In Spanish, the meaning of many words is similar such as fuera and afuera. However, in some cases, they have different contexts. Many people do not always make the right use of these words.
The word fuera is more common than the word afuera.
Both fuera and afuera mean “get out“.
If you look at afuera as an adverb, it means “outside”.
To get a better idea, let’s have a look at some examples:
Afuera/fuera de mi casa
Outside my house
Afuera/fuera de tu casa hay un carro rojo
Outside your house is a red car
In this article, I’m going to share more examples of Spanish words that you can use in everyday life.
So, let’s dive into it…
Use of ‘Buenos días’ and ‘Buen día’
You’ll see that many people say “buenos dias”, while others say “buen dia”. Let me tell you that they both are grammatically correct, you can use these depending on the Spanish dialect you speak.
Interestingly, there are 10 dialects of Spanish.
Buenos dias/buen dia
Good morning
Buenos dias (Plural)
¡Que tengas buenos días!
Have nice days!
Buen dia (singular)
¡Qué tenga un buen día!
Have a nice day!
Fuera
Fuera can be used in different ways. The more common use of fuera is get out. The word also means outside.
Get out of my way.
Fuera de mi camino.
Outside of this room.
Fuera de esta habitación.
Afuera
Similarly to fuera, you can use the word “afuera” for two meanings – outside and get out. You can also use it to describe your location especially when you’re away from your home.
I’m out on a trip.
Estoy afuera en un viaje
Alguno and cualquier in Spanish?
Both the words “alguno” and “cualquier” represent quantities. Alguno means many, while cualquier means any.
| Alguno | Some |
| Algunos | Some |
| Alguno (pronoun) | Not any |
| Alguno | Any |
| Cualquier/cualquiera | Any, whichever, whatever |
| Alguna | Any |
| Algunos | A few |
It’s evident from the table that the same word can be used in different contexts. Here are some examples:
Some people never change
Algunas (feminine) personas nunca cambian
Algunos (masculine) personas nunca cambian
Any problem
Algún problema
Anything for you
Cualquier cosa por ti
Some of them are going on a trip
Algunas de ellas van de viaje (feminine)
Algunos de ellos van de viaje (masculine)
How to quickly learn the use of the two Spanish verbs ‘ser’ and ‘estar’?
The easy and quick way to learn the use of both is to keep in mind that ‘ser’ refers to those things that don’t change easily. Whereas things that change are known as estar.
| Ester (temporary) | Ser (permanent) |
| Conditions, actions, emotions, locations | Nationality, relationship, occupation |
She’s a good person.
Ella es una buena persona.
You should use ‘ser’ because the nature of the person is good and cannot easily be changed.
She’s in a good mood
Ella esta de buen humor
Here you should use “estar” because the mood of the person is temporary.
Difference between “dentro” and “adentro?”
There are different meanings for the words “dentro” and “adentro”.
In
Dentro/adentro (adverb)
Indoors
Dentro/adentro
Inward
Adentro
As you can see, dentro means “in”. Let me tell you that ‘a’ in adentro means ‘to’, meaning adentro represents ‘into’.
When there’s no movement involved, you should use ‘dentro’.
In case, there’s movement involved, you should use ‘adentro’.
There’s no one inside.
No hay nadie dentro. (There’s no movement involved)
They pushed me into the room.
Ellas empujaron adentro de la habitación. (You see there’s movement involved)
Difference between “estuve” and “estaba”?
| Estuve | Estaba |
| Was | used to be/was |
If the action happened anytime in the past whether it was yesterday, two years ago, or a decade ago.
When you want to mention the time of the action, you should use estuve.
When two actions happened in the past and one action followed the other, the word “estaba” will be more useful.
Estuve Example
I was at the beach yesterday.
Estuve en una playa ayer.
I was at a party last night.
Estuve en una fiesta anoche
Estaba Example
I was at the beach yesterday when I met her.
Estaba en una playa ayer, cuando la conocí.
I was at a party last night when I got your call.
Estaba en una fiesta anoche, cuando recibí tu llamada.
Mexican Spanish and Spanish from Spain
As you may know, there are 10 dialects of Spanish. So, it’s evident that like English, Spanish also varies much across the world. Whether it’s accent, vocabulary, or pronunciation. Though there’s no difference in the grammar.
It means all Spanish speakers understand each other very well. The dialectical variation still exists to some extent. If you’re fluent in Spanish, you won’t have any issues understanding the Spanish spoken by people living in Spain, Mexico, or Cuba.
Conclusion
- “Fuera” and “afuera” mean “get out” or “outside” in Spanish.
- “Fuera” is more commonly used than “afuera.”
- Both words convey the same meaning and are interchangeable.
- Exploring “alguno” and “cualquier” sheds light on Spanish vocabulary.
- Understanding “ser” and “estar” aids learners in Spanish verb conjugation.
- Distinguishing between ‘dentro’ and ‘adentro’ clarifies spatial differences.
- Spanish dialects vary, but grammatical rules remain consistent.
- “fuera” and “afuera” can be used interchangeably. As the meaning is the same “get out” or “outside.”