Confusing Spanish Words and How To Use Them Correctly

Partly because Spanish and English have so many similarities, its tempting to think youll seldom find Spanish vocabulary confusing. But in fact, there are plenty of words that trip up Spanish students repeatedly. And they arent all false friends, words similar to their English counterparts that dont mean the same thing. Some are homophones (two or more different words that sound alike), some are words that are closely similar, and some can be blamed on the rules of grammar. If you want to avoid embarrassment or unnecessary confusion, here are some top candidates for words to learn: Ano vs. Aà ±o Ano and aà ±o dont sound alike. But those who dont know how to type an à ± (or are lazy) are often tempted to use an n instead in aà ±o, the word for year. Dont succumb to the temptation: Ano comes from the same Latin root as the English word anus and has the same meaning. Cabello vs. Caballo English speakers tend to be imprecise in their pronunciations, partly because some sounds, such as the ai in fountain, can be represented in writing by any vowel. But Spanish speakers, although they tend to pronounce consonants softly, are usually distinct with their vowels. So words such as cabello (hair, but collectively rather than as a single hair) and caballo (horse) arent thought of as sounding much alike. Caro vs. Carro Its easy for foreigners to mix up the r and rr — the former is usually a  flap of the tongue against the roof of the mouth, while the latter is a trill. Usually, reversing the sounds wont cause misunderstanding. But the difference between caro and carro is the difference between something expensive and a car, respectively. And, yes, you can have a carro caro. Cazar vs. Casar While there may be some who have gone hunting for a spouse, cazar (to hunt) and casar (to marry) arent related to each other even though they sound alike in Latin America. Cocer vs. Coser Another pair of verbs that sound alike in Latin America are cocer (to cook) and coser (to sew). Although they can both be homemaking tasks, they arent related. Dà ­a Although there are dozens of words ending in -a that break the main gender rule and so are masculine, dà ­a (day) is the most common. Embarazada If youre embarrassed and female, avoid the temptation to say youre embarazada, as the meaning of that adjective is pregnant. The most common adjective of embarrassment is avergonzado. Interestingly, embarazada (or the masculine form, embarazado) has been so often used as a mistranslation of embarrassed that that definition has been added to some dictionaries. Éxito Éxito is a word youll come across frequently—but it nothing to do with an exit. Its the best translation for success and can be used in many contexts. For example, a hit song or movie can be called an à ©xito. An exit is a salida. Gringo If someone calls you a gringo (feminine gringa), you might take it as an insult—or you might take it as a term of affection or as a neutral description. It all depends on where you are and the context. As a noun, gringo most often refers to a foreigner, especially someone who speaks English. But at times it can refer to any non-Spanish speaker, a British person, a resident of the United States, a Russian, someone with blond hair, and/or someone with white skin. Inhabitable In a sense, the Spanish inhabitable and the English inhabitable are the same word—both are spelled alike, and they come from a Latin word habitabilus, which meant suitable for habitation. But they have opposite meanings. In other words, the Spanish inhabitable means uninhabitable or not inhabitable. Yes, thats confusing. But its confusing only because English is confusing—habitable and inhabitable mean the same thing, and for the same reason flammable and imflammable have the same meaning. The situation came about because Latin had two prefixes spelled in-, one meaning inside and the other meaning not. You can see these meanings in words such as incarcerate (incarcerar) and incredible (increà ­ble), respectively. So with inhabitable the prefix in English has the inside meaning, and the identically spelled prefix in Spanish has the not meaning. Interestingly, once upon a time the English inhabitable meant not habitable. Its meaning shifted a few hundred years ago. Ir and Ser in the Preterite Tense Two of the most highly irregular verbs in Spanish are ir (to go) and ser (to be). Although the two verbs have different origins, they share the same preterite conjugation: fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fuisteis, fueron. If you see one of those forms, the only way to know whether it comes from ir or ser is by context. Lima and Limà ³n You may have been taught that limà ³n is the word for lime and lima is the word for lemon—the opposite of what you might expect. While that is true for some Spanish speakers, the truth is that, depending on where you are, either Spanish term at times is used for  either fruit. And in some areas, limas and limones are seen as two similar fruits, both of which may be called lemons in English. In some places, limes arent commonly eaten (theyre native to Asia), so theres no universally understood word for them. In any case, this is one word that you are likely to have to ask the locals about. Mano Mano (hand) is the most common feminine noun that ends in -o. In fact, it is only such word in everyday use if you exclude occupational names (such as el piloto or la piloto for pilot), proper nouns, and a few shortened words such as la disco (short for la discoteca) and la foto (short for la fotografà ­a). Two other feminine nouns ending in -o are seo (cathedral) and nao (ship), but they get almost no use. Marida Most nouns ending in -o that refer to people refer to men, and the ending can be changed to -a to refer to women. So, of course, it makes sense that esposo, a common word for husband, has the feminine form esposa, meaning wife. It would be just as logical to assume that another word for husband, marido, would have corresponding term, marida, for wife. But, at least in standard Spanish, there is no noun marida. In fact, the usual phrase for husband and wife is marido y mujer, with mujer also being the word for woman. Although there may be some limited colloquial use for marida in some areas, its most common use is by foreigners who dont know better. Molestar and Violar To molest someone is a serious offense, but to molestar someone is merely to bother that person (although the phrase molestar sexualmente can have a meaning similar to the English word). An similar situation occurs with violar and violate, but in the other direction. Violar and violacià ³n typically refer to rape, although they can have a less severe meaning. In English violate and violation usually have a mild meaning, although they can refer to rape. In both languages, context makes all the difference. Papas and a Papà ¡ Spanish has four types of papa, although only the first two below are widely used. The first papa comes from Latin, while the others come from indigenous languages: A pope (the head of the Roman Catholic Church). The word normally shouldnt be capitalized except at the beginning of a sentence.In most of Latin America, a potato, which can also be a patata.In Mexico, a type of baby food or bland soup.In Honduras, a foolish woman. Also, papà ¡ is an informal word for father, sometimes the equivalent of daddy. Unlike the other papas, its stress or accent is on the second syllable. Por vs. Para There are perhaps no prepositions more confounding for Spanish students than por and para, both of which are frequently translated to English as for. See the lesson on por vs. para for full explanation, but the way-too-short version is that por is typically used to indicate the cause of something while para is used to indicate a purpose. Preguntar vs. Pedir Both preguntar and pedir are usually translated as to ask, but they dont mean the same thing. Preguntar refers to asking a question, while pedir is used in making a request. But dont feel bad if you get them mixed up: Spanish speakers learning English often get mixed up with question and doubt as nouns, saying I have a doubt rather than I have a question. Thats because the noun duda has both meanings. Sentar vs. Sentir In the infinitive form, sentar (to sit) and sentir (to feel) are easy to tell apart. The confusion comes when theyre conjugated. Most notably, siento can mean either I sit or I feel. Also, the subjunctive forms of one verb are often the indicative forms of the other. So when you come across verb forms such as sienta and sentamos, youll have to pay attention to the context to know which verb is being conjugated.

