Gramática ~55 min del núcleo restante

Hablar de obligaciones y habilidades

Después de esta lección podrás

Puedo decir con precisión qué tengo que hacer, qué no hace falta que haga y qué he conseguido hacer.

Comenzar la lección Núcleo 55 min · pasos: 6 · opcional: +2

Tiempo declarado del núcleo. Dos bloques del núcleo no llevan cifra, por lo que la lección real es más larga que esta suma.

Gramática

16 min

Esta lección reúne dos temas que en A2 quedaron incompletos. El primero, la habilidad y el éxito: can (A1 #20) tiene demasiado pocas formas. El segundo, las normas: a must, have to (A2 #10) y should (A2 #11) se suman «es lo que toca», «está permitido» y «no hace falta».

be able to: la habilidad en cualquier tiempo. can solo tiene dos formas: can y could. No tiene futuro, ni perfecto, ni forma para ir detrás de otro verbo: ahí trabaja be able to.

futuro I'll be able to swim by the summer.
perfecto I haven't been able to sleep this week.
detrás de otro verbo I'd like to be able to speak French.
detrás de un modal You might be able to get a ticket online.
pasado I wasn't able to come yesterday.

En presente se dice normalmente can: I can swim suena más natural que I'm able to swim.

¿Sabía o pude? En pasado el inglés distingue lo mismo que el español separa con «podía» y «pude», pero con otras palabras. could es «podía», «sabía»: la habilidad en general, durante un tiempo: I could read when I was four. El éxito en un caso concreto, «pude», «conseguí», es was able to o managed to. managed to subraya que fue difícil, pero salió.

I could swim when I was six. Sabía nadar a los seis años.
The water was cold, but I managed to swim to the boat. Conseguí llegar nadando al barco, aquella vez.

En la negación esta diferencia no existe, couldn't sirve siempre: I couldn't find my keys this morning. Con los verbos de percepción see y hear, could también vale para un caso concreto: I could hear music next door.

was able to y managed to en afirmativa son casi iguales, pero managed to habla directamente de la dificultad y del esfuerzo. Por eso suele ir acompañado de but y in the end: It took three hours, but in the end we managed to fix it. Si no hubo dificultad, se dice simplemente en Past Simple: I finished the report on Friday.

be supposed to: es lo que toca, es lo acordado. La obligación no viene del hablante ni de la ley, sino de las normas, de un acuerdo o de lo que otros esperan. Es el «se supone que» español. You're supposed to take your shoes off in the house.: es la costumbre. I'm supposed to be at work at nine.: es lo acordado. A menudo esta forma deja oír que en la práctica sale de otra manera: I'm supposed to be working, but I'm watching football. En pasado es casi siempre «tenía que pasar, pero no pasó»: The train was supposed to arrive at six.: y llegó a las siete. not supposed to es una prohibición suave, por las normas, más suave que mustn't: You're not supposed to park here. Aquí supposed es un adjetivo, por eso be hace falta siempre: I'm supposed to, Were we supposed to…?

Compáralo con have to. I have to be at work at nine: no tengo elección; si llego tarde, habrá problemas. I'm supposed to be at work at nine: esa es la norma, pero suena como si se pudiera saltar, y quizá me la salte. Por eso be supposed to encaja bien cuando explicas por qué algo no salió según lo previsto.

be allowed to: se puede, está permitido. El permiso lo da otro: las normas, la ley, los padres, el jefe. allowed es la tercera forma de allow, «permitir», así que por su estructura es una pasiva, la que conoces del anuncio Pets aren't allowed (A2 #19): no «yo permito», sino «me está permitido». be cambia según la persona y el tiempo, y allowed to + verbo se queda igual.

afirmación We're allowed to use dictionaries in the exam.
negación You aren't allowed to smoke on the train.
pregunta Are we allowed to take photos?
pasado I wasn't allowed to stay out late as a child.
futuro Next year students will be allowed to use phones in class.

