How a word, phrase, or concept is used in the Spanish language.
6
votes
3answers
170 views
Regional use of “genial”
What parts of the Spanish-speaking world regularly use the word genial? Is it only encountered in Spain, or is it common in other regions as well?
Edit: It seems like it's more widespread than I ...
6
votes
3answers
173 views
What's the difference between “estar ansioso de” and “estar ansioso por”?
I know that both 'estar ansioso de' and 'estar ansioso por' mean to be excited for something or looking forward to it, but how do I decide which one to use? Do the two have slightly different ...
6
votes
2answers
412 views
Why does “bomba” mean so many different things?
The word bomba can translate to English as any of the following, depending on the region:
bomb
pump
spray
major piece of news
bubble
fire truck
fire station
gas station
plus a few more...
That ...
6
votes
2answers
156 views
Is “remover” a good translation for “to remove”?
In the Internet I've often come across to internationalized websites where they have things like:
Remove file / Remover archivo
I always thought this translation may be done by someone who is ...
6
votes
1answer
164 views
What is the meaning of “que” and “cual” without an accent mark?
What does "que" and "cual" mean without an accent mark? How do they compare when to each other? How do they compare to their accent-marked form?
6
votes
1answer
66 views
What's the function of “lo” in “lo que”?
Examples:
Lo que pasa es que el niño no fue a la escuela porque se fracturo el tobillo.
Lo que quiere es una computadora para hacer sus tareas.
Lo que dice es mentira.
Lo que no ...
6
votes
2answers
262 views
Article usage before country names
I have heard several countries expressed in Spanish with a definite article before the country name (e.g. los Estados Unidos, la Argentina, la India). Is there a rule for when this occurs and when it ...
6
votes
2answers
79 views
Regional differences between escuchar and oír
In school I learned that escuchar was for the English "to listen to" and oír was "to hear." In Central America, however, I frequently heard escuchar being used for "to hear" (e.g. No te escucho ...
6
votes
2answers
657 views
Difference between “favor de” and “por favor”
What's the difference between "favor de" and "por favor"?.
Examples:
Favor de lavarse las manos después de ir al baño.
Por favor lávese las manos después de ir al baño.
Hazme favor de ...
6
votes
1answer
69 views
Word : se quedaban
Please read the below sentence:
Ya que los mayores iban a el campo a trabajar, los niños se quedaban y jugaban juntos.
In English it means: Since the older went to work in the field, the ...
6
votes
2answers
191 views
¿Cuál es el significado de “órale” y su origen?
La palabra "órale" es usada frecuentemente en México en situaciones informales. ¿Cuál es su significado y origen?
6
votes
2answers
220 views
What is the difference between different ways of expressing desire and intention?
I hear a lot of different ways to express the idea of wanting something or wanting to do something. What is the difference between them?
Yo quiero (algo o hacer algo o que pase algo)
Me gustaría ...
...
5
votes
3answers
150 views
Correct usage of debieras and deberías
Español
¿Cuándo es correcto usar deberías o debieras? (significado y uso).
English
When is it correct to use deberías or debieras? (meaning and uses)
5
votes
2answers
247 views
What does “apañao” mean?
¿Qué significa "apañao"?
Aparentemente se usa exclusivamente en la región de Andalucía. Estaba hablando con alguien y dijo esa palabra pero no la pudo traducir.
¿Alguien sabe su significado y uso?
...
5
votes
3answers
2k views
¿Cuál es la diferencia entre “formación” y “capacitación”?
Estoy escribiendo con mi amiga de Argentina, y ella me habló de su nuevo trabajo. Ella dijo que tenía que tomar un curso de capacitación, pero veo la palabra "formación" en lugar a veces.
¿Cuál es ...
5
votes
2answers
215 views
forever: por siempre vs. para siempre
I have seen "forever" translated as both por siempre and para siempre. What is the difference? Are there contexts where you must use one or the other?
5
votes
3answers
145 views
Do mi and mío have different connotations?
I usually use the possessives mi and mío interchangeably.
For example:
Esta es la casa mía.
