Spanish word of the day

Quote: Wizard

This brings up the question whether tiempo and clima are interchangeable in Spanish. Or, am I right above that clima means climate.

Yes.

How Vorlon of me :)

Seriously: yes. 1) they are interchangeable and 2) "Clima" means "climate."

If you wanted to draw a distinction between habitually cold and warm places, you'd speak of "lugares con clima frio y lugares con clima cálido." If you wanted to be a global warming alarmist, you'd speak of "cambio climático" the better to fool people and such.

But when you turn to the weather on TV, it can be called "reporte del clima" or "reporte del tiempo," for example, indistinctly.

Quote:

Debes ponerse un abrigo en este tiempo. = You better put on a coat in this weather.

"Debes ponerTE un abrigo CON este tiempo" = "you HAD better put on a coat in this weather."

Quote:

¿Crees que la clima está cambiando? = Do you believe the climate is changing?

Ah, your old enemy: the gender of nouns. It's actually "EL clima."

Trivia: In the north of Mexico, "clima" is a word for air conditioning. In Monterrey, for instance, which gets really hot in the summer, you'll see cabs with A/C sporting a noticeable sign painted on the sign saying "Con Clima."

Quote: Nareed

Ah, your old enemy: the gender of nouns. It's actually "EL clima."

¿Por qué? I submit the following suggestion to the Academia Real de Español. It should be optional to use la for any noun ending in a, and el for any noun ending in o. So, for words like clima, where el is considered right, that la also be accepted. ¿Firmas mi petición?

Quote: Nareed

Trivia: In the north of Mexico, "clima" is a word for air conditioning. In Monterrey, for instance, which gets really hot in the summer, you'll see cabs with A/C sporting a noticeable sign painted on the sign saying "Con Clima."

They should do that in Buenos Aires. Many of the cabs there either didn't have air conditioning, the driver chose not to turn it on, or the air conditioner was very feeble.

Fecha: 17 de Enero, 2012
Palabras: Tardar, Durar

Tardar means to take, in particular an amount of time. You might be asking at this time, how does that differ from durar? I think that durar is closer to how long something lasts.

Ejemplos time.

Ella tarda mucho tiempo por preparar. = She takes a long time to get ready.

Mi paciencia no dura mucho tiempo esperando por ella. = My patience does not last long waiting for her.

Quote: Wizard

¿Por qué? I submit the following suggestion to the Academia Real de Español. It should be optional to use la for any noun ending in a, and el for any noun ending in o. So, for words like clima, where el is considered right, that la also be accepted. ¿Firmas mi petición?

Here is a list of the most common exceptions to the "masculine o, feminine a" rule:
masculine nouns that end in 'a'
el clima — climate
el aroma — aroma
el Canadá — Canada
el día — day
el diagrama — diagram
el dilema — dilemma
el diploma — diploma
el drama — drama
el enigma — enigma
el esquema — outline, diagram
el idioma — language
el mapa — map
el morfema — morpheme
el panorama — panorama, outlook
el poema — poem
el planeta — planet
el problema — problem
el programa — program
el quechua — Quechua language
el reuma, el reúma — rheumatism
el síntoma — symptom, sign
el sistema — system
el sofá — sofa
el tanga — G-string
el telegrama — telegram
el tema — theme, subject
el teorema — theorem
el tranvía — streetcar

nouns with masculine and feminine meanings
el cura — priest (but la cura, cure)
el papa — the pope (but la papa, potato)
el cólera — cholera (but la cólera, anger)
el cometa — comet (but la cometa, kite)

nouns with masculine or feminine articles depending on gender of person - default masculine
el policía — policeman (but la policía, police force or policewoman)
el guardia — policeman or male guard (but la guardia, vigilance)
el guía — male guide (but la guía, guidebook or female guide)
el idiota — male idiot (but la idiota, female idiot)
el indígena — indigenous male (but la indígena, indigenous female)

nouns with masculine or feminine articles depending on gender of person - default feminine
la modelo — female model (but el modelo, male model)
la testigo — female witness (but el testigo, male witness)
la reo — female criminal (but el reo, male criminal)
la soprano — female soprano (but el soprano, male soprano)

nouns with feminine articles but involving common abbreviations
la moto — motorcycle (short for la motocicleta)
la disco — disco (short for la discoteca)
la foto — photo (short for la fotografía)
la radio — radio (short for la radiodifusión; but el radio, radius or radium; usage of the feminine form depends on the region)

As with other nouns denoting body parts, the definite article <<la>> is used to express one’s own hand
la mano — hand

Quote: Wizard

¿Por qué?

