Using the verbs **salir** and **ir** and **venir**,
Using the verbs salir and ir and venir, I was wondering if I'm properly conveying the meaning of 'going to' and 'coming from', in particular, is there a 'nuance' that I am missing? I got to thinking about this when I was reviewing a Spanish lesson from way back when.
- él se va del aeropuerto, él sale del aeropuerto,
So, don't both of the sentences above mean "he is leaving the airport"? Literally, "he is going from the airport" and "he is going out from the airport".
- ellos se van de la playa. ellos vienen de la playa
Same deal here, but using venir for comparison. Literally, I think I'm saying "they are going from the beach" and "they come from the beach". Sure I could also say "ellos salen de la playa"? or "they are going from the beach"?
- él va a la oficina de correos, él se va de la oficina de correos
Here, I was just using the same construction in the second sentence as I was in the above examples, except with the verb Ir. So, literally I think I am saying "he goes to the post office" and "he goes from the post office".
Using the first person singular, is it legal or common to say something like: me voy del aeropuerto, or should I just say "estoy saliendo el aeropurto" or "estoy por salir el aeropuerto" or something like that? If "me voy del aeropuerto" is legal, would it be speaking of the present like the previous examples or an action I was going to do in the future? I've seen this construction on TV shows, using "me voy" and it seemed to me like "I'm going now" If I say "Voy a la oficina" I'm trying to say I'm going to the office sometime in the future, but, if I say "me voy de la oficina" am I saying "I'm leaving the office right now?"
Sorry if this sounds confusing, I think about stuff like this sometimes and I didn't want it to cause an aneurysm.
Thanks so much.
5 Answers
Hi, Jack. You always bring up good points.
I am going to mention something about ir/venir that may or may not be in line with your post. I am also going to inroduce "llevar" vs. "traer".
I have come to realize that in English we don't always make the same distinction between "come" and "go" as is made in Spanish. Neither do we distinguish between "Bring" and "take" as Spanish does.
To illustrate: Let's presume that I am at home, but I am going to your house. It would be incorrect to say in Spanish "I am coming to your house". From YOUR perspective I am coming to your house, because I am travelling toward you, but from my perspective I am going to your house.
That is why in Spanish when the doorbell rings and I am going to answer it, I will say "Ya voy"; in Eglish we say "I'm coming!", but that is incorrect in Spanish.
Moving on to "llevar" vs. "traer".
Let's presume that I am at my house and I am going to transport a book to your house. In Spanish, I must use "llevar" (te llevo el libro), but from your perspective in Spanish I am "bringing" the book to you. (Me traes el libro).
Interesting stuff, right?
mountaingirl wrote:
I am going to mention something about ir/venir that may or may not be in line with your post. I am also going to inroduce "llevar" vs. "traer".
I have come to realize that in English we don't always make the same distinction between "come" and "go" as is made in Spanish. Neither do we distinguish between "Bring" and "take" as Spanish does.
I got into an animated conversation with a Dominican friend on a similar note. We talk in English about "coming here and going there" or "I got here about 8" or "she left about 9". In Spanish they use the verb llegar a lot times that I would try to use the verb venir. In English, I came but in Spanish I arrived. I'm glad you brought this up because "come" and "go" have given me problems because of the different distinctions that Spanish speakers use.
To illustrate: Let's presume that I am at home, but I am going to your house. It would be incorrect to say in Spanish "I am coming to your house". From YOUR perspective I am coming to your house, because I am travelling toward you, but from my perspective I am going to your house.
So if I were coming to your house (in English), I would really be going to your house (in Spanish)? Me voy a tu casa (currently in progress) ?
That is why in Spanish when the doorbell rings and I am going to answer it, I will say "Ya voy"; in Eglish we say "I'm coming!", but that is incorrect in Spanish.
so I'm saying I'm going! (to the door) in Spanish? I'm having a hard time trying to figure out why this works. I'm sitting in my easy chair, the door bell rings, so I'm going to the door?
Moving on to "llevar" vs. "traer".
Let's presume that I am at my house and I am going to transport a book to your house. In Spanish, I must use "llevar" (te llevo el libro), but from your perspective in Spanish I am "bringing" the book to you. (Me traes el libro).
Very interesting. So, if I ask you to bring me a book, I could say something like ¿Puedes traerme un libro? In the process of bringing me the book, **Tu estás llevando un libro a mi?
Interesting stuff, right?
Absolutely 
ie: Se va de la casa.....He is leaving home
Él sale de la casa.......He is going from inside the house to the street, etc.
We can't say inside the beach, so it must be, "Ellos vienen de la playa." (Not salen).
Hi, Jack.
Yes, if the doorbell rings and you are in your chair, "ya voy" is used because you are going from point A to point B. In other words, you are moving away from your current location toward another point. The person at the door is at the other point, so from that person's perspective you are moving toward him, so from his perspective you are coming to the door.
I suppose you could say in a nutshell that "ir" is used if a person is moving away from his current location to another location, and "venir" is used if someone else is coming toward you. In English we mix these up somewhat, but in Spanish the distinction is clear.
Regarding "llevar" and "traer", generally speaking "llevar" corresponds to "ir", in that you are going away from your current location and you are taking something with you. Example" I am going to your house and I am taking a book to you - "Voy a tu casa y te llevo el libro." On the other hand, from your perspective, I am moving toward you and I am bringing the book to you. Example: "Vienes a mi casa y me traes el libro."
We've all been around Spanish long enough to appreciate that there are regional differences. I learned the bulk of my Spanish in Venezuela, and Venezuelans are quite clear about this. On the other hand, I have yet to know of a Spanish learner who has been strung up by his/her toenails for mixing these up! 
Here is my basic understanding of these three options. Irse is used to indicate that you are leaving, usually with an emphasis on where you are going. Salir means to leave, with an emphasis on the very fact that you are leaving, not necessarily with a particular destination implied.
Usually you would not say "me voy de [algún lugar]." You would likely say "me voy a [lugar]." That construction fits better with the meaning of salir.
In your last question about use of "me voy," this is used when you are in the process of leaving somewhere, or just about to leave. You have probably noticed that Spanish often will use the simple present tense whereas in English the gerund is used instead, as in, "I am going."
I hope this at least partially helps.
