B1 · Unit 15 · 44 words, 3 texts with translation
Talk about yourself at a job interview
Talk about your education, skills, strengths and weaknesses at a job interview, and join sentences with lo que, donde and quien (what, where, who).
Texts in this unit
Grammar in this unit
Lo que, donde, quien: what, where, who
You already know que — "that, who, which": la chica que vive aquí — the girl who lives here (A2, unit 17). Three more words work the same way: they also join two sentences into one. When you talk about yourself, you need them all the time: "what I can do", "the company where I work", "the people I work with".
| Word | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| lo que | "what, the thing that": the thing isn't named | lo que busco — what I'm looking for |
| donde | after a word for a place | la empresa donde trabajo — the company where I work |
| preposition + quien | about a person | la jefa con quien hablé — the boss I talked to |
Lo que stands for a whole idea, someone's words or something someone did:
- No entiendo lo que dice. — I don't understand what he's saying.
- Lo que más me gusta es el horario. — What I like most is the schedule.
- Eso es todo lo que sé. — That's all I know.
Donde — "where", "in which":
- Vivo en el barrio donde está el mercado. — I live in the neighborhood where the market is.
- Estudié en Sevilla, donde vive mi familia. — I studied in Seville, where my family lives.
At this level, quien comes only after a preposition: con quien (with whom), a quien (to whom), de quien (about whom). For several people it's quienes.
- Es la persona a quien tienes que llamar. — That's the person you have to call.
- Los compañeros con quienes trabajo son muy majos. — The coworkers I work with are really nice.
English often puts the preposition at the end ("the people I work with") or drops the linking word. Spanish can't do either: the preposition always comes first, right before quien: con quien trabajo — word for word "with whom I work".
For a person without a preposition, it's still que: la mujer que me llamó — the woman who called me (not quien).
Written accent. Question words have an accent: ¿qué?, ¿dónde?, ¿quién?. These linking words don't: lo que, donde, quien.
Common mistake: using plain que for "what" in the middle of a sentence. Not ✗ no entiendo que dices, but no entiendo lo que dices. And "everything that" is todo lo que, not ✗ todo que.
Lo + adjective: lo bueno, lo importante, lo mejor
How do you say "the main thing", "the hardest part" or "the bad thing is that…"? Spanish uses lo + adjective. This isn't the lo that means "him" or "it" (A2, unit 5): here lo turns an adjective into "the … thing", so you don't need a noun.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| lo bueno / lo malo | the good thing, the upside / the bad thing, the downside |
| lo importante | the important thing, the main thing |
| lo mejor / lo peor | the best thing / the worst thing |
| lo difícil | the hard part |
| lo primero | the first thing, first of all |
| lo mismo | the same thing |
Usually es comes next, and then a noun, a verb or que…:
- Lo importante es el equipo. — The important thing is the team.
- Lo mejor es preguntar. — The best thing is to ask.
- Lo bueno es que hay teletrabajo. Lo malo es que está lejos. — The good thing is that there's remote work. The bad thing is that it's far.
- Lo mejor de este trabajo son los compañeros. — The best thing about this job is the coworkers.
- Lo más difícil fue la primera semana. — The hardest part was the first week.
Notice son in the fourth example: when the noun after the verb is plural, the verb is plural too, even where English says "is".
Lo and the adjective don't change here: always the masculine singular form, whatever you're talking about.
Don't confuse it with el mejor, la mejor (unit 11) or with a lo mejor:
- El mejor candidato — the best candidate, one particular person. Lo mejor is "the best thing" in general.
- a lo mejor — maybe. It's a different expression, not "the best".
Common mistake: saying ✗ el importante es… That means "the important (man) is…". For "the important thing" as an idea, only lo importante works.
