Easy Language Learning » Spanish Vocabulary

Learn Spanish fast – find similarities between English and Spanish words

Admin — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 16:33:00 +0000

Finding similarities between the Spanish words you are learning and English words in your vocabulary is one of the most effective ways of expanding your knowledge of the new language. When you start learning Spanish, many of the words you come across from lesson one look similar in both languages, or even identical: individual, mineral, hora, presentar, teléfono, momento, electrónico, radio, recomendar, salmón, limón, apartamento and countless more. Those will be easy to learn and to remember, and a great boost to your motivation. In my experience both as a Spanish teacher and as a student of foreign languages, what is even more encouraging is finding less obvious connections between words in both languages. For instance, have you noticed that the Spanish word for ‘beef’ and ‘cow’ (vaca) has the same origin as the English word ‘vaccine’?; or are you aware of how many English words share their origin with the Spanish numbers: unity (uno), duo (dos), trio (tres), quartet (cuatro), sexagenarian (seis), September (seven), octopus (ocho), November (nueve), December (diez)?Once you have seen those similarities, you are more likely to remember the new Spanish words without effort because your brain works by making associations. If you have ever tried to learn lists of Spanish words without context or associations you will know what a hopeless endeavor that is. That is why I always teach Spanish vocabulary to my students by connecting the new words to other words they already know. Even if you have only just started learning Spanish, making those connections will be one of your greatest allies. They will save you precious time and energy, and will transform the learning process into a game and an enjoyable challenge. The problem, however, is that if you are a beginner, or even if you have already reached an intermediate level, finding similarities between English and Spanish words might not always be easy. A good Spanish language course, however, should point at those similarities, as well as guide you through the most efficient vocabulary learning techniques. To show you how much faster you can learn new Spanish words by associating them to other words you are familiar with, here are twenty-five everyday Spanish words. In brackets I have given you the English translation and on the right is the English word of the same origin as the Spanish:lavadora (washing machine) – lavatorymicroondas (microwave) – undulatecongelador (freezer) – to congealbebida (drink) – beveragecaña (small beer) – canecopa (glass) – cupmanta (blanket) – mantlevino (wine) – vineyardtinto (red [wine]) – tinctureterraza (balcony) – terracemarisco (shellfish) – marinaquerer (to want) – to querycarne (meat) – carnivoreprimero (first) premiercasa (house) – casinotener (to have) – tenantantes (before) – antenatalequipaje (luggage) – to equiphabitación (room) – cohabitationlavaplatos (dishwasher) – lavatory, platemandar (to order) – mandateordenador (computer) – orderencantado (delighted) – enchantedlibre (vacant) – libertycarta (menu) – cartographyCan you connect other Spanish words you know to English words of the same origin? What about ‘pasillo’, ‘fumador’, ‘último’, ‘pescado’, ’suavizante’, ’sombrilla’?

Learn Spanish To Enhance Your Vacation Experience

Admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 20:34:24 +0000

If you are wondering why people are rushing to learn Spanish these days, it might be hard to pinpoint one particular reason. If you are an American, your reason for learning Spanish may be far different than a European who has decided it’s time to learn the language. So, why is learning Spanish important to so many people? Let us give you some facts first: * Spanish has become the second language of the United States * The Spanish language is gaining importance as a second or third language in many European countries * There are over 400 million Spanish speakers around the globe, only exceeded by those groups speaking English, Chinese, and Hindustani. * Spanish is the fourth most popular language in the world and the native, or official, language on four different continents. So, enough for the geography lesson. So why should you make the time and investment to learn Spanish? Let me tell you some of the more popular reasons why people like you and me want to learn Spanish: It’s Very Easy to Learn The Spanish language is truly one of the easiest foreign languages to learn. Much of the Spanish vocabulary is similar to English. Better yet, written Spanish is almost completely phonetic. Even a complete beginner can look at almost any Spanish word and tell how it should be pronounced. Of course, there are a few differences in the grammar and verb structure, but the basic grammar is relatively straightforward enough to allow you to carry on a meaningful conversation after just a few lessons. Learning Spanish is Fun If you like to take on a basic challenge, then learning to talk, read, and speak Spanish is your cup of tea. As far as difficulty, learning the Spanish language is quite basic and you can really have some fun in the process. The enjoyment involved in mastering a second language and being able to speak with native speakers can be extremely rewarding. The thrill of having a second language also opens up a whole new world, and different cultures, to you. Enhance Your Travel and Vacation Experiences Knowing how to speak Spanish expands your options when you scour the globe for a new vacation experience. Countries that you have avoided in the past due to the language barrier now become prime targets for your new travels. There is nothing worse than traveling to a new country when you cannot communicate with the local population. Imagine being able to converse with people in most Central and South American countries (and many European countries) in their native language. Whether you just learn a few common Spanish phrases or learn Spanish vocabulary and pronunciation like a native speaker, you will find that it can really open new doors to you while increasing your fun and excitement in a new land. Improve Your Job Skills It’s amazing how many new jobs are now requiring candidates to possess multilingual skills in order to meet the qualifications of the position. For instance, certain regions in the United States have a significant Hispanic population and influence. Employment candidates with Spanish as a second language are highly sought after in these areas and are paying a premium to attract them. Being able to speak Spanish is also a big resume booster and can lead to a better paying job, regardless of your area of employment. Hopefully we have provided a reasonable answer as to the question posed earlier; “why is learning Spanish important for so many people?” We have touched on the more common reasons given by many Spanish students for wanting to learn this wonderful language, but not a comprehensive list for sure. Of course, each person has their own motivation for taking Spanish lessons. But regardless of your motivation for wanting to speak Spanish, the experience can be fun and rewarding and leave you with a new skill that you can use for a lifetime.

