Archive for 'Spanish Vocabulary'
Real Spanish: Mexican dialogue Posted by Adir on May 7, 2009
If you’re tired of those old textbook dialogues here’s something for you: a real dialogue in Mexican Spanish with lots of interesting vocabulary. And remember, if you have any questions, write to us! Antonio: Ahorita vengo. María: ¿Adónde vas? Antonio: Voy a la farmacia. Necesito unas hojas de afeitar y un rastrillo nuevo. ¿Se te…
Idioms with ‘agua’ Posted by Adir on May 4, 2009
Besides being one of the five basic elements, water (el agua) is the source of several interesting idioms in Spanish. Let’s check them out! Agua pasada no mueve molino. – It’s no use crying over spilled milk. Del agua mansa líbreme Dios, que de la brava me libro yo. – Still waters run deep. estar…
Expressions with “de” Posted by Adir on May 1, 2009
Let’s learn some expressions with the preposition “de”. Caer de pie – to be lucky (to land on one’s feet) Vivir del cuento – to live off someone else without working (usually what parents say to kids) Costar un ojo de la cara – to cost an arm and a leg Cruzarse de brazos –…
Wedding Anniversaries in Spanish Posted by Adir on Apr 27, 2009
Here you have a list of the traditional materials for wedding anniversary presents. This list has the materials for the first fifteen years of marriage, then for every five years until the 60th anniversary, and next for the 75th. Pay attention to the ordinal numbers in Spanish! 1º primero – el papel (paper) 2º segundo…
The suffix -ado/-ada Posted by Adir on Apr 20, 2009
The suffix –ado/-ada can mean “-ful” or “-load”. So, a “cucharada” is a “spoonful (cuchara = spoon). Let’s see some more examples. la barcada – boatload (el barco – boat) la brazada – armful (el brazo – arm); stroke (in swimming) la calderada – cauldron full (la caldera – cauldron, boiler) la camionada – truckload…
Colombian Recipe – Ajiaco Posted by Adir on Apr 16, 2009
Ajiaco is a potato soup from Colombia. It contains pieces of chicken, usually on the bone, large chunks of corn on the cob and two or three kinds of native potatoes, like papas criollas, sabanera and pastusa. It is seasoned with guasca, a kind of aromatic herb. Here’s a recipe for ajiaco in Spanish with…
I take it you’re taking this too seriously, so don’t take it out on me, ok? Posted by Adir on Apr 9, 2009
You must have noticed by now that learning a foreign language is not easy job, because so many words have different uses and meanings. Let’s take a look at several verbs with multiple meanings. LLEVAR – to take/carry, take a person (somewhere), wear llevar a cabo – to carry through, accomplish llevar a los niños…