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cccmedia
#761
Know your Spanish verbs.

What's the difference between lagrimar, lamentar y lastimar?
.
.
.
.
lagrimar = to cry

lamentar = to regret

lastimar = to injure
cccmedia
#762
What's the difference?

What's the difference between alce, arce y arcoíris?
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.
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Un alce is a moose or an elk.  (AHL-say)

Arce means maple as in maple leaf.

arcoíris = rainbow

All three words are masculine nouns.
cccmedia
#763
Know your Spanish verbs.

What's the difference between tratar, trotar y tragar?
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.
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tratar means to treat as in to treat cancer.

trotar = to jog (humans) or to trot (animals)

tragar = to swallow or gulp down

un trago = a drink, as in 'a drink of whisky'
cccmedia
#764
What's the difference?

What's the difference between turco, terco y truco?
.
.
.
turco is an adjective meaning Turkish.

terco is an adjective meaning stubborn.

un truco is a noun meaning 'a trick'.
cccmedia
#765
Know your Spanish verbs.

What's the difference between agarrarse y acurrucarse?
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.
.
agarrarse = to hold or to grab

acurrucarse = to cuddle or curl up

Agarrame por la mano.
Grab (or hold) my hand.
cccmedia
#766
Know your nouns.

What's the difference between raza, raíz y razón?

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.
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.

raza = race (category of people);  the human race is 'la raza humana'.

raíz = root.  Pronounced rah-EESE.  Plural is 'raíces'.

razón = reason, as in one's reason for living.

All three nouns in this post are feminine nouns.
cccmedia
#767
Overheard at the farmacia.

Vendedor (salesperson):  En qué puede ayudarle?
How can I assist you?

Busco la medicina lorazepam?
I am looking for the medication lorazepam.

Vendedor:  Para esa medicina, requiere una receta especial.
For that med, it's required to have a special prescription.

No tengo tal receta.  Regresaré durante la semana que viene.
I don't have such a prescription.  I'll come back next week.

Vendedor:  Algo más?
Anything else?

Sí, quisiera una botellita de gotas para despejar la nariz.  Prefiero
    la clase suave, por ejemplo para niños.
Yes, I'd like a small bottle of drops to clear the nose.   I prefer
    the gentle type, for instance for kids.

Vendedor:  Tenemos este producto.
We have that product.
cccmedia
#768
Getting flirty.

Spring Spanish has put out many videos, including one that introduces Gringos to phrases useful in flirting.

According to the video presented by Paulísima, the phrase Hola, guapa (hello, beautiful) or Hola, guapo (hello, handsome) is passé.

More useful these days is "Me gusta mucho tu estilo" (I really like your style).  That's just one of many examples.

Search at YouTube.com....
      stop saying hola guapa spring Spanish
S
#769
@cccmedia

Please count me in to any Spanish learning. I have a 2-year visa for Ecuador. I live in Atlanta part of the time. My primary goal is to improve my Spanish but realize I need to be immersed in the language before that's going to happen
cccmedia
#770
Dear Susan,

Welcome to Expat.com and the Ecuador forum.

The MeetUp site lists Spanish-speaking groups in and around Atlanta.

The site's page(s) for this are easily Googled.

cccmedia
Expat.com experts team
cccmedia
#771
False friends.

The verb decepcionar means 'to disappoint'.  Also, decepcionarse means 'to be disappointed'.

Another verb, defraudar, can mean either 'to disappoint' or 'to cheat'.

The verb engañar (a) is a common word for 'to deceive'.

--

Wordreference.com was consulted for this post.
cccmedia
#772
What's the difference?

What's the difference between casi, caso y queso?
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casi is an adverb meaning 'almost'.

caso is a verb meaning 'case' as in a legal case.

queso is a noun meaning 'cheese'. (KEH-soh)
B
#773
@cccmedia

Good posts.

Me esposa me engano.

As an example...
cccmedia
#774
"Me esposa me engano." (sic)

---

Dear Bill on the Hill,

Welcome to the Ecuador forums/Spanish-language-teaching threads of Expat.com...

Glad you appreciate the previous posts.

---

Bill has been complimentary, so my purpose in this post is not to put him down, but to attempt to teach.

---

Which brings us back to Me exposa me engano.

The apparent meaning Bill is after is "My wife cheats on me."  However, there appear to be a few classic errors in the sentence that a Spanish-learner might make.  (How would you translate this five-word English sentence into Spanish?)

---

There is a Spanish word me (pronounced 'may');  however, in this case, the correct word is mi (pronounced 'mee'), translated into English as 'my'...

  mi esposa        my wife

mi perro           my dog

mi coche          my car

---

"... me engano."

Here bill uses the Spanish pronoun 'me' correctly.  There are two problems with 'engano'. 

