All Questions
9
votes
3answers
223 views
How to say “My old teacher”
If you say "Mi profesor viejo," your indicating your teacher old age-wise. I was wondering how you indicate that your talking about a past teacher.
9
votes
7answers
654 views
What is the longest word in Spanish?
What is the longest word in Spanish accepted by the Real Academia Española? What about words not officially accepted by the RAE?
¿Cuál es la palabra en español más larga aceptada por la Real ...
9
votes
3answers
4k views
What's the “ísimo” in the following words?
What's the "ísimo" doing on the following adjectives?
What rules should be applied to convert the adjectives to the corresponding "ísimo" adjective?
Can this be applied to all adjectives or just a ...
9
votes
3answers
188 views
“Antier” para expresar el día anterior a ayer
Hace unos días mientras me encontraba cambiando de canal en la televisión por cable, escuche una conversación de una pelicula americana doblada al español. Dos personas estaban en un bar conversando. ...
9
votes
8answers
783 views
'vos' vs 'tú' usage by country
I lived for a while in Bolivia, and I noticed some people used "vos" instead of "tú" as the second person familiar singular pronoun. Which countries use "vos" instead of "tú", and are there any that ...
9
votes
2answers
131 views
What would be a good translation of “to go well with”?
How could one translate the expression "to go well with" in Spanish?
For example:
Tequila shots go well with strawberry ice cream.
9
votes
4answers
251 views
How to decide between “ahora” and “ya” for the sense “now”?
I know that ya has additional meanings besides simply now, such as already.
But considering just the sense of ya which does mean now, when should I use it and when should I use ahora, which only has ...
9
votes
2answers
120 views
Unclear why to use “A vuestros hijos” instead of “vuestros hijos”
I have the following sentence in English
Do your children like to read?
Which translates to Spanish:
¿ A vuestros hijos les gusta leer?
To me it is unclear, why I have to use "A vuestros" ...
9
votes
1answer
436 views
How should I discuss my wife's due date?
How do I tell people when my wife's due date is? I usually say something like "el bebé se debe nacer el cuatro de junio" but I don't know if that's the correct way to say it.
9
votes
2answers
175 views
Is “versus” a Spanish word?
RAE says no, wordreference says yes. Is it used or understood by the Spanish speakers?
9
votes
3answers
562 views
What is the preferred way of saying “I have to go”?
English
As far as I can tell there are two ways to say, "I have to go."
Tengo que ir.
Tengo ir.
Is the second way even right? And if so, which one is the preferred way to say, "I have ...
9
votes
6answers
448 views
¿Qué significa la frase “Estoy más puesta que un calcetín”?
Una amiga mexicana me dijo la frase "Estoy más puesta que un calcetín." ¿Qué significa eso?
El contexto es que ella me ofrece una lección de baile.
Ella: Yo te doy unas clasesitas de baile.
...
9
votes
4answers
1k views
Use of AM/PM in time
Aside from using 'military time' (19:00 for 7:00 PM), is there another approach to delineate between AM/PM time in Spanish?
9
votes
2answers
174 views
How can I say “to take the derivative” (mathematics) in spanish?
In english, we generally use phrases like "take the derivative", "find the derivative", "evaluate the derivative", but we also use verbs such as "derivate", "derive", "differentiate", etc. What are ...
9
votes
2answers
468 views
Why is it 'Santo' Tomás/Domingo, not 'san'?
As far as I know, those two are the only exceptions. Is there a particular reason for this?
9
votes
2answers
108 views
¿Hay una mejor traducción para up-vote y down-vote que voto positivo y voto negativo?
En StackOverflow y la red StackExchange, existe el concepto de upvote y downvote, que todos usamos diariamente para calificar las preguntas y respuestas que encontramos en los sitios de la red.
No ...
9
votes
1answer
189 views
¿Cuál es la etimología de “sin embargo”?
La frase "sin embargo" se traduce como "however" en inglés, pero no la entiendo.
La palabra "sin" significa "without", y la palabra "embargo" significa "ban" o lo mismo que la palabra inglesa ...
