voy a la escuela
/boi a la eskwela/from spelling rules
The English phrase "I go to school" is translated into Spanish as voy a la escuela.
This phrase is used to say that someone attends an educational institution as a student. In many Spanish-speaking countries, especially in Latin America, colegio is often used to refer to school, typically for primary or secondary education.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "I go to the school", as Spanish typically uses the definite article la before escuela.
Which one should you use?
While voy a la escuela refers to the physical building or the institution, voy al colegio is a common alternative used specifically for primary or secondary school.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, it is more common to say Voy a la escuela to express attending any level of education. In Spain, people generally use Voy al instituto to refer to attending secondary school. In Argentina, people often use colegio secundario for secondary school and may use facultad for university.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word voy is the first-person singular present indicative form of the verb ir (to go).
Did you know?
- The word escuela is a distant relative of the word 'leisure'. It comes from the Ancient Greek word skholḗ, which originally meant 'spare time' or 'leisure'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the word colegio is used for children's schools, despite it looking like the English word 'college'.
- While voy is the present tense of 'to go', it is frequently used in Spanish to express a future intention, such as 'I am going to go to school' later today.
Examples in context
- Voy a la escuela.I go to school.Tatoeba #473450 by Shishir, translation #472089 by tamsanh
- Voy a la escuela con Tom.I go to school with Tom.Tatoeba #4392372 by pchamorro, translation #2329588 by CK
- Voy a la escuela a las siete.I go to school at seven.Tatoeba #1054317 by hayastan, translation #264923 by CK
- ¡Hola profesor! Voy a la escuela todos los días.Hello teacher! I go to school every day.
- Voy al instituto para aprender nuevas cosas.I go to secondary school to learn new things.
- Voy al colegio temprano todas las mañanas.I go to school early every morning.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Elena are talking about their morning routines.
- Daniel¿A qué hora sales de casa?What time do you leave the house?
- ElenaYo voy a la escuela a las ocho.I go to school at eight.
- Daniel¡Qué temprano!, yo voy al trabajo.That's early! I go to work.
- ElenaEs verdad, Daniel.That's true, Daniel.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries a, escuela, la, voy, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