This verb form, from engañar, to cheat or deceive, is not easy to type on every device .. as it requires a Spanish-language keyboard or 'inside baseball' knowledge how to produce the ñ on a non-Spanish keyboard. 

The other problem is that Bill was using a first-person form of the verb whereas the correct form attributing the action to his wife is the third-person engaña.

Put it all together .. and we translate as follows.

English:  My wife cheats on me.

Spanish:  Mi esposa me engaña.

---

Final thought...

Thank you, Bill, for indulging me for this lesson.

  -- cccmedia
cccmedia
#775
Was Bill attempting to communicate in the past tense?

One of our most astute members PM'd me today.  He points out that Bill may have been attempting to say in Spanish "My wife cheated on me" when he wrote "...me engano."  The past tense of 'engañar' (third person) is engañó, with the accent mark.

Good catch, Parce!

cccmedia
cccmedia
#776
Know your Spanish nouns.

What's the difference between masquerilla, maravilla y mantequilla?
.

.

.

masquerilla =  mask, for instance a protective mask worn
                    during The Situation

maravilla = a marvel;  also, goldenrod, a curative plant

mantequilla = butter






cccmedia
#777
Know your nouns.

What's the difference between solicitud,
solicitante y soledad?
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la solicitud             =   the request

el/la solicitante     =   the applicant or candidate

soledad             =   solitude;  loneliness  (feminine noun)
cccmedia
#778
Se fue.

I asked someone, "Dónde está Ella?"  Where is she?

"Se fue," I was told.

Meaning:  she left, she split.

Of three common ways to say someone left --
using the correct forms of salir, irse y marcharse --
the verb irse is the most irregular.

I leave.               Me voy.

I'm leaving.       Me estoy yendo.

I left.                  Me fui.

José left.            Jose se fue.

We left.             Nos fuimos.

---

Spanish learners may want to use
salir while still mastering the language
even though salir  is also irregular.

I go (out).              Salgo.

He/she goes.       Sale.



They want
    to leave.    Ellos quieren irse.
cccmedia
#779
What's the difference?

What's the difference between the verbs
aterrizar y aterrorizar?
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aterrizar   =      to land or touch down
                            (such as a plane or a ball)

aterrorizar   =  to terrorize
cccmedia
#780
Know your Spanish verbs.

What's the difference between
ordenar, ordeñar y ordenarse?
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ordenar = to order (as in a store
          or restaurant) or to arrange
           (put in order)

ordeñar = to milk (as in milk a cow)

ordenarse =  to be ordained
1 member reacted to this post
L
#781
Like "draw" and "pull."
cccmedia
#782
Know your nouns.

What's the difference between gancho y gaucho?
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gancho   =   hook

gaucho   =   cowboy

The term 'gaucho' is commonly used for cowboy in
Argentina and its neighbor, Uruguay.  The word
'vaquero' is used for cowboy in many other
Latin countries and for cowboy in the U.S.

Muchos gauchos aún cabalgan caballos,
pero la mayoría del personal de haciendas
conduce camionetas en esta época.
Many cowboys still ride horses,
but most ranch hands drive trucks these days.
cccmedia
#783
What's the difference?

What's the difference between acero,
acera y aceite?
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acero  =  steel (also can refer to a sword)

acera  =   sidewalk or pavement

aceite  =   oil
1 member reacted to this post
cccmedia
#784
Learn a noun and a verb.

What's the difference between esquiría y escurrir?
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esquiría means 'shard'.

Tras el choque, notamos esquirías de vidrio
por todas partes.
After the crash, we noted shards of glass
all over.

escurrir is a verb meaning 'to drain'.
Spoken to a restaurant waiter at the
end of the meal:
Por favor, que escurren la sobra de salsa
y empaquen las comidas que se quedan
para llevar.
Please, have them drain the excess
sauce and pack the remaining foods
for take-out.
1 member reacted to this post
cccmedia
#785
Can you pronounce this Spanish verb?

The word is:   vale



The pronunciation here in Latin America is:

    BAH-lay

(If you're in Madrid, Spain, the V might
be pronounced differently.)

'Vale' is from the root-form verb 'valer',
which means 'to be worth' or 'to be equal.

You may have learned that when you
agree on something, you can say
'de acuerdo' or 'estoy de acuerdo'
('acuerdo' means agreement).

However, in Latin America, that would
often be considered too formal
a way to speak.

Instead, a common way to agree
is to say:  Vale!

Wordreference.com translates
the interjection 'Vale!' as
fine, right, good, O.K.

The USA-origiinated term O.K.
is widely used in Latin America,
also meaning fine, right, good.