¿can o be allowed to? En presente, para el permiso se dice a menudo simplemente can: You can park here after six. be allowed to subraya que el permiso viene de las normas o de otra persona, y por eso suena más preciso cuando se informa o se pregunta por las normas: Are we allowed to bring food into the museum? En futuro y en perfecto can no tiene forma, y be allowed to es obligatorio, igual que be able to: Will we be allowed to park here? En pasado la frontera es la misma que entre could y managed to: could es un permiso en general, durante mucho tiempo (As a child I could watch TV until nine); was allowed to, un permiso en una ocasión (Yesterday we were allowed to leave early).

¿supposed to o allowed to? Las dos formas hablan de normas, pero dicen cosas distintas. supposed to es lo que hay que hacer; allowed to, lo que se puede hacer. En la negación la diferencia está en la fuerza:

You're supposed to wear a helmet. es lo que toca: una obligación
You're allowed to bring one bag. se puede: un permiso
You're not supposed to park here. no se debe, pero suave: mucha gente aparca igual
You're not allowed to park here. está prohibido: directamente, sin matices

don't need to: no hace falta. Es lo mismo que don't have to (A2 #10): se puede no hacer. Aquí need es un verbo normal con to, por eso la negación, la pregunta y el pasado se construyen con do: You don't need to come tomorrow. Does she need to bring anything? We didn't need to wait. No lo confundas con mustn't y not allowed to, «no se puede»: You don't need to come: no hace falta que vengas; You aren't allowed to come: tienes prohibido venir.

Toda la escala en un ejemplo:

I must finish today. lo he decidido yo
I have to finish today. lo exigen las circunstancias
I'm supposed to finish today. es lo acordado, pero ¿llegaré?
I should finish today. sería lo correcto
I'm allowed to finish tomorrow. me han permitido terminar mañana
I don't need to finish today. no hace falta
I mustn't forget the figures. prohibido

Así no se dice. ✗ We didn't need come so early → ✓ We didn't need to come so early. didn't need es un verbo normal, y detrás hace falta to.

Ponte a prueba. ¿could o managed to: «fue difícil, pero pude coger el tren»? ¿Qué significa The film was supposed to start at eight? ¿Cómo se dice «en el trabajo no nos dejan usar el móvil»?

mostrar las respuestas
managed to: un éxito en un caso concreto: It was difficult, but I managed to catch the train; la película tenía que empezar a las ocho, pero empezó más tarde o no empezó; We aren't allowed to use our phones at work / We're not allowed to use our phones at work.
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Errores de los hispanohablantes

escrito para tu idioma
1

Dos modales seguidos

✗ I will can swim

✓ I'll be able to swim

«Podré» es una sola palabra, y parece que basta con juntar will y can. Pero en inglés dos verbos modales no van seguidos; el segundo lugar lo ocupa be able to.

2

«Pude» traducido por could

✗ The exam was hard, but I could pass it

✓ The exam was hard, but I managed to pass it / I was able to pass it

El diccionario da could tanto para «podía» como para «pude». Pero could en afirmativa es solo «podía», la habilidad en general; el «pude» de un caso concreto es managed to o was able to.

3

«Se supone que» palabra por palabra

✗ Is supposed that I'm at work at nine → ✓ I'm supposed to be at work at nine. La frase española empieza por «se supone» y no tiene sujeto. En la inglesa el sujeto es la persona o la cosa de la que se espera algo, y detrás va to + verbo. Sin be tampoco funciona: ✗ I supposed to be there → ✓ I'm supposed to be there.

4

«No está permitido» palabra por palabra

✗ It isn't allowed to smoke here

✓ You aren't allowed to smoke here

«No está permitido fumar aquí» es impersonal, y la frase inglesa empieza por It. Pero el sujeto de be allowed to es aquel a quien se permite o prohíbe: You aren't allowed, Passengers aren't allowed. En el cartel basta con No smoking.

Pronunciación

4 min

supposed to es /səˈpəʊs tə/: la -d y la t se funden en una sola /t/. La primera sílaba es átona, /sə/; el acento cae en la segunda: su-POSED.

able es /ˈeɪbl/, con /eɪ/ acentuada, como en table, no una «a» española. be able to se dice entero, de un solo aliento: /bi ˈeɪbl tə/; to es débil, /tə/.

managed to es /ˈmænɪdʒ tə/: la /d/ delante de la /t/ casi desaparece. Igual en allowed to /əˈlaʊd tə/: /d/ y /t/ se funden, como en supposed to. allowed suena como loud con una /ə/ débil delante, exactamente igual que aloud, «en voz alta».

