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Posts Tagged ‘Spanish’

by CaptainCode

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May 15th, 2015

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Learning a foreign language is exciting! Soon enough, every learner understands that not everything can be translated directly and there can be double meanings, so language learners need to understand the difference in meanings of seemingly similar words.

Ser and estar (the pair of verbs that both mean ‘to be’ in Spanish) are not the only example. Do you know verbs saber and conocer? They fall into the same category and both verbs mean “to know.” Yet, they are different in a way that does not exist in English.

Saber is used in the context of knowing information, ideas or how to do something.
Conocer is used in the context of knowing a person or a place, or to be familiar with something (software, for example).

For example:

e.g., “Yo sé como cocinar.” I know how to cook.
e.g., “¿Conoces bien la ciudad?” Do you know the city well?

A few more examples:
¿Sabes tú leer música? – Do you know how to read music?
Yo sé escribir en español. – I know how to write in Spanish.
Ellos saben jugar a las cartas. – They know how to play cards.
¡No sé! – I don’t know!
Ellos conocen el sitio donde van a tener el concierto. – They know the site where they’re going to have the concert.
Conozco este modelo, como casi lo compré anteriormente. – I know this model, as I almost bought it previously.
No conozco al abuelo de Estefanía. – I don’t know Stephanie’s grandfather.

Want to learn Spanish verbs? Check out our courses:
Introductory Spanish Verbs
Advanced Spanish Verbs

by Dave Clark

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December 21st, 2011

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¡Hola Amigos!

A few weeks ago, I started to teach you Indirect Object Pronouns. Here’s the link to that first post: Indirect Object Pronouns in Spanish Part I.

As I explained in the last post, the information I am sharing here is from the scripts from our Digital Learning Center (DLC) course. If you purchase the DLC course, you will learn all kinds of info about Spanish grammar. You can find it on our Catalog page.

That said, here we go:

…Now let’s learn how to say the Spanish indirect object pronouns and how to use them in sentences in Spanish.

Are you ready?

me nos
te os (used only inSpain)
le les

If you’ve gone through the Direct Objects lesson, you may have noticed that the only difference between direct object and indirect object pronouns in that we use “le” and “les” instead of “lo”, “la” “los” and “las” (bottom row).

Now let’s see how they work in Spanish – As we go through these examples, notice how, unlike English, the Indirect Objects in Spanish come before the verb.

“She gives the money to me” changes to

Me da el dinero

“We send letters to him” changes to

Le mandamos las cartas

“She asks a favor of him” changes to

Le pide un favor

“They tell secrets to her” changes to

Le dicen secretos

“He writes emails to us” changes to

Nos escribe emails

“I throw the ball to them” changes to

Les tiro la pelota

“I deliver the packages to you – informal” changes to

Te entrego los paquetes

Hopefully now you have the basic idea of how indirect objects work. If this idea still seems pretty new to you, you may want to review it again.

Next we’ll move on to a new concept and learn how to put Direct Object and Indirect Object Pronouns together in the same sentence.

Now, if you’ve seen the Direct Object lesson, you learned how to use Direct Object Pronouns (if not, I recommend watching it). We’ll review them for a minute now.

They are:

me nos
te os
lo/la los/las

In this lesson, we’ll only focus on objects or items so we’ll only need the bottom row of Direct Objects. In other words, we don’t need to use the top ones then putting together direct and indirect object pronouns.

As a quick review, we’ll take another look at the Indirect Object Pronouns.

me nos
te os
le les

First of all, when you put a “Direct Object Pronoun” and an “Indirect Object Pronoun” together, the “Indirect Object Pronoun”, representing a person, always comes first. And the “Direct Object Pronoun”, representing an item or object, comes second.

Well Amigos, that does it for today.

I hope you’re all having fun getting ready for Navidad (Christmas).

¡Felices Fiestas! (Happy Holidays!)

by Dave Clark

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December 15th, 2011

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Spanish Video Lesson – Spanish For Sub for Santa

Sub for Santa Spanish

At this time of year, with all we’ve been blessed with – like the Visual Link Spanish blog, Facebook Fiesta Friday, a warm home to sleep in and food to eat, I hope we can remember those less fortunate than us and get involved with a Sub for Santa helping those in need.

As a part of giving back to you this Christmas/Holiday season, we are giving everyone a free Level I audio course on MP3 (before we created our software, we used to sell the audio course for $100 – and now, we’re giving it to you FREE as part of our 12 days of Christmas + 1)! Be sure and tell all your friends about it. But BEWARE! the day after Christmas it will be gone, so if you don’t download all the audios by then, you will have lost your opportunity. Honestly, we hope that thousands of courses are downloaded so the holiday cheer can be spread all around the world. Facebook it and Tweet it out. Next, be sure to visit us tomorrow on Facebook to practice your Spanish and tell us about a Sub for Santa experience you’ve had.

