linguistics
10 posts
- English–Spanish cognates: using the words that look familiarRelated words can help you read Spanish, but resemblance is a clue rather than a guarantee. Check meaning, pronunciation and use.
- Is Spanish easier than other languages for English speakers?What language-training estimates can tell an English speaker choosing Spanish, and why your goals, previous languages and opportunities to practise matter.
- Is Spanish hard to learn?For an English speaker, no. Spanish is in the easiest group of languages to learn. Here is what comes free, what takes practice, and where to start.
- What the subjunctive changes about a Spanish sentenceThe subjunctive can refer to real events as well as wishes and possibilities. Read the whole construction to understand what the speaker is doing.
- Why Spanish word order can differ from EnglishA Spanish subject can follow the verb or remain unstated. Use agreement, pronouns and context to follow the sentence without assuming words can move anywhere.
- Spanish grammar patterns that are useful to know earlySpanish has demanding verb forms, but questions, negation and other common patterns can be straightforward. Learn the pattern and its limits together.
- Preterite vs imperfect: two ways to describe the pastCompare Spanish past events, habits and background descriptions. The tense reflects how an event is presented, whatever its length.
- Why English and Spanish share so many wordsEnglish and Spanish belong to different language branches, but borrowing from French and Latin explains many familiar words. Here is how that helps a learner.
- Spanglish: how English and Spanish meet in conversationSwitching between English and Spanish is not evidence of broken language. Learn how switching differs from borrowing, and what matters when you use either language.
- Spanish words that take a phrase in EnglishEstrenar, sobremesa, madrugar and other useful Spanish words do not always have a neat one-word English equivalent. Learn them through ordinary situations.