📖LearnModule 14 · Lesson 15 of 30Proficient User · CEFR C2, continuedUnit 3 · La sintaxis compleja
El orden de los complementos
Module 14 of the free Spanish course (CEFR C2, continued), lesson 15 of 30: Spanish word order is freer than English but not free. On this page: 9 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line, the conjugation table and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's QR.
The words
Spanish
English
Say it
corto antes que largo
short before long
KOHR-toh AHN-tehs keh LAR-goh
conocido antes que nuevo
known before new
koh-noh-SEE-doh AHN-tehs keh NWEH-boh
el reloj de su padre
his father's watch
ehl rreh-LOH deh soo PAH-dreh
el complemento
the object phrase
ehl kohm-pleh-MEHN-toh
lo más pesado al final
the heaviest last
loh mahs peh-SAH-doh ahl fee-NAHL
mal leído
badly read
mahl leh-EE-doh
adquirir al final
to acquire last
ahd-kee-REER ahl fee-NAHL
notar enseguida
to notice at once
noh-TAR ehn-seh-GEE-dah
ella le dio el reloj a su hermano
she gave the watch to her brother
EH-yah leh dyoh ehl rreh-LOH ah soo ehr-MAH-noh
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
La regla · The rule
Spanish word order is freer than English but not free. The general habit: short before long, known before new, and the heaviest element last. Le dio a su hermano el viejo reloj de su padre.
Y también · And also
Move the long phrase to the front and the sentence still parses but reads badly. This is the last thing a learner acquires and the first thing a Spanish reader notices.
Ojo · Watch out
The heaviest phrase goes LAST: le dio a su hermano el viejo reloj de su padre, not le dio el viejo reloj de su padre a su hermano. Short before long, known before new — and le stays even when a su hermano is spelled out.
dar, pretérito — the table
yo di · tú diste · él/ella/usted dio · nosotros dimos · ustedes dieron · ellos/ellas dieron
Do it now — on paper
Say all 9 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the Spanish spelling alone — begin with corto antes que largo.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the Spanish.
Write out dar, pretérito in full from memory, every person, and check each form against the table above.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The Spanish Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.