Esta es mi casa.
However, do the two have different connotations? (e.g. is one more formal ...
5
votes
3answers
90 views
“Earthquake”: When to use “temblor” and “terremoto”
When referring to an earthquake, are temblor and terremoto perfect synonyms? Are there any differences?
5
votes
3answers
386 views
¿Se debe decir jefe o jefa al referirse a una persona de sexo femenino?
Mi jefe en el trabajo es una mujer. ¿Cómo es la forma correcta de referirse a un jefe que es mujer? ¿jefe o jefa?. Algunos compañeros de trabajo le dicen jefa, yo le digo por su nombre sin embargo ...
5
votes
2answers
136 views
Matutino and Vespertino
I see matutino and vespertino, meaning morning and afternoon, used to describe parts of the daily schedule in schools and church. They sound very formal.
Are there more words like them to describe ...
5
votes
3answers
133 views
añorar vs extrañar
I was wondering if there were any difference between these two verbs, especially in their usual respective contexts.
Bonus point for pointing out differences between Argentina and Spain as well (if ...
5
votes
1answer
207 views
“Perdón”, “permiso”, “disculpa”, … ?
I always struggle with the correct usage of the various ways one could say the equivalent of I'm sorry or Excuse me. Of course there are many reasons I would say these things and I was often looking ...
5
votes
2answers
176 views
¿Qué significa la expresión “a lo que te truje chencha”?
¿Cuál es el significado de la expresión "a lo que te truje chencha"?
5
votes
3answers
160 views
What is the difference between “ser casado” and “estar casado”?
I have read that both ser and estar can be used with casado to give different connotations to the phrase "to be married." What exactly are the differences, and when would you use each verb?
5
votes
7answers
254 views
Uso de “concernidos”
Hoy he escuchado la siguiente frase:
"Estamos muy concernidos por..."
Es la primera vez que escucho el verbo concernir usado y conjugado de esta manera, siempre se usa como "me/nos concierne..."
...
5
votes
3answers
175 views
feliz vs. alegre vs. dichoso
I recently heard dichoso used to mean feliz. Looking up dichoso in a dictionary shows it means "happy" (or "blessed"). What is the difference between dichoso, feliz, and alegre to mean "happy"? Are ...
5
votes
2answers
305 views
Differences betwen “ahí”, “allí”, y “allá”
I am confused with the uses of "ahí", "allí" and "allá".
It seems they are used according to different situations.
Could you please tell me what are the differences and provide some examples?
Thanks!
5
votes
3answers
122 views
¿Cómo se usa la forma femenina de tema?
He leído que la palabra tema se puede usar en la forma femenina: la tema. ¿Qué significa la tema, y cómo se usa? ¿Es común? ¿Cuál es la diferencia entre el tema y la tema?
5
votes
4answers
341 views
¿Qué es “inventar el hilo negro”?
Una expresión muy común en México es "inventar el hilo negro". ¿Qué significa?
Ejemplo:
No hay que inventar el hilo negro.
5
votes
1answer
93 views
What is apercibido?
Today I looked for the word desapercibido in the RAE and found the following:
desapercibido, da.
adj. No apercibido.
Now, I know what desapercibido means, but then I was curious about ...
5
votes
1answer
323 views
“Echar” vs “tirar” vs “lanzar” vs “arrojar” vs “disparar” (to throw)
The basic meaning of them all as I understand it is:
To throw
Disparar seems to pertain exclusively to shooting or throwing something for the sole purpose of harming (maybe to shoot is the best ...
5
votes
4answers
237 views
What is the difference between “ser cierto” and “ser verdad”?
The English "to be true" can be translated to Spanish as either ser cierto or ser verdad. What is the difference between the two? When would you use one instead of the other?
5
votes
2answers
116 views
Can Spanish distinguish between “lonely” and “alone”?
I learned that solo in Spanish means both "alone" (the simple fact of not having anyone else around) and "lonely" (feeling sad because of being alone). Is there any way of distinguishing between these ...
