tengo un sueño
/tenɡo un sweɲo/from spelling rules
The phrase "I have a dream" is translated into Spanish as tengo un sueño.
This phrase is used to say that one is experiencing images or thoughts during sleep.
How do you pronounce it?
/tenɡo un sweɲo/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use tengo un sueño to mean "I am sleepy", but the correct way to express sleepiness is tengo sueño without the indefinite article un.
Did you know?
- In Spanish, you cannot use tengo un sueño to translate Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous phrase. To express a life goal or ambition, a speaker would use tengo un sueño only if they are literally dreaming, otherwise they would use sueño con or mi sueño es.
- The Latin root of sueño is actually the same root for the English word 'insomnia', which describes the inability to sleep.
- To describe a life ambition, Spanish speakers avoid tengo un sueño and instead use sueño con, which literally means 'I dream with'.
Examples in context
- Tengo un sueño.I have a dream.This sentence is useful for stating the basic phrase tengo un sueño.Tatoeba #2807 by Shishir, translation #1630 by al_ex_an_der
- Tengo un sueño en el que tengo que subir al sexto piso de una endeble carpa de varios niveles que se alza en lo alto de un rascacielos.I have a dream where I have to climb to the sixth level of a flimsy, multi-story tent which is perched on the top of a skyscraper.This sentence provides a more complex context for using tengo un sueño.Tatoeba #6819883 by albrusgher, translation #6682237 by Eccles17
Example conversation
Javier and Lucía are talking at breakfast.
- JavierLucía, tengo un sueño recurrente sobre el mar.Lucia, I have a recurring dream about the sea.
- LucíaQué interesante, ¿qué pasa en el sueño?How interesting, what happens in the dream?
- JavierSimplemente nado en aguas muy profundas.I just swim in very deep waters.
- LucíaParece que sea un sueño muy tranquilo.It seems like it is a very peaceful dream.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries sueño, un, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
