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You just have to learn them! Posted by Adir on Mar 24, 2009
OK, so your Spanish teacher taught you that basically words ending in -a take the article “la” and words ending in -o take the article “el”. Right? Not quite. There are words that defy categorization and there is no magic way to learn them other than study and remember their gender. Here’s a little list…
Spanish in Paraguay Posted by Adir on Mar 19, 2009
Paraguay has two official languages: Spanish and Guaraní. According to statistics, around 37% of Paraguayans speak only Guaraní, 50% speak Spanish and Guaraní, 7% speak only Spanish and 6% speak other indigenous languages. Here we have some very common words and expressions in Guaraní and their translation to Spanish. Ahániri – no Ama – lluvia…
Tools – Herramientas en español Posted by Adir on Mar 16, 2009
Aquí les traigo el vocabulario sobre herramientas y utensilios en español. Escuchen el audio y creen tajetas de vocabulario para estudiarlo; se lo recomiendo. La regadera – watering can La paleta – trowel La horca – pitchfork Las tijeras – scissors El rastrillo – rake La manguera – hose El tacho/ el cubo – bucket…
Cuban Spanish Posted by Adir on Mar 12, 2009
Today we’ll have a look at some typical vocabulary used in Cuba. Check them out! Amarillo – a coward person. Aquel hombre es un amarillo. (That man is a coward.) Caballo – friend. ¿Cómo estás, caballo? (How are you, my friend?) Curralo – work. Voy pa’l curralo. (I’m going to work.) Embori – a snitch…
Learning tip: Radio y Televisión Española Posted by Adir on Mar 9, 2009
Radio Nacional de España Mi gente, hoy les traigo algo muy pero que muy bueno. The thing is, I just stumbled upon Spain’s National Television and Radio website and I flipped out, ¡me he vuelto loco! You can listen to and watch lots of recorded programs like interviews, music reviews, politics, movies or live radio…
Latin expressions in Spanish Posted by Adir on Mar 6, 2009
There are many Latin expressions used in formal and written Spanish. Let’s learn some of them. ad hoc – a propósito (for the purpose) a fortiori – con mayor razón (with all the more reason) ex aequo – con igual mérito (equally) in extremis – en caso extremo (in an extreme case) modus vivendi –…
Business Spanish II – Negotiating Posted by Adir on Mar 3, 2009
Again some readers wrote me and asked about business Spanish vocabulary in negotiating. First off, we need to establish a rapport with the clients and try to sound them out to see what they really want, so we can pitch our product correctly. Here are some useful expressions when negotiating: Bien, en primer lugar ……