Spanish Proficiency Exercises
Describe in detail an experience in an auto accident.


Simplified and native speakers:

• Simplified example
• José A.
• Carlos G.
• Mauro G.
• Javier E.
• Daniela T.

.m4v (iPod) downloads
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• Simplified example
• José A.
• Carlos G.
• Mauro G.
• Javier E.
• Daniela T.

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Key vocabulary for this task


Example phrases for this task


Grammar points for this task

Simplified Example
"Una vez tuve un accidente en una carretera..."
José A.
México, D.F.
"Bueno, una vez en una carretera aquí en México..."
Carlos G.
México, Delicias, Chihuahua
"Fue un día junto con un amigo. Viajamos a Cuahutémoc, Chihuahua..."
Mauro G.
Perú, Tarma, Junín
"Una vez en el bus de la avenida Bancay, en Lima en los años 89..."
Javier E.
Ecuador, Azuay, Cuenca
"Bueno, una vez yo tenía creo que unos quince o dieciséis años..."
Daniela T.
Argentina, Neuquén
"Hace un tiempo fue mi primer choque automovilístico..."
accidente (m)   accident
atasco (m)   traffic jam
atropellar a alguien/algo   to run into someone/something
avenida (f)   avenue
calle (f)   street
carretera (f)   freeway
carril (m)   lane
coche (m)/carro (m)   car
conducir/manejar   to drive
cruce (m)   intersection
frenar   to brake
golpear   to hit
infracción de tráfico (f)   traffic violation
paso de peatones (m)   crosswalk
peatón (m)   pedestrian
seguro (m)   insurance
semáforo (m)   traffic light
tráfico (m)   traffic
volante (m)   steering wheel
El señor me golpeó por detrás. The man hit me from behind.
Le enseñé mi póliza de seguros. I showed him my insurance policy.
Conducía al trabajo y había mucho tráfico. I was driving to work and there was a lot of traffic.
La policía llegó después de diez minutos. The police arrived ten minutes later.
Acababa de empezar a llover y no se veía muy bien. It started to rain and you couldn't see very well.
El señor delante de mí frenó de repente. The man in front of me suddenly stopped.
Cuando el semáforo cambió a verde entré en el cruce. When the traffic light turned green I pulled into the intersection.
Mirábamos el programa de "Dukes of Hazard" cuando se me ocurrió una idea. We were watching the program "the Dukes of Hazard" when an idea occurred to me.
Había muchos peatones en la calle. There were many pedestrians on the street.
El carro rojo se pasó un alto y atropelló al perro. The red car went through a stop sign and hit a dog.
Diego perdió control del volante y de repente se volcó el coche. Diego lost control of the steering wheel and suddenly the car tipped over.
Preterite vs. Imperfect

For a non-native speaker, deciding which past tense to use in Spanish can be tricky. There are, however, some guidelines which will help you choose between the two.

1. The preterite is used to describe completed actions in the past:

Pasó una semana. A week went by.
  Hablé con el director. I spoke with the director.
  Hice mi tarea. I did my homework.

The imperfect, on the other hand, is used for ongoing past actions. These actions tend to be interrupted by another action. For example:

Caminaban por la calle cuando empezó a llover. They were walking down the street when it began to rain.
  Juan se bañaba cuando llegaste. Juan was taking a shower when you arrived.

2. The imperfect is used to give background information which sets the stage for the principal action:

Era un día muy bonito, no hacía calor y había una brisa muy fresca. It was a very nice day, it wasn't hot and there was a very fresh breeze.
  Todos estábamos preocupados por el examen: Adolfo sudaba, Gabriel repasaba su tarea y Lupe no podía dejar de hablar. We were all nervous about the exam: Adolfo was sweating, Gabriel was reviewing his homework, and Lupe couldn't stop talking.

3. Simultaneous actions are expressed with the imperfect:

Mientras pescaban, hablaban del partido de fútbol. While they were fishing they talked about the soccer game.

4. When you want to refer to repeated past actions in situations that would require "used to" or "would" in English (e.g. I used to smoke; we would always meet at the arcade) use the imperfect in Spanish.

Yo jugaba tenis cada fin de semana cuando era niño. I used to play tennis every weekend when I was a child.
  Siempre hacíamos excursiones en bicicleta. We would always go for bike rides.

5A. Changes in one's mental state or feelings are expressed with the preterite. This is often expressed with the reflexive form and corresponds to "become + adjective" in English:

Me enfermé del estómago. I became sick to my stomach.
  Se enteró del error. He found out about the error.
  Te enojaste con el árbitro. You got mad at the referee.

5B. If it is a verb which indicates a state of mind or feelings, rather than a change of state of mind, then use the imperfect:

Yo no me sentía bien. I didn't feel well.
  No sabíamos quien era. We didn't know who it was.
  Estaban muy enojados. They were very angry.

6. Meaning changes: There are some cases in which two distinct English verbs will be needed to express what can be conveyed by the use of the preterite and imperfect in Spanish. Remember that the preterite refers to the beginning or ending of an action and the imperfect refers to an ongoing condition. For example:

Conocí a Miguel en 1998. I met Miguel in 1998.
  Yo conocía a Miguel en 2000. I knew Miguel in 2000.
 
  Juan supo las noticias y se enojó. Juan found out about the news and he got mad.
  Juan sabía las noticias y estaba enojado. Juan knew about the news and was angry.
 
  Tuve que ir a la junta. I had to go to the meeting.
  Tenía que ir a la junta. I was supposed to go to the meeting.