This is a great tool. You should all use it to practice, learn, and share your language knowledge. The URL is http://words.transparent.com/login/.
One challenge for Spanish learners is distinguishing when to use ser or estar, both of which translate into “to be” in English. Generally, ser is used with adjectives expressing permanent characteristics (including nationality, physical appearance and personality) while estar is used for temporary states or conditions, such as emotions. Sometimes learners believe that a given adjective is always and exclusively used with one or the other, but in fact some adjectives can be paired with both ser AND estar depending on what the speaker is trying to express.
Here are a few examples. Notice the difference in meaning:
We know that a suffix is often added to a word stem to create new words, but that isn’t always the case. Let’s take the example of the suffix –ducir in Spanish and some verbs formed with it: conducir, reducir, deducir, etc. Such verbs are derived from Latin ducere, which meant “to lead”. The examples below are cognates of English verbs ending in either “-duce” or “-duct” and their meanings coincide in English and Spanish. They have irregular conjugation in the first person singular in the present (yo conduzco) and its preterite forms are conjugated as conduje, condujiste, condujo, etc. The website 123 Teach Me (www.123teachme.com) has a very good Spanish verb conjugator, so make sure you check it out. Here are the most common verbs ending in -ducir, along with a usage example of each:
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.)
US elections are around the corner and candidates are doing their best to get votes from the ever-growing Latin communities. John McCain www.johnmccain.com/espanol and Barack Obama www.barackobama.com/espanol have Spanish versions of their websites with lots of useful information. In case your Spanish is a little rusty, here’s a list of some handy political vocabulary.
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
The prepositions por and para have very specific uses in Spanish. Here are some of them.
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 llover. – It’s about to rain.
5. Para is used to express a comparison of inequality.
Para un norteamericano, habla muy bien 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 tomó al niño por la mano. – The mother took 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.
