¡Che, está buena la cerveza! – Man, this is some good beer!

Vamos a buscar unas cervezas, che. – Let’s go get some beers, then.

In Brazil, che is used in the southern part of the country, especially by the gaúchos (people from Rio Grande do Sul). Its origin may have derived from several native South American languages, but some people argue that it has its origin from the archaic Spanish word ce, used in order to get someone’s attention. Another theory is that it is connected with the Italian word Ciao (hello or goodbye) introduced in South America by Italian immigrants. Another version is that che is a shortened version of the word escuche (listen) , just like oye, which also means listen.

Here are some interesting articles (in intermediate/advanced Spanish) about the word Che.

- Manuel Talens’ report about Valencian and Argentinian che.

- Etimology of Che.

- Che in the website AsiHablamos (very good Latin American Spanish reference).

Nos vemos prontito!

Post from: Spanish Blog

Castilian became the primary language of what is now known as Spain, after the country was unified under Christian rule in the 15th century, but it didn’t eliminate other Latin-based languages in the region like Galician and Catalan, or Euskera (Basque), a non-Latin-based language spoken in the Basque region. All these languages have coexisted in Spain ever since, with some regions being officially bilingual.

Today, the term “Castilian” is used to distinguish the north-central standard of Spanish from regional variations such as Andalusian (used in southern Spain). It is also used to distinguish between the official national language and the other languages spoken in Spain (Castilian vs. Catalan). Sometimes, not altogether accurately, it is used to distinguish the Spanish of Spain from that of Latin America and sometimes it’s used solely as a synonym for Spanish, referring to the “pure” Spanish promulgated by La Real Academia Española, which preferred the term “castellano” in its dictionaries until the 1920s.

In many parts of Latin America, the Spanish language is known routinely as “castellano” rather than “español”, whereas in Spain choosing terms – castellano or español – may have political implications, since some people from bilingual regions can be quite sensitive to the choice of term.

To sum up, both terms are equally appropriate to refer to the Spanish language, and are interchangeable except in cases where a contrasting reference is needed.

Post from: Spanish Blog

Aducir (to adduce, to allege) – Él adujo que estaba borracho como atenuante. (He alleged being drunk as an extenuating circumstance.)

Conducir (to drive, to manage, to lead) – El director condujo la reunión de forma muy dinámica. (The director conducted the meeting in a very dynamic way.)

Deducir (to deduce, to infer) – Como llegaba empapado, deduje que había estado en la lluvia. (As he arrived soaking wet, I deduced he had been caught in the rain.)

Inducir (to induce, to lead) - A mí me indujeron el parto en la semana 41 del embarazo. (They induced labor on the 41st week of my pregnancy.)

Introducir (to introduce) – Este país introdujo el café en Europa. (This country introduced coffee to Europe.)

Producir (to produce) – Emilio Estefan produjo discos para artistas como Ricky Martin, Shakira y Thalía. (Emilio Estefan produced records for artists like Ricky Martin, Shakira and Thalia.)

Post from: Spanish Blog

apoyar – to support
aprobar, respaldar – endorse
Cámara de los Representantes – House of Representatives
conservador – conservative
de derechas, el/la derechista – right-wing
el caucus – caucus (for picking delegates to a U.S. convention)
el Colegio Electoral – Electoral college
el Congreso – Congress
el retador – challenger
el senador, la senadora – senator
el voto, la urna (para votar) – ballot, ballot box
el/la activista – activist
el/la demócrata – Democrat
el/la líder - leader
el/la republicano/a – Republican
el/la gobernador/a – governor
individuo en el cargo - incumbent
de izquierdas, el/la izquierdista – left-wing
la contienda – race
la elección – election
la elección primaria, las primarias – primary election
la política – politics
la legislatura - legislature
liberal — liberal
la mayoría - majority
la minoría - minority
el parlamento - parliament
el partido – party
el/la presidente - president
el primer ministro, la primera ministra – prime minister
el senado – Senate
el socialista — socialist
votar, el voto — vote

Post from: Spanish Blog

PARA

1. Para is used to indicate destination or purpose.

El barco salió para Francia. – The ship left for France.
Este regalo es para María. – This gifit is for María.
Estudia para abogado. – He studies (to be) a lawyer.

2. It’s also used to express a deadline.

Quiero el informe listo para mañana. – I want the report ready by tomorrow.

3. Para also jeans in order to.

Necesito anteojos para leer. – I need glasses (in order) to read.

4. Estar para means to be about to or to be ready to.

Estoy para salir. – I’m ready to leave.
Está para allover. – It’s about to rain.

5. Para is used to express a comparison of inequality.

Para un norteamericano, habla muy bien el español. – For an American, he speaks Spanish very well.

6. In Latin America, to say (minutes) to the hour:

Son diez para las cinco. - It’s ten to five.

POR

1. Por is used to indicate different types of movement in relation to a location.

Viajaron por Francia. – They traveled around France.
El barco pasó por la orilla. – The ship passed by the shore.
El ladrón entró por la ventana. – The thief entered through the window.

