Weather forecasts and predictions

When you listen to or read weather forecasts in Spanish, you’ll encounter specific grammatical structures and vocabulary that help you understand what weather conditions to expect. This guide will explain the essential elements of Spanish weather forecasts.

Future Weather Expressions

Spanish weather forecasts primarily use two ways to express future weather conditions:

  1. “Ir a” + infinitive: This structure expresses immediate or near-future events:
    • Mañana va a llover (It’s going to rain tomorrow)
    • Esta tarde va a hacer sol (It’s going to be sunny this afternoon)
    • Va a nevar en las montañas (It’s going to snow in the mountains)
  2. Simple future tense: This conveys general future predictions:
    • La temperatura subirá a 30 grados (The temperature will rise to 30 degrees)
    • Las lluvias comenzarán por la tarde (The rains will begin in the afternoon)
    • El viento soplará del norte (The wind will blow from the north)

Essential Weather Vocabulary

  • Temperature Terms:
    • Temperatura (temperature)
    • Máximas y mínimas (highs and lows)
    • Grados centígrados/Celsius (degrees Celsius)
    • Sensación térmica (feels like temperature)
  • Precipitation Terms:
    • Pronóstico (forecast)
    • Probabilidad de lluvia (chance of rain)
    • Precipitaciones (precipitation)
    • Chubascos (showers)
    • Tormentas (storms)
    • Aguanieve (sleet)
  • Sky Conditions:
    • Despejado (clear)
    • Nublado (cloudy)
    • Parcialmente nublado (partly cloudy)
    • Cubierto (overcast)
  • Wind Terms:
    • Viento (wind)
    • Velocidad del viento (wind speed)
    • Ráfagas (gusts)
    • Dirección del viento (wind direction)

Common Forecast Phrases

  • Se espera un día soleado (A sunny day is expected)
  • Habrá intervalos de nubes (There will be cloudy intervals)
  • La visibilidad será reducida (Visibility will be reduced)
  • Se mantiene la alerta por (The alert remains for…)
  • Las temperaturas oscilarán entre (Temperatures will range between…)

Regional Weather Terms

Different Spanish-speaking regions may use varying terms for weather phenomena:

  • Spain: borrasca (storm system)
  • Mexico: chubasco (heavy rain shower)
  • Caribbean: temporal (prolonged period of rain)
  • Argentina: sudestada (strong southeastern winds with rain)

Understanding Forecast Graphics

Spanish weather maps use standard international symbols, but text labels will show:

  • Temp. máx. (maximum temperature)
  • Temp. mín. (minimum temperature)
  • Prob. precip. (precipitation probability)
  • Dir. viento (wind direction)

Remember: Spanish-speaking countries use the Celsius temperature scale and metric measurements for precipitation (millimeters) and wind speed (kilometers per hour).

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