Using nada más with infinitive for as soon as (subordinate time clauses)

Note that this is a Europe focused lesson. Your active focus is Latin America.

 

There are different ways to say "as soon as" in Spanish, using subordinate clauses. Have a look at En cuanto/apenas/tan pronto como for as soon as in Spanish (subordinate time clauses) to learn about the most common ones. 

This lesson will explain how to use "nada más" as "as soon as". 

Spanish subordinate clause using nada más + infinitive

The most common way to use nada más in Spanish is by adding an infinitive. Have a look at the following examples:

Rompí con Juan nada más volver de mis vacaciones.I broke up with Juan as soon as I came back from my holidays.

Me quité los tacones nada más llegar a casa.I took off my high heels as soon as I got home.

Me enamoré nada más verla.I fell in love as soon as I saw her.

Nada más recoger a mis hijas del colegio, nos vamos al centro comercial.As soon as I pick up my daughters from school, we're going to the shopping mall.

Nada más escuchar su voz por teléfono me emocioné.As soon as I heard his voice on the phone I got emotional.

When there is a different subject, we still use the infinitive and clarify with the pronoun/noun at the end if we need to:

Le preparé un baño caliente nada más cenar él.I prepared a hot bath for him as soon as he had eaten dinner.

Sacamos la tarta de cumpleaños nada más llegar Inés.We took out the birthday cake as soon as Inés arrived.

Bear in mind that nada más can also be used with a conjugated verb to express the same thing, but the use of the infinitive is slightly more common. For example, this sentence is also correct:

Me informó de todo nada más nos vimos.She told me everything as soon as we met.

Nada más me di cuenta del error, llamé al banco.As soon as I noticed the mistake, I called the bank.

When used to express a future idea, the subjunctive is also used, the same way as cuando (see Cuando + the present subjunctive vs Cuando + the present indicative in Spanish):

Nada más te confirmen la fecha, apúntalo en el calendario.As soon as they confirm the date, write it down in the calendar.

Careful! don't get confused with nada más meaning "only/just":

Tengo diez euros nada más.
I only have ten euros.

Nada más quiero que me dejes en paz.
I just want you to leave me alone.

Want to make sure your Spanish sounds confident? We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your gaps and mistakes. Start your Brainmap today »

Learn more about these related Spanish grammar topics

Examples and resources

Rompí con Juan nada más volver de mis vacaciones.I broke up with Juan as soon as I came back from my holidays.
Me enamoré nada más verla.I fell in love as soon as I saw her.
Nada más escuchar su voz por teléfono me emocioné.As soon as I heard his voice on the phone I got emotional.
Sacamos la tarta de cumpleaños nada más llegar Inés.We took out the birthday cake as soon as Inés arrived.
Me informó de todo nada más nos vimos.She told me everything as soon as we met.
Nada más me di cuenta del error, llamé al banco.As soon as I noticed the mistake, I called the bank.
Nada más recoger a mis hijas del colegio, nos vamos al centro comercial.As soon as I pick up my daughters from school, we're going to the shopping mall.
Le preparé un baño caliente nada más cenar él.I prepared a hot bath for him as soon as he had eaten dinner.
Nada más te confirmen la fecha, apúntalo en el calendario.As soon as they confirm the date, write it down in the calendar.
Me quité los tacones nada más llegar a casa.I took off my high heels as soon as I got home.
Getting that for you now...