Lesson 2: Numbers & Essential Verbs for Everyday Actions

Lesson 2: Numbers & Essential Verbs for Everyday Actions

In Lesson 1, you could order un café, por favor. Now imagine ordering for two people. You need a number, but a verb lets you say much more:

Quiero dos cafés. — I want two coffees.

Tengo diez euros. — I have ten euros.

Necesito cinco minutos. — I need five minutes.

This lesson has two practice goals: build numbers up to 100, and use a small set of verbs to introduce yourself, ask for things, and describe where you are. Learn the sentence patterns actively; use the longer verb table as a reference you can return to.

Build numbers in manageable groups

Start with 0–15. Cover the Spanish column and test a few numbers at a time, in a different order each time.

Then learn the compounds. 16–19 begin with dieci-; 21–29 begin with veinti-. Each is written as one word in the spellings taught here.

Keep the written accents in dieciséis, veintidós, veintitrés, veintiséis. A useful check is to write 16, 22, 23, and 26 together, then compare them with this table.

For 31–99, when you add a nonzero ones digit, practise tens + y + ones:

• 42 = 40 + 2 → cuarenta y dos.
• 75 = 70 + 5 → setenta y cinco.
• 80 is simply ochenta; there is no y without an added ones digit.

These separate-word forms are the usual beginner spellings. You may encounter accepted alternatives such as treintaidós; you do not need them for this lesson. Exactly 100 is cien; 101 is ciento uno, with no y between the hundred and the one. The RAE cardinal-number reference lists these forms and spelling conventions.

Try it: Write 23, 50, and 86 in Spanish. Explain why only the last answer needs y in the spelling practised here.

Check: Veintitrés; cincuenta; ochenta y seis. Twenty-three is a single word; fifty is an exact ten; eighty-six combines a ten with a nonzero one.

Make a number fit the noun

When you count aloud, say uno. Before a masculine noun, use un; before a feminine noun such as persona, use una:

This is why “I am 31 years old” is Tengo treinta y un años, not treinta y uno años. The shortening also happens with the standalone number one: un euro, not uno euro. See the RAE explanation of uno and its compounds.

Try it: You have 21 euros and need one coffee. Complete: Tengo ___ euros. Quiero ___ café.

Check: Veintiún; un. Both nouns are masculine.

Choose the verb for your message

An infinitive is a dictionary form such as tener (to have). A conjugated form tells you who is involved: tengo means “I have”; tienes means “you have.”

Yo means “I.” Tú means familiar singular “you.” Spanish often leaves out these subject pronouns when the verb and context make the person clear: Tengo dos euros and Yo tengo dos euros can communicate the same basic fact.

Notice puedo hablar, not puedo hablo: the first verb is conjugated; the second names the action. The same pattern works in quiero hablar and necesito comer.

An understood action can be left out: Quiero ir, pero no puedo. — I want to go, but I can't. This is a complete reply when the context makes ir clear; poder does not require a visible infinitive in every sentence.

A short introduction

Ana: Hola, ¿cómo te llamas? — Hi, what's your name?

Leo: Me llamo Leo. ¿Y tú? — My name is Leo. And you?

Ana: Me llamo Ana. ¿Cuántos años tienes? — My name is Ana. How old are you?

Leo: Tengo veinticinco años. — I am 25 years old.

Learn me llamo and te llamas together with their small words me and te. To address someone using usted, the name question is ¿Cómo se llama usted?

Build your version: Replace Leo's name and age with invented details or your own. Say the result before looking back at the dialogue.

Ser and estar: ask what the sentence means

Both verbs can translate as “to be.” The shortcut “ser is permanent; estar is temporary” is unreliable. A student can stop being a student, but says soy estudiante. A building can stay in the same place for centuries, but its location uses estar.

Use these starting patterns:

This is a starting set of uses, not every possible construction. In particular, an event's venue normally uses ser: La reunión es en Madrid — the meeting takes place in Madrid. Compare it with Ana está en Madrid, which locates a person.

With some adjectives, changing the verb changes the meaning:

• Es aburrido. — He/it is boring.
• Está aburrido. — He is bored.
• Es feliz. — He/she is happy; a general description.
• Está feliz. — He/she feels happy in the situation being described.

