could be used in very similar situations. 5. When is “comprendo” used versus “entiendo”? I don’t hear “entiendo” very often but it could just be the people I hang out with. 6. Why is “the” used when talking about things like days & weeks as in todos los dias, todas las semanas, la semana pasada? Gracias !!!

The use of articles in: "todos los dias" and other cases is something one just has to accept, since it is another language and has a different structure. In Italian and French it is the same (Tous les jours ; tutti i giorni). As for "repita" and "hable", they belong to different conjugations so the imperative will not be the same. Repet*ir* and habl*ar* That's the difference. *Voy * I'm going *a* to *comer* eat That's because *Voy a* are two words that cannot be divided when talking about the future. In this case, *a* belongs to *voy*, not to the verb that follows. 1. Cinco para las tres versus tres menos cinco 2. Número telefónico versus número de teléfono 3. Me gustaría versus quisiera 4. Tal vez versus quizás They have the same meaning, I'm 99% sure. *Comprendo* means *I comprehend*, while *Entiendo* means *I understand*, I get it. So you'd better use "entiendo" in everyday language. I hope to have been of help.

Gracias !! I now see quite a few references to the proper use of infinitives in the RS Beginner’s Spanish. It makes it pretty clear. I'm also a bit confused about the use of reflexive verbs. If I wanted to offer someone the empty seat next to me, would it be correct to say "levantarse"?

So, "levantarse" means to get up, and to sit down is "sentarse". That's what I would say in such a situation: Quiere sentarse ? Do you want to sit down ? Siéntese, por favor. Sit down, please. Puedo levantarme, si quiere. I can get up, if you want. If anyone more experienced than me feels the need to correct me, please do so.

Hola Tocayo & Lenguas, I've been following your thread and I just wanted to say that the advice Lenguas has given is spot on... nice job. Mauricio.

[quo]*Quote from * Lenguas *Comprendo* means *I comprehend*, while *Entiendo* means *I understand*, I get it. So you'd better use "entiendo" in everyday language. [/quo] Ya yo supe los significados entre los dos, pero ahora sé exactamente cómo utilizarlos, gracias a usted, Lenguas.