You are here
4.1 Translating the Spanish present simple tense to English
There are some differences in the uses of the present tense in Spanish and English that merit study for the purpose of improving the grammar of our English target texts. Sometimes in translating we are tempted to conjugate the verb into whichever tense it is in within the source text; however, this approach leads to confusing translations which do not read naturally. Keeping in mind the priority of message over form, we need to discover the best way to communicate the meaning of the message, which may involve using a different verb tense than the one used in the source text.
a) Verb Tense Review
First, since we refer to many different verb tenses in this Lesson, it may be helpful to review the form of these verbs tenses in both English and Spanish. A conjugated verb is a verb which has changed its form to agree with a pronoun. For example: “He writes” or “él escribe”. An infinitive verb is a verb in its non-conjugated form, for example “to write” or “escribir”
To review the forms of present verb tenses in English and Spanish, look over the charts below:
| Present simple |
I live we live you live you live he/she/it lives they live |
| Present continuous |
I am living we are living you are living you are living he/she/it is living they are living |
| Present perfect |
I have lived we have lived you have lived you have lived he/she/ it has lived they have lived |
| Present perfect continuous |
I have been living we have been living you have been living you have been living he/she/ it has been living they have been living |
| Present simple |
yo vivo nosotros vivimos tú vives él/ella/ vive ellos/ellas/ viven usted ustedes |
| Present continuous |
yo estoy viviendo nosotros estamos viviendo tú estás viviendo él/ella/ está viviendo ellos/ellas/ están viviendo usted ustedes |
| Present perfect |
yo he vivido nosotros hemos vivido tú has vivido él/ella/ ha vivido ellos/ellas/ han vivido usted ustedes |
| Present perfect continuous |
yo he estado viviendo tú has estado viviendo él/ella/usted ha estado viviendo nosotros hemos estado viviendo ellos/ellas/ustedes han estado viviendo |
b) Chart - Uses of the Spanish present simple tense:
The most important of the different usages of the Spanish present tense are outlined in the following table:
| Usage of the present simple tense in Spanish | Spanish Examples | English Translation |
|
1. “Ella vive en Salem.” 2. “Trabajo en un hotel.” 3. “Pedro es mexicano.” |
The present simple 1. “She lives in Salem.” 2. “I work in a hotel.” 3. “Pedro is Mexican.” |
|
1. “Hoy lleva un vestido azul.” 2. “¿Qué haces?” 3. “Brilla el sol.” |
The present continuous 1. “She’s wearing a blue dress today.” 2. “What are you doing?” 3. “The sun is shining.” |
|
1. “Lo termino cuando pueda.” 2. “Les aviso de cualquier cambio.” 3. “Vamos a California mañana.” |
The future or present continuous 1. “I’ll finish it when I can.” 2. “I’ll let you know if anything changes.” 3. “We’re going to California tomorrow.” |
|
1. “Hace tres años que trabajo allí.” 2. “Él lleva seis meses en la carcel.” |
The present perfect 1. “I’ve worked there for three years.” 2. “He’s been in jail for six months.” |
b) Explanation of the uses of the Spanish present simple tense
The present simple in English (I talk) has a fairly limited usage - it is only used for activities that are habitual or unchanging. It is never used to refer to actions occurring in the moment (which requires the present continuous, I’m talking), to refer to the future (which requires the future I will talk or I’m going to talk), or to refer to a reality that began in the past and continues in the present (which require the present perfect, I’ve talked or present perfect continuous I’ve been talking).
Meanwhile the present tense in Spanish is a very versatile tense which is used for all of the above-mentioned purposes. We’ll go into a little more detail here for each usage of the present simple tense in Spanish:
1. To describe habitual actions or unchanging realities
In this case the verb would be translated in the same tense in Spanish and English. In both languages, the present simple tense (hablo/ I talk) is often used to describe habitual actions or realities that are not changing.
Example 4.1
Source Text
Translation
2. To describe events occurring in the present
The differences between the continuous forms in Spanish and English are subtle and sometimes confusing. We will explore this topic in more detail in the next section of this lesson. For our purposes now, let us note that the present tense (hablo) in Spanish is often used to to describe actions or realities that are occurring in the present, which requires the use of the present continuous form in English (I’m talking). Translating the verb tense literally in this case would be an example of prioritizing form above message and would alter the message of the source text.
Example 4.2
Source Text
Translation which prioritizes form above message
Improved Translation
3. To make promises or talk about the near future
In Spanish, the present tense (hablo) is often used to refer to the future. This usage is common for making promises and talking about plans in the immediate future and is not permitted in English which requires the future tense (I will talk/ I’ll talk) for making promises or the present continuous (I’m talking) to refer to the near future. Again, to translate the verb into the present simple tense in English would be making the mistake of prioritizing form over message.
Example 4.3
Source Text
Translation which prioritizes form above message
Improved Translation
4. To express realities that began in the past and continue in the present
The present simple in Spanish is also used to express realities that began in the past and continue into the present, for example, with the verbs llevar, tener, and hacer and expressions of time. This usage requires the present perfect in English (have/has talked) or present perfect continuous (have/has been talking). We will describe these time expressions in more detail later in this lesson.
Example 4.4
Source Text
Translation which prioritizes form above message
Improved Translation