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Spanish Lesson Beginner 20 To need, to want, to prefer Posted by on Aug 3, 2011 in Spanish Grammar, Spanish Vocabulary, Videos

¡Hola! ¿Cómo estáis?

I hope very much that you are enjoying my Spanish video lessons and are starting to feel more confident with your Spanish. We are now up to lesson 20 in the beginner course and you have learned a great deal of the basics.

Today we will look at three new, very useful, verbs: to need (“necesitar”), to want (“querer”) and to prefer (“preferir”). I will explain how you should form each of the verbs and how you can use them to make sentences.

Necesitar: To need:

• (Yo) necesito: I need
• (Tú) necesitas: You need (friendly)
• (Usted) necesita: You need (formal)
• (Él/ella) necesita: He/she needs
• (Nosotros/as) necesitamos: We need
• (Vosotros/as) necesitáis: You need (group/friendly)
• (Ustedes) necesitan: You (group) need (group/formal)
• (Ellos/as) necesitan: They need

For example:

• Necesito un taxi: I need a taxi
• Necesito + infinitivo: I need to…
• Necesito ir: I need to go
• No necesito ir: I don´t need to go
• ¿Necesitas algo?: Do you need anything?

Querer: To want:

• (Yo) quiero: I want
• (Tú) quieres: You want (friendly)
• (Usted) quiere: You want (formal)
• (Él/ella) quiere: He/she wants
• (Nosotros/as) queremos: We want
• (Vosotros/as) queréis: You want (group/friendly)
• (Ustedes) quieren: You want (group/formal)
• (Ellos/as) quieren: They want

For example:

• Quiero un coche: I want a car
• Quiero + infinitivo: I want to…
• Quiero ir: I want to go
• No quiero ir: I don´t want to go
• ¿Quieres algo?: Do you want anything?

Preferir: To prefer:

• (Yo) prefiero: I prefer
• (Tú) prefieres: You prefer (friendly)
• (Usted) prefiere: You prefer (formal)
• (Él/ella) prefiere: He/she prefers
• (Nosotros/as) preferimos: We prefer
• (Vosotros/as) preferís: You prefer (group/friendly)
• (Ustedes) prefieren: You prefer (group/formal)
• (Ellos/as) prefieren: They prefer

For example:

• Prefiero el pescado: I prefer fish
• Prefiero + infinitivo: I prefer to…
• Prefiero ir: I prefer to go
• No Prefiero ir: I don´t prefer to go
• ¿Prefieres este coche?: Do you prefer this car?

This is all for today’s lesson. “Necesitar”, “Querer” and “Preferir” are verbs that we use a lot in everyday conversation, so try to practice making different sentences with them as this will help you to memorise them better. Remember also not to change the second verb when you make sentences like “Quiero hablar español” (I want to speak Spanish). Never say “Quiero hablo” as you would be saying “I want I speak”. This is a common mistake that students make at this stage.

Have a great week, enjoy your Spanish studies and see you in our next lesson.

¡Hasta luego!

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About the Author: Laura & Adam

Laura & Adam have been blogging and creating online Spanish courses for Transparent Language since 2010. Laura is from Bilbao in northern Spain and Adam is from Devon in the south of England. They lived together in Spain for over 10 years, where their 2 daughters were born, and now they live in Scotland. Both Laura & Adam qualified as foreign language teachers in 2004 and since have been teaching Spanish in Spain, the UK, and online.


Comments:

  1. gary:

    Thanks Laura for your fantastic lessons. I am a beginner and have been motivated to find speakers who can help my practice, but your content is exceptionally well conceived, and I look forward to each new video.
    Gary

  2. Nancy Ezzard:

    Thanks to Laura for some very helpful posts. I belong to a small group of residents in a retirement home that meet for learning and conversation in Spanish, and these beginning lessons are just what we need at this point.

  3. Noah:

    Ever since i joined thd transparent i have always wanted to learn despite being limited at certain points but stil learning little by little.and am grasping the language quiet wel.thanks for all your encouragement

  4. Deb:

    Thank you very much for a great video. You are a wonderful teacher.

  5. armando Williams:

    can i got the numbers and Alphabet in Spanish

  6. Gertraud Müller:

    Thank you Laura for your lessons. I always watch them and I like it.
    Me gusta mucho el ejercicio. Muchas gracias por todo.

  7. Noah:

    Lately i have been busy and am so behind in most updates….of the blogs

  8. Marina:

    Muchas gracias

  9. Spanish Everyday:

    Thank you for sharing Spanish that is must know vocabulary. Some Spanish websites are confusing and teach people Spanish that is not used on a daily basis. That’s what people need to know first; survival Spanish. Thank you!

  10. dilli:

    mucho mas gracias seneora

  11. RANDY:

    Laura, es la bomba! Muchas gracias.