7.4 The City, Public Services & Everyday Transactions
Key Takeaways
- Post office, bank, and municipal vocabulary generates the announcements and notices used as Part C stimulus materials.
- Directions rely on a small closed set: siga recto, doble a la derecha, la esquina, la manzana, and cruzar.
- Housing terms distinguish alquilar (to rent), el alquiler (the rent), el piso or el apartamento, and el inquilino (tenant).
- Municipal and civic terms include el ayuntamiento, el trámite, la ventanilla, el plazo, and la solicitud.
- Service verbs are reflexive far more often than in English: matricularse, inscribirse, mudarse, jubilarse.
7.4 The City, Public Services & Everyday Transactions
When the exam prints a notice, a form, or an advertisement as a Part C stimulus, it is almost always drawn from urban civic life: a town hall announcement, a rental listing, a bank leaflet, a transport schedule. This vocabulary field pays out disproportionately.
1. Places in the City
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| el ayuntamiento | town hall | la comisaría | police station |
| el barrio | neighbourhood | el juzgado | courthouse |
| la plaza | square | la biblioteca | library |
| la avenida | avenue | el quiosco | newsstand |
| la acera | sidewalk | la parada | (bus) stop |
| la manzana / la cuadra | city block | la estación | station |
| el semáforo | traffic light | el paso de peatones | crosswalk |
| la esquina | corner | el aparcamiento / el estacionamiento | car park |
| la carretera | highway | el peaje | toll |
| el casco antiguo | old town | las afueras | outskirts |
La manzana means both apple and city block in Spain; la cuadra is the Latin American block. Context always resolves it, but a distractor may not.
2. Giving and Following Directions
A small closed set, worth memorizing verbatim because it appears in listening items where you must trace a route.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| siga (todo) recto / derecho | go straight ahead |
| doble / gire a la derecha | turn right |
| doble / gire a la izquierda | turn left |
| cruce la calle | cross the street |
| en la esquina | at the corner |
| a dos manzanas / cuadras de aquí | two blocks from here |
| enfrente de | across from |
| al lado de | next to |
| detrás de / delante de | behind / in front of |
| hasta llegar a | until you reach |
| está a unos cinco minutos a pie | it is about a five-minute walk |
Note that direction-giving uses formal commands (siga, doble, cruce) with strangers — a register cue that also matters in rejoinders.
3. Housing
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| el piso / el apartamento / el departamento | flat / apartment (Spain / LatAm / Southern Cone) |
| la vivienda | housing, dwelling |
| alquilar / rentar | to rent |
| el alquiler / la renta | the rent |
| el/la inquilino/a | tenant |
| el/la propietario/a / el casero | owner / landlord |
| el contrato de arrendamiento | lease |
| la fianza | deposit |
| los gastos de comunidad | building fees |
| amueblado | furnished |
| la planta baja | ground floor |
| mudarse | to move house |
| el ascensor | lift, elevator |
| la calefacción / el aire acondicionado | heating / air conditioning |
A rental advertisement is a classic Part C stimulus: "Se alquila piso amueblado de dos dormitorios en el casco antiguo. Tercera planta con ascensor. 750 euros al mes más gastos. Fianza de dos meses." Every noun in that sentence is on this list.
4. Post Office, Bank, and Bureaucracy
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| la oficina de correos | post office |
| el sello / la estampilla | stamp |
| el sobre | envelope |
| el paquete | parcel |
| el buzón | mailbox |
| certificado | registered (mail) |
| el remitente / el destinatario | sender / addressee |
| la sucursal | branch (of a bank) |
| la ventanilla | service window, counter |
| ingresar / depositar | to deposit |
| retirar / sacar dinero | to withdraw |
| el saldo | balance |
| el trámite | administrative procedure |
| la solicitud | application form |
| rellenar / llenar un formulario | to fill in a form |
| el plazo | deadline, term |
| el carné / el documento de identidad | ID card |
| el/la funcionario/a | civil servant |
| el expediente | file, record |
| vencer / caducar | to expire |
High-value pair: el plazo (deadline) and vencer (to expire) show up in almost every official notice. El plazo de inscripción vence el 30 de septiembre is the sentence a Part C question is most likely to be built on.
5. Reflexive Service Verbs
Spanish makes many civic actions pronominal where English does not:
| Verb | Meaning |
|---|---|
| matricularse | to enrol (in a course) |
| inscribirse | to register, sign up |
| apuntarse | to sign up (informal) |
| mudarse | to move house |
| jubilarse | to retire |
| quejarse | to complain |
| dirigirse a | to address oneself to, head toward |
| presentarse | to show up; to introduce oneself |
| encargarse de | to take charge of |
Los interesados deben inscribirse antes del viernes y dirigirse a la ventanilla número tres is a sentence pattern you will meet repeatedly in notices.
6. Transport in the City
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| el metro / el subte | underground |
| el billete / el boleto / el pasaje | ticket |
| el abono / el bono | travel pass |
| el andén | platform |
| el horario | timetable |
| el retraso / la demora | delay |
| el transbordo | transfer, change |
| la vía | track |
| el trayecto / el recorrido | route, journey |
| el enlace | connection |
7. Worked Items
Item 1. Los solicitantes deben presentar la documentación antes de que ________ el plazo. (A) venza (B) vence (C) venció (D) vencerá
Reasoning: Vocabulary and grammar combine: el plazo vence, and antes de que always takes the subjunctive. (A).
Item 2. Para llegar al museo, siga recto dos ________ y doble a la derecha en el semáforo. (A) esquinas (B) manzanas (C) aceras (D) andenes
Reasoning: Distance in a city is counted in blocks. (B).
Item 3. El anuncio dice que el piso está ________, así que no necesitamos comprar camas ni sillas. (A) alquilado (B) amueblado (C) certificado (D) caducado
Reasoning: Furniture already present means amueblado. (B).
Un anuncio oficial indica: "El plazo de inscripción vence el 30 de septiembre." ¿Qué significa?
Complete the directions: "Siga todo recto hasta el semáforo, ________ a la izquierda y el banco está en la esquina."
Which sentence correctly uses the vocabulary of renting?