2. It also has the meaning of in behalf of, in favor of, instead of. Notice the difference with para in this context:

Compré el regalo para Juan. – I bought the gift for Juan. (I’m going to give it to him.)
Compré el regalo por Juan. – I bought the gift for Juan. (Juan couldn’t make it to the store, so he asked me to buy it.)

3. Por is used after verbs ir (go), mandar (send), volver (return), venir (come) etc. to show the object of the errand.

El muchacho fue por agua. – The young man went for water.
Vine por el médico. – I came for the doctor.

4. Estar por means to be inclined to, to be in the mood. When referring to a person, it means to be have a crush.

Estamos por salir. – We’re in the mood to go out.
Creo que mi hermana está por ti. – I think my sister has a crush on you.

5. Por is also used to express manner, means, or motive.

La madre conducía al niño por la mano. – The mother was leading the boy by the hand.
El paquete llegó por correo. – The package arrived by mail.
Los esclavos tuvieron que luchar por su libertad. – The slaves had to fight for their freedom.

6. It also means in exchange for.

Ella me dio cincuenta dólares por el trabajo. – She gave me fifty dollars for the work.
Juan cambió su coche por otro nuevo. – Juan traded his car for a new one.

7. It expresses opinion or estimation.

Pasa por nativo. – He passes as (for) a native.
Lo tomó por tonto. – He took him for a stupid person.

8. As a correlation between operations and units of measure, or expressing fractions.

Los venden por docenas. – They sell them by the dozen.
Mi coche nuevo va a más de 130 millas por hora. – My new car does over 130 miles an hour.

9. In math, it is a multiplier.

Eight times five equals forty. - Ocho por cinco (son) cuarenta.

Post from: Spanish Blog

artichoke — la alcachofa
asparagus — el espárrago, los espárragos
avocado — el aguacate, la palta
bean — la judía, la haba, la habichuela, el frijol
beet — la remolacha
broccoli — el brécol, el brócoli
Brussels sprout — la col de Bruselas
cabbage — el repollo
carrot — la zanahoria
cassava — la yuca, la mandioca, la casava, la casabe
cauliflower — la coliflor
celery — el apio
chard — la acelga
chicory — la achicoria
chickpea — el garbanzo, el chícharo
corn — el maíz
cucumber — el pepino
eggplant — la berenjena
garlic — el ajo
green pepper — el pimiento verde, el ají verde
lentil — la lenteja
lettuce — la lechuga
mushroom — el champiñón
okra — el quingombó
onion — la cebolla
parsley — el perejil
pea — los guisantes, la arvejas, los chícharos
potato — la patata, la papa
pumpkin — la calabaza
radish — el rábano
red pepper — el pimiento rojo, el ají rojo
shallot — el chalote
soybean — la semilla de soja
spinach — las espinacas
squash — la cucurbitácea
string beans — las habas verdes
sweet potato — la batata
tapioca — el tapioca
tomato — el tomate
turnip — el nabo
water chestnut — la castaña de agua, el abrojo acuático
watercress — el berro
yam — el ñame, el boniato, la batata, el yam
zucchini — el calabacín

Post from: Spanish Blog

Contigo, pan y cebolla – We shall live on love alone.
Para casarse se necesitan muchas cosas, no sólo decir que contigo pan y cebolla.

Llamar al pan pan y al vino, vino. – to call a spade a spade.
Voy a hablarte claro, porque al pan, pan y al vino, vino.

Más bueno que el pan. – 1. to say someone is good-looking; 2. (of a person) to be very kind.
1. Pepita está más buena que el pan.  (Looks)
2. Tu padre es más bueno que el pan.  (Personality)

Ser pan comido. – To be very easy (to do) or not to present problems.
Este asunto para ti es pan comido.

Quien da pan a perro ajeno, pierde el pan y pierde el perro. – Used to indicate that when you favor strangers you don’t even get a thank-you. (lit. If you feed another person’s dog bread, you lose the bread and you lose the dog.)

No pedir pan. – not to be in the way and be useful in the future.
No tires esa mesa, en ese rincón no pide pan y puede servir.

Con su pan se lo coma. – Used to indicate indifference to the consequences of someone else’s actions.
Oye, a mí no me gusta su novia, pero si se casa con ella, con su pan se lo coma.

Ser el pan nuestro de cada día. – Be very common or frequent. Literally, to be our daily bread.
Las averías en las casas viejas son el pan nuestro de cada día.

¡Nos vemos prontito!

