Key points about talking about family celebrations
Use the preterite (past) tense to talk about previous family celebrations and events.
There are two future tenses in Spanish which can be used to talk about celebrations that are going to happen or events you will attend.
This guide contains reading practice.
Vocabulary – Talking about birthday celebrations
Useful nouns to use when talking about birthday celebrations include:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | birthday |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | celebration |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | party, festival |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | music |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | present, gift |
Remember
In Spanish the word for ‘birthday’ is a singular word, although it ends in s. It literally means cumple (achieves) and años (years).
To say ‘Happy birthday’ use Feliz Cumpleaños.
Useful verbs include:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to celebrate |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to know, meet (for the first time) |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to give |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to have a good/bad time |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to invite |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to receive |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to dress, get dressed |
Useful adjectives include:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| animado/a | lively |
| divertido/a | fun, enjoyable |
| especial | special |
Grammar – What is the preterite tense in Spanish
The preterite tense in Spanish is used to describe completed actions in the past.
For example:
Fui al cine para celebrar mi cumpleaños. - I went to the cinema to celebrate my birthday.
Celebramos en un restaurante. - We celebrated in a restaurant.
The preterite tense is used if the past action had a definite beginning and definite end and is often used with phrases that give a specific time frame.
For example:
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - yesterday
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - last night
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - last year
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - last week
Forming the preterite with regular verbs
Most Word used to describe an action, state of being or an occurrence. are regular in the preterite tense. This means that they follow a pattern.
For regular verbs, the preterite is formed by removing the ar, er, or ir, from the Form of the verb that has not been conjugated. Usually translated with 'to' in English, eg to play. to form the stem and adding the following preterite endings:
| ar verbs: celebrar (to celebrate) | English | er / ir verbs: comer (to eat) | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | I celebrated | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | I ate |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you singular celebrated | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you singular ate |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | he/she celebrated | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | he/she ate |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | we celebrated | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | we ate |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you plural celebrated | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you plural ate |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | they celebrated | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | they ate |
For example:
Invité a mis mejores amigos. - I invited my best friends.
Recibió muchos regalos. - He/she received lots of presents.
Comimos un pastel de chocolate. - We ate a chocolate cake.
Forming the preterite with irregular verbs
Some of the most common verbs in Spanish are irregular. This means that they don’t follow the usual pattern in the preterite tense.
Some of the most useful irregular verbs in the preterite are:
ser - to be
ir - to go
hacer - to make, to do
tener - to have
Note that ser and ir are the same in the preterite tense.
Click or tap on Show more to see how to conjugate these key verbs in the preterite tense.
| ser / ir (to be/to go) | hacer (to make/do) | tener (to have) |
|---|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (I was/went) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (I made/did) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (I had) |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (you singular were/went) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (you singular made/did) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (you singular had) |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (he/she was/went) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (he/she made/did) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (he/she had) |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (we were/went) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (we made/did) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (we had) |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (you plural were/went) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (you plural made/did) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (you plural had) |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (they were/went) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (they made/did) | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (they had) |
For example:
Fueron a un restaurante. – They went to a restaurant.
Mi padre hizo un pastel. – My father made a cake.
Tuve una fiesta. – I had a party.
The preterite tense – Mini quiz
Complete the following sentences.
______ mi cumpleaños con mis amigos.
I celebrated my birthday with my friends.
celebrar = to celebrate
Celebré mi cumpleaños con mis amigos.
Celebrar is a regular ar verb. In the ‘I’ form remove the ar ending and add é.
_______ pizza.
We ate pizza.
comer = to eat
Comimos pizza.
We ate pizza.
comer is a regular er verb and in the ‘we’ form you remove the er and add imos.
Mi amiga ______ una fiesta.
My friend had a party.
tener = to have
Mi amiga tuvo una fiesta. My friend had a party.
tener is an irregular verb and the ‘she’ form of the preterite tense is tuvo.
Mi cumpleaños ______ fantástico.
My birthday was fantastic.
ser = to be
Mi cumpleaños fue fantástico.
My birthday was fantastic. (ser = to be)
Ser is an irregular verb and the ‘it’ form of the preterite tense is fue.