Research Paper on Hurricanes - 1581 Words

I have always found the ocean to be a very intriguing part of the Earth. There are infinitely many discoveries that have yet to be made about it. My fascination with the ocean sparked the idea to do my class paper on hurricanes and what they are along with their effects. I remember hearing about all the damages from Hurricane Katrina after it hit the coast near New Orleans. The only information I really know about them is what is briefly covered on the news. I thought it would be interesting to discover the true effects they can have on not only people that endure them, but also the environment as it gets ripped to shreds by the plethora of winds and water. What I Know Most of my knowledge of hurricanes has come from†¦show more content†¦My knowledge includes a very generalized and vague amount of information and I want to know those parts that not everybody sees on the news. I would also like to know what precautions can be made for the best safety and know more about the organizations available for when the disasters do strike. Basically, I want to widen my knowledge of what hurricanes do to people and the environment after they strike. What I Found Out There are many people who, after they have endured the trauma of a hurricane, refuse to return to their old houses, or even the area in general. People have different experiences with these traumatic disasters and all deal with them differently. If there is one thing for certain, it’s that they all deal with some sort of loss. Hurricanes are a gigantic setback financially. According to AcuWeather, after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the average cost of damages jumped from $1.8 billion to $9 billion. Hurricane Katrina’s damages cost $145 billion and therefore increased the average cost of damages of a hurricane (www.acuweather.com). Who pays for all these damages? 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The Day I Realized My Passion free essay sample

