There is an easy way to uncover the meanings of Spanish idioms and expressions and you can do it by using a monolingual (Spanish-only) dictionary. Here’s how:

Always look up the meaning of an expression by checking the dictionary entry for the first noun mentioned in the expression. The reason? A Spanish verb is more likely than a Spanish noun to be used in multiple expressions. For example, the verbs dar, estar, ir, tener, are used in plenty of Spanish phrases and expressions. An excellent Spanish dictionary will list expressions that contain those verbs, but if there are numerous expressions, most dictionaries usually only list the most commonly-used ones. That’s why you’re better off looking for the definition of a Spanish expression by first checking the entry for the main noun mentioned.

Spanish expressions (frases hechas) are combinations of words whose meaning adds up to something very different from their individual parts.

Take, for example, an expression like “ir al grano.” The verb ir means “to go” while the noun grano can be a seed, a grain of sand or a pimple on somebody’s face. But when ir is added to grano (ir al grano) the meaning changes from a literal translation to a figurative one.

When I checked the dictionary under “IR” there was no definition for the expression. But when I checked “GRANO”, there was the expression with its meaning. Ir al grano means “to get to the point.”

So, to recap, here’s a step-by-step process you can use to find the definition of a Spanish expression.

Step 1: First, look up the primary NOUN

Step 2: If there is no noun, look up the VERB.

Step 3: If there is no verb, look up the ADJECTIVE.

Step 4:  If there is no adjective, look up the PRONOUN.

Most of the time, you won’t have to go down that entire scale. You will usually find your definition by first looking up the noun or the verb. Usually the first two steps (checking the noun or the verb listed in the expression) is enough.

By the way, I strongly believe that once you reach an intermediate-level of Spanish, you should start using a Spanish-only dictionary. Why? A monolingual dictionary usually gives a more comprehensive definition. A good monolingual dictionary will also give you examples as well as multiple definitions. The average bilingual dictionary, because it contains two different languages, generally does not have the space, if it is in book form, to offer the same level of detail.

Of course, there are some electronic or online bilingual dictionaries which are excellent, but another advantage to using a monolingual dictionary is that it forces you to think in Spanish. That means less translating in your head, which is a good thing.

Check out: “How to use a Spanish-English Dictionary”

Don’t worry, I’ll still be tweeting Spanish verbs over @ReVerbSpanish, but now you can add @SpanishWordz to the mix.

Why the spelling “Spanish Wordz”?

Because “Spanish Words”, “Spanish Word”, “Palabras”, and “Spanish Vocab” were all already taken on Twitter.

The plan is to tweet Spanish words that hopefully you aren’t too familiar with. I know what you must be thinking….ANOTHER Spanish Word of the Day stream on Twitter?! Yes, I know there are already plenty of these “Spanish Word Of the Day” tweets on Twitter. But most of them are focused on very basic Spanish words. Perro= dog. Lunes = Monday. Comer = to eat.

That’s great for beginners or people who need a refresher, but what about those of us who already have the basics down pat and want to keep progressing?

It’s time to stretch yourself, especially if you’ve been studying Spanish awhile and are at an intermediate or advanced level. Get out of the habit of using the same basic Spanish words over and over again.

For example, you may use the word “amigo,” even in situations where it may not be the best choice. In English, we have words like colleague, coworker, acquaintance, roommate, neighbor, buddy. Why not learn the Spanish equivalents and deposit them into your Spanish memory bank?

Even if your accent speaking Spanish isn’t perfect, using more sophisticated words in Spanish will go a long way to making you sound more fluent.

There won’t be any overall theme or specific reason why certain words get posted on particular days. They will just be words that strike me as interesting and unusual. Often they will be words that I’ve noticed in the news that I think might help folks expand their Spanish vocab past the usual common Spanish 101 words. If you’re studying Spanish in college or in high school taking Advanced Placement Spanish, some of these vocab words may come in handy.

I will post at least one Spanish word daily. On some days I may post more than one. But there will always be at least one new word posted everyday. I’m commited to doing this every day for the next 365 days. After that, who knows?

Follow me on Twitter:

Spanish Vocabulary @SpanishWordz

Spanish Verbs @ReVerbSpanish

Bilingual tweets @VoicesEnEspanol

Kids stuff @CodysCuentos

For example, estar aburrido vs. ser aburrido is the difference between being bored or being boring!

The very general rule of thumb is that we use SER + an adjective is for permanent, intrinsic characteristics while ESTAR is for temporary changes or changes that have come as the result of some kind of process. However, there are circumstances where it’s not 100% clear to non-native Spanish speakers how the meaning of some adjectives change when paired with SER or ESTAR.

