Nothing is more confusing for the beginner student of a language than words that look similar. Over the years I have seen students struggle with remembering the following verbs simply because they are common and all begin with a double ‘l’ combination. Below is a complete list of these verbs along with some examples sentences.
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As Spanish only has roughly one-third the vocabulary of English, around 330,000 versus 1 million words, it is only natural to see the same linking words used frequently. This sometimes feels unnatural for English speakers who were taught to never repeat the same linking word in essays or reports. Keep in mind however, it is very frequent in Spanish that one word has various meanings in English. It is always the context which helps determine which word is meant. The following words are extremely useful when writing short stories or essays and are paramount when you are recounting a story or something that happened to you. They should be at the top of the vocabulary list for new learners to the language.
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The Spanish verb estar has many idiomatic expressions associated with it. Idioms are phrases or sentences that do not translate directly from one language to another. A common example in English is ‘ it’s raining cats and dogs.’ Idioms developed over time in languages and sometimes the origin of them is known and other times it is unknown. They are a colourful part of any language and should be learned along with regular vocabulary and grammar to become a fluent speaker. Here are some of the more common idioms with estar:
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Ya is a tricky word in Spanish. In the dictionary, it usually translates as now or already. However, it can also have other nuanced meanings including emotions such as agreement or impatience. Tone in your delivery also plays an important role in deciphering meaning. Finally, one finds ya more in casual speech than in formal written Spanish. Below are some possible translations with example sentences.
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The present tense in the Spanish language can be tricky for newcomers, as one finds more than a few irregular verbs that need to be memorized. It may be helpful to think of present tense verbs belonging to one of four categories in the present tense: regular, stem-changing, first-person irregular and totally irregular.
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Prepositions are small words usually found in front of a noun that help establish its relation to another word in the sentence. Examples of prepositions in English include: in, under, with, for etc. Spanish has three key prepositions to do with location: a, de, en.
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A number of German words have made their way into the English language. Some of them we accept as a matter of course as they have been around for a long time. Others, have come into English rather recently. While most words maintain the same or similar meaning some change their meaning slightly when transplanted from one language to another. For example, the word angst. Below you will find a list of common German words and phrases used in English.
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Proper pronunciation is key to communicating in any language. Without proper pronunciation, it can become very difficult to make yourself understood. Review the guidelines below to better understand Spanish word syllabification and stress.
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Historically, German and English have shared a number of similar or even identically spelled words such as:
der Student, das Haus, die Maus, die Medizin
This is due to the fact that both languages stem from a common proto-Germanic language as well as the fact that they have imported words from the same languages such as French. Over time, these words have come to be part of each language without people giving much thought to it. However, in recent history a large number of English words have been adopted by German speakers, especially the youth culture.
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Prepositions are important words in sentences as they show the relation between the words. Common prepositions in English include: with, in, for, to etc. One major difference between English and German grammar is that each preposition in the German language is associated with a specific case. Here we are looking at a specific subset of prepositions called two-way prepositions which can be used with either the accusative or dative case. The following is the complete list of nine two-way prepositions:
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