Post from: Spanish Blog

1. ser la cabeza pensante – to be the brains. (Es la cabeza pensante de la banda. – He’s the brains of the band.)
2. tener la cabeza dura – to be stubborn, obstinate (Vaya cabeza dura que tiene ese hombre. – That man’s so stubborn.)
3. cabeza de turco – scapegoat (Buscaron un cabeza de turco para evitar que el escándalo afectara a todo el partido. – They looked for a scapegoat to avoid the whole party being affected by the scandal.)
4. en cabeza / a la cabeza – in the first place. (Nuestro equipo va en cabeza. – Our team is in first place.)
5. agachar / bajar / doblar la cabeza – 1. to lower one’s head, in sign of respect (Dobla la cabeza ante el rey. – Lower your head before the King.) 2. to lower one’s head, due to shame (Cuando descubrieron sus mentiras, bajó la cabeza. – When his lies were discovered, he lowered his head.)
6. apostar / jugarse la cabeza – used to indicate that one is certain about a particular outcome. (Me apuesto la cabeza que se marcha del bar sin pagar. – I bet my head he’s going to leave the bar without paying.)
7. calentar la cabeza – to worry about something. (Ya se arreglará, no te calientes más la cabeza. – It will be be all right, don’t worry about it.)
8. darse con la cabeza en la pared – to kick oneself, literally to bang one’s head against the wall.  (Por haber perdido esa oportunidad, ahora se da con la cabeza en la pared. – He’s kicking himself for losing that opportunity.)
9. de cabeza – 1. to be worried about something (Con la reforma de la casa andamos de cabeza. – We’ve been worried because of the remodeling of the house.) 2. headfirst, completely (Su mujer se metió de cabeza en el mundo de los negocios. – His wife got herself completely into the business world.)
10. escarmentar en cabeza ajena – to learn from somebody else’s mistakes (Aunque se lo advertí, nadie escarmienta en cabeza ajena. – Although I warned them, nobody learns from somebody else’s mistakes.)
11. írsele la cabeza – to feel dizzy (Mi abuela no puede bajar las escaleras mecánicas porque se le va la cabeza. – My grandma can’t climb down escalators because she gets dizzy.)
12. meter la cabeza – to get yourself hired (Metió la cabeza en el banco y ahora es director de la sucursal. – He managed to be hired in the bank and now he’s the branch manager.)
13. rodar cabezas – used to indicate that someone is going to be fired (En este departamento van a rodar cabezas. – People are going to get fired in this department.)
14. sentar la cabeza – to settle down (Cuando era joven me gustaba ir de juerga, pero después de casarme, senté la cabeza. – When I was young, I liked to party but after I got married I settled down.)
15. subírsele a la cabeza – 1. (of an alcoholic drink) to take effect (No bebas vino que se te sube a la cabeza. – Don’t drink wine, because it’s going right up your head.) 2. to become vain or snobbish (El dinero se le ha subido a la cabeza. – Money has gone up to his head.)

Nos vemos prontito.

Post from: Spanish Blog

¿Cachai? – Do you understand? Get it?
Agarrar p’al hueveo/leseo/chuleteo – make fun of someone
Al tiro – right away, immediately
Año de la pera – many, many years ago
Cabra/o – girl; boy
Cabra/o chica/o – young girl/boy
Chupar – to drink (alcoholic beverages) a lot
Colarse – to crash a party
Copucha – gossip
Cuico/a – snobbish high-class person
Guagua – baby
Guata – belly
Huevón – jerk, idiot
Llorar a moco tendido – to cry one’s eyes out
Lolo – young man
Mijito – Chilean way of addressing someone (it comes from Mi hijito, “my little son”.)
Pajarón – absent-minded
Pisco – a kind of aguardiente
Pololo/a – boyfriend/girlfriend
¡Por la cresta! – Holy cow!
Poto – buttocks

If you have advanced Spanish read this article about Chilean Spanish on La Página del Idioma Español (http://www.elcastellano.org/espachil.html).

Post from: Spanish Blog

Puedes elegir la carrera universitaria que quieras y, hagas lo que hagas, siempre te vamos a apoyar. (You can choose whatever degree you want and, whatever you do, we’ll always support you.)

Pase lo que pase, tienes que estar en la oficina a las ocho. (Whatever happens, you must be at the office by 8 o’clock.)

The forma reduplicativa (literally, the redoubled form) is a very common sentence structure and it’s used as an equivalent to sentences using “whatever”, “whoever” and “whenever”. In this kind of structure, the subjunctive mood is repeated and the verbs are separated by a conjunction or phrase – mostly cuando, como or lo que. Here are some more examples:

Sea como sea, sus metas son muy claras. (In any case, his goals are very clear.)
Digan lo que digan sobre la violencia en las películas, los niños todavía siguen viéndolas. (Whatever they say about violence in the movies, kids keep watching them.)
Veas lo que veas, no le digas nada a nadie. (Whatever you see, don’t tell anyone anything.)
No voy a aceptar eso, sea de quien sea. (I won’t accept that, whoever it comes from.)
Eso saldrá perfecto, lo hagas como lo hagas. (This will come out perfectly, however you do it.)
Vamos a superar eso, venga lo que venga. (We’re going to get through this, come what may.)

See you next time!

Post from: Spanish Blog