When you start learning Spanish, it doesn’t take long before you’re taught the verb saber. The problem is you aren’t fully taught all of it’s uses, so you only develop what I describe as a passing acquaintance with the verb. It has a lot more meanings and uses than you think, and today we’re going to get into some of …
Orar and Rezar: Two ways to pray in Spanish
If you’ve been learning Spanish long enough (and it doesn’t take long), you’ve already discovered there are often multiple verbs that have the same meaning. Or appear to on the surface. Orar and Rezar are two of those verbs. They both mean to pray, and although many Spanish speakers use them as synonyms, there is a difference between the two. …
What’s the difference between vegetales and veduras?
If you don’t know, there are two words for the English word vegetables in Spanish, vegetales and verduras. As you might imagine, I get the question “what’s the difference?” a lot. In fact, if you’re reading this, you probably have the same question. I certainly did, so I started asking my Spanish speaking friends. How my friends explained it When …
11 Responses to “Cómo estás” that will make you sound like a native speaker
When it comes to answering the question “¿Cómo estás?”, your Spanish book typically only offers you a limited number of responses: Estoy bien I’m fine Estoy mal I’m not well Those responses are pretty boring, right? I’m going to share some simple but very common ways to respond to “cómo estás” with you. Enough chit-chat, let’s get to it. Use …
11 Uses of the verb Estar you have to know
Like the verb Ser, Estar is another one of the Spanish verbs you absolutely have to master. Listen to this podcast to learn 11 of the most common uses of the verb estar. You can listen to the All About Spanish Verbs Season 1 podcasts for free. Season 1 includes the verbs dar, tener, hacer, ver, faltar, poner, pasar, conocer, …
Ser, the Spanish verb you have to master
The verb Ser is one the fundamental building blocks the Spanish language is built on. This isn’t a verb you have to learn, it’s a verb you have to master. Listen to this podcast to learn thirteen of the most common ways this verb is used. Click here to listen to more of the All About Spanish Verbs Season …
4 Things beginners should do to build their conversational Spanish skills
As a beginning Spanish student the first challenge you’re going to face is figuring out where to start, especially if you’ve decided to learn Spanish on your own. This article is going to give you some initial direction to help you get started down the right track to achieving your goal of becoming a Spanish speaker. Let’s get started. In …
How to get one of the best learning spanish audio courses for free
It’s a purely audio based learning method, and that means you can put it on your favorite device and take it with you everywhere. It gives you a lot of flexibility on where and when you can study. It’s really great for those long commutes or when you’re sitting in traffic. As for the product itself, you learn vocabulary, verb …
6 Spanish Phrases for checking into your hotel
If you’re going to be traveling to Spanish speaking countries and staying in hotels or hostels, these six Spanish phrases will make checking in a little easier. Here are two phrases you can use for checking into a hotel. There are other variations, but these are the most common, in my experience. Hacer el check-in Registrarse en el hotel Let’s …
3 Awesome books to improve your conversational Spanish
As a self-taught Spanish speaker, organizer of a Spanish conversation group and a conversational Spanish language coach, I get a lot questions from people asking for my advice on how to improve their conversational Spanish. Part of that answer is simply having conversations with as many Spanish speakers as possible, discussing a variety of topics and asking a lot questions. …