Every day before I left my boss always said the world is your playground and don’t you ever forget it. The best part of my daily routine is work and yes, many high school students don’t look forward to work, but I do and it’s because I have the best job anyone could ask for. I work at an after school program with kids and being able to be around them is the highlight of my day. It is the part of the day that I get to be as creative, care-free, and silly as the child I was. This after school program is the reason I’m the person I am today. I attended the same after school program when I was a child and it has become a part of me; it has become my second home. My boss and mentor, Ron Heath, was always the person who was there for me and my family. We will write a custom essay sample on The Day I Realized My Passion or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page He provided me with extra support as I grew up. When I was old enough to work I was ecstatic, but I had no idea what I was in for. The first day on the job, I was under the assumption that I would just play all day long as I had done in my childhood. That day wasn’t what I expected, but learned that I am responsible for the well-being my kids, I have to be the example that the kids follow, and the key to a successful day is balance. I feel like if I didn’t go through this my life very different right now as I apply for college. On the first day I learned the most important thing. At first I was scared to be alone with kids because I finally understood that I am responsible for their well-being. Even though I had other staff with me, I still knew in the back of my mind that I would be alone with these kids later on. That day, a girl named Lily fell on the concrete and scraped her entire knee. I felt horrible because she was in pain, but my co-worker and I took her inside, cleaned her up, and fixed her leg. I realized that in time I can be the person to make the kids feel better on my own. With my first mistake of day, I realized that I had some learning to do for this job, and the only way to do that was to go through it. A significant thing I learned was that I am the example for the kids and that they do what I do. My first day we went to the playground and played a game called sand is poison. In this game you cannot tough the ground. I made the mistake of climbing on the outside of the railing that was high off the ground and one of the other kids did it with me. When the game was over I had a talk with my boss; he explained that the kids look up to me more than ever now, and that I need to be the good example for them to follow. I then understood that he was right; in order to succeed in my job I needed to be the role model that the kids could confide in and admire. Another essential thing I learned was that key to doing this job is balance. I thought that this job would be a piece of cake and I was wrong. I learned that I had to be the person that the kids looked up to and that I also had to be the creative thinker to keep them entertained and busy. When I first started I had to run games in the gym. I mostly stuck to the simple games that I knew, but after a while they became very bored. I recognized at this point I had to be creative so I came up with a game on the spot called musical hoops. All the kids loved it and still beg me to play it today. The best way I learned is by going through it and it’s made into a better more responsible adult. This job taught me how to balance being responsible and being silly. Even though my first day was a struggle, by the end of the day I knew this what my passion is and to this day it has not changed. It was not easy learning the ropes and I been through many mistakes, but I have learned from those mistakes and I’m a better person because of it. This is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I want to be the reason a child is smiling, to be the person to provide a child with a great day every day, and to be the person to make the kids feel better. My dad told me that if you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. I hope that one day I can say that he was right.

Tips on Writing Strong Thesis for Persuasive Essay

Tips on Writing Strong Thesis for Persuasive Essay Persuasive essays are written to convince the target audience to share in a writer’s worldview. The writer can either decide to oppose or propose a topic. In each case, sound arguments have to be expressed to strengthen the topic. The writer has to deeply nurture understanding among readers. This is by stressing the reliability of the adopted standpoint and the unreliability of the countered standpoint. The thesis statement must also increase readers’ faith in the persuasive essay. A persuasive essay furnished with a strong thesis accomplishes the intended purpose. A strong thesis realizes the following: Gives readers a clear explanation of the essay’s key message. Ensures the essay retains rationality entirely Below is a list of tips on writing a strong thesis for a persuasive essay. 1. Write a precise thesis A strong thesis informs readers of the purpose of the persuasive essay accurately. It adopts a thoughtful attitude in revealing arguments. The readers do not strain to understand what the writer is really talking about. A strong thesis example- online marketing has more power than traditional marketing methods because it overcomes geographical barriers in creating awareness about education opportunities in colleges. 2. Integrate an opinion A persuasive essay writing process requires expression of an authentic and sound opinion by a writer. Writers should write a thesis only if certain they have established a great opinion about the topic of concern. It is essential because a claim must be evident in the thesis. It should have the ability to be challenged by readers. Evaluating whether thesis statement has the potential to be challenged should be done. It is one way of finding out if strong thesis has been written. If it is discovered that the thesis is a mere presentation of facts that cannot be disputed, it is a sign of a weak thesis. 3. Include evidence Evidence is included to support a writer’s opinion in a thesis statement. Evidence adds weight to the thesis. It displays a writer’s wealth of information about the topic of discussion. When evidence is used, it is less difficult for a writer to persuade readers to accept his standpoint. The reader develop confidence in the topic which is sustained until the end. Sometimes a thesis can involve advancing an argument that readers are not conversant with. To maintain its credibility, evidence can be included and the claim made afterwards. Highlight the evidence first increases awareness among readers. They are able to establish to connect with the essay. 4. Address the why and how questions This is one technique of writing a strong thesis. It makes a thesis focused and practical. Failure to address either of these questions destabilizes the power of a thesis. The earlier example about online marketing and traditional marketing given in point number meets this requirement. It explains why online marketing is effective in contrast to the old-style marketing. The supremacy of a persuasive essay is not determined by how many arguments are advanced. It is the writing style that strengthens the arguments. One determinant that boosts the writing style is a well written thesis statement as explained in the aforementioned tips. Writers should continuously employ the tips to sway the mode of thinking of readers towards their perceptions.