For example, estar muerto vs. ser muerto. Muerto means “dead” and often English speakers have the tendency to want to use the verb ser with this adjective. However, when referring to the physical state of being dead, of being six feet under, you must use the verb estar. Ser (un) muerto means to be a bore, a dud.  Same deal with estar vivo (to be physically alive, as in living and breathing) vs. ser vivo (to be very clever, mentally bright, etc.)

There are some Spanish adjectives that can be paired with SER and ESTAR and not change meaning. Interestingly enough, they are adjectives that have to do with one’s relationship status. Adjectives such as casado (married), soltero (single) and viudo (widowed).  So regardless of whether somebody  “está casado” or “es casado,” they both mean the same thing – that the person is married.

There are a ton of these kinds of adjectives. That’s why I’ve put together a list of 33 of these Spanish adjectives, along with their different meanings, in one handy printout. You can get your copy of “Spanish Shapeshifters” by signing up for my email list in the righthand column of this blog. Don’t worry, it’s gratis.

Need a little help using these adjectives correctly? Check out the ReVerb Spanish page on Twitter  for examples of sentences using these different adjectives.

That may lead some English speakers who are studying Spanish to say things like  “Miro la tele” or “Me gusta mirar películas” in Spanish. This is incorrect. In Spanish, use VER when referring to the act of watching TV, movies or sports.

VER

A Juan le encanta ver los dibujos animados. Juan loves to watch cartoons.

Me gusta ver el tenís. I like to watch tennis.

Of course, VER is also used in the general sense of seeing:

¡Nos vemos pronto! See you soon! (Literally: We see each other soon.)

Anoche el niño vio una fantasma. Last night the boy saw a ghost.

MIRAR

…can also can be translated as “to watch” but more in the context of looking at someone or something with intention. Personally, I prefer the translation “to look at,” that way you avoid any confusion with VER.

Este café es un buen lugar para mirar a la gente. This café is a great place to people watch/to look at people.

¡Oye! ¿Qué miras? ¡¿Tengo monos en la cara?! Hey! What are you looking at?!

No, tranquila. Estoy mirando la araña que trepa por tu hombro. No, calm down. I’m looking at (I’m watching) the spider climbing your shoulder.

“Tener monos en la cara” is a very funny expression used in Spain. Literally, it means “Do I have monkeys on my face?” and it is a testy way of  asking somebody what the heck they are looking at when they are staring at you.

Anyway, regarding MIRAR, it is a bit more literary than VER since it a verb that means to observe or to contemplate. For example, there is a difference in meaning between  “ves las estrellas” and “miras las estrellas.” The first phrase (ves las estrellas) references the general act of seeing the stars. You have eyes so you can see the stars. The second phrase (miras las estrellas) suggests viewing with intention or focus or with great interest. You look at the stars….leading you to contemplate the vastness of the universe….

Visit the ReVerb Spanish page on Twitter for more phrases containing VER or MIRAR. Check the June 15 entries.

To tell you the truth, there is a lot I want to share with you about Spanish verbs but some of it really doesn’t warrant a 400+ word blog entry.

That’s where Twitter comes in. Twitter is a web site where people can post very short messages on all sorts of topics. It’s like a blog but with entries that are extremely brief.  There is a 140-character limit per entry, and that includes punctuation marks and spaces!

Twitter is a great platform for ReVerb Spanish because you can get more helpful tips about different Spanish verbs without having to wade through lengthy explanations. In fact, it’s an efficient way for me to address some verbs that are interesting but maybe don’t have enough meat to devote an entire podcast to them.

Wondering what kinds of things I’m putting on Twitter? Here’s a sampling of a few verbs that were the focus in some recent “tweets.” (You’ll have to visit the ReVerb Spanish Twitter page to get the answers to these riddles.)

Armarse un lío vs. Hacerse un lío: They both mean trouble but in different ways.

Estar a cargo de vs. Hacerse cargo de: Who’s the boss between those two phrases?

Alumbrar vs. Deslumbrar: Shine some light on two similar verbs

Callarse la boca vs Cerrarle la boca: It’s the difference between keeping one’s mouth shut or causing someone to shut theirs!

As you can see, it’s a little bit of everything. But the focus is solely on explaining to you the nuances of Spanish verbs and verb phrases that are not only useful for you to know but also a lot of fun to use!

I post items over there more frequently than I do on this blog, so if you ever miss me (si me echas de menos) and wonder what I’ve been up to, you can find me twittering away at Twitter.com/ReVerbSpanish.  If you feel like it, sign up for your own Twitter account and we can also communicate with one another that way.

¡Hasta luego!

As a bonus, you’ll also get audio practice sentences where you can listen to sentences where the verb is missing and then you have to come up with the correct answer. A PDF file containing all the ESTAR conjugations is also included.

Click here to get the ESTAR audio verb drills pack.

