How Many Ways Can You 'Get It' in Spanish?
Wednesday August 6, 2008
Saying what you want to say in Spanish isn't always easy. Here's a question that one of the users in our forum had recently: "I have no idea how to say "get" in spanish. Is it sacar, tomar, tener? Example: Today I tried to ask my Spanish teacher if I could go to my locker to get my book. How would you say that in Spanish?"
Indeed, it's confusing. The first answer to the question was insightful: "The English verb 'get' has many meanings and is used in many idioms. Spanish translates each of them differently."
Indeed, there are dozens of ways you can say "get" in Spanish. Our lesson on "get" provides some of the most common ones.
Comments
Spanish seems to be a more specific than English, so when you say that you want to “go to your locker and get your book” what you really mean is that you need to bring back (or take out) your book. If you want to “run to the store and get some milk” in Spanish you would have to say that you want to go to the store and buy some milk. Learners often make the mistake of translating our word ‘get’ into obtener or conseguir rather than thinking about what they really want to do with the book, the milk, etc.