Cliente en taxi:
Quisiera ir al Capitolo.
(I want to go to the Capitol building.)
Taxista:  Vale!
cccmedia
#786
Ten words and phrases (with translations)
       that we appreciate using or hearing in
       América del Sur.

10.  mantequilla                       butter

9.  acabo de (verbo)                 I just (did something)

8.  vaquera                                cowgirl

7.  desafortunadamente        unfortunately

6.  vale!                                      good, fine, O.K.

5.  sin duda                               without doubt

4.  zarpar                                   to set sail

3.  (yo) quisiera                         I would like

2.  igualmente                          same (to you)

Tenga buen día.
-- Igualmente.

1.  con gusto                              with pleasure

Hazme el favor de seguir esa camioneta.
(Do me a favor and follow that truck.)
Taxista:  Vale.Con gusto.
cccmedia
#787
Know your nouns.

What's the difference between
persona, personaje y personero?
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la persona       =      the person

el personaje    =      the celebrity, VIP or
                                       well-known person

el personero/la personera   =
the official
                                  (as in administration official)
cccmedia
#788
What's the difference?

What's the difference between
patilla, pastilla y pasa?

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.
.
patilla             =   sideburn

pastilla           =.   pill or tablet

pasa                =   raisin
cccmedia
#789
Know your Spanish nouns.

What's the difference between
reseña, revista y resentido?
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reseña  =          review as in a movie review
                                or a lodgings review

revista  =          magazine or journal

resentido/resentida.   =
resentful or bitter person
cccmedia
#790
Know more nouns.

What's the difference between
cola, cólera y acólito?
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cola can mean the soft drink or
             can be a line or queue

cólera is cholera (disease)

acólito   =   altar boy or acolyte

  ---

Another word for line or queue
is 'fila'.
cccmedia
#791
Little words.

What's the difference between
más, mes y misa?
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más       =   more

el mes   =   the month

la misa  =   the religious mass
cccmedia
#792
What's the difference?

What's the difference between
hielo, pelo y vuelo?
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hielo    =  ice

pelo     = hair 

vuelo  =  flight, as in arrival of a flight

cccmedia
#793

Three common verbs.


What's the difference between
comer, coser y coger?

comer     =    to eat

coser       =    to sew

coger       =    to take, catch or grab

'coger' also has a sexual meaning ..
and that is beyond the scope of
this post.
cccmedia
#794
Listening to the talk at a
blackjack table in Colombia...

Dealer:  "Dos o doce."
(Player has a soft 12, also countable
as 2.)
Player:  "Tampoco."  (Neither.)
(Player scratches for another card,
which turns out to be a 3.)
Dealer:  "Cinco o quince."
(Player now has a soft 15, also
countable as 5.)
Player:  "Tampoco."
(Player scratches for another hit,
which card is a 6 giving him
a soft 21 with three cards.
He signals that he stands
on 21.)
cccmedia
#795
Top Ten.

Usually it's a 'giveaway' that a noun is
feminine in Spanish if it ends with an 'a'.

But not always.

Here is a top-ten list of words that
are masculine although they end
in 'a'.  Some of the words are of
Greek origin, which may explain some
of the discrepancy.


el sofá                            the sofa or couch
el mapa                         the map
el planeta                     the planet
el sistema                     the system
el clima                         the climate or weather
el esquema                  the diagram or outline
el idioma                      the language
el drama                       the drama or play
el tema                          the theme or topic
el poema                      the poem
cccmedia
#796
El y la?

According to word reference.com, there are
some words in Spanish that can be either
masculine or feminine...

el sartén, la sartén           the frying pan

la radio, el radio               the radio
cccmedia
#797
Feminine words that can be
introduced with 'el' or 'un'...

When a feminine Spanish noun begins
with an 'a' and the first syllable is stressed,
'el' or 'un' (meaning 'the' or 'a' in
English) can be used in front of the
Spanish word....

el agua (nf)     the water

un área (nf)    the area
cccmedia
#798
Know your Spanish verbs.

What's the difference between
perseguir, conseguir y seguir?
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.
.
perseguir    =   to pursue (someone)

conseguir   =   to get (something)

seguir          =   to follow



From seguir:

     Siga!

     Go ahead!
cccmedia
#799
Some words Expats should know
when ordering food delivery.

English words on left, translation at right.
.
.
.
.
to deliver                     entregar

to the home                a domicilio

pay in cash                  pagar en efectivo

pay by card                  pagar por tarjeta

no utensils                   no cubierto

when will it                   cuándo llegará?
arrive?

cccmedia
#800
Know your Spanish 'verbos'.

What's the difference between
volar, votar y vocalizar?
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.
.
volar         =   to fly

votar         =    to vote

vocalizar   =  to enunciate,
                           articulate .. or to
                           warm up the voice

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