Purchase

A common expression in Spanish is ¿Qué tal andamos? or ¿Cómo andamos?

In English that is translated as “How are we doing?” or “What’s new?”

“¿Cómo andamos?” is just another way of asking “¿Cómo estás?”

But ¿Cómo andamos? es muy informal. That means it’s a very casual phrase you would typically use with people you know, like friends and family. It’s not an expression that you would use in a formal setting, for example, on a job interview. You wouldn’t greet the job interviewer with the line ¿Cómo andamos? but rather ¿Cómo está usted?

So, how do you know when it’s OK to use ANDAR as a substitute for ESTAR? Fortunately, there are some specific rules to this.

ANDAR + a gerund

Click here for an explanation of what a gerund is.

Normally, a Spanish gerund is paired with the verb ESTAR. In English, we say, “I am working” and, in Spanish that would be “Estoy trabajando.”

If we change “estoy trabajando” to “ando trabajando,” we’re giving an additional piece of information. Why? Because the formula “ANDAR + a gerund” is a way to talk about a habitual action. A repeated action. Or you can think of it as an action that has become a custom or something that happens with regularity.

Consider the following examples:

Estoy muy cansada. En las últimas semanas, ando durmiendo menos de seis horas. (I am so tired. In the last few weeks, I’ve been sleeping less than six hours.)

¡Qué cómic tan chulo! Voy a comprarlo para mi sobrino que anda coleccionándolos desde hace meses. (Wow! What a cool comic book! I’m going to buy it for my nephew who has been collecting them for a few months now.)

ANDAR + past participle

Another situation in which ANDAR can be used as a subsitute for ESTAR is when you want to indicate a situation or a state of being that has being going on for a while.

¡Mamá! ¿Qué le pasa a Papá? ¿Por qué está tan triste?

Bueno, hija, es que anda muy preocupado por la crisis economíca. Cree que va a perder su trabajo.

As you can see with this example, the speaker could also have said “está muy preocupado. The dfference here is that using ANDAR adds another layer of meaning to that state of being worried. The verb andar, in this case, conveys the idea that the person who is worried, la persona que anda preocupada, has been worried for a while.

ANDAR + adjective

Mira! Desde que le tocó la lotería, Javier anda muy contento.

[Wow, would you look at that! Since he won the lottery, Javier is very happy (has been very happy).]

Again, you could’ve said, Javier está muy contento, in this situation and that would’ve been 100% correct. But saying Javier anda muy contento, conveys the idea that his state of happiness has become a frequent state of being for Javier. In other words, a habit.

Ok, well, I think that’s about it for ANDAR vs ESTAR. There are some other cool ways to use ANDAR.

Anda, ¡Anda ya!

Anda, an imperative form of the verb, is used frequently in Castilian Spanish as a way of expressing disbelief, surprise, fear, sarcasm or disgust. It can also be used to encourage somebody.  ¡Anda! or ¡Anda ya! have fluid meanings that depend on the tone of voice and the situation. The translation in English can mean “come on” or “yeah, right” or “gosh” or “gimme a break”, etc.

Tranquila, ¡anda, no llores más! (Calm down, come on, don’t cry any more!)

¡Anda ya! ¡No digas tonterías! (Come on! Get off it! Don’t say stupid things!)

Other examples con ¡anda!

¡Anda que no he tenido que trabajar tanto en la vida! (Gosh, I’ve never had to work so hard in my life!)

¡Anda, que como se entere mi padre! (Oh boy, wait until my dad finds out!)

As you can see, the verb ANDAR is very versatile. There’s one other usage of ANDAR but use it very carefully. Andáte con cuidado means “be careful” but it is generally considered a warning or a threat. So don’t use this as your closing remark in an email! When you want to be friendly and thoughtful the equivalent of  “take care” or “be careful”  in Spanish is “ten cuidado” (tú)  or “tenga cuidado” (usted).

The Spanish gerund endings are:

-ando (for verbs that end in -ar)

-iendo (for verbs that end in -er or -ir)

-yendo (A few -er and -ir verbs use this ending)

A gerund is used in both the present continuous and past continuous tenses. It is a way to emphasize an action that is happening in the moment. Estoy leyendo (I am reading). Estaba leyendo (I was reading).

To be more precise, the Spanish phrase “estoy leyendo” means “I am reading (right now)” while “yo estaba leyendo” means “I was reading (right then, at that very moment in the past).”

In English, we tend to use the -ing form a lot. In fact, English uses the continuous tense (also called the progressive tense) more frequently than Spanish does. As a result, it is very common for English speakers to use this form excessively when they speak Spanish.

For example, it is very common and normal to hear someone in English say “I am learning Spanish.” The speaker of this sentence is  just making a general statement. He is not necessarily saying that he is learning Spanish in that very moment.