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Texto

5 min

Hi Claire,

I'm afraid the report isn't ready yet. I was supposed to send it to you yesterday, but I wasn't able to finish it. At four o'clock my laptop suddenly stopped working, and nobody in IT could fix it the same day.

The good news is that I managed to save most of the file — I only lost the last two pages. Sam has lent me his old laptop, and I'm allowed to keep it until Friday, so I'll be able to finish everything this morning. You'll have it by twelve.

You don't need to move the meeting with the client. The figures are all correct — I checked them twice on Monday. But I'm supposed to show the report to Mark first, and he's working from home today. Do you need to see it too, or can I send it straight to him?

One more thing: we're not supposed to leave laptops in the office overnight, but mine stayed there because it wasn't working. I hope that's all right.

Sorry again, Ben

Leer en voz alta

Ejercicios

30 min

1. Relleno de huecos.

  1. I swim when I was five. (sabía)
  2. Don't worry, you drive by the summer. (futuro)
  3. I haven't sleep well since we moved
  4. She speak three languages. (ahora)
  5. I'd like to play the piano
  6. I'm sorry, I come to your party last Saturday. (no pude)
  7. If you call the hotel, you might get a cheaper room
Mostrar las respuestas
could; will be able to; been able to; can; be able to; couldn't / wasn't able to; be able to

2. Opción múltiple.

  1. My grandmother read without glasses until she was ninety
  2. The traffic was terrible, but we get to the airport on time
  3. The door was locked, but the firefighters get in through the window
  4. When I was young, I run ten kilometres easily
  5. The exam was really difficult, but she pass it
Mostrar las respuestas
could; managed to; managed to; could; managed to

3. Reescribe con be able to

  1. I can drive. (next year)
  2. She can't come to the meeting. (yesterday)
  3. I can't sleep. (this week — perfecto)
  4. We can visit you. (in the summer)
  5. He can't find a job. (since March — perfecto)
Mostrar las respuestas
I'll be able to drive next year / I will be able to drive next year; She wasn't able to come to the meeting yesterday; I haven't been able to sleep this week; We'll be able to visit you in the summer / We will be able to visit you in the summer; He hasn't been able to find a job since March

4. Reescribe con be supposed to.

  1. The rule is: take your shoes off at the door.
  2. We agreed to meet at six, but he isn't here.
  3. The timetable says the train arrives at five, but it's late.
  4. You can't park here — it's against the rules.
  5. I should be studying now, but I'm watching TV.
Mostrar las respuestas
You're supposed to take your shoes off at the door / You are supposed to take your shoes off at the door; We were supposed to meet at six, but he isn't here / We were supposed to meet at six; The train was supposed to arrive at five, but it's late / The train is supposed to arrive at five, but it's late / The train was supposed to arrive at five; You're not supposed to park here / You aren't supposed to park here / You're not supposed to park here — it's against the rules / You aren't supposed to park here — it's against the rules; I'm supposed to be studying now, but I'm watching TV

5. Reescribe con be allowed to o don't need to.

  1. It isn't necessary to bring food — there's a café.
  2. It wasn't necessary for us to wait — the doctor saw us at once.
  3. The rules say you can't take photos in the museum.
  4. As a child, I couldn't stay out after nine — my parents said no.
  5. From next year students can use phones in class. (futuro)
  6. Can we bring our own drinks into the cinema? (pregunta por las normas)
Mostrar las respuestas
You don't need to bring food — there's a café / You don't need to bring food; We didn't need to wait — the doctor saw us at once / We didn't need to wait; You aren't allowed to take photos in the museum / You're not allowed to take photos in the museum / We aren't allowed to take photos in the museum / We're not allowed to take photos in the museum; As a child, I wasn't allowed to stay out after nine / As a child, I wasn't allowed to stay out after nine — my parents said no / When I was a child, I wasn't allowed to stay out after nine; From next year students will be allowed to use phones in class / Students will be allowed to use phones in class from next year; Are we allowed to bring our own drinks into the cinema?

