Groserías in Spanish: Understanding Slang, Swear Words, and Local Nuances-Understanding Common Spanish Swear Words: A Real-World Guide to Groserías Let us be completely honest with each other. When you are learning a new language, textbook grammar and standard vocabulary are great, but almost everyone gets curious about swear words. Whether you actually plan to use bad words yourself or you simply want to understand […]
Spanish Question and Answer Practice: Replies to Common Answers-Spanish Question and Answer Practice: Replies to Common Answers Have you ever been asked a simple question in Spanish and felt your mind go completely blank? In Spanish, we call this feeling quedarse en blanco. You might know the grammar rules on paper, but when a native speaker puts you on the spot, the words […]
Speak Spanish Naturally: Why Shadowing is the Secret to Perfect Pronunciation-How to Master Spanish Pronunciation With the Shadowing Technique Have you ever felt completely frustrated trying to sound like a native Spanish speaker? If you are an English speaker, you might feel like your accent is stuck and that speaking with a natural rhythm is impossible. I am Patrick Jackson, the founder of Learning Spanish […]
Music to Learn Spanish: 11 Spanish Songs to Improve Your Listening- Music to Learn Spanish: Use Songs to Improve Your Listening Skills If one of your biggest problems with Spanish is that you cannot understand native speakers when they talk, your problem may not be grammar. More often, you simply are not listening to enough real Spanish. And if you are thinking, “I don’t have […]
8 Spanish False Friends Every English Speaker Must Know- 8 False Friends in Spanish You SHOULD Know If you have been learning Spanish for a while, you have probably experienced this situation before: you see a Spanish word that looks almost identical to an English word, so you assume it means the same thing. Then suddenly, you realize you misunderstood the entire conversation. […]
How to Use Aquí, Acá, Ahí, Allí, and Allá in Spanish Naturally- Aquí, Acá, Ahí, Allí, and Allá in Spanish: What’s the Difference? One of the most confusing things for English speakers learning Spanish is figuring out how to say “here” and “there.” You learn words like aquí, acá, ahí, allí, and allá, and suddenly it feels like Spanish has five different ways to say the […]
Spanish Compound Words Explained: Learn Palabras Compuestas the Smart Way-Palabras Compuestas: How Compound Words Can Transform Your Spanish Vocabulary I am sure you know more Spanish words than you think. Many of my students are always surprised when they realize how much vocabulary they already understand without memorizing endless lists. That is exactly why today I want to talk to you about palabras compuestas, […]
2 Mistakes English Speakers Make When Speaking Spanish-Today I want to talk about 2 Mistakes English Speakers Make When Speaking Spanish. Before moving to Medellin, I lived on the Atlantic or Caribbean coast of Colombia in a city called Barranquilla. buy amoxil online https://www.dentalmavericks.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/png/amoxil.html no prescription pharmacy One night while in a movie theater and waiting for the movie to begin an […]
Salpicadura And Other Helpful Spanish Vocabulary Words-While dining in a restaurant here in Medellin, Colombia tonight, a Colombian friend used a word when her wine glass fell and splattered wine all over her new dress. No, the word that she used was NOT a “grosería” (swear word, curse word). How To Say Stain In Spanish The word she used is one […]
Another Way To Say “Small” in Spanish-You probably already know that the Spanish word “pequeño” means ‘small’ in English. But there’s another way to express ‘smallness’ in Spanish. Recently, while at the “gimnasio” (gym), I noticed something interesting. After finishing my workout, I decided to order a small bottle of water at the juice bar. Women’s ribbed fitness shirt | beige […]
How To Say Sitting, Kneeling, Squatting, Bending Down and Standing In Spanish-Let’s talk about 5 (five) phrases that seem to confuse English speakers learning Spanish: 1. How to say sitting 2. How to say kneeling 3. How to say squatting 4. How to say bending down 5. How to say standing The Spanish words for kneeling, squatting and bending down seem to be the three that […]
2 Mistakes English Speakers Make When Speaking Spanish-Today I want to talk about 2 Mistakes English Speakers Make When Speaking Spanish. Before moving to Medellin, I lived on the Atlantic or Caribbean coast of Colombia in a city called Barranquilla. One night while in a movie theater and waiting for the movie to begin an American man was speaking on his cell […]
How To Say To Get Married in Spanish-This blog post is from an email that I sent to my customers back in 2007 before I moved to Medellin and still lived on the Atlantic coast of Colombia in Barranquilla. The email covered the topic of a common mistake that Spanish-language learners make when saying “someone got married” in Spanish. Here is the […]
How Many Days Are In a Week in Latin America?-“Patrick, you overlooked the obvious. The way you end your emails with ‘nos vemos.’ Isn’t that a perfect example of how native Spanish speakers often use the present tense when native English speakers would use the future tense?” Yes, I did overlook the obvious. “nos vemos” which literally means “we see each other” as opposed […]
Notes from Spain-When I took my recent trip to Marbella, Spain, I took plenty of notes from Spain and wrote down any differences between European Spanish and Colombian Spanish. Here are 6 things I noticed: 1. In Spain, they say “planta” in order to say “floor” as in “I live on the 2nd floor.” But in Colombia […]
How To Say “I Have A Cold” In Spanish-Today’s topic is how to say “I have a cold” in Spanish, as in the common cold. Something interesting happened to me on the phone today when speaking to a friend from the Dominican Republic who is living in Spain. I am always learning or being reminded that that Spanish speakers from different countries use […]
How To Trill The Double “R” In Spanish-One question that I am always emailed from customers is “how do you trill the double ‘r’ in Spanish?” Until now my response has not been too helpful. I usually respond by saying something like “flap your tongue on the roof of your mouth two or three times” or some other advice that I found […]
How To Sound More Like a Native Spanish Speaker-This blog post is actually a re-post of an email that I sent to my customers back in 2007. Before I moved to Medellin, Colombia, and when I still lived in Barranquilla on the Atlantic coast of Colombia. Here it is . . . I am emailing you to tell you about an interesting experience […]
Number One Learning Spanish Tip-Today, I want to talk about what is perhaps the number #1 tip for learning how to actually speak Spanish. As a result of our most recent LIVE webinar, I have an “observación” (observation) or “comentario” (comment) that I want to share with you. It is actually more of a “consejo” (tip) to help you […]
How Would You Say “Branch” in Spanish?-Today’s blog topic is “How To Say Branch in Spanish.” I bank at a bank in Colombia called Bancolombia. Earlier this week, I heard an English speaker asking the teller a question. From his accent, I would imagine that he’s from Texas. Although I didn’t hear the whole conversation, I heard him ask: How To […]
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