In English, phrases that express when someone is experiencing a sensation or condition such as thirst, hunger, cold, etc are constructed with the verb to be, e.g., to express that I am experiencing hunger the English phrase is: I am hungry.
In Spanish we use the verb “to have” to express that someone is experiencing one of those sensations, i.e., in Spanish we possess the condition. For example, in Spanish I am hungry is: Tengo hambre, which literally means “I have hunger” as though I possessed the hunger.
In Spanish we use the verb “to have” to express that someone is experiencing one of those sensations, i.e., in Spanish we possess the condition. For example, in Spanish I am hungry is: Tengo hambre, which literally means “I have hunger” as though I possessed the hunger.
See below a table with the English and Spanish phrases to express the experiencing of different sensations.
I am cold
|
Tengo frío (literally means I have cold)
|
I am hot
|
Tengo calor (literally means I have heat)
|
I am hungry
|
Tengo hambre (literally means I have hunger)
|
I am thirsty
|
Tengo sed (literally means I have thirst)
|
I am afraid
|
Tengo miedo (literally means I have fear)
|
I am lucky
|
Tengo suerte (literally means I have luck)
|
