El Gordo Lottery Day: Discussing how to spend money if you won

💬 piso is the everyday word for a flat in Spain. In much of Latin America it means "floor", and people say departamento or apartamento for a flat.

🇪🇸 Paying off the mortgage is the classic first answer in Spain, where home ownership is the norm. Saying it sounds sensible and very typical.

💬 Bounce any question back with ¿Y tú? to a friend. To someone you'd address formally, say ¿Y usted? instead.

💬 viajo already means "I travel", so yo is optional. Adding it puts weight on "me", as in "as for me, I travel".

💬 todo el mundo on its own usually means "everybody". With por in front it means moving around the whole world.

💬 ¡Qué...! plus a word makes a quick reaction. Swap in others: ¡Qué suerte! "How lucky!", ¡Qué pena! "What a shame!".

💬 Yo también agrees with a positive statement. To agree with a negative one, say Yo tampoco "me neither".

💬 coche is the word for car in Spain, but much of Latin America says carro or auto. Note that nuevo goes after the noun, as most describing words do.

💬 ir a plus an action is the easy way to talk about the future: voy a viajar "I'm going to travel", vas a comprar "you're going to buy".

💬 "Keep doing" is seguir plus the -ando/-iendo form: seguir estudiando "keep studying", seguir viviendo aquí "keep living here".

🇪🇸 A very Spanish, informal way to brush off an idea, often with a laugh. It is friendly rather than rude, and works well among friends and colleagues.

💬 dejar means "to leave" or "to quit" something, but with an action after it, it means "to let": déjame ver "let me see".

💬 Putting mismo after a time word adds "this very" emphasis: hoy mismo "this very day", ahora mismo "right now".

💬 Spanish puts a before a person receiving an action: ayudo a mis padres, veo a Juan "I see Juan". You leave it out for things: veo la tele "I watch TV".

🇪🇸 Sharing a windfall with parents or family is the expected, well-regarded answer in Spain, where families stay close.

💬 voy alone means "I go". Adding me shifts it to leaving the place you're in, so me voy means "I'm leaving".

🇪🇸 Bueno is the standard signal that a chat is wrapping up. Spaniards often say it, then keep talking a little longer before really leaving.

🇪🇸 On draw day this is the natural goodbye to anyone you meet, from neighbours to shop staff.

💬 One reply for any good wish, like "good luck", "have a nice weekend" or "Merry Christmas". It works the same whether you'd normally address the person formally or informally.