When Things Go Wrong

Spanish Basic Conversation 2

Chapter 12 · When Things Go Wrong: Delays, Lost Items & Emergencies

🚨 When Things Go Wrong — Cuando algo sale mal

The last chapter of the course covers the situations you hope never to need: a delayed or missed train, a lost bag, a theft, and an emergency. You learn how to ask for help (¡Ayuda! ¡Ayúdeme!), how to report what happened (he perdido…, me han robado…), and the emergency number 112. It adds perder, olvidar and ayudar, and ends with a Course Complete recap. Each dialog has a Hard words note; the respelling is in the tables. This chapter teaches language; in a real emergency, call the emergency number first.

① A Missed Train (formal) — Mi tren ha salido

A: Perdone, he perdido el tren de las diez. ¿Qué puedo hacer? Excuse me, I've missed the ten o'clock train. What can I do?

B: Hay otro tren a las doce. Puede cambiar el billete aquí. There's another train at twelve. You can change the ticket here.

A: ¿Tengo que pagar algo más? Do I have to pay anything extra?

B: Sí, tiene que pagar la diferencia. Son diez euros. Yes, you have to pay the difference. It's ten euros.

Hard words: he perdido (I've missed / lost; perder, set phrase for now), cambiar el billete (to change the ticket), la diferencia (the difference), ¿Qué puedo hacer? (what can I do?).

② A Delay — El tren llega con retraso

A: Perdone, ¿por qué hay tanto retraso? Excuse me, why is there such a long delay?

B: Hay un problema técnico. El tren sale con media hora de retraso. There's a technical problem. The train leaves half an hour late.

A: Entonces voy a llegar tarde a mi cita. Then I'm going to be late for my appointment.

B: Lo siento mucho. Puede llamar para avisar. I'm very sorry. You can call to let them know.

Hard words: el retraso (delay), técnico/a (technical), con media hora de retraso (half an hour late), avisar (to let someone know), llegar tarde (to arrive late).

③ A Lost Bag — He perdido la mochila

A: Buenos días. He perdido mi mochila. Good morning. I've lost my rucksack.

B: ¿Dónde la perdió y cómo es? Where did you lose it and what is it like?

A: La olvidé en el autobús. Es negra y pequeña. I left it on the bus. It's black and small.

B: Déjeme su nombre y su teléfono. Si la encontramos, le llamamos. Leave me your name and phone number. If we find it, we'll call you.

Hard words: la mochila (rucksack), olvidé (I left, forgot; olvidar), negro/a (black), déjeme (let me / leave me; set phrase for now), encontrar (to find; o → ue), le llamamos (we'll call you; set phrase for now).

④ A Theft (formal) — Me han robado

A: Buenas tardes. Me han robado la cartera. Good afternoon. My wallet has been stolen.

B: ¿Cuándo y dónde pasó? When and where did it happen?

A: Hace una hora, en el metro. Tenía el pasaporte y las tarjetas. An hour ago, on the metro. I had my passport and cards in it.

B: Tiene que hacer una denuncia. Siéntese, por favor. You have to make a report. Please sit down.

Hard words: me han robado (has been stolen from me; set phrase for now), la cartera (wallet), tenía (I had; set word for now), la denuncia (police report), siéntese (sit down; set phrase for now), pasar (to happen).

⑤ Asking for Help — ¡Ayúdeme!

A: ¡Ayuda! ¡Ayúdeme, por favor! Help! Help me, please!

B: ¿Qué pasa? ¿Está usted bien? What's happening? Are you all right?

A: Mi amigo está enfermo. ¡Llame a una ambulancia! My friend is ill. Call an ambulance!

B: Ahora mismo llamo al 112. ¡Tranquilo, por favor! I'm calling 112 right now. Stay calm, please!

Hard words: ¡Ayuda! (help!), ayudar (to help), ¡Llame! (call!; a command, set phrase for now), la ambulancia, el 112 (the emergency number), ¡Tranquilo! (stay calm!), ¿Qué pasa? (what's happening?).

⑥ Forgotten Keys (casual) — Se me han olvidado las llaves

A: ¡Qué desastre! Se me han olvidado las llaves en casa. What a disaster! I've left my keys at home.

B: Tranquilo. ¿Tienes un compañero de piso? Don't worry. Have you got a flatmate?

A: Sí, pero no contesta el teléfono. Yes, but he's not answering the phone.

B: Pues vamos a tomar un café y lo llamas luego. Well, let's have a coffee and you can call him later.

Hard words: ¡Qué desastre! (what a disaster!), se me han olvidado (I've forgotten; set phrase for now), las llaves (keys), contestar (to answer), luego (later).

