Love-Spanish.com: 01/08/2013

Saturday, 31 August 2013

Almohada

Today's WOTD is: "almohada" = pillow

In Spanish, “almohada” is a feminine noun of Arabic origin, the main meaning of which is pillow.

A related noun is “almohadilla” which may be used to refer to various forms of cushioning devices, such as:

A pincushion
An ink pad
A postage stamp damper
An ordinary cushion
In baseball, a bag
In architecture, a bolster

Also related is the noun “almohadón” which may be used to refer to a:

An ordinary cushion
A kneeler/ hassock
A pillowcase/ pillow slip (Spain)

A couple of expressions with the word “almohada” are:

Consultarlo con la almohada (to sleep on it);
Funda de almohada (pillowcase);

A couple of examples of the use of the word "almohada" are:

Yo preferiría consultarlo con la almohada (I would prefer to sleep on it);
Esa funda de almohada es para lavar (that pillowcase is for washing);

Love-Spanish.com loves the word "almohada" in the YouTube clip: Almohada - Jose Jose

For more on the word "almohada", visit: Wordreference.com/es/en/ Almohada

*NB 'Click' on the speaker icon next to the word “almohada” in the link to hear the word pronounced.

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Friday, 30 August 2013

It Is Half Past Four

SCENARIO

Imagine a relative, a friend or a work colleague is asking you: "what time is it?"

In Spanish, the other person could say:

¿Qué hora es?

Now 'click' on the speaker icon below to listen to the other person's question.

The Time is:

The question above is an invitation for you to say what time it is.

Looking at the clock, you see the time is half past four, so in Spanish you should say:

Son las cuatro y media

Now 'click' on the speaker icon below to listen to the time in Spanish.

Now you should practise answering the question:

¿Qué hora es?

If your system/ device supports it, you may use the widget below to record and listen to your answers.

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Thursday, 29 August 2013

Is The Cinema Near?

Introduction

This post deals with indicating how near/ far the cinema is in Spanish, and the distance from where you are to the cinema.

SCENARIO

Imagine you are with a relative, a friend, a work colleague or even a complete stranger who is looking for a cinema and asks you: "is the cinema near?"

In Spanish, the other person could choose to say:

¿Queda cerca el cine?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say how far away the cinema is. A yes/no answer may be strictly sufficient. However, with little effort, your answer could be a lot more informative.

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

El cine queda lejos (the cinema is far away)
El cine queda bastante lejos (the cinema is quite far away)
El cine queda muy lejos (the cinema is very far away)
El cine queda cerca (the cinema is near)
El cine queda bastante cerca (the cinema is quite near)
El cine queda muy cerca (the cinema is very near)
El cine queda a la vuelta de la esquina (the cinema is around the corner)
El cine queda al final de la calle a la izquierda (the cinema is at the end of the street/ road on the left)
El cine queda a dos manzanas (the cinema is two blocks away)
El cine queda a dos cuadras (the cinema is two blocks away)
El cine queda a cinco minutos a pie (the cinema is five minutes away on foot)
El cine queda en el centro (the cinema is in the town centre/ downtown)
El cine no queda cerca (the cinema is not near)
El cine queda a doscientos metros^* (the cinema is 200 meters away)
El cine queda a trescientos metros^* (the cinema is 300 meters away)

Now you should practise answering the question:

¿Queda cerca el cine?

*See some commonly used length in Spanish below

*Spanish Lengths

Some expressions of length/ distance commonly used in Spanish are shown below:

	Metros	Kilómetros
cien metros	100m
doscientos metros	200m
trescientos metros	300m
cuatrocientos metros	400m
quinientos metros	500m	1/2km
seiscientos metros	600m
setecientos metros	700m
ochocientos metros	800m
novecientos metros	900m
mil metros/ un kilómetro	1000m	1km

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Wednesday, 28 August 2013

Today Is Wednesday 28th Of August 2013

Question:

How do you say today's date in Spanish?

Answer:
Hoy es miércoles veintiocho
de agosto de dos mil trece.

Vocabulary notes:

Today is = Hoy es
Wednesday = miércoles
The 28th = veintiocho
Of August = de agosto
2013 = de dos mil trece
In Spanish, we say "28" instead of "the 28th"
In Spanish we literally say: "of 2013"

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Tuesday, 27 August 2013

Sábana

Today's WOTD is: "sábana" = sheet

In Spanish, “sábana”* is a feminine noun of Latin origin, which is commonly used to refer to a bed sheet**.

You may also come across the Spanish noun "sábana" referring to:

A one thousand peseta note/ bill (Spain -slang);
An escalope (Mexico -culinary term);
Cigarette paper (Mexico)

* NB Please note that the word “sabana” (without a tilde) also exists, but when spelled that way, it refers to a grassland (savanna).