Learn Spanish With Audio Programs

Admin — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 14:37:14 +0000

Look Up ‘Learn Spanish Audio’ Material Spanish is one of the most spoken languages throughout the world. Some reports say that there are more than four hundred thousand people the world over speaking Spanish. It is a very easy language to learn and since it is spoken in many countries across the globe, it can be very useful for you. Spanish language is very close to English. It is based in Latin like the other romance languages and it is written in the same alphabet as English. If you know English there are many words and phrases that are similar. And there are many phrases and words which you can very easily guess accurately; some words are even written and pronounced the same. Learn Spanish Audio Book One of the easiest ways to learn Spanish, is with the help of learn Spanish audios. What are these learn Spanish audios? Well, these are audio tapes (audio cassettes) or audio files, which are sent through the Net when you enroll with any online course available. There are also many audio books that include “learn Spanish” programs that can be downloaded to your MP3 player or computer. It is very easy to learn any language – not only Spanish – when you have the lessons spoken to you. These ‘learn Spanish audios’ usually teach you step by step how to speak Spanish. Try Out the ‘Learn Spanish Audio’ Material You can buy such ‘learn Spanish audios’ from many audio book sites, such as, http://www. YourAudioBookHQ. com . There are also many online courses, which have their lessons divided into audio modules for your easy absorption. Through these lessons, you will not only learn Spanish grammar and vocabulary, you will also learn commonly used phrases and how to dialogue correctly. There are more advantages in choosing to learn Spanish through audio lessons: 1. You can hear the correct pronunciation, which is very important while learning a language; this is something you miss out on when you learn Spanish with the help of books only. 2. We are all used to multi-tasking now, and when you learn Spanish through audio material you can study your lessons while doing something else, like jogging, household chores, driving, etc. By using otherwise idle time you will not have to take additional time away from other activities. This will fast-forward the time taken for mastering the language. 3. Learning through audio books or programs will give you confidence to talk with Spanish people faster. People who learn through conventional classroom methods tend to be a little shy of the way they speak their newly learned language. However, the audio lessons will make you very familiar with the pronunciation, so that you will be confident to start a conversation, and secure in the knowledge that you speak correctly. 4. You can learn the local jargon – often, people learn Spanish, only to find that the language spoken by the common person in the street, is quite different. The audio lessons more often than not throw a good light on the local (street) jargon as well and help you to be familiar more common terms and phrases.

Learning Spanish From Scratch

Admin — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 07:36:17 +0000

I was half shocked, half amused reading all the stuff on the Internet about how learning Spanish is “easy” and how some guides teach you how to speak Spanish in 21 days. I always wanted to ask the people writing this kind of guides, exactly who they think they’re fooling. Spanish, just like any other language, takes time to learn. You’ll need constant exercise, you’ll need to focus on several parts of the language, such as the Spanish vocabulary, Spanish grammar and so forth. Of course, each person has a particular level of informational absorption that can help them (or hinder them if it’s low) in learning Spanish from scratch.
Obviously, it depends whether you want to learn Spanish for your next-week trip to Madrid, or if you intend to learn it for that job offer waiting for you there in 4 months. You may be able to grasp the basic language notions in a week, if you use one of those free language lessons that you can find online, but if you want to learn it properly and in-depth, you’ll be better off taking things slowly and chewing on what you learn instead of swallowing it as soon as you learn it.
During your first 2 weeks, take a child’s approach to learning Spanish. Learn what you would teach a child to know in English first: the colors, 0 to 20 numbers, helloes and goodbyes, seasons, months of the year, days of the week and all sorts of easy things that will help you get a taste of learning a new language as well as getting you accustomed to pronunciation and writing.
Once you’re at this point, go for a few grammar rules. Use a Spanish course if needed, or look up a Spanish grammar online lesson and try to find out differences and common points between Spanish and English (or your mother tongue if it’s not English of course). You’ll also work on your pronunciation, writing and understanding while going through the grammar rules.
Next up, assuming you already know the basic grammar rules and have a solid grip of the basic Spanish words, you’ll need to work hard to improve your vocabulary. Learning Spanish is just like playing with a jigsaw puzzle. You know that you want to get the bigger picture out of the small pieces, but before sticking them together you’ll need to start with the corners to give you a base (the “child” vocabulary mentioned above). After that, you need to understand the rules involved in sticking the pieces together (Spanish grammar) and finally, you will have to start picking the small pieces one by one and attach them to the forming picture (improve vocabulary).
Improving vocabulary in Spanish can be done in a number of ways. Probably the most common one is “relating objects”. That means that if you learn a new word from a specific category (fruits for example), you should expand your vocabulary in that particular category first, then move on to another related context.
For example, you learn the word “apple”, you move on to words like “pears”, “strawberries” and “peaches” then after you’re done with that distinct group of words, move on to bigger contexts in which you can use them such as “kitchen”, “farms” or “marketplace”. This will allow you to learn new words from the new bigger contexts and at the same time, re-use the words you had learnt in the smaller categories, which “fixes” them better in your memory.
I’m not saying this is THE only way of learning Spanish from scratch, but trust me, if you manage to follow these easy steps, you’ll soon have a solid and correct grasp of the Spanish language. There might be faster methods of learning a new language out there, but this old fashion step-by-step one practically restrains you from taking any huge leaps in the learning process and skipping some important stuff.
If you want to add some spice to your language learning process, you can try playing some word games, watching some Spanish shows on TV and last but not least, you could search the internet for some free language lessons online or even better, those free online “learn Spanish” videos that you can find all over the world wide web.