Words in this unit
lo que — what, the thing that
No entiendo lo que dices. — I don't understand what you're saying.
donde — where
Esta es la empresa donde trabajo. — This is the company where I work.
quien — who, whom
La persona con quien hablé es muy simpática. — The person I talked to is very nice.
lo importante — the important thing, the main thing
Lo importante es estar tranquilo. — The important thing is to stay calm.
lo mejor — the best thing, the best part
Lo mejor de mi trabajo es el horario. — The best thing about my job is the schedule.
el candidato — candidate
Hay cinco candidatos para este trabajo. — There are five candidates for this job.
oferta de trabajo — job ad, job posting, job offer
Busco ofertas de trabajo por internet. — I'm looking for job ads online.
la formación — training, education, background
Tengo una buena formación. — I have good training.
los estudios — studies, education
Terminé mis estudios en junio. — I finished my studies in June.
el título — degree, diploma; title
Tengo un título de la universidad. — I have a university degree.
el salario — salary, pay
El salario es de mil quinientos euros. — The salary is fifteen hundred euros.
la habilidad — skill, ability
Mi mejor habilidad es hablar con la gente. — My best skill is talking to people.
la capacidad — ability; capacity
Ella tiene capacidad para aprender rápido. — She has the ability to learn fast.
el conocimiento — knowledge
Tengo conocimientos de inglés. — I have some knowledge of English.
punto fuerte — strong point, strength
Mi punto fuerte es la organización. — My strong point is organization.
punto débil — weak point, weakness
Mi punto débil es hablar en público. — My weak point is speaking in public.
trabajar en equipo — to work in a team, to work as a team
Me gusta trabajar en equipo. — I like working in a team.
recursos humanos — human resources, HR
Trabajo en recursos humanos. — I work in human resources.
disponible — available
Estoy disponible desde el lunes. — I'm available from Monday.
flexible — flexible
Mi horario es flexible. — My schedule is flexible.
motivado — motivated
Estoy muy motivada con este trabajo. — I'm very motivated about this job (woman speaking).
la motivación — motivation
Tengo mucha motivación. — I have a lot of motivation.
organizado — organized
Soy una persona muy organizada. — I'm a very organized person.
creativo — creative
Mi hermana es muy creativa. — My sister is very creative.
profesional — professional
Mi jefe es muy profesional. — My boss is very professional.
personal — personal
Tengo un problema personal. — I have a personal problem.
desarrollar — to develop
Quiero desarrollar mis habilidades. — I want to develop my skills.
aportar — to contribute, to bring
Quiero aportar ideas nuevas al equipo. — I want to bring new ideas to the team.
destacar — to stand out; to highlight
Mi hermana destaca en el trabajo. — My sister stands out at work.
incorporarse — to join, to start (a job)
Me incorporo a la empresa el lunes. — I'm joining the company on Monday.
el teletrabajo — remote work, working from home
Hago teletrabajo dos días a la semana. — I do remote work two days a week.
la impresión — impression
Mi primera impresión es buena. — My first impression is good.
causar buena impresión — to make a good impression
Quiero causar buena impresión en la entrevista. — I want to make a good impression at the interview.
el interés — interest
Tengo mucho interés en este trabajo. — I have a strong interest in this job.
valorar — to value, to appreciate; to assess
Valoro mucho tu ayuda. — I really value your help.
la competencia — skill, competence; competition
El inglés es una competencia necesaria para este puesto. — English is a necessary skill for this position.
la virtud — virtue, good quality
La paciencia es una virtud. — Patience is a virtue.
el informe — report
Hoy escribo un informe para mi jefe. — Today I'm writing a report for my boss.
obtener — to get, to obtain
Obtengo buenos resultados. — I get good results.
el placer — pleasure
Es un placer conocerte. — It's a pleasure to meet you.
en cuanto a — as for, regarding
En cuanto a mí, no hay problema. — As for me, there's no problem.
la vacante — vacancy, opening
Hay una vacante en recursos humanos. — There's an opening in human resources.
dar pena — to make (someone) sad, to feel bad about
Me da pena dejar este piso. — It makes me sad to leave this apartment.
de todas formas — anyway, in any case
No sé si iré. De todas formas, te llamo. — I don't know if I'll go. Anyway, I'll call you.
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