The useful question is what you are describing, not whether it could ever change.

For familiar plural “you,” vosotros/vosotras is used in much of Spain; ustedes is the usual plural “you” across Latin America. Some regions also use singular vos; this lesson practises tú without treating other forms as errors.

Two more patterns prepare you for the practice questions:

• Estoy ocupado/ocupada. — I am busy. For several people, use están ocupados/ocupadas — they are busy. The adjective changes for gender and adds -s for the plural.
• Somos amigos/amigas. — We are friends. Amigo/amiga means a friend; amigos/amigas is plural. Use amigas for a group of female friends; amigos can describe male friends or a mixed group.

You will practise noun and adjective agreement more fully in Lesson 3.

Try it: Yo ___ estudiante y ___ en la universidad. You mean “I am a student and I am at the university.”

Check: Soy; estoy. The first part gives a role; the second locates you. Becoming a student temporarily would not change those choices.

A reference for everyday actions

You do not need to master every row today. Start with tengo, quiero, necesito, puedo, and voy, then use the other rows to build new messages.

Regular forms give you a reusable pattern: hablar → hablo, comer → como, vivir → vivo. Several common verbs are irregular: tener → tengo, hacer → hago, ir → voy. In the forms quiero/quieres, e changes to ie; in puedo/puedes, o changes to ue.

Practise these complete examples:

• Voy a la tienda. — I go / am going to the shop.
• Voy al supermercado. — I go / am going to the supermarket. Here a + el = al.
• Vivo en Barcelona. — I live in Barcelona.
• Hago mi tarea. — I do my homework. You may also hear hago los deberes.
• Veo cuatro gatos. — I see four cats.
• Sé que Ana vive aquí. — I know that Ana lives here. Aquí means “here.”
• Tengo dos hermanos. — I have two brothers/siblings. Lesson 3 explores family words.

Voy aquí/allí uses a place expression without a: the destination pattern voy a + place name/noun phrase does not mean every use of ir must have a.

For pronunciation, Spanish b and v normally represent the same sound system, with the actual sound varying by position. Do not force the English lip-and-teeth v into voy or vivir. See the RAE pronunciation note on b. Keep siete in two syllables, SIE-te, and diez in one; avoid inserting extra vowel breaks.

Use numbers at the shop

Two useful price questions and answers are ¿Cuánto cuesta? — how much does it cost? — and Cuesta quince euros — it costs fifteen euros. Son quince euros can also state a price or total; costar is not the only possible verb.

Work out the change

Ana buys bread for €2.00, milk for €1.50, and coffee for €5.00. She pays €10.00.

1. Add the prices: €2.00 + €1.50 + €5.00 = €8.50.
2. Subtract the total from the payment: €10.00 − €8.50 = €1.50 change.
3. Read the total: ocho euros con cincuenta céntimos.

In a price context, you may hear a shorter form such as ocho con cincuenta. Here it means 8.50, not 850. Currency and local wording matter, so check the context.

Your turn: The total is eight euros and you pay ten. How much change should you receive? Say the amount in Spanish.

Check: Dos euros, because 10 − 8 = 2.

If you need to give a phone number, saying each digit separately is a clear beginner strategy. Speakers may group digits differently; listen and ask for repetition rather than assuming one universal grouping.

Put the pieces together

Read this first without translating every word:

Me llamo Ana. Tengo treinta y un años. Soy estudiante y vivo en Barcelona. Estoy en una tienda. Quiero dos cafés, pero necesito cinco minutos. Puedo pagar con diez euros.

Meaning: My name is Ana. I am 31. I am a student and live in Barcelona. I am in a shop. I want two coffees, but I need five minutes. I can pay with ten euros.

Check your understanding: How old is Ana? Does soy estudiante give her location? What can she pay with?

Answers: 31; no, it gives her role; ten euros.

Now make a three-sentence message of your own: introduce yourself, give a location, and say what you need. Look back only for the pieces you cannot recall. For further grammar reference, the Instituto Cervantes A1–A2 grammar inventory covers these beginner structures.

In Lesson 3, you will use tengo, es, and son to introduce family members and describe people.