To Ask for Something or To Ask a Question: The Difference Between PEDIR and PREGUNTAR
This post is part of the series Warming up for El Día E: Posts to Improve Your Spanish. El Día E is a world-wide celebration of the Spanish Language that will take place on June 23th.
Posts in this series to celebrate El Día E:
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Join the Celebration of El Día E
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To Ask for Something or To Ask a Question: PEDIR and PREGUNTAR [this post]
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The Spanish Words for TO KNOW: SABER versus CONOCER [not yet published]
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The Many Ways to Move in Spanish: MOVERSE, MUDARSE, TRASLADAR [not yet published]
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How to Translate the Conjunction BUT to Spanish: PERO and SINO/SINO QUE [not yet published]
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The Distinction Between PARECER and PARECERSE [not yet published]
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Using the Verb HACER to Express Periods of Time [not yet published]
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4 Ways to Use the Preposition CON in Spanish [not yet published]
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13 Cool and Interesting Facts About the Spanish Language [not yet published]
To Ask for Something or To Ask a Question: The Difference Between PEDIR and PREGUNTAR
The verbs pedir and preguntar both translate to “to ask,” but they are used in different contexts in Spanish.
Preguntar is used for questions.
Examples:
Me preguntó si se permite fumar en el restaurante. – He asked me if smoking is allowed in the restaurant.
No sé cuántos años tiene María, nunca le pregunté. – I don’t know how old Maria is, I never asked her.
Following that logic, it makes sense that hacer una pregunta means “to ask a question.”
Preguntar por is also used when asking a question, but the question must be inquiring about something, or trying to find out about something.
Examples:
Hay una mujer afuera que pregunta por ti. – There is a woman outside asking for you.
Su madre nunca pregunta por sus nietos. – Your mother never asks about her grandchildren. Continue reading →
6 Tongue Twisters to Improve Your Spanish Pronunciation
Tongue twisters or trabalenguas are phrases that use repetitive syllable sounds that make them difficult to pronounce. Because of the rhymes, they are often used with children as a fun exercise to practice pronunciation and diction when learning the language at an early age. The objective of a tongue twister is to pronounce it clearly at a normal speed (or increasing the speed of speech) without any mistakes.
In a previous Speaking Latino article early this year, Spanish teacher and blogger Rease Kirchner, wrote about the good practice of using children materials when adults are learning a new language. Add the following trabalenguas to the list of things you can do to improve your Spanish. Experts agree that tongue twisters:
1. Stimulate memory, focus and concentration
2. Improve your listening perception and comprehension
3. Increase your speech speed
4. Help you speak with precision and no mistakes
5. Entertain both children and adults while learning
Trabalenguas are part of the oral literature and popular culture, that is why there are some many variations of the same ones. Some are considered classics that are known across countries. Others are particular to a specific country.
Roll your R’s
One of the biggest challenges for English speakers (and oriental cultures) learning Spanish is pronouncing the R’s. Here are some versions of the tongue twister Tres tristres tigres (Three sad tigers) that I guarantee will help you to roll your R’s in Spanish.
Version 1:
- Tres tristes tigres tragaban trigo en un trigal en tres tristes trastos.
En tres tristes trastos tragaban trigo tres tristes tigres.
Version 2:
- Tres tristes tigres triscaban trigo en un trigal.
Un tigre, dos tigres, tres tigres trigaban en un trigal.
¿Qué tigre trigaba más?
Todos trigaban igual. Continue reading →
Join the Celebration of El Día E
Spanish language has its own day for celebration. And it’s so big that countries such as Japan, Turkey, Australia, Russia and China have joined. I am talking about El Día E: La fiesta de todos los que hablamos español, a project that the Instituto Cervantes will celebrate for the fourth time on June 23th, 2012.
Why is everybody, including countries that don’t speak Spanish, are so excited about it? We are all aware of the importance of the Spanish language in the world. It is the second most spoken language on the planet and by 2030, 7.5% of the world population will be Spanish-speaking. Because of this, El Día E will be “a day each year were are going to feel the tie of our common language”.
Celebrities and their favorite Spanish word
Last year, more than 30 renowned personalities from music, art, literature, science, sport, and fashion submitted a video of their favorite Spanish word for people to vote. The winner: Querétaro, the name of a state in Mexico, submitted by Mexican actor Gael García Bernal. Watch all the videos here. Continue reading →
9 Ways to Identify the Pronunciation and Accent from Puerto Rico
Puelto Lico sign at Cozumel, Mexico. Photo by Diana Caballero
This post is an excerpt from the Puerto Rican bestseller Speaking Boricua: A Practical Guide to Puerto Rican Spanish
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Puerto Rico, as in any other country in the world, has its own unique pronunciation for certain words, phrases and sounds. If you have only ever heard Spanish in a formal class setting or even if you are accustomed to an accent from a different country, it may take some time to understand the Puerto Rican accent when you first arrive on the island. Here are some guidelines to help that transition (words and phrases in parentheses are the correct spellings/pronunciations):
1. Words that end in the letters ADO will be pronounced without the letter D.
Ex. amogollao (amogollado), afrentao (afrentado), eñemao (eñemado).
2. Words that end in a consonant and a vowel (ex. para, carajo, etc.) will be pronounced without the consonant.
Ex. anda pá al cará (anda para el carajo), mira pá yá (mira para allá), me cá ‘e ná (me cago en nada o me caso en nada).
3. Words with the letter R followed by a consonant will be pronounced as if the letter R were the letter L.
Ex. Louldes (Lourdes), almas (armas).
4. Words with the letter S followed by a consonant will be pronounced as if the letter S were the letter H.
Ex. ehnú (esnú), ehtartear (estartear).
5. Outside of San Juan, many people pronounce the double letter RR sound as if it were a J in Spanish and an H in English.
Ex. cajo (carro).
6. For transition words such as De or En, the consonant is sometimes dropped.
Ex. me cá ‘e ná (me cago en nada), pote ‘e leche (pote de leche).
7. The letter P when followed by a consonant may be replaced with the letter C.
Ex. concecto (concepto), Pecsi (Pepsi)
8. The letter S is often dropped and replaced with an English letter H sound.
Ex. loh muertoh (los muertos), pehcadoreh (pescadores)
9. The letter R at the end of a word is often pronounced as an English R. The sound comes out as a “hard”sounding letter with more emphasis than normal placed on the R.
Ex. PicaR (picar).
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Quick Quiz: Step Up
Just ran across this sign this weekend, waiting outside an Asian market. This is a quick Quick Quiz with only 6 words on the sign. In case the paint makes it hard for you to read on the bottom the sign reads “Watch Your Step! Mire….los escalones.” So, what’s wrong with this Spanish translation?
Continue reading →
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Tagged Quick Quiz
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