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La Cosa del Día #31
Another one of my favorites! This one got me double. WOW! Propaganda doesn’t mean propaganda! That’s just how we use it. And WOW! Did you hear that Spanish woman say the word PRO PAH GAHN DAH??? ???
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La Cosa del Día #33
I’m not sure why this confused me originally–it’s pretty simple. It’s “mudar” when we MOVE to another house. It’s “mover” most the other times we MOVE. Does this confuse you? Did it?
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La Cosa del Día #34
??? I think the whole Spain Vs. Latin America thing gets WAY too much attention. There are often more differences between Latin American countries than there is between the continents. But… and this goes for cars AND boats… ???
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La Cosa del Día #35
Though context quickly makes apparent what’s really happening, this one still gives me pause. Every. Single. Time. ???
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La Cosa del Día #36
I guess I stopped doing it at some point… I used to always carry a lighter with me when traveling–especially in Spain. That way, when somebody asked me “¿Tienes un mechero?” or “¿Tienes fuego?” I could say “Sí!” instead of “No, lo siento.” It might sound crazy, but you have no idea how many conversations and situations that got me into. I distinctly remember my first time talking in Spanish. In Barcelona. Down by the boats. I was sitting on a bench when a young couple walked by and asked, “¿Tienes un mechero?” (or whatever). We walked around together for hours. I kept saying to myself, “I can’t believe this is happening”.
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La Cosa del Día #37
“Grosero” always FEELS like a noun to me. You too? Well, it’s not. It’s an adjective. And a pretty common one too! But “grosero” doesn’t mean “gross” (not really). It CAN mean “gross” but when you’re describing somebody who “has bad manners”. Because THAT is basically how “grosero” is used in Spanish…
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La Cosa del Día #38
And I guess that’s because when we “believe” we’re really just “thinking” about something in a specific way. Cool! ???
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La Cosa del Día #39
They can’t all make our hearts palpitate–but most are still fun in SOME WAY. With “utilizar” — there was never a magic moment or funny story for me. I just picked up on the fact RECENTLY that “utilizar” is used way more in Spanish than “to utilize” is in English. In English, “to utilize” is mostly a fancy version of “to use”. No? But in Spanish, “utilizar” is used AS MUCH as “usar”–if not MORE! It doesn’t matter though. They’re both super common. Be ready to see and hear them both. I’ve been using “utilizar” a lot lately (too much?) in an effort to work it into my regular rotation ???
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La Cosa del Día #40
Do you watch TV? All these words (English & Spanish) can be used in multiple ways–this is how they’re used when talking about TV shows. If you watch TV in a Spanish-speaking country, you’ll see and hear the Spanish versions A LOT! English-speakers and Spanish-speakers! Is this how YOU talk about TV shows? If not, what do you say? Which words do you use? ???