Is It Really Easy To Learn Spanish?

Admin — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:47:34 +0000

Seeing how Spanish is one of the most important languages in the World in terms of numbers of speakers (around 350 million Spanish speakers world wide, making Spanish come fourth in a top of the most popular languages) it’s easily understandable why learning this language has become a priority for hundreds of thousand of people each year. Spanish is also considered the second most important international language, after English, placing further importance on its learning.

Since Spanish is the main language spoken in areas such as South and Central America (except Brazil and the Guyanas), Spain and Andorra in Europe, Equatorial Guinea, the Sahara desert and some parts of the United States and the surrounding areas, it’s safe to say that knowing even the slightest bits of Spanish can get you going in most parts of the World. Spanish is also a Latin language and by learning Spanish you’ll even be able to handle yourself in countries that share the same Latin background such as Italy, Romania, Portugal and so forth.

One of the tricky parts of learning Spanish is understanding and using accents. Spanish accents show the way words are stressed but they can sometimes change the entire meaning of the word. Take the word “esta” for example. Without an accent, esta means “this” but esta with a stressed last vowel means “it is”. This concept can be found in other languages (English included) but Spanish tends to have more of these accent-related word meaning changes.

Once you get a relatively solid hold on Spanish vocabulary and pronunciation, one good way to further your learning process is by coming into contact with Spanish through media, be it Spanish music or Spanish TV channels (if they are subtitled than it’s even better). When listening to Spanish music or when watching a Spanish show on TV, try to focus on “intercepting” the words you know and relate them to the context in which they are spoken. This way you’re both building vocabulary and correlating nouns to adjectives and verbs with adverbs with more ease. Remember that whenever we’re learning a new language it’s the passive concepts of listening and reading that are more useful at first. The active concepts of speaking and writing are less likely to produce correctly unless you have a good hold on the passives so they sort of build on one another. So don’t be disappointed if you won’t be able to pronounce or spell correctly even after a few weeks of learning Spanish. These things take time and it’s more important that you focus on getting familiar with the language through reading and listening first.

By: Michael Gabrikow

Spanish Learning Lesson Software – Interesting Facts & Tips! Learn About Interactive Language Learning Computer Programs

Admin — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 12:17:49 +0000

Spanish learning lesson software is an interesting innovative educational method for learning how speak and understand another language. Learning to speak and understand Spanish is a great way to broaden your language horizons and enhance your ability to communicate with others around the world. Want to learn more about how to speak and understand Spanish? Read the following review.

Some background

Spanish learning lesson software is considered as one of the most effective Spanish learning methods. How these technologies work? Most of them provide an interactive Spanish course, divided into lessons, which teach you step-by-step basic to advanced Spanish speaking and pronunciation skills.

If we research the Web we can quickly notice that many of these solutions provide the following: quick interactive lesson plans, image-based memorization games, and audio lessons.

Benefits

By now we clearly notice how this technology transforms our language learning process easier:

- Quickly develops the most common Spanish vocabulary required for a basic conversation.

- Effectively practices on pronouncing Spanish words and sentences correctly.

- Helps those who travel to Spanish speaking countries on communicating with the locals.

- Designed to be easy for both children and adults.

We could count other important advantages provided by these computer-based programs, simply because Spanish quickly becomes one of the world’s most popular languages.

Learning Spanish isn’t that difficult and thanks to these tools, learning Spanish becomes easier than ever, so any of us could easily learn how to speak it quit fast.

Conclusion

Spanish learning lesson software can help us acquire Spanish at relatively short time. Until today one of the most popular ways to learn Spanish was taking evening classes and using boring grammar guides. This technology offers a different approach.

By: Jason W.