** NB Please note that the Spanish noun “sábana” is not commonly used to refer to a sheet of paper, steel or any other type of sheet.

Some expressions with the word “sábana” are:

Sábana ajustable (fitted sheet);
Sábana bajera (bottom sheet);
Sábana de abajo (bottom sheet);
Sábana de arriba (top sheet);
Sábana de cajón (fitted sheet -Mexico);
Sábana de cuatro picos (fitted sheet);
Sábana encimera (top sheet);
Sábana Santa (Holy Shroud);
Pegársele a alguien las sábanas (to oversleep);

Some examples of the use of the word "sábana" are:

Las sábanas ajustables suelen ser fáciles de colocar (fitted sheets are often easy to fit);
La sábana bajera de mi cama es de algodón (the bottom sheet in my bed is made of cotton);
La sábana de abajo de mi cama es de algodón (the bottom sheet in my bed is made of cotton);
La sábana de arriba de mi cama es de algodón (the top sheet in my bed is made of cotton);
Las sábanas de cajón suelen ser fáciles de colocar (fitted sheets are often easy to fit);
Las sábanas de cuatro picos suelen ser fáciles de colocar (fitted sheets are often easy to fit);
La sábana encimera de mi cama es de algodón (the top sheet in my bed is made of cotton);
A Pedro se le han pegado las sábanas (Pedro has overslept);

Love-Spanish.com loves the word "sábana" in the YouTube clip: Sábanas Frías – Maná

For more on the word "sábana", visit: Wordreference.com/es/en/ Sábana

*NB 'Click' on the speaker icon next to the word “sábana” in the link to hear the word pronounced.

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Monday, 26 August 2013

It Is Twenty Five Minutes Past Four

SCENARIO

Imagine a relative, a friend or a work colleague is asking you: "what time is it?"

In Spanish, the other person could say:

¿Qué hora es?

Now 'click' on the speaker icon below to listen to the other person's question.

The Time is:

The question above is an invitation for you to say what time it is.

Looking at the clock, you see the time is twenty five minutes past four, so in Spanish you should say:

Son las cuatro y veinticinco

Now 'click' on the speaker icon below to listen to the time in Spanish.

Now you should practise answering the question:

¿Qué hora es?

If your system/ device supports it, you may use the widget below to record and listen to your answers.

Spanish lessons online

Skype/ Google+ Hangout/ Facetime

Great lessons

Book now

Sunday, 25 August 2013

Is The Supermarket Far Away?

Introduction

This post deals with indicating how near/ far the supermarket is in Spanish, and the distance from where you are to the supermarket.

SCENARIO

Imagine you are with a relative, a friend, a work colleague or even a complete stranger who is looking for the supermarket and asks you: "is the supermarket far away?"

In Spanish, the other person could choose to say:

¿Queda lejos el supermercado^*?

OUR TIP

The question is an invitation for you to say how far away the supermarket is. A yes/no answer may be strictly sufficient. However, with little effort, your answer could be a lot more informative.

Here are some examples of how you could reply:

El supermercado queda lejos (the supermarket is far away)
El supermercado queda bastante lejos (the supermarket is quite far away)
El supermercado queda muy lejos (the supermarket is very far away)
El supermercado queda cerca (the supermarket is near)
El supermercado queda bastante cerca (the supermarket is quite near)
El supermercado queda muy cerca (the supermarket is very near)
El supermercado queda a la vuelta de la esquina (the supermarket is around the corner)
El supermercado queda al final de la calle (the supermarket is at the end of the street/ road)
El supermercado queda a dos manzanas (the supermarket is two blocks away)
El supermercado queda a dos cuadras (the supermarket is two blocks away)
El supermercado queda a cinco minutos a pie (the supermarket is five minutes away on foot)
El supermercado queda en el centro (the supermarket is in the town centre/ downtown)
El supermercado no queda lejos (the supermarket is not far away)
El supermercado queda a doscientos metros^** (the supermarket is 200 meters away)
El supermercado queda a trescientos metros^** (the supermarket is 300 meters away)

*Note

Often shortened to just “super”

Now you should practise answering the question:

¿Queda lejos el supermercado?

*See some commonly used length in Spanish below

*Spanish Lengths

Some expressions of length/ distance commonly used in Spanish are shown below:

	Metros	Kilómetros
cien metros	100m
doscientos metros	200m
trescientos metros	300m
cuatrocientos metros	400m
quinientos metros	500m	1/2km
seiscientos metros	600m
setecientos metros	700m
ochocientos metros	800m
novecientos metros	900m
mil metros/ un kilómetro	1000m	1km