YA!

May 13, 2009

The word "ya" is Spanish has always left me a bit befuddled. I have figured out what it means in a few contexts like "Ya estas mejor?" which basically means "Now, already, in this moment... are you feeling better?" Then there is the doorman who said "ya" to the man trying to enter but his first attempt was too quick and the door was still locked. In that case the "ya" meant the door is "now" ready to be opened. Max has figured it out much better than I and much quicker. He was painting in the little library/arts 'n craft center at the park. When he was through he put his brush down and said, "ya" and the attendant responded, "ya". All sounds well and good and you get the general idea through each context. There really isn't an English equivalent but it refers to the recent indefinite past. My best translation is already or now. It also is a means of expressing the idea "sure", "okay", or "right". For example, "You're gonna be a good boy, right?". But then the something funny happened. When people were speaking in the negative with "ya" well, then the whole meaning changed! Yup, that's right... when you say "ya" in the affirmative it means something entirely different than in the negative. Instead of being "already" or "now" it's more like "no longer" or "anymore". And that's just the tip of the "ya" iceburg. "YA estas loca!" Now I've officially lost my mind!!!!

And don't even get me started on the subjunctive which is yet a whole other set of verb tenses that doesn't exist in English...