5
votes
2answers
99 views
Difference between “igual” and “como”
I was listening to Carlos Varela's "Una Palabra" and noticed sometimes he uses "igual" for "like" and sometimes "como". I am knowing that "igual" is used more similarities, but what separates it from ...
5
votes
1answer
105 views
“Haber de” y futuridad
La entrada de "haber" en lo "Diccionario panhispánico de dudas" incluye este trozo:
a) haber de + infinitivo. En el español general, esta perífrasis
denota obligación, conveniencia o necesidad ...
4
votes
6answers
1k views
Meaning and connotations of “gringo”
In the US, "gringo" is usually understood as a disparaging reference to a foreigner (see the Merriam-Webster definition). What exactly does gringo mean in Spanish? Is it neutral, or does it have ...
4
votes
2answers
122 views
Spanish words for “loop”
I was recently reading a review of a Spanish-English dictionary that picked "loop" as a good example of a word with many possible translations into Spanish. I looked around and found several ...
4
votes
2answers
139 views
¿Qué significa la expresión “a ojo de buen cubero”?
Una expresión común aquí en México es "a ojo de buen cubero". Ejemplo:
A: ¿Cuantas personas crees que hay en esta conferencia?
B: A ojo de buen cubero unas 500 personas.
¿Cúal es su ...
4
votes
8answers
603 views
How would you translate the word “badass” to Spanish?
I was thinking maybe of "cabrón" or "chingon" ; however I think those two sound too Mexican specific. Does anybody know a better and less region specific equivalent?
4
votes
2answers
294 views
¿Cuándo se le pone tilde a más? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Difference between “mas” and “más”
The question is quite simple.
When does mas have an accent? Mas can mean more but it has other meanings as well.
Can someone ...
4
votes
5answers
209 views
Uses of “se”: “se rompió” o “rompió”
He leído las siguientes oraciones.
Mi hermano menor se rompió la mayoría de vasos.
Mi hermano menor rompió la mayoría de vasos.
Dice que la segunda frase es correcta. ¿Pero por qué?
Su ...
4
votes
2answers
158 views
Significado de “presente” en una carta. ¿Se escribe dos puntos después del destinatario?
Por ejemplo, suelo encontrar los encabezados de las cartas como sigue:
Cierta ciudad, Cierto país,
...
4
votes
1answer
259 views
What's the meaning of the -azo suffix?
What's the meaning of the (noun)-azo?
How the nouns are transformed into their -azo noun?
In which cases should be used?
Examples:
zapatazo
golpazo
4
votes
6answers
150 views
Why do you use “al” before a verb?
I understand that al is a combination of a + el when used before a noun, however in what situations would you use it in front of a verb, for instance
'Al llegar al tercer semaforo...'
4
votes
1answer
115 views
Spanish words for couple, few, handful, several, etc
In English, there are various words to express a small quality of something:
a couple (two of something)
a few (a small number, maybe around 3-5)
a handful (another vague expression for a small ...
4
votes
1answer
141 views
Gusto variant of the verb gustar
When I thought I finally had it figured out... I was confronted with the following phrase which obviously must mean:
I liked the story of your friend.
Which for me logically translates to.
...
4
votes
3answers
282 views
How formal is cuán? What are the informal alternatives?
How formal is the Spanish word cuán? When is it appropriate to use, and when does it seem out of place? How are sentences using cuán normally expressed in informal speech?
4
votes
2answers
146 views
¿Qué significa “jalar” en México?
¿Cuál es el significado de "jalar" para cada uno de estos ejemplos?
A pesar de que esta televisión la compré apenas el año pasado, ya no jala.
Ya no estés de ocioso, ¡ponte a jalar!
...
4
votes
5answers
171 views
Distinguishing “quiz” and “test”
In American English, a "quiz" is like a "test" or "exam," but it is typically shorter (in length and duration) and less heavily weighted. In Spanish class I learned "test" was examen and "quiz" was ...
4
votes
3answers
461 views
Understanding ya vs. todavía vs. aún
English speakers learning Spanish have a hard time understanding the similarities and differences between ya, todavía, and aún (or aun). They don't perfectly match up with the similar English words ...