9
votes
5answers
264 views
Why do oler and saber take the preposition “a”?
As an English speaker learning Spanish, I was always a little confused that it smells and tastes "to" something rather than "of" something:
Huele a humo.
Sabe a ajo.
I would think of "a" as ...
9
votes
3answers
267 views
“De donde fue” instead of “De donde estaba”
In Nicaragua, addresses are usually given as directions from a landmark, for example:
From the stadium, go 5 blocks south, then 3 blocks east
Sometimes the landmark is a place that used to be ...
9
votes
1answer
289 views
Words for “East” and “West” in Spanish?
The words I learned when beginning Spanish for east and west are este and oeste, which are basically cognates of their English equivalents.
But I've been told that there are other words to denote ...
9
votes
3answers
114 views
idioma, lengua and lenguaje
The words idioma, lengua and lenguaje can all be translated as "language".
Are they interchangeable? If not, what are the differences among them? When to use which?
9
votes
1answer
98 views
Usage of “llevar a trabajar” vs “llevar al trabajo”
I have found this example (which is counterintuitive, in my opinion) in "Uso de la gramática española. Elemental", Francisca Castro, Edelsa 2000:
Yo no llevo el coche a trabajar normalmente.
Why ...
9
votes
3answers
447 views
Cuándo usar “usar” o “utilizar”
Español
Ambos términos tienen un significado muy parecido. Según la RAE, el único uso de 'utilizar' es "Aprovecharse de algo" y el significado que me interesa de 'usar' es "Hacer servir una cosa para ...
9
votes
1answer
111 views
Plug vs Socket: Interchangeable?
Many dictionaries that I have looked at online seem to use enchufe as a word that is interchangeable for the English words plug and socket, which are two related, but distinct objects. Some ...
9
votes
6answers
409 views
Is “$5 pesos” proper form in Spanish?
Today I saw a bus stop advertisement that read
$5 pesos hacen la diferencia.
Is this proper form? In English, that would be incorrect and redundant. "$5 dollars" would read as "5 dollars ...
9
votes
1answer
663 views
“Desde luego” meaning and etymology
Español
Esta pregunta me recuerda a una frase similar, "desde luego", que no es eso literalmente, sino que significa "por supuesto" (según el DRAE):
luego.
[...]
desde ~.
loc. adv. ...
8
votes
6answers
327 views
How big are the regional differences in the Spanish spoken in different countries?
As a non-native speaker, I have no more difficulty conversing with a Mexican than a Spaniard or Venezuelan or Colombian or vice versa. I realize there are regional variations and differences in ...
8
votes
7answers
446 views
Are there any words that have opposite regional meanings?
Following in the footsteps of EL&U, are there any words that have opposite meanings in different Spanish-speaking regions?
We are looking for words that are the same, but have different meanings ...
8
votes
3answers
315 views
Difference between “broma” and “chiste”
Both words broma and chiste translate to the English word joke. What's the difference between these two Spanish words, and how do I know when to use each one?
8
votes
2answers
195 views
¿Qué significa “de pe a pa”?
¿Cúal es el significado de la siguiente expresión "de pe a pa"?
Por ejemplo:
Tienes que aprenderte esto de pe a pa.
8
votes
7answers
1k views
How should I translate “he is a pain in the ass”?
When referring to someone you don't like Americans (or English speakers) often use the sentence "he is a pain the ass", the literal translation to the Spanish is
es un dolor en el trasero
...
8
votes
5answers
218 views
Why is “voy” used in “voy perdiendo” instead of “estoy”?
Apparently "Voy perdiendo" means "I'm losing." But I thought the present participle was formed using estar. I am confused!
8
votes
3answers
200 views
How to say instead (when at the end of a sentence)
I know how to say,
Do Y instead of X
using 'en vez de' or en 'lugar de'
But how should I say something like
Learn Spanish instead.
Can I end a sentence with 'instead' or must I always ...
8
votes
2answers
2k views
Why is “De nada” used as a response to “Gracias”?