To find out more about using and forming the preterite tense have a look at the Regular verbs in the preterite tense and Irregular verbs in the preterite tense in Spanish guides.
Vocabulary – Talking about marital status and partnership
Useful verbs to talk about marriage and partnership include:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to get married |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to get engaged |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to get divorced |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to fall in love |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to be in love |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to separate |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | to have children |
For example:
Mis abuelos están separados y no viven juntos. - My grandparents are separated and don't live together.
En el futuro quisiera casarme y tener una familia muy grande. - In the future, I would like to get married and have a very big family.
Mi hermano mayor no está casado, pero creo que va a comprometerse con su novia el año que viene. - My older brother isn't married, but I think he is going to get engaged to his girlfriend next year.
Mi tía se casó el verano pasado y la boda costó mucho dinero. - My aunt got married last summer and the wedding cost a lot of money.
Useful nouns to talk about relationships include:
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | love | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | happiness |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | wedding | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | marriage/married couple |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | wife | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | groom/boyfriend |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | husband | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | bride/girlfriend |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | marital status | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | couple/partner |
Did you know?
In Spain and Spanish-speaking countries, it's uncommon for people to change their name when they marry. Instead, they usually keep their mother and father's surnames.
Useful vocabulary for giving your opinion on marriage includes:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (no) es necesario … | it's (not) necessary … |
| personalmente … | personally … |
| preferiría | I would prefer … |
| lo más importante para mí es… | the most important thing for me is … |
| diría que … | I would say that… |
All Foundation Tier vocabulary listed in this guide can be found on the vocabulary sheet below.
Grammar - How to use and form the future tenses in Spanish
There are two main The verb formation that describes the time at which the action occurred, eg past, present or future. for talking about the future:
The immediate future is used to say what you are going to do or what is going to happen.
The simple future tense is used to say what will happen and is less common than the immediate future.
Some useful time phrases for talking about future plans include:
mañana - tomorrow
la semana que viene - next week
el año que viene - next year
en el futuro - in the future
The immediate future tense
The immediate future tense is the most common way of talking about future plans.
It is formed with the A verb that describes an action that is happening now or that happens regularly, eg I eat breakfast. of ir (to go), followed by a and the Form of the verb that has not been conjugated. Usually translated with 'to' in English, eg to play..
For example:
Voy a celebrar mi cumpleaños este fin de semana. - I’m going to celebrate my birthday this weekend.
Vamos a ir a la boda de mi hermana. - We are going to go to my sister’s wedding.
¿Vais a invitar a Antonio? - Are you (plural informal) going to invite Antonio?
Click on Show more to see the conjugation of the verb ir - to go.
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | I am going |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you (singular informal) are going |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | he/she/it/you (singular formal) is going |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | we are going |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you (plural informal) are going |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | they/you (plural formal) are going |
The simple future tense
To form the simple future tense, add the correct ending to the infinitive of the verb. The endings are the same for ar, er and ir verbs:
| ar verbs | er verbs | ir verbs |
|---|---|---|
| celebrar - to celebrate | comer - to eat | recibir - to receive |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - I will celebrate | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - I will eat | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - I will receive |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - you (singular) will celebrate | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - you (singular) will eat | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - you (singular) will receive |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - he/she/you (formal singular) will celebrate | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - he/she/ you (formal singular) will eat | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - he/she/ you (formal singular) will receive |
For example:
La semana próxima celebrararé mi cumpleaños. - Next week I will celebrate my birthday.
Comeremos pizzas y un pastel. - We will eat pizzas and a cake.
¿Irás a la fiesta el sábado? - Will you go to the party on Saturday?
Forming the simple future of irregular verbs
The simple future of some common Spanish verbs is formed by adding the future endings onto an irregular stem. Frequently used verbs that follow this pattern include:
| infinitive | stem | English |
|---|---|---|
| tener | tendr | to have |
| hacer | har | to do, make |
| poder | podr | to be able to |
| poner | pondr | to put |
For example:
No tendré muchos regalos. - I won't have many presents
¿Podrás invitar a Miguel? - Will you be able to invite Miguel?
