B1 · Unit 16 · 42 words, 2 texts with translation
Tell someone what not to do
Learn to tell people what not to do, and talk about body parts, exercises and habits: the things trainers and grandmothers like to talk about.
Texts in this unit
Grammar in this unit
Negative commands: no hables, no comas
You already know the affirmative command, "do it": habla, come, abre (A2, unit 6). But you can't make "don't do it" just by adding no: no habla doesn't mean "don't speak." The negative command has its own form, and you'll hear it all day long: at the gym, at the doctor's, at home.
How to form it. Take the yo form of the present tense, drop the -o and add the "opposite" vowel: -ar verbs take e, -er and -ir verbs take a.
| To whom | hablar (hablo) | comer (como) | abrir (abro) |
|---|---|---|---|
| tú | no hables | no comas | no abras |
| usted | no hable | no coma | no abra |
| vosotros | no habléis | no comáis | no abráis |
You already know the usted row: it's the same tome, abra from A2 (unit 15), just with no in front. What's new is the forms for tú and vosotros.
- No corras por la escalera. — Don't run on the stairs.
- No comas antes de entrenar. — Don't eat before working out.
- No abras la ventana, que hace frío. — Don't open the window, it's cold.
- No fume aquí, por favor. — Don't smoke here, please (formal).
- Chicos, no gritéis. — Guys, don't shout.
This form has a name: the present subjunctive. It's used for more than commands, but that comes later (unit 18). For now, one thing is enough: in a command after no, you use this form.
Common mistake: building the negative from the affirmative command, the way English does ("eat" → "don't eat"): come → ✗ no come. But no come means "he doesn't eat." "Don't eat" is only no comas.
Irregular negative commands: no digas, no hagas, no vayas, no seas
You already know the verbs whose yo form ends in -go: hago, pongo, salgo (A2, unit 1). That matters here: the negative command is built from the yo form, with all its quirks.
| Verb | yo form | Negative command |
|---|---|---|
| decir | digo | no digas |
| hacer | hago | no hagas |
| tener | tengo | no tengas |
| salir | salgo | no salgas |
| poner | pongo | no pongas |
| venir | vengo | no vengas |
Stem-changing verbs work the same way: cierro → no cierres, vuelvo → no vuelvas, pido → no pidas, duermo → no duermas.
Two verbs you just have to memorize. Their yo form doesn't end in -o (voy, soy), so their negative command is special:
ir→ no vayas — don't go;ser→ no seas — don't be.
Examples:
- No digas eso. — Don't say that.
- No hagas ruido, que Dani duerme. — Don't make any noise, Dani's sleeping.
- No tengas miedo. — Don't be afraid.
- No salgas sin chaqueta. — Don't go out without a jacket.
- No vayas por esa calle de noche. — Don't go down that street at night.
- No seas tonto. — Don't be silly (to a man).
Spelling. To keep the same sound, a letter changes before e: llegar → no llegues, tocar → no toques, empezar → no empieces.
Common mistake: no vas instead of no vayas. No vas means "you're not going": just a fact. The command is no vayas.
Pronouns before the verb: no lo hagas, no te sientes
You already know that in an affirmative command the pronoun is attached to the end of the verb: hazlo, siéntate, dímelo (unit 12). In a negative command it's the other way around: the pronoun is a separate word before the verb, right after no.
| Do it | Don't do it |
|---|---|
| hazlo — do it | no lo hagas |
| siéntate — sit down | no te sientes |
| levántate — get up | no te levantes |
| espérame — wait for me | no me esperes |
| dímelo — tell me (it) | no me lo digas |
The order is always the same: no + pronoun + verb. Only a pronoun can come between no and the verb.
- No te preocupes. — Don't worry. You've known this phrase since A2; now you can see how it's built.
- No te levantes, ya abro yo. — Don't get up, I'll get the door.
- El café está muy caliente, no lo bebas todavía. — The coffee is very hot, don't drink it yet.
- No me llames después de las once. — Don't call me after eleven.
- No se lo digas a nadie. — Don't tell anyone.
- With usted: No se preocupe. — Don't worry (formal).
The written accent you saw in siéntate and dímelo isn't needed here: the word didn't get longer.
Common mistake: attaching the pronoun as in the affirmative command: ✗ no hazlo, ✗ no siéntate. Nobody says that. The correct forms are no lo hagas and no te sientes.