🗣️ Key Phrases — Frases clave

English	Spanish
Help!	¡Ayuda! / ¡Socorro! ah-YOO-dah / soh-KOH-rroh
Help me, please.	Ayúdeme, por favor. ah-YOO-deh-meh por fah-BOR
Call an ambulance / the police.	Llame a una ambulancia. / Llame a la policía. YAH-meh ah OO-nah ahm-boo-LAHN-thyah / YAH-meh ah lah poh-lee-THEE-ah
I've lost my passport.	He perdido el pasaporte. eh pehr-DEE-doh ehl pah-sah-POR-teh
My wallet has been stolen.	Me han robado la cartera. meh ahn roh-BAH-doh lah kar-TEH-rah
I need a doctor.	Necesito un médico. neh-theh-SEE-toh oon MEH-dee-koh
I don't understand.	No entiendo. ¿Podría hablar más despacio? noh ehn-TYEHN-doh / poh-DREE-ah ah-BLAR mahs dehs-PAH-thyoh

Emergency Commands: Use the Usted Form In an emergency you give short commands. To a stranger use the usted form: ¡Ayúdeme! (help me), ¡Llame a la policía! (call the police), ¡Espere! (wait), ¡Tranquilo! (calm down). To a friend the tú form is different: ¡Ayúdame!, ¡Llama a una ambulancia! Learn these as set phrases for now; how commands are formed is in Spanish Grammar 3 11.

🔧 Reporting What Happened

Situation	Spanish
You lost something	He perdido mi mochila. / Perdí mi mochila en el autobús. eh pehr-DEE-doh mee moh-CHEE-lah / pehr-DEE mee moh-CHEE-lah ehn ehl ow-toh-BOOS
You left something	Olvidé el paraguas en el tren. ohl-bee-DEH ehl pah-RAH-gwahs ehn ehl TREHN
Something was stolen	Me han robado la cartera. meh ahn roh-BAH-doh lah kar-TEH-rah
Where / when	Fue ayer, en el metro, hace una hora. FWEH ah-YEHR ehn ehl MEH-troh AH-theh OO-nah OH-rah
Describing the item	Es negra, pequeña y tiene una cremallera. ehs NEH-grah peh-KEH-nyah ee TYEH-neh OO-nah kreh-mah-YEH-rah

Preterite or "He Perdido"? Two past forms are useful here. The preterite (Spanish Basic Conversation 2 9) says a finished event: Perdí mi mochila ayer, Olvidé el paraguas. In Spain you also often hear the present perfect (he perdido, ha salido, me han robado) for very recent events: He perdido el tren, Mi tren ha salido. Learn the present-perfect phrases in this chapter as ready-made phrases; the full tense is in Spanish Grammar 3 7. Both are understood everywhere.

🔤 Verbs — Perder, olvidar, ayudar

Perder ("to lose, to miss") changes e → ie in every form except nosotros and vosotros. Olvidar ("to forget, to leave behind") and ayudar ("to help") are regular -ar verbs.

	perder (to lose, miss)	olvidar (to forget)	ayudar (to help)
yo (I)	pierdo PYEHR-doh	olvido ohl-BEE-doh	ayudo ah-YOO-doh
tú (you, informal)	pierdes PYEHR-dehs	olvidas ohl-BEE-dahs	ayudas ah-YOO-dahs
él, ella, usted	pierde PYEHR-deh	olvida ohl-BEE-dah	ayuda ah-YOO-dah
nosotros (we)	perdemos pehr-DEH-mohs	olvidamos ohl-bee-DAH-mohs	ayudamos ah-yoo-DAH-mohs
vosotros (Spain)	perdéis pehr-DEHYS	olvidáis ohl-bee-DAHYS	ayudáis ah-yoo-DAHYS
ellos, ellas, ustedes	pierden PYEHR-dehn	olvidan ohl-BEE-dahn	ayudan ah-YOO-dahn

📖 Vocabulary — Vocabulario

20 key words. Read the Spanish first, then check the respelling (CAPITALS = the stressed syllable).