De means "of", and nada means "nothing", so why, when put together are they used in response to "Gracias"?
8
votes
2answers
165 views
What exactly are “mis rasgos”?
Today in conversation a girl told me:
tus rasgos, muy bonitos
I smiled, replied with some compliment, but I had no idea what did she found nice. And even later, after secretly looking this up ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
“ir a «infinitive»” vs. future tense
There are two ways to indicate a future action, ir a «infinitive» and the future tense. How do I decide which to use when? Is one form more common when spoken or in writing? Is there a regional ...
8
votes
2answers
71 views
“Sensación de que sucede algo”, ¿es dequeísmo?
Ayer escribí la siguiente frase humorística:
No hay devaluación. Es solo una sensación de que la moneda nacional es papel higiénico.
(es una referencia a expresiones como "es sólo una sensación ...
8
votes
3answers
186 views
How does one chain noun adjuncts in Spanish?
A noun adjunct is a noun that modifies another noun. For example, the word "baby" in the phrase "baby food" is a noun adjunct. In this simple case, you can translate it into Spanish as "comida de ...
8
votes
2answers
313 views
What's the difference between “debe de” y “debe”?
Is there any difference? What's their usage? When should one be used instead of the other one?
Examples:
El niño debe de hacer su tarea.
El niño debe hacer su tarea.
8
votes
3answers
213 views
¿Qué significa 'va' en “Nos vemos después, ¿va?”
Hoy, por chat, una amiga (de México) dijo:
Nos vemos depués, ¿va?
Entiendo "Nos vemos después", pero qué significa "va" en este contexto?
8
votes
2answers
439 views
How to translate “make it count”
This evening a friend saw a poster in English that said something like:
If you have only one chance at opportunity, make it count.
She asked me what it meant. She knew enough English to make out ...
8
votes
3answers
1k views
¿Qué significa en Argentina “al pedo”?
He escuchado y leído a argentinos decir "al pedo", por ejemplo, "estoy al pedo". Es evidente que NO se refiere a "estar pedo", que significa "estar borracho" en algunos sitios.
¿Qué significa "estar ...
8
votes
4answers
511 views
Waterfall: cascada vs. catarata
What is the difference between cascada and catarata as translations for the English "waterfall"? Are they synonyms, or is there a difference?
8
votes
1answer
352 views
¿Cómo se dice “cheers” en español?
¿Qué dicen los españoles cuando juntos levantan la copa de vino solemnemente? ¿Cómo se dice "cheers" en español?
8
votes
2answers
209 views
What is the spanish translation for “Account” when referring to a user account on a website?
The English > Spanish translation of account on Google Translate comes up with various forms of the word cuenta.
However, the Spanish > English translation of cuenta returns words relating to ...
8
votes
2answers
586 views
Are there any nouns with irregular plurals in Spanish?
In English, some nouns have regular plural forms ending in -s or -es and fewer are irregular. Fish in the plural is still fish while child becomes children.
In Spanish, nearly all nouns are regular, ...
8
votes
2answers
132 views
Duda entre “sino” y “si no”
Hace poco he leído un libro donde se empleaba el sino. Al principio pensaba que era un error de ortografía, pero me resulta un poco extraño que se equivocaron en poner sino y no separado si no. ...
8
votes
3answers
210 views
Two nouns in a row, or, is it OK to omit “de”?
Two or more nouns are sometimes used consecutively, with the second modifying the first.
For instance, I recently received a mail whose subject was "Honorarios migración." This is, I suppose, ...
8
votes
5answers
228 views
Is “tobogán” an acceptable word for “slide” throughout the Spanish speaking world?
English
I'm trying to learn words to talk to my baby at the playground in Spanish. WordReference.com gives the following as part of its definition for "slide."
slide 2 sustantivo 1. (in ...
8
votes
2answers
338 views
Armpit: sobaco vs. axila
"Armpit" in English can be translated as either sobaco or axila in Spanish. Is each term used in different regions, or are they both used across the Spanish-speaking world? What is the difference, or ...