6. Detección de errores.

  1. I will can drive next year.
  2. The exam was hard, but I could pass it.
  3. I supposed to be at work at nine.
  4. It isn't allowed to take photos here.
  5. We didn't need come so early.
Mostrar las respuestas
I'll be able to drive next year / I will be able to drive next year; The exam was hard, but I managed to pass it / The exam was hard, but I was able to pass it; I'm supposed to be at work at nine / I was supposed to be at work at nine; You aren't allowed to take photos here / You're not allowed to take photos here / We aren't allowed to take photos here / We're not allowed to take photos here; We didn't need to come so early

7. Responde con oraciones completas

, sobre ti. Las respuestas de abajo son un modelo. 1) What would you like to be able to do? 2) What difficult thing did you manage to do last month? 3) What are you supposed to do every day that you don't always do? 4) What weren't you allowed to do as a child?

Mostrar las respuestas
I'd like to be able to play the guitar; I managed to finish a difficult project at work; I'm supposed to go to the gym three times a week, but I usually go once; As a child, I wasn't allowed to watch TV after nine

8. Traduce al inglés.

1) Dentro de un mes podré hablar inglés con más soltura. 2) Fue difícil, pero conseguimos coger el último tren. 3) Se suponía que el tren llegaba a las seis. 4) No hace falta que vengas mañana. 5) Se supone que aquí no se fuma.

Mostrar las respuestas
In a month I'll be able to speak English more fluently / In a month I'll be able to speak English more freely; It was difficult, but we managed to catch the last train; The train was supposed to arrive at six; You don't need to come tomorrow; You're not supposed to smoke here / You aren't supposed to smoke here
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Resumen

Visto en esta lección: be able to en todos los tiempos y detrás de otros verbos, could frente a managed to y was able to; las normas: be supposed to en presente y en pasado, be allowed to frente a can y not supposed to, don't need to frente a mustn't, toda la escala de la obligación. A continuación, la lección 12: repaso de las lecciones 7–11.

Fin del núcleo

La lección se marca como completada una vez que se hagan los ejercicios. Todo lo que sigue es opcional.

Lección 84

opcional

Vocabulario para el mazo

14 palabras
  • be able to /bi ˈeɪbl tə/ poder, ser capaz de
  • manage to /ˈmænɪdʒ tə/ conseguir, lograr
  • be supposed to /bi səˈpəʊs tə/ tener que (por una norma o un acuerdo), se supone que
  • be allowed to /bi əˈlaʊd tə/ tener permiso para, poder (con permiso)
  • laptop /ˈlæptɒp/ portátil
  • fix /fɪks/ arreglar, reparar
  • save /seɪv/ guardar
  • file /faɪl/ archivo
  • figures /ˈfɪɡəz/ cifras
  • straight /streɪt/ directamente
  • overnight /ˌəʊvəˈnaɪt/ durante la noche
  • glasses /ˈɡlɑːsɪz/ gafas
  • firefighter /ˈfaɪəfaɪtə/ bombero, bombera
  • locked /lɒkt/ cerrado con llave

Escritura

Cinco o seis oraciones sobre un día que no salió según lo previsto: qué tenías que hacer, qué no pudiste hacer, qué conseguiste de todos modos y qué ahora no hace falta que hagas.

Modelo

Yesterday I was supposed to meet a client at ten, but I wasn't able to get there on time. There was an accident on the motorway, and the traffic didn't move for an hour. I managed to call the client from the car, and she was very kind about it. In the end we had the meeting online. So now I don't need to drive to her office next week. I hope I'll be able to meet her in person next month.

Lista de autocomprobación

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Practica esta lección en las otras secciones

Dictadobasado en esta lección Escribe lo que oyes. La corrección muestra cada palabra que difiere, y cómo. Escribir el dictado Leer en voz altabasado en esta lección Lee el texto de la lección en voz alta: el reconocimiento de voz resalta las palabras que no captó. Leer el texto en voz alta Leer y escucharA1–C1 Textos de todos los niveles con preguntas de comprensión; la transcripción se abre tras responder. Pruébalo

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