Here is the vocabulary from the video:

Surprise Christmas Navidad de sorpresa
How many boys do you have? ¿Cuántos varones tienen?
How daughters do you have? ¿Cuántas hijas tienen?
How old are they? ¿Cuántos años tienen?
What size is he? ¿Qué tamaño es él?
What size is she? ¿Qué tamaño es ella?
We have some presents for you. Tenemos unos regalos para Uds.
We want to give them to you at your house. Queremos dárselos en su casa.
When will you be home? ¿Cuándo van a estar en casa?
Merry Christmas! ¡Feliz Navidad!
How are you? ¿Cómo están Uds.?
These presents are for you. Estos regalos son para Uds.
You’re welcome De nada
I hope you have a great Christmas! ¡Espero que pasen una buena Navidad!
Question of the week:
Have you done a surprise Christmas before? ¿Ha hecho una Navidad de sorpresa antes?

This Saturday, be sure to come back to the blog for a post that answers a question about “Why Spanish speakers don’t use ‘yo, tú, él, ella, etc.’ when they speak”.

Also, you can still get Visual Link with a huge discount and on-time for Christmas! Come to our website Monday for a FREE 2-day Express shipping sale with 55% off everything in our catalog. This offer will expire on Tuesday – be sure to check Facebook on Monday for the coupon code and more info.

Visual Link Spanish Online Catalog

Future Facebook Fiesta Friday Topics:

December 23, 2011 – Christmas Spanish Lesson

December 30, 2011 – New Year’s Resolutions

January 6, 2012 – Reaching Your Goals (an exciting lesson by Jake on how to keep our New Year’s resolutions – I’m excited!)

by Dave Clark

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November 30th, 2011

Hola Amigos!

Here is a partial script from an interactive lesson in our Spanish Digital Learning Center (DLC).

In order to learn “Indirect Object pronouns”, first we need to briefly review what a “Direct Object” is. Direct Objects are the “First goal or action of a verb”. The best way to learn what that means is to look at a few examples.

The first one is: “She gives the money”. Here the verb is “gives” and “the money” is the “Direct Object”. It receives the action of the verb – it’s “what” She gives. In Spanish, this would be said “Ella da el dinero”. The “ella” is optional.

See if you can pick out the “Direct Objects” in the next few examples. Just a hint, the “Direct Object” will turn blue a second after the sentence is said (Note: this only happens in the interactive lesson). Try to pick it out before it turns blue.

We send letters:  Now in Spanish – Mandamos las cartas

She asks for a favor: Now in Spanish – Pide un favor

They tell secrets: Now in Spanish – Dicen secretos

He writes emails: Now in Spanish –  Escribe emails

I throw the ball: Now in Spanish – Tiro la pelota

I deliver the packages: Now in Spanish – Entrego los paquetes

(more…)

by Dave Clark

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November 10th, 2011

Spanish Video Lesson – Spanish For Your Cruise

Spanish for Your Cruise

One of the best ways to practice your Spanish is with native speakers, and one of the most economical ways to do a vacation to a Spanish-speaking country is a cruise. Cruises are my favorite way to travel. They’re fun, there’s great food (as much as you can eat) and you don’t have to make many decisions on a cruise. So, if you are travelling with others, you rarely get in disagreements about what to do or where to go. On a cruise, there are usually 2-4 days of shore excursions (depending on the length of cruise you take). Now, depending on how you want to do your shore excursion, there are different options. You can either pay for a pre-planned tour excursion sold by the cruise ship, or you can go create your own adventure. However, take note, if you plan your own adventure, if you don’t get back to the cruise ship on time, you may miss the boat (literally). The boat does wait for shore excursions that are late – if they were planned by the cruise line. Anyway, as I mentioned, talking with the natives is a fantastic way to practice Spanish. Especially if you’ve already had the chance to learn Spanish online with Visual Link Spanish. Below is some great vocabulary to use on your tour excursions.

After learning the vocabulary, come practice with us on the Visual Link Spanish Facebook Page. Remember, practice really does make perfect.

Here is the vocabulary from the video:

How much does it cost? ¿Cuánto cuesta?
I would like to buy this. Me gustaría comprar esto.
No, thanks. No, gracias.
Too much. No, thanks. Demasiado. No, gracias.
Where can I take a taxi? ¿Dónde puedo tomar un taxi?
I need to return to the (Royal Caribean) ship. Necesito regresar al barco Royal Caribean.
Do you know where it is? ¿Sabe dónde está?
Is there a mall (shopping) close by? ¿Hay un centro comercial cerca?
Is there a museum close by? ¿Hay un museo cerca?
Is there a jewelry store close by? ¿Hay una tienda de joyas cerca?
Where is it? ¿Dónde está?
Where is it? ¿Dónde queda?
Where is a good restaurant? ¿Dónde está un buen restaurante?
Can you recommend a good restaurant? ¿Puede recomendar un buen restaurante?
How do we get back to the ship? ¿Cómo regresamos al barco?
Thanks, you’re very kind. Gracias, muy amable.
Question of the week:  
Where would you like to take a cruise to? ¿Adónde te gustaría tomar un crucero?
Health Note:  don’t eat food from street vendors. Drink bottled water or water from a restaurant.

