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    Calladito, despacito: how Spanish uses little words to soften commands

    Calladito, despacito: how Spanish uses little words to soften commands In English, you are just sitting or quiet. In Spanish, you can be sentado, but also sentadito, callado, or calladito, depending on the tone. Those little endings -ito, -ita, -cito, -cita don’t change the basic meaning, but they change how it feels: more affectionate, softer, […] More

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    ✨ “Estrenar”: A Spanish Verb with No Exact English counterpart

    LOVELOVE

    Niña estrenando zapatos.

    “`html ✨ “Estrenar”: A Spanish Verb with No Exact English counterpart Wearing, using or showing something for the first time… all in one word Spanish has a very special verb that English doesn’t really have: estrenar. We use it all the time, but it’s hard to translate with just one neat word in English. At […] More

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    FEELING ALL THE FEELS IN SPANISH: DAR vs TENER

    tengo hambre

    FEELING ALL THE FEELS IN SPANISH: DAR vs TENER How to say you’re hungry, sleepy, jealous, grossed out and more with fun, natural Spanish expressions. In English we usually just say “I am hungry / I am cold / I am scared.” In Spanish, we have two very expressive options to talk about physical sensations […] More

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    ¡HOY TOCA!

    ya toca bañar al perro

    … understand the verb TOCAR ¡Hoy toca! Today is the day! to really understand how Spanish speakers use TOCAR. The verb tocar looks simple (“to touch”), but in Spanish it has several very different meanings. In this lesson, we focus on two very common ideas: Chance / luck / coincidence: “this happened to me by […] More

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    🌀 “Ya” in Spanish: One Tiny Word, Many Meanings

    ya basta

      🌀 “Ya” in Spanish: One Tiny Word, Many Meanings Already, yet, now, not anymore, “I get it”… all in two letters The little word ya appears everywhere in Spanish, but it doesn’t always mean the same thing. Depending on the verb tense, the tone and the context, it can mean already, yet, now, not […] More

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    😵‍💫 10 More Spanish Expressions That Are Not Easy to Figure Out. Soponcio.

    dar un soponcio

          From fainting fits to “letting loose” and covering the macho’s eye Sometimes the most confusing Spanish expressions are the ones that sound “transparent” but actually mean something completely different. In this new set of ten, you’ll see fainting fits, party mode, money slang, and even a macho bull getting his eye covered. […] More

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    😋 Antojarse, Antojar, Antojársele, Antojitos

    LOVELOVE

    Antojitos restaurant at Universal

      😋 Antojarse, Antojar, Antojársele, Antojitos ¡Cuando algo simplemente se te antoja! Have you ever suddenly craved something — like chocolate, tacos, or ice cream — and you weren’t even sure why? In Spanish, there’s one perfect verb for that feeling: ANTOJARSE. 💭 “Se me antojó un helado.” Literally: A craving for ice cream just […] More

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    Spanish Last Names revisited: Why Spanish, Italian, Korean and Russian Last Name Systems Are So Different

    Last names

    Why Spanish, Italian, Korean and Russian Last Names Look So Different We usually think a “last name” is something simple: one family name, one family. But if you compare Spanish, Italian, Korean and Russian names, you see very different systems and very different numbers. Spoiler: different cultures found very different ways to answer the same […] More

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    “¡Aquí mero, por favor!”: Mero, a Very Mexican Little Word

    Aquí mero

    How Mexicans use “mero”, “ya mero”, “aquí mero”, “el mero mero”, “yo mero” and more, plus the formal word “mero” and “meramente”. Mexican Spanish The word mero is small, but in Mexico it has a lot of personality. With just this word you can say things like “almost”, “right here”, “the main boss”, or “me, […] More

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    Claxon: The Old Brand Name That Became the Word for Car Honk in Spanish

    LOVELOVE

    claxon

    A small language story: from Klaxon (brand) to claxon (any car horn) in Spanish and many other languages. Words and brands In Spanish, many people say el claxon when they talk about the car horn. But at the beginning, Klaxon (with K) was the name of a brand of car horns, not a normal word […] More

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    “Esteee…” — The Spanish Word People Say When They Don’t Know What to Say

    esteeee

    “Esteee…” – The Spanish Word When You Don’t Know What to Say One of many little Spanish words people use when they are thinking, hesitating… or buying time. Real-life Spanish In English we say “uh,” “um,” “like…” when we need time to think. In Spanish we often say este… — and if we need more […] More

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    Lyrics: No Importa que Llueva

    No Importa que Lueva Efecto Pasillo

    Spanish English Notes  No importa que llueva si estoy cerca de ti Nara nara nana Nara nana nana It doesn’t matter if it rains if I am close to you No importa que + subjunctive (llueva) = “It doesn’t matter if…”. Subjunctive expresses possibility. Hey! Me paso el día molestándote Hey! I spend the whole […] More

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