Spanish · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 28
El tiempoThe weather
Weather and seasons vocabulary: el tiempo (weather), el calor (heat), el frío (cold), el sol (sun), la lluvia (rain), el viento (wind), llover (to rain), nevar (to snow), el verano (summer), el invierno (winter). Key grammar: weather is expressed with impersonal "hacer", not "ser": "Hace calor" (it is hot), "Hace frío" (it is cold), "Hace sol" (it is sunny), "Hace viento" (it is windy). Other forms: "Llueve" (it rains), "Nieva" (it snows), "Está nublado" (it is cloudy). A person who feels cold or hot uses "tener": "Tengo frío" (I am cold). English speakers calque "it is hot" → "Es caliente" ✗ → "Hace calor" ✓, and "I am cold" → "Soy frío" ✗ → "Tengo frío" ✓.
Dialogue
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¿Qué tiempo hace?— What is the weather like?
- Lucía¿Qué tiempo hace hoy?What is the weather like today?
- MikeHoy es muy caliente. Y esta noche yo soy frío.Today it is very hot. And tonight I am cold. (slip: weather uses "hace" — "Hace calor"; a person uses "tener" — "Tengo frío")
- LucíaEl tiempo no "es" caliente: "hace calor". Y tú no "eres" frío: "tienes frío".The weather is not "es" caliente: "hace calor". And you are not "eres" frío: "tienes frío".
- MikeAh, hoy hace calor, pero esta noche tengo frío.Ah, today it is hot, but tonight I am cold.
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El verano y el invierno— Summer and winter
- CarlosEn verano hace mucho sol. Me gusta.In summer it is very sunny. I like it.
- Lucía¿Y en invierno? ¿Hace frío?And in winter? Is it cold?
- CarlosSí, hace mucho frío y a veces nieva.Yes, it is very cold and sometimes it snows.
- LucíaHoy está nublado y llueve un poco.Today it is cloudy and it is raining a little.
- CarlosTengo frío. ¿Tomamos un café?I am cold. Shall we have a coffee?
Vocabulary
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- el tiempo
nounthe weather
- el calor
nounheat
- el frío
nouncold
- el sol
nounsun
- la lluvia
nounrain
- el viento
nounwind
- llover
verbto rain (llueve)
- nevar
verbto snow (nieva)
- el verano
nounsummer
- el invierno
nounwinter
Grammar
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The weather: "hace calor", not "es caliente"
Explanation
For the weather, Spanish uses "hacer" impersonally (always "hace"), not "ser": "Hace calor" (it is hot), "Hace frío" (it is cold), "Hace sol" (it is sunny), "Hace viento" (it is windy), "Hace buen/mal tiempo" (the weather is good/bad). Other phenomena have their own verb: "Llueve" (from llover, it rains), "Nieva" (from nevar, it snows), and "Está nublado" (with estar, it is cloudy). Beware two calques from English: (1) "it is hot" is NOT "es caliente" (that describes an object that burns) → "Hace calor". (2) When a PERSON feels cold or hot, use "tener", not "ser": "Tengo frío" (I am cold), "Tengo calor" (I am hot) — "Soy frío" would mean you are a cold-hearted person. Summary: the weather → "hace"; the person → "tiene".
Examples
- Hoy hace calor.Today it is hot.
- En invierno hace frío y nieva.In winter it is cold and it snows.
- Está nublado y llueve.It is cloudy and it is raining.
- Tengo frío. ¿Y tú?I am cold. And you?
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