I don't know.

Quote:

I submit the following suggestion to the Academia Real de Español. It should be optional to use la for any noun ending in a, and el for any noun ending in o. So, for words like clima, where el is considered right, that la also be accepted. ¿Firmas mi petición?

I would, but most people are used to how things are and won't want to change.

Take Paco's laundry list. no one in mexico who's not on broadcasting ever says "LA" radio. Those who do are considered pompous and pedantic.

Quote:

They should do that in Buenos Aires. Many of the cabs there either didn't have air conditioning, the driver chose not to turn it on, or the air conditioner was very feeble.

Not every cab in Monterrey does, either. But those that ahve AC advertise it. It's funny when you're there in January, freezing on a street waiting for someone, and see all these cabs drive past advetising "clima" :) But then Monterrey has two types of weather: too hot and too cold. The joke is that it has the world's most constant climate: it always sucks.

I could go on.

Quote: Nareed

No one in mexico who's not on broadcasting ever says "LA" radio. Those who do are considered pompous and pedantic

It's funny to read a statement like that. To an English speaker there is no social connotation to using the masculine or feminine. We just want to know which is the correct article.

It is sort of like while. In the USA we say "while", "awhile", "meanwhile" and sometimes the little more old fashioned "while away" or "whiled". But in the USA if you say whilst you are often considered pompous and pedantic. Meanwhile in Britain they say whilst all the time.

There is no logical reason for this distinction. It's just how the two different cultures evolved.

Quote: pacomartin

It's funny to read a statement like that. To an English speaker there is no social connotation to using the masculine or feminine. We just want to know which is the correct article.

That's not saying much, considering there is but one article to worry about: "the"

On the other hand, you have the "it" problem with pronouns.

Quote:

There is no logical reason for this distinction. It's just how the two different cultures evolved.

Sure. Two people separated by a common language and all that :)

Quote: Wizard

Tardar means to take, in particular an amount of time. You might be asking at this time, how does that differ from durar? I think that durar is closer to how long something lasts.

More or less. Durar means something more akin to duration.

Quote:

Ella tarda mucho tiempo por preparar. = She takes a long time to get ready.

"Ella tarda mucho tiempo EN prepararse," or "Ella tarda mucho tiempo en estar lista."

Quote:

Mi paciencia no dura mucho tiempo esperando por ella. = My patience does not last long waiting for her.

In this case "tiempo" is redundant. And it's "esperÁNDOLA," or "esperando A ella."

It is 1:15pm PST and no SWOTD yet!?!?
I'll do one!

Fecha: 18 de Enero, 2012
Palabra: Baboso/a
Noun

A Baboso is a male that tends to be all over the opposite sex (this can be applied to women to, babosa). It can me a skirt chaser, a guy who is always looking to pick up a girl at a bar or casino. It could be a drunk individual at a blackjack table that hits on every woman there, not sloppily though. It is used primarily as slang in Argentina but can also be found in use in Uruguay.

Ejemplo: Esto baboso esta alli, jaja, tiene no suerte esta noche, que tanto. = This drooly guy over there, he isn't having any luck tonight, what an idiot.

Quote: YoDiceRoll11

A Baboso is a male that tends to be all over the opposite sex (this can be applied to women to, babosa). It can me a skirt chaser, a guy who is always looking to pick up a girl at a bar or casino. It could be a drunk individual at a blackjack table that hits on every woman there, not sloppily though. It is used primarily as slang in Argentina but can also be found in use in Uruguay.

Ejemplo: Esto baboso esta alli, jaja, tiene no suerte esta noche, que tanto. = This drooly guy over there, he isn't having any luck tonight, what an idiot.

DRAE definition Enamoradizo y rendidamente obsequioso con las mujeres.



The dictionary definition seems a little different than yours. The DRAE