Words in this unit
el ejercicio — exercise
Hago ejercicio tres veces por semana. — I exercise three times a week.
el entrenador — trainer, coach
El entrenador llega a las seis. — The trainer (male) arrives at six.
entrenar — to train, to work out, to coach
Entreno en el gimnasio tres días por semana. — I train at the gym three days a week.
el entrenamiento — training, workout
El entrenamiento dura una hora. — The workout lasts an hour.
el músculo — muscle
Con este ejercicio trabajas todos los músculos. — With this exercise you work all your muscles.
la fuerza — strength, force
Mi abuelo todavía tiene mucha fuerza. — My grandfather still has a lot of strength.
estirar — to stretch
Antes de correr, estiro las piernas. — Before running, I stretch my legs.
el calentamiento — warm-up
Primero hacemos diez minutos de calentamiento. — First we do ten minutes of warm-up.
agotado — exhausted, worn out
Estoy agotada después del entrenamiento. — I'm exhausted after the workout (woman speaking).
la lesión — injury
Tengo una lesión en la rodilla. — I have a knee injury.
hacerse daño — to hurt yourself, to get hurt
Ten cuidado, no te hagas daño. — Be careful, don't hurt yourself.
la rodilla — knee
Me duele la rodilla derecha. — My right knee hurts.
el hombro — shoulder
Me duele el hombro izquierdo. — My left shoulder hurts.
el cuello — neck
Me duele el cuello de tanto trabajar con el ordenador. — My neck hurts from working at the computer so much.
el tobillo — ankle
Me duele el tobillo. — My ankle hurts.
la postura — posture, pose
Tienes una mala postura delante del ordenador. — You have bad posture at the computer.
la posición — position
Empezamos en esta posición. — We start in this position.
el movimiento — movement, motion
Haz este movimiento despacio. — Do this movement slowly.
doblar — to bend, to fold, to turn
Dobla un poco las rodillas. — Bend your knees a little.
agacharse — to bend down, to crouch, to squat
Agáchate y coge la pelota. — Bend down and pick up the ball.
forzar — to strain, to force
No fuerces la rodilla si te duele. — Don't strain your knee if it hurts.
rendirse — to give up
Nunca me rindo. — I never give up.
prohibir — to forbid, to ban
Mi médico me prohíbe comer dulces. — My doctor forbids me to eat sweets.
proteger — to protect
Un buen abrigo te protege del frío. — A good coat protects you from the cold.
ni se te ocurra — don't you dare, don't even think about it
Ni se te ocurra tocar eso. — Don't you dare touch that.
ay — ow, oh
¡Ay! Me he hecho daño. — Ow! I've hurt myself.
saludable — healthy
Una dieta saludable tiene mucha fruta y verdura. — A healthy diet has lots of fruit and vegetables.
el hábito — habit
Beber agua es un buen hábito. — Drinking water is a good habit.
la dieta — diet
Estoy a dieta desde el lunes. — I've been on a diet since Monday.
la enfermedad — illness, disease
Mi abuelo está en casa por una enfermedad. — My grandfather is at home because of an illness.
la medicina — medicine
Tomo la medicina dos veces al día. — I take the medicine twice a day.
la operación — operation, surgery
Mi padre tiene una operación el lunes. — My father is having an operation on Monday.
abrigarse — to bundle up, to dress warmly
Abrígate bien, que hace frío. — Bundle up well, it's cold.
descalzo — barefoot
Los niños juegan descalzos en la playa. — The kids play barefoot on the beach.
la corriente — draft
Cierra la ventana, que hay corriente. — Close the window, there's a draft.
el sudor — sweat
Tengo la camiseta llena de sudor. — My T-shirt is soaked with sweat.
la resistencia — endurance, stamina, resistance
Para correr mucho hace falta resistencia. — To run a lot, you need endurance.
la flexión — push-up
Hago diez flexiones cada mañana. — I do ten push-ups every morning.
las agujetas — sore muscles
Tengo agujetas en las piernas. — My legs are sore.
la superstición — superstition
Mi abuela tiene muchas supersticiones. — My grandmother has lots of superstitions.
el refrán — saying, proverb
Mi abuela siempre tiene un refrán para todo. — My grandmother always has a saying for everything.
hacer caso — to listen to, to pay attention to
Nunca me haces caso. — You never listen to me.
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