10 Common mistakes to avoid when learning Spanish
When learning a foreign language it is impossible not to make your fair share of mistakes. Here are the most common mistakes to avoid in Spanish:
(1) To say “another …” in Spanish you don’t need to use “un” or “una”:
“Another book” isn’t, “un otro libro”, just “otro libro”.
How to prepare “Paella de marisco” (Seafood paella)
Here is a video to show you how to make paella in Spanish with the instructions translated into English below:
Vamos a preparar paella de marisco. Los ingredientes que necesitamos son:
We are going to make seafood paella. The ingredients that we need are: Continue reading
Spanish expressions using animals
A key part of learning a language, sounding fluent and being able to understand native speakers is knowing a few colloquial phrases and expressions which cannot be translated or understood literally. Here are some Spanish expressions using animals:
Perro: Dog
A otro perro con ese hueso: You’re pulling my leg / You’re kidding me.
A perro flaco todo son pulgas: It never rains but it pours. Continue reading
Spanish Idioms using the verb “Ser” (To be)
Impress someone with an authentic Spanish expression! First you have the Spanish expression, followed by the literal translation with the English equivalent meaning in brackets.
Ser más fuerte que un roble – To be stronger than an oak tree (To be as strong as an ox)
Ser uña y carne – To be nail and flesh (To get on really well/be really close)
Es pan comido – It is bread that has been eaten (It’s a piece of cake) Continue reading
Spanish Idioms using “Estar” (to be)
One of the interesting parts of learning a new language is seeing how it compares to your own language. It is interesting to see the similarities and differences when using idiomatic expressions in another language. Here are some common phrases that use “estar” (the temporary/situational verb for “to be”):
Estar todavía en pañales – To still be in nappies/naïve
Estar como pez en el agua – To be like a fish in water (To be in one’s element, enjoy your own comforts)
Estar como agua para chocolate – To be like water for chocolate (To be at boiling point) Continue reading
Spanish nouns (III) – Exceptions!
As nearly always with learning grammar there are exceptions to the general rules. With nouns in Spanish try to remember the following changes:
Nouns that end in –o that are feminine:
There are words that appear to be masculine from their -o ending but they are feminine.
Often these words have been shortened:
la radio [is orginially from “la radiografía”] (radio)
la foto [la fotografía] (photograph)
la moto [la motocicleta] (motorbike) Continue reading
Spanish nouns (II) – Patterns to watch out for
As explained in the previous blog post, words that end in –o are classed as masculine and words that end in –a are feminine. What about words ending in other letters? Although this is more tricky because they can be either masculine or feminine. there are patterns to watch out for. If you can remember them, you can quickly work out if a word is masculine or feminine. Here are the main patterns to watch out for: Continue reading
Spanish nouns (I)
As well as for members of the family and names of jobs, all nouns in Spanish are classed as either masculine or feminine.
Masculine nouns normally end in –o and feminine nouns normally end in –a:
el niño (the boy)
la niña (the girl)
“el” and “la” both mean “the”. This is known as the definite article. Continue reading
Awesome place to practice Spanish: Tulum, Mexico
Learning a foreign language offers several advantages. You can get better jobs, make new friends, watch films without having to read subtitles; but among the variety of good reasons to learn a foreign language, travelling abroad and experiencing a country fully has got to be at the top of the list of many passionate travellers. Today we will look at a wonderful place to practice your Spanish, Tulum. Continue reading
When to use “mal” or “malo” in Spanish
“Malo” is the adjective (describing word) which normally means “bad” but can also mean “ill”, “poor”, “wrong”. It also has a feminine form, “mala” as well as plural forms, “malos” and “malas”.
Look at these examples:
Empecé a leer un libro tan malo que no podía terminarlo.
I started to read such a bad book that I couldn’t finish it.
¡Mala suerte!: Bad luck! [suerte is a feminine noun] Continue reading
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