The 36th Word of the Month is: DAILY ROUTINE

This word originally appeared in our Spanish word of the month by email

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Introduction

This month's Word of the Month has a list of common verbs which are used to talk about daily routines and some help with the present tense so that you can talk and ask about what you do.


Spanish
English
DAILY ROUTINE
despertar
Su madre la despierta a las ocho.		 to wake someone up
Her mother wakes her up at 8 o'clock.
despertarse
Me despierto muy temprano.		 to wake up
I wake up very early.
levantarse to get up
hacer la cama to make the bed
vestirse to get dressed
preparase to get ready
ducharse to have a shower
bañarse to have a bath
lavarse to have a wash
lavarse los dientes to clean your teeth
cepillarse los dientes to brush your teeth
lavarse el pelo / la cabeza to wash your hair
secarse el pelo to dry your hair
cepillarse el pelo to brush your hair
peinarse to comb your hair
secarse las manos to dry your hands
afeitarse to have a shave
limpiarse los zapatos to clean your shoes
maquillarse / pintarse to put on makeup
ponerse las lentillas to put in your contact lenses
ponerse la dentadura postiza;
ponerse los dientes postizos		 to put in your false teeth
desayunar / tomar el desayuno to have breakfast
almorzar / comer to have lunch
cenar to have dinner
hacer la comida to cook lunch, to get lunch ready
dar de comer al gato / perro to feed the cat / dog
regar las plantas to water the plants
poner la radio / televisión to switch on the radio / television
escuchar el radio to listen to the radio
ver la televisión / tele to watch television / telly
ir al colegio / al trabajo / a la universidad / a la oficina to go to school / work / university / the office
tomar / coger* el autobús / tren to catch the bus / train
empezar a trabajar / entrar a trabajar to start work
llegar a casa to get home (from work)
ir a casa to go home
desvestirse / desnudarse to get undressed
acostarse to go to bed
poner el despertador to set the alarm clock
tomarse un descanso / echarse una siesta to have a rest
dormirse to fall asleep
quedarse dormido to oversleep
pasar la noche en vela to have a sleepless night
tener insomnio / sufrir de insomnio to suffer from insomnia

*Note: Be very careful with these two verbs depending on which Spanish speaking country you are in.
In Spain, it is very common to use the verb "coger".
However, this has a completely different, sexual meaning in certain South American countries. So, if you are in South America, it's safer to use "tomar".

DAILY ROUTINE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
¿A qué hora te levantas? What time do you get up?
¿Con qué frecuencia vas al cine?
¿Cada cuánto vas al cine?		 How often do you go to the cinema?
Voy al cine una vez / dos veces a la semana / al mes / al año. I go to the cinema once / twice a week / month / year.
A veces / Nunca voy al teatro.
Voy al teatro a menudo.		 I sometimes / never go to the theatre.
I often go to the theatre.
¿Cuánto tardas en llegar al trabajo? How long does it take you to get to work?
¿Dónde vives? Where do you live?
¿Cuánto café bebes? How much coffee do you drink?
¿Qué sueles desayunar? What do you usually have for breakfast?
¿Cómo llegas al colegio? How do you get to school?
¿A qué hora te acuestas? What time do you go to bed?
A NOTE ON REFLEXIVE VERBS
A lot of these verbs are reflexive e.g. to wash my hair = lavarse el pelo.
In English, the verb does not change but the possessive adjective before hair changes to reflect who is doing the action.
In Spanish, the verb is reflexive and changes to reflect who is doing the action.
Note: normally in Spanish, it is not normally necessary to use the subject pronoun (Yo, Tú, Él, Ella, Nosotros, Vosotros, Ellos, Ellas). However, if you need to distinguish between a girl and a boy then it is possible to include it (see below).
Me lavo el pelo. I wash my hair.
Te lavas el pelo. You wash your hair.
Se lava el pelo He washes his hair.
Se lava el pelo. She washes her hair.
Nos lavamos el pelo. We wash our hair.
Os laváis el pelo. You wash your hair.
Se lavan el pelo. They wash their hair.
Él se lava el pelo por la mañana pero ella se lava el pelo por la tarde. He washes his hair in the morning but she washes her hair in the afternoon.

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