Note that hay (there is/are) becomes habrá (there will be). For example:
Habrá una boda en mi familia el verano próximo. - There will be a wedding in my family next summer.
The future tenses - Mini quiz
Complete the following sentences in Spanish.
____________ mi cumpleaños la semana próxima.
I’m going to celebrate my birthday next week.
(celebrar=to celebrate)
Voy a celebrar mi cumpleaños la semana próxima.
To form the immediate future tense, use the correct conjugation of ir, which is voy, followed by a and the infinitive of the verb.
__________ a sus amigos.
She is going to invite her friends.
(invitar=to invite)
Va a invitar a sus amigos.
To form the immediate future tense, use the correct conjugation of ir, which is va, followed by a and the infinitive of the verb.
No __________ muchos regalos.
I will not receive lots of presents.
(recibir=to receive)
No recibiré muchos regalos.
To form the simple future tense take the infinitive of the verb, recibir and add the ending é for ‘I’.
________ una fiesta el año próximo.
He will have a party next year.
Tendrá una fiesta el año próximo.
To form the simple future tense take the infinitive of the irregular verb tener, to have, use the irregular stem tendr and add the ending á for ‘he’.
Find out more about using the future tenses in the Future tenses in Spanish guide.
Reading practice
Four Spanish teenagers are talking about a recent wedding. Read through each statement and answer the questions below.
Jorge
Lo pasé muy bien porque comí muchísimo. Bailé durante toda la noche y fue una fiesta estupenda.
David
Todo el mundo se puso muy guapo para asistir a la boda y se vistió muy elegante.
Elena
La boda de mis amigos fue un día emocionante y lloré muchísimo. Me encantó verlos tan felices.
Amira
La boda me dio la oportunidad de conocer a mucha gente. Además, el pastel de boda fue delicioso.
- Who mentions how people were dressed?
David
Translation:
Everyone dressed up really nicely for the wedding and wore elegant clothes.
- Who cried a lot?
Elena
Translation:
My friends' wedding was an emotional day and I cried a lot. I loved seeing them so happy.
- Who danced all night?
Jorge
Translation:
I had a great time because I ate a lot. I danced all night and it was a great party.
- Who made lots of new friends?
Amira
Translation:
The wedding gave me the opportunity to meet lots of people. What's more, the wedding cake was delicious.
Vocabulary sheet
Click or tap on the image below for a list of useful vocabulary to use when talking about family celebrations.
Higher Tier - Vocabulary - Family celebrations
Useful vocabulary includes:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| asistir | to attend |
| regalar | to give (as a gift) |
All vocabulary listed in this guide can be found on the vocabulary sheet below.
Higher Tier - Grammar - The simple future tense
The plural forms of the simple future tense are needed at Higher Tier only.
The simple future tense is formed by adding the conditional endings to the infinitive. The endings are the same for ar, er and ir verbs.
| ar verbs | er verbs | ir verbs |
|---|---|---|
| celebrar - to celebrate | comer - to eat | recibir - to receive |
| celebraremos - we will celebrate | comeremos - we will eat | recibiremos - we will receive |
| celebraréis - you plural will celebrate | comeréis - you plural will eat | recibiréis - you plural will receive |
| celebrarán - they/you formal plural will celebrate | comerán - they/ you formal plural will eat | recibirán - they/you formal plural will receive |
The simple future of some common Spanish verbs is formed by adding the future endings onto an irregular stem. Frequently used verbs Higher Tier that follow this pattern include:
| infinitive | stem | English |
|---|---|---|
| saber | sabr | to know |
| querer | querr | to want |
| venir | vendr | to come |
| decir | dir | to say |
| salir | saldr | to go out |
For example:
Saldré a la fiesta mañana por la noche. - I will go out to the party tomorrow evening.
Querrá recibir muchos regalos. - He will want to receive lots of presents.
¿Vendrás a la fiesta de Pilar? - Will you come to Pilar’s party?
Higher Tier - Vocabulary sheet
Click or tap on the image below for a list of useful vocabulary to use when talking about family celebrations.
Now you have learned the key vocabulary and grammar for describing family celebrations, have a look at the Describing music, TV and film in Spanish guide.
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