I want [some] water in Spanish is:
(Yo) Quiero [algo de] agua.
The personal pronoun in Spanish is implied, so it is in parenthesis.
Most Spanish speakers start with the verb, which is conjugated in
accordance to the personal pronoun. The verb to want is querer, it
becomes quiero when conjugated for the 'yo' pronoun.
Do you want some water?
(Tú) Quieres [algo de] agua?
***Remember from a previous blog that 'Tú' is the informal 'you' and that there is also 'Usted', which is formal. Formally said this sentence would be: (Usted) Quiere [algo de] agua?***
Without the question intonation the statement would just read (in
English): You want some water.
I do not want [some] water.
(Yo) No quiero [algo de] agua.
When my conversation partner was learning English she had some
difficulties with the placement of the noun and the adjectives because
in English we place the adjective before the noun, but in most cases
in Spanish they place the adjective after the noun.
Example:
The red purse in Spanish is 'La bolsa roja.' (Bolsa being purse, roja
being red).
In the beginning she was also unsure if she needed to add the pronounce
because in Spanish (as previously mentioned) it is unnecessary.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Excuse The Vulgar Gestures, Por Favor!
I asked my Conversation Partner about the personal space bubbles in
Mexico and the differences between ones here in the States. She said
that she really didn't notice any drastic differences when she moved
here. It felt about the same. No one seemed uncomfortably close or too
far away.
I also asked her about different gestures; the ones that we share and
the ones that they have in Mexico that we don't have here. Most of
them were the same. She and I both figured that there were probably so
many similarities due to the fact that we live close to Mexico and
many gestures probably have carried over one-way or another.
We spoke about 'thumbs up', waving, using the middle finger, and the
wink. All of these gestures have the same meaning.
They also have the: the cut of the neck and the hanging for suicide.
The cut of the wrists gesture or the shoot the head if someone is
saying or doing something boring. There is also the L on the forehead,
which signifies 'loser'.
In Mexico they don't have the 'whatever' sign or 'talk to the hand.'
She mentioned a few more things that they have in Mexico that we do
not have here. Such as a gesture that is to be used when either:
"Huevos" or "chinga tu madre", now those are VERY vulgar in Mexico.
Huevos means eggs, but it has a very negative connotation when used
with that gesture.
In any other Spanish speaking countries, "chinga tu madre" would mean
something to the effect of "your mother has ripped her seam" and it
doesn't mean anything negative or mean. In Mexico, however, "chinga tu
madre" is something to the equivalent to: Mother Fucker here in the
states.
She also mentioned a gesture, which means gay. Here is a photo of
that gesture.
They also have their sort of equivalent to our pledge of allegence.
Every child in every school would sing a song to their flag every
Monday in an assembly. Instead of having the right hand flat on the
heart they place it horizontally over the heart. Later after a school official spoke the children would move their right arm straight out and say a pledge.
Mexico and the differences between ones here in the States. She said
that she really didn't notice any drastic differences when she moved
here. It felt about the same. No one seemed uncomfortably close or too
far away.
I also asked her about different gestures; the ones that we share and
the ones that they have in Mexico that we don't have here. Most of
them were the same. She and I both figured that there were probably so
many similarities due to the fact that we live close to Mexico and
many gestures probably have carried over one-way or another.
We spoke about 'thumbs up', waving, using the middle finger, and the
wink. All of these gestures have the same meaning.
They also have the: the cut of the neck and the hanging for suicide.
The cut of the wrists gesture or the shoot the head if someone is
saying or doing something boring. There is also the L on the forehead,
which signifies 'loser'.
In Mexico they don't have the 'whatever' sign or 'talk to the hand.'
She mentioned a few more things that they have in Mexico that we do
not have here. Such as a gesture that is to be used when either:
"Huevos" or "chinga tu madre", now those are VERY vulgar in Mexico.
Huevos means eggs, but it has a very negative connotation when used
with that gesture.
In any other Spanish speaking countries, "chinga tu madre" would mean
something to the effect of "your mother has ripped her seam" and it
doesn't mean anything negative or mean. In Mexico, however, "chinga tu
madre" is something to the equivalent to: Mother Fucker here in the
states.
She also mentioned a gesture, which means gay. Here is a photo of
that gesture.
They also have their sort of equivalent to our pledge of allegence.
Every child in every school would sing a song to their flag every
Monday in an assembly. Instead of having the right hand flat on the
heart they place it horizontally over the heart. Later after a school official spoke the children would move their right arm straight out and say a pledge.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
HEY YOU!
I also asked my C.P. about the formal and informal you (tú and Usted). In the three languages that I have studied this concept has come up. A concept that I have only roughly understood because we don’t have it in English! You never know if you should say you formally or you informally. Of course culture plays a large role into who you say what to. What you say in Mexico is going to be different then what you say Spain. For my C.P. she comes from a culture were they use the formal you (Usted) regulary, parents are formal, elders, people you don’t know, and people older than about 30. The Usted form of you is a form of respect. If I had met her and we were speaking Spanish I would have used informal (tú) right away. Still not completely convinced (and not wanting to offend anyone) I asked her if there was a general rule as to when you know that you need to call the person Usted (formal you) and she said....after the person is married is a fairly good sign that they should be given a formal you (unless of course you are close to this person).
You Say Tomato, I Say Tomato
My C.P. and I were talking about the differences between consonants and vowels in our respective languages. When my conversation partner began learning English she had a hard time pronouncing certain words simply because in English we like to not say everything that is in the word, where in Spanish she pointed out that they do read everything the way that it is written.
I asked her to read the word ‘vote’ as if she were reading it in Spanish. She read: botē (long E). (The Spanish V is pronounced as a B sound, V is also called ‘beh chica’.) She mentioned how it was odd to her not to pronounce the E at the end of the word “vote”. My naturally trained English mind automatically thinks, “Oh well the E is being pronounced, but in a round about way by supporting the O and giving it a different sound.” But to someone coming into the language who is used to saying everything as it is seen would run into votē (once again long E).
I asked her to read the word ‘vote’ as if she were reading it in Spanish. She read: botē (long E). (The Spanish V is pronounced as a B sound, V is also called ‘beh chica’.) She mentioned how it was odd to her not to pronounce the E at the end of the word “vote”. My naturally trained English mind automatically thinks, “Oh well the E is being pronounced, but in a round about way by supporting the O and giving it a different sound.” But to someone coming into the language who is used to saying everything as it is seen would run into votē (once again long E).
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