My New Bicycle: Spanish story (A1)
Hugo wants to ride his new red bike from Seville to work in Triana. On the first day his sister takes him only as far as the bakery, on the bike lane. A1 reading.
Mi bicicleta nueva
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About this article
What you'll learn
Present tense, querer plus an infinitive, and bike words: carril bici, casco, manillar, sillín.
Hugo lives in Seville and wants to cycle to work in Triana, across the Guadalquivir. His sister Elena says the first ride is only to the bakery, with a helmet, on the bike lane. He brakes too hard, buys bread, and does not reach the river. Clear present-tense Spanish for A1.
After reading
Article learning block
Phrases, words, grammar, and quick practice from this text.
Phrases for training
Add useful phrases to SRS or mark them as already known.
Montar en bicicleta
newto ride a bike
Spanish says montar en bicicleta or ir en bicicleta. Do not use conducir: that verb is for cars.
The core verb of the topic, and where learners most often go wrong.
todos los días
newevery day
A fixed expression: literally «all the days». The article los cannot be dropped.
The basic frequency marker for talking about habits.
no me duele la espalda
newmy back does not hurt
Doler works like gustar: the body part is the subject and the person appears as me, te, le. So it is me duele la espalda, never «yo duelo».
This is how all pain is expressed: me duele la cabeza, me duelen las piernas.
un maillot rojo
newa red jersey
Maillot is a French word Spanish uses for a cycling jersey. At La Vuelta the rider leading the overall classification wears the red one.
The word you need to follow cycling in Spanish.
mucha gente
newmany people, a lot of people
Gente is singular in Spanish, so the verb is singular too: mucha gente conoce, mucha gente hace. Never «la gente son».
A very common phrase and a classic learner mistake.
hacer el Camino
newto do the Camino de Santiago
Spanish says hacer el Camino, not to walk it or travel it. The Camino is the pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.
The set phrase everyone who has walked or ridden it uses.
Key words
Vocabulary that carries the school-day topic.
Brakes
frenos
brakes
A masculine noun, almost always plural: los frenos. The verb frenar means to brake.
A key safety word; it appears three times in the text.
Handlebar
manillar
the handlebar
El manillar is masculine despite the -ar ending. A car steering wheel is a different word: el volante.
One of the few bike parts you cannot guess from English.
Saddle
sillín
the saddle, the bike seat
Sillín comes from silla (chair) and is stressed on the last syllable, hence the written accent: sillín.
You need it to complain about an uncomfortable seat at the bike shop.
Helmet
casco
helmet
Casco covers a cycling, motorcycle or construction helmet alike.
In Spain a helmet is compulsory on interurban roads, so this word is also a rule.
Padlock
candado
padlock, bike lock
Candado is a padlock. A lock built into a door is a cerradura.
You need it to buy a bike lock in a Spanish shop.
Bike lane
carril bici
bike lane
A compound noun: carril (lane) + bici (short for bicicleta). The second word does not change: los carriles bici.
It is on street signs everywhere; Seville is known for its carril bici network.
Grammar in context
Patterns from the text worth noticing after reading.
Estar: mood and state
estoy muy contento con ella
I am very happy with it
States and moods take estar, not ser: estoy contento, estoy cansado. The text puts both verbs side by side: es roja (a permanent property) and estoy contento (a state).
One sentence of the article shows the ser and estar contrast.
Poder + infinitive
puedo ir a muchos sitios sin autobús
I can go to many places without the bus
Poder is always followed by an infinitive: puedo ir, puedes venir. It is stem changing: o becomes ue (poder, puedo).
The basic pattern for saying what you can and cannot do.
hay: there is, there are
En Barcelona hay bicicletas públicas
in Barcelona there are public bicycles
Hay does not change for number: hay un carril bici, hay bicicletas públicas. It is followed by un, una, muchos, pocos, but never by el or la.
This is how you say what a city or a neighbourhood has.
Questions with tú
¿Montas en bicicleta todos los días?
do you ride a bike every day?
The tú forms end in -s: montas, llevas, tienes, quieres. A question is written between two marks: ¿ at the start and ? at the end.
These are the forms you ask another person with, and the article closes with them.
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