#	Spanish	Say it	English	Type
1	la emergencia	lah eh-mehr-KHEHN-thyah	emergency	noun
2	la policía	lah poh-lee-THEE-ah	police	noun
3	la ambulancia	lah ahm-boo-LAHN-thyah	ambulance	noun
4	la denuncia	lah deh-NOON-thyah	police report	noun
5	el retraso	ehl reh-TRAH-soh	delay	noun
6	la cartera	lah kar-TEH-rah	wallet	noun
7	la mochila	lah moh-CHEE-lah	rucksack	noun
8	las llaves	lahs YAH-behs	keys	noun
9	el pasaporte	ehl pah-sah-POR-teh	passport	noun
10	perder	pehr-DEHR	to lose, to miss	verb
11	olvidar	ohl-bee-DAR	to forget, to leave	verb
12	ayudar	ah-yoo-DAR	to help	verb
13	robar	roh-BAR	to steal	verb
14	encontrar	ehn-kohn-TRAR	to find	verb
15	avisar	ah-bee-SAR	to let know, to warn	verb
16	¡Ayuda! / ¡Socorro!	ah-YOO-dah / soh-KOH-rroh	help!	phrase
17	¡Tranquilo/a!	trahn-KEE-loh	calm down!	phrase
18	enfermo/a	ehn-FEHR-moh	ill	adj
19	¿Qué pasa?	keh PAH-sah	what's happening?	phrase
20	el 112	ehl THEHN-toh DOH-theh	the emergency number	noun

The Emergency Number 112 112 is the general emergency number in Spain and across the European Union; you can say what you need (ambulancia, policía, bomberos for the fire service). In an emergency, call first and use the language afterwards. Speak slowly, say where you are (Estoy en la calle…), what has happened and your name. Details of the service (for example the languages the operator speaks) may change, so check an official source before you travel.

Lost or Stolen: What to Do For a lost item ask at the place where it happened (the station, the bus company, the hotel). For a theft, you usually make a denuncia (a police report) at a police station; the exact steps and which police force handles it vary by place. A copy of the report is often needed for insurance or to replace a passport. This is general guidance for learners, not legal advice.

Latin America Note ¡Ayuda! and ¡Socorro! are understood everywhere, but the emergency numbers differ by country, so check before travelling (112 is the European number). A "wallet" is la cartera in Spain and also la billetera in many Latin American countries, and a "rucksack" is la mochila. For the plural "you" use ustedes (Ayúdenme).

Grammar Pointer The commands (ayúdeme, llame, espere) are explained in Spanish Grammar 3 11, the preterite in Spanish Grammar 3 3 and 3 4, the present perfect (he perdido, ha salido) in Spanish Grammar 3 7, and stem-changing verbs such as perder in Spanish Grammar 2 5. Use them as a reference after this chapter.

✍️ Try It Yourself — Ejercicios

Say each answer out loud first, then click to check.

1. Call for help, then ask someone to call an ambulance.

Show answer

¡Ayuda! ¡Ayúdeme, por favor! ¡Llame a una ambulancia!

2. At the station: you have missed your train. Say so and ask what you can do.

Show answer

Perdone, he perdido el tren. ¿Qué puedo hacer?

3. Report: "My wallet has been stolen. It happened an hour ago, on the metro."

Show answer

Me han robado la cartera. Fue hace una hora, en el metro.

4. Complete in the present: "Yo ___ las llaves." (perder) · "Ella ___ a su amigo." (ayudar) · "Nosotros ___ el tren." (perder)

Show answer

pierdo · ayuda · perdemos. (e → ie except nosotros and vosotros.)

5. Say in the preterite: "I left my rucksack on the bus yesterday."

Show answer

Ayer olvidé la mochila en el autobús.

6. You do not understand the answer. Say so and ask the person to speak more slowly.

Show answer

No entiendo. ¿Podría hablar más despacio, por favor?

🎓 Course Complete — Curso completado

You have finished Spanish Basic Conversation 2. Here is what each chapter gave you.

Ch.	Topic	You can now…
1	Your Daily Routine	describe your day with reflexive verbs and frequency words
2	Hobbies & Free Time	say what you like and play, using gustar, jugar and tocar
3	Making Plans & Invitations	invite, accept and decline, and arrange to meet
4	Describing People & Things	describe people and things, and compare them
5	Your Home & Neighbourhood	describe where you live, with hay, estar and prepositions of place
6	Weather & Seasons	talk about the weather and give reasons with porque
7	Eating Out	order, state dietary needs and complain politely
8	At the Doctor & the Pharmacy	say what hurts and ask for medicine
9	Talking About the Past	tell what you did yesterday and last weekend
10	Phone Calls & Appointments	make a call, leave a message and spell a name
11	Opinions & Preferences	give opinions, agree and disagree
12	When Things Go Wrong	ask for help and report a loss or a theft

What Next? The next step is Spanish Basic Conversation 3, which builds on everything here with longer conversations and the first reading texts. For the grammar behind these dialogs, see Spanish Grammar 2 and Spanish Grammar 3. ¡Buen viaje!