I sure hope you have the opportunity to go on a cruise soon to practice your Spanish. When you do, please come to our blog and comment. We’d love to hear how it went and if you could understand the Spanish you heard from the natives.

Future Facebook Fiesta Friday Topics:

November 18, 2011 – Thanksgiving Spanish Lesson

November 25, 2011 – Black Friday Spanish Lesson

December 2, 2011 – Winter Spanish Lesson

by Dave Clark

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October 6th, 2011

Spanish Video Lesson – Spanish For Your Best Friend

Have You Ever Wanted to Speak Spanish to Your Best Friend?

If your best friend is a Spanish speaker, these phrases will be super useful. If your best friend is not a Spanish speaker, maybe you can give them the desire to be a Spanish speaker by saying these words to them :-). Then you can send them here to our website where they can learn to speak Spanish free! Either way, you can come and practice with us on our Facebook page on Fridays. Actually, you can come any day of the week and there are people there, however, Jake and I make it a point to come to “Facebook Fiesta Friday” every week when we’re available. Every so often, we choose a person a particiapant (in our conversations) and give them free Spanish software worth at least a few tanks of gas (in a compact car).

Here is the vocabulary from the video (come use these phrases on Facebook!):

You
Hi Pablo Hola Pablo
How have you been? ¿Cómo has estado?
You are my best friend. Tú eres mi mejor amigo.
You are by best friend ever! ¡Tú eres mi mejor amigo jamás!
What do you want to do this weekend? ¿Qué quieres hacer este fin de semana?
How about if…? ¿Qué tal si…?
…we go to the movies? …vamos al cine?
…we go to the basketball game? …vamos al partido de básquetbol/baloncesto
…we go shopping? …vamos de compras?
…we go to lunch? …vamos a almorzar?
Thanks for being such a good friend (to male) Gracias por ser un amigo tan bueno.
Thanks for being such a good friend (to female) Gracias por ser una amiga tan buena.
Question of the week
Do you have one best friend or multiple good friends? ¿Tienes un mejor amigo o varios amigos?

So, come share with us on Facebook. Let us know if you have one best friend (“Tengo un mejor amigo”), multiple good friends (“Tengo varios amigos”), or both (los dos). In the sad case that you don’t have friends, you can say “No tengo amigos” – however, remember that all of us on Facebook are your friends!!

Future Facebook Fiesta Friday Topics:

October 14, 2011 – Getting to Know a Spanish Speaker

October 21, 2011 – Workplace Spanish

October 28, 2011 – Halloween Special (Be sure to dress up in your favorite disfraz!)

by Dave Clark

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August 25th, 2011

Essential Spanish Vocabulary You will Need Next Time You Climb Mount Everest

Spanish for Mount Everest Video Lesson

Let’s face it, the last time you climbed Mount Everest, you probably looked at something and wondered, “How do I say that in Spanish?” This week is probably our most useful video yet as you learn important phrases that can be used when climbing Mount Everest. Watch the video and you’ll learn what a “Sherpa” is, how to tell people (in Spanish) if you have problems breathing, and other vital emergency phrases – all combined with a neat little grammar lesson on masculine, feminine, singular and plural. Let’s face it, nobody goes to the extremes that we do to help you learn such useful Spanish.

Of course, the best part is that you can join us on Facebook Fiesta Friday to practice your Mount Everest vocabulary. The questions of the week are: “Do you like mountain climbing?” and “What mountain would you climb if you could?” (see the Spanish equivalents below).

Here is the key vocabulary from the video – ¡Disfruten! (Enjoy!):

I can’t breathe very well up here. No puedo respirar bien aquí arriba.
I feel like I’m going to die. Me siento como voy a morir.
I like how that Sherpa sings. Me gusta como canta esa Sherpa.
Can you ask that Sherpa to sing at my funeral? ¿Puede preguntarle a esa Sherpa a contar en mi funeral?
I don’t like mountain climbing. No me gusta escalar montañas.
My friend tricked me into coming here. Mi amigo me engañó para que viniera aquí.
I like mountain climbing. Me gusta escalar montañas.
My Mi/s
Frozen Congelado/a/s
My hands are frozen. Mis manos están congeladas.
My nose is frozen. Mi nariz está congelada.
My ears are frozen. Mis orejas están congeladas.
My finger is frozen. Mi dedo está congelado.
Questions of the week: –>
Do you like to climb mountains? ¿Te gusta escalar montañas?
What mountain would you climb if you could? ¿Qué montaña escalaría si pudiera?
I would climb… Escalaría…

Make sure you visit Visual Link Spanish on Facebook and tell us about your experience climbing Mount Everest. Did you meet a special Sherpa? Did you get frost bite? Did you have a near-death experience? Come share amigos!

Future Facebook Fiesta Friday Topics:

September 2, 2011 – Back to School – What do you want to learn?

September 9, 2011 – Personal Hygiene

September 16, 2011 – TBA


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