However, in Spanish, it sounds kind of odd to say “Estoy aprendiendo español” UNLESS you want to emphasize that you are studying Spanish at that very moment.

If that’s not the case, it’s more typical and correct in Spanish to say “Aprendo español,” which in English can be translated as  “I learn Spanish” or  “I am learning Spanish.”

In Spanish, the continuous/progressive tense generally implies a longer duration or repetition of the verbal action. In English, however, we tend to use the -ing form when referring to brief actions or things that are going to happen in the near future.

Here are some common examples where it is natural to go with the -ing form in English but in Spanish you would stick with the present tense.

English: Who are you talking to? With whom are you speaking?

Spanish: ¿Con quién hablas? (present tense)

English: What are you doing?

Spanish: ¿Qué haces?

English: I’m coming back tonight.

Spanish: Vuelvo esta noche.

There are some other key differences between the Spanish gerund and the English gerund. In English, a gerund can also be used as is a noun. For example:  “Walking is great exercise.” The word “walking” is a verbal noun.

In Spanish, we create a verbal noun by using the infinitive (the unconjugated form of the verb) not by using its gerund.

Caminar es excelente para la salud = Walking is great for your health

NOT Caminando es excelente para la salud.

No fumar aquí. (No smoking allowed.)  NOT No fumando aquí.

Dormir es mi actividad favorita (Sleeping is my favorite activity) NOT Durmiendo es mi actividad favorita.

Other scenarios in which the -ing form that we use in English requires the infinitive in Spanish:

With a verb that expresses likes and dislikes: Odio nadar en agua fría. (I hate swimming in cold water.)

With some prepositions: El cocinero se lava las manos antes de hacer la comida. (The cook washes his hands before making the meal.)

But on the flip side, there are times when the Spanish gerund doesn’t correspond to the English -ing form.

TIME (to show two parallel actions)

Estando en España, hablo español. (While I am Spain, I speak Spanish.)

CAUSE (to indicate a major circumstance)

Siendo presidente, Barack Obama tiene más responsiblidades que nunca. (Since he is president, Barack Obama has more responsibilities than ever.)

MANNER (to show the way in which an action takes place)

El perro entra corriendo cuando oye el silbato. (The dog runs inside when he hears the whistle.)

In Spanish, a gerund is typically attached to the verb ESTAR but there are other Spanish verbs that can be paired with a gerund. This week’s podcast talks about one of them -  the verb ANDAR. In a future episode, I will mention some other verbs that can replace ESTAR in the continuous/progessive tense formula (ESTAR + a gerund).

This podcast is the audio verb drill for the imperfect past tense of SER. Purchase the complete set of audio verb drills for SER on this page. The price is $7.99.

As always, I’m open to receiving your suggestions and feedback. You can contact me directly through this blog’s contact page.

What’s the distinction between the preterite and the imperfect past tenses in Spanish? The preterite past tense is used for “terminated actions” in the past. That means actions that started and ended at a specific point in the past. The imperfect past tense is used for describing actions in the past. This is an extremely simplified definition. There are numerous chapters in grammar books written on the subject of Spanish past tenses, so I don’t want this one particular 400-word blog entry to get bogged down. Suffice it to say that the imperfect past tense in Spanish is used for descriptions, for narration, for talking about an ongoing state of being or feeling in the past.

Conocer in the preterite tense generally is translated as “met,” as in the first time you met someone. If you use the preterite with a thing or a place, you’re emphasizing that moment of initial contact in the past.

For example:  ¿Conoces a Miguel? Do you know Miguel? Sí, lo conozco. Lo conocí anoche.   Yes, I know him. (I know who he is. I am acquainted with him.) I met him last night.

Conocer in the imperfect past tense means “knew,” but in the sense of used to know, used to be familiar with someone or something. Conocía ese restaurante cuando vivía en Barcelona. I used to know that restaurant (I was familiar with that restuarant) when I was living in Barcelona.

Saber, in the preterite tense, means “knew” or “found out.”
Let’s say that you’re talking to a friend who asks you if you heard that a mutual acquaintance of yours has gotten engaged. This is old news to you because you heard about the engagement before. So in Spanish you would say, Sí, ya lo sé. Lo supe ayer. (Yes, I already know. I found out [I heard] about it yesterday.)

In the imperfect past tense, saber still means “knew” but in a more general, descriptive sense. You can also translate it as “used to know.” For example: Cuando yo era niña, sabía tocar al piano. When I was a kid, I knew how to play the piano. I used to know how to play the piano.

A general rule of thumb that, while not 100% foolproof, will help you out the majority of the time:

If the action of knowing is something that can be pinned down to a specific period of time in the past: Use the preterite tense.

If the state of knowing is being described in the past: Use the imperfect tense.