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Spanish greetings
How to say hello and goodbye
Question words in Spanish
Who? What? When? Where? Why? How to ask questions in Spanish
Formal vs. Informal "You"
The two kinds of address and when to use each one
Spanish plurals
How to get more than one of something
Definite and indefinite articles
The difference between "the" and "a", and how to say these in Spanish
Negating statements
How to say you don't know what you're doing
Adjectives in Spanish
Where to put them and how to use them
Ser vs Estar: The two kinds of "to be"
How to know when to say yo soy vs. when to say yo estoy.
Weather vocabulary
The ultimate icebreaker
Feelings and moods
How to talk about how you're feeling using the verbs estar and sentirse
Spanish false cognates ("false friends")
9 Spanish words that seem similar to English, but are actually dangerously different
Telling the time
How to ask and give the time in Spanish
¿Dónde está? or ¿Dónde hay?
How to know whether to use estar or haber when talking about something's existence
Comparisons of inequality
Bigger, smaller, faster, slower: How to compare two things and use superlatives in Spanish
Directions in Spanish
How to ask directions, and a few common prepositions that will help you get there
Being sore or sick
How to talk about illnesses and afflictions in Spanish

¿Dónde está? or ¿Dónde hay?

Which to use when asking where something is

In a previous lesson on Spanish question words we discovered the word for "where?": ¿Dónde?

But if you're hanging out in a new town and you're looking to see the sights, there's an extra little trick to asking where something is, and it involves knowing when to use the verb estar and when to use the verb haber instead.

  • ¿Dónde está ______?
  • ¿Dónde hay ______?

Both of these mean "where is ______?" but they're used in slightly different situations.

See if you can spot the difference here:

Play
¿Dónde está la cantina de Moe?
Where is Moe's tavern?
(Literally: Where is the tavern of Moe?)
Play
¿Dónde hay un policía?
Where is a police officer?

In the first example you're looking for a specific place (Moe's tavern). In the second example you're looking for a police officer: just any police officer will do.

You can tell this because in the first example we've used the definite article "la" (the), while the second sentence uses the indefinite article "un" (a).

You'll use ¿Dónde está...? any time you'd normally say "Where is the...?", and you'll use ¿Dónde hay...? when you'd say "Where is a...?"

Times when you'd use está...

Play
¿Dónde está la casa de los Simpson?
Where is the Simpsons' house?
Play
¿Dónde está la escuela de Bart y Lisa?
Where is Bart and Lisa's school?
(Literally: "Where is the school of Bart and Lisa?")
Play
¿Dónde está el autobús escolar de Otto?
Where is Otto's school bus?
(Literally: "Where is the school bus of Otto?")
Play
¿Dónde está el Kwik-E-Mart de Apu?
Where is Apu's Kwik-E-Mart?
(Literally: "Where is the Kwik-E-Mart of Apu?")

Times when you'd use hay...

Play
¿Dónde hay una librería?
Where is a book store?
Play
¿Dónde hay una farmacia?
Where is a pharmacy/drug store?
Play
¿Dónde hay un cajero automático?
Where is an ATM?
Play
¿Dónde hay un buen restaurante chino?
Where is a good Chinese restaurant?

Your turn: Which one should you use?

If Homer was looking for Flanders, what would he use? "¿Dónde hay?" or "¿Dónde está?"

Click for the answer
Play
¿Dónde está el señor Flanders? (Where is [the] Mr Flanders?)
(Because Homer is looking for THE Flanders, not just anyone named Flanders!)

If Lisa was bored, and looking for just any old book to read, which would she use? Está or hay?

Click for the answer
Play
¿Dónde hay un libro? (Where is a book?)
(Because she's not looking for any particular book, she'll use "hay" and the indefinite article "un")

If instead she's looking for her saxophone, what would she say?

Click for the answer
Play
¿Dónde está el saxofón? (Where is the saxophone?)
Or better yet...
Play
¿Dónde está mi saxofón? (Where is my saxophone?)

So where's Waldo?

And more importantly, is it ¿Dónde está Waldo? or ¿Dónde hay Waldo?

Yup, we're looking for a specific guy (and none of these other imposters will do), so it's:

Play
¿Dónde está Waldo?
Where is Waldo?

If you just wanted to find any of the other guys in red striped shirts, then you could ask:

Play
¿Dónde hay hombres con camisas a rayas rojas y blancas?
Where are there men in red and white striped shirts?

— but where's the fun in that?

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Free Spanish Lessons

Spanish greetings
Question words in Spanish
Formal vs. informal "you"
Spanish plurals
Definite and indefinite articles in Spanish
Negating statements
How to use adjectives in Spanish
Ser vs Estar: The two kinds of "to be"
Weather vocabulary!
Feelings and moods
Telling the time
¿Dónde está? or ¿Dónde hay?
Comparisons of inequality
Directions in Spanish
Being sore or sick

Spanish Children's Stories

Pollito Tito
Chicken Little
El Pájaro y la Ballena
The Bird and the Whale
Los Tres Cerditos
The Three Little Pigs
Ricitos de Oro y Los Tres Osos
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Caperucita Roja
Little Red Riding Hood
Spanish false cognates ("false friends")

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