Ask a Question

(Create a thread)
Go Back   Spanish language learning forums > Spanish & English Languages > Grammar


The second person plural

 

This is the place for questions about conjugations, verb tenses, adverbs, adjectives, word order, syntax and other grammar questions for English or Spanish.


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old May 27, 2008, 07:07 PM
Jane's Avatar
Jane Jane is offline
Emerald
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Spain
Posts: 727
Native Language: English
Jane will become famous soon enough
The second person plural

I noticed that people from Columbia don´t use the 2nd person plural, i.e vosotros/vosotras the way we use it here in Spain.
I´m still having a bit of a hard time reconciling their usage to what I learnt in my Spanish classes.
Does this happen in the rest of the Spanish speaking countries?
__________________
Life´s Beautiful !
It gets even better!!!
Jane.
Reply With Quote
   
Get rid of these ads by registering for a free Tomísimo account.
  #2  
Old May 27, 2008, 07:47 PM
Rusty's Avatar
Rusty Rusty is offline
Señor Speedy
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: USA
Posts: 11,370
Native Language: American English
Rusty has a spectacular aura aboutRusty has a spectacular aura about
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jane View Post
I noticed that people from Columbia don´t use the 2nd person plural, i.e vosotros/vosotras the way we use it here in Spain.
I´m still having a bit of a hard time reconciling their usage to what I learnt in my Spanish classes.
Does this happen in the rest of the Spanish speaking countries?
The 2nd person plural is not used in Latin America (Western Hemisphere). What you learned in your Spanish classes is glossed over in this hemisphere. Its use in the older versions of the Bible, though, ensures that many will understand it, but won't use it in everyday communication.
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old May 28, 2008, 08:09 AM
Tomisimo's Avatar
Tomisimo Tomisimo is offline
Davidísimo
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: North America
Posts: 5,664
Native Language: American English
Tomisimo will become famous soon enoughTomisimo will become famous soon enough
Y cabe agregar, in the Americas, they use ustedes in place of vosotros/vosotras.

Also the second person singluar informal in some areas is vos instead of tu.

In Costa Rica, they use almost exclusively usted and ustedes for everyone (no tu/vos/vosotros). I often heard little children fighting, calling each other names in usted. Or also, parents talking to their children in usted.
__________________
If you find something wrong with my Spanish, please correct it!
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old May 28, 2008, 08:50 AM
Rusty's Avatar
Rusty Rusty is offline
Señor Speedy
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: USA
Posts: 11,370
Native Language: American English
Rusty has a spectacular aura aboutRusty has a spectacular aura about
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tomisimo View Post
Y cabe agregar, in the Americas, they use ustedes in place of vosotros/vosotras.

Also the second person singluar informal in some areas is vos instead of tu.

In Costa Rica, they use almost exclusively usted and ustedes for everyone (no tu/vos/vosotros). I often heard little children fighting, calling each other names in usted. Or also, parents talking to their children in usted.
Agreed. I've mentioned this before. In neighboring countries to Costa Rica, they use vos instead of tu. I thought I wrote something about that conjugation, but I couldn't find it. If anyone wants more information about vos, there is sure to be something on the Internet.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old April 10, 2011, 09:06 PM
JimOfMex JimOfMex is offline
Opal
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Costa Rica
Posts: 1
Native Language: English
JimOfMex is on a distinguished road
Hi, I am finally making significant progress on using Spanish. I've studied it all of my life, but I made little progress until I moved to Costa Rica. I lived in Mexico in the Chapala area outside of Guadalajara for 3 years. I love Mexico, but I learned little Spanish. Too many people speak English there. In Costa Rica, I have had the opportunity to really learn. I hope to improve my Spanish greatly. I love it hear in Costa Rica. I have no plans to ever leave.

I look forward to opportunities to communicate in Spanish with other members, if possible.

Best,
Jim

This is an old thread, yet here I am replying. I speak with people here in Spanish daily. My experience is somewhat different from the others in this thread. I find vos to be used constantly by everyone. I also find the 2nd person singular is never used. It is always 2nd person plural ... and not as in Spain. 2nd person plural is used as if singular. I also find that formal and informal forms are often intermixed in the same sentence.

My friend Leonardo from Cartago told me that they make allowances for Spanish speakers from other countries, but to Ticos (Costa Ricans), the use of 2nd person singular indicates a lack of education. No one ever says <<¿Quieres tú algo?>>. It is always <<¿Quereís vos algo?>>.

However, it is correct to say <<¿Me gusta tu camisa?>>

My two cents.

Last edited by Rusty; April 11, 2011 at 04:30 PM. Reason: merged back-to-back posts
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old April 11, 2011, 04:48 PM
Rusty's Avatar
Rusty Rusty is offline
Señor Speedy
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: USA
Posts: 11,370
Native Language: American English
Rusty has a spectacular aura aboutRusty has a spectacular aura about
Hi Jim,

The use of vos (known as el voseo) is indeed very popular in Costa Rica. Here is a link that'll help you solidify its use (the Ticos use the 'General' form).

You'll read that vos is the singular form of the second person (not the plural), and that it replaces , also the singular form of the second person.

The plural form is ustedes (for both the second- and third-person form of 'you'), just like everywhere else in Latin America. In those countries, no one uses the second-person plural vosotros.

You'll also see that querés is the correct spelling of 'you want'. The spelling you provided is the one used for vosotros, and it is pronounced different.

¡Divertite!
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old April 11, 2011, 05:34 PM
laepelba's Avatar
laepelba laepelba is offline
Diamond
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Suburbs of Washington, DC (Northern Virginia)
Posts: 4,683
Native Language: American English (Northeastern US)
laepelba is on a distinguished road
I started a thread about the voseo form when I was going to Argentina: http://forums.tomisimo.org/showthread.php?t=8240
__________________
- Lou Ann, de Washington, DC, USA
Específicamente quiero recibir ayuda con el español de latinoamerica. ¡Muchísimas gracias!
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old April 11, 2011, 06:53 PM
ChilenoAlemanCanada ChilenoAlemanCanada is offline
Pearl
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Posts: 116
Native Language: English
ChilenoAlemanCanada is on a distinguished road
Fun fact: Chile has different conjugations for vos.

er + ir verbs = ís

Vos tenís, vos hacís, etc...

Whereas elsewhere, er verbs become tenés, hacés, and so on.

ar verbs become ái.

hablar = Vos hablái

__________________
Corrijan mis errores, por favor.

Last edited by ChilenoAlemanCanada; April 11, 2011 at 06:56 PM.
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old April 16, 2011, 06:18 AM
laepelba's Avatar
laepelba laepelba is offline
Diamond
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Suburbs of Washington, DC (Northern Virginia)
Posts: 4,683
Native Language: American English (Northeastern US)
laepelba is on a distinguished road
Those conjugations for vos with the -ar verbs is interesting!

In Argentina & Uruguay, the imperative form is also different:

(tú) ven = (vos) vení
etc....
__________________
- Lou Ann, de Washington, DC, USA
Específicamente quiero recibir ayuda con el español de latinoamerica. ¡Muchísimas gracias!
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old April 16, 2011, 10:06 PM
wrholt's Avatar
wrholt wrholt is offline
Sapphire
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Posts: 1,408
Native Language: US English
wrholt is on a distinguished road
Quote:
Originally Posted by laepelba View Post
Those conjugations for vos with the -ar verbs is interesting!

In Argentina & Uruguay, the imperative form is also different:

(tú) ven = (vos) vení
etc....
It's the same way in Nicaragua, too. I found it remarkable that the vos imperatives were so regular: remove the final -r from the infinitive and maintain the tonic accent on the last syllable. The only problem verb is ir/irse, which by the rule would be *i or *ite. When I was living in Nicaragua everyone said andá and andate instead.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
usted, vos, vosotros

 

Link to this thread
URL: 
HTML Link: 
BB Code: 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Site Rules

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Plural nouns laepelba Grammar 7 December 13, 2010 03:43 AM
What verb conjugation to use with 2nd person plural subject laepelba Grammar 3 January 24, 2010 08:45 AM
3rd person singular only...... hola Grammar 4 February 14, 2009 11:26 AM
Trabalenguas = singular o plural? laepelba Vocabulary 16 February 10, 2009 09:03 AM


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:44 AM.

Forum powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.

X