SpanishB1Lesson 5.2
🇪🇸 Spanish B1 · Lesson 5.2

Diferencias y reclamaciones — Culture & complaints

Compare cultural habits and make a complaint to ask for a refund.

Listen first

A tourist complains at a hotel desk abroad and asks for a partial refund.

🔊 Real audio — spoken by your browser in Spanish. Tap any word below to hear it.
New vocabulary — tap to hear
la costumbrethe custom / habit 🔊
la reclamaciónthe complaint 🔊
el reembolsothe refund 🔊
no funcionarto not work / be broken 🔊
exigirto demand 🔊
tener en cuentato take into account 🔊

Now say it

Tap the phrase to hear it, then press the mic and repeat — we score your pronunciation for real (Chrome/Edge).

« Quería poner una reclamación porque el servicio no fue el que prometieron. » 🔊
I'd like to make a complaint because the service wasn't the one they promised.
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Pronunciation

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Read the dialogue

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Buenos días, quería poner una reclamación sobre mi habitación. 🔊Good morning, I'd like to make a complaint about my room.
Lo siento mucho. Dígame, ¿cuál es el problema? 🔊I'm very sorry. Tell me, what's the problem?
El aire acondicionado no funciona desde anoche y hace mucho calor. 🔊The air conditioning hasn't worked since last night and it's very hot.
Entiendo. Tendremos en cuenta las molestias y lo solucionaremos hoy. 🔊I understand. We'll take the inconvenience into account and fix it today.
Se lo agradezco, pero también me gustaría un reembolso parcial de la noche. 🔊I appreciate that, but I'd also like a partial refund for the night.
Es razonable. Hablaré con el gerente para gestionarlo cuanto antes. 🔊That's reasonable. I'll speak to the manager to arrange it as soon as possible.
Grammar in focus · complaining politely with structure

A good complaint stays polite but firm. Open with a conditional or imperfect of courtesy: « Quería / Querría poner una reclamación. » State the problem clearly with « desde » for duration — « No funciona desde ayer. » Express the inconvenience with « lo que » clauses: « Lo que más me molesta es el ruido. » Request a solution with « me gustaría » or « les pediría que… » Cultural note: in Spain a polite-but-direct tone usually works better than excessive apology.

Write it yourself

Write a short complaint (4–5 sentences) about a faulty product or bad service, ending with a clear request for a refund or solution.

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Tip for this task
« ¡Bien! » Your complaint is firm without being rude. State the problem first, then the request. Example: « El producto llegó roto, por lo que solicito un reembolso o un reemplazo. »

Quick check

An adaptive quiz confirms you've got it and schedules the right words for review.

1. Which word means 'refund'?
2. How do you say something has been broken since yesterday?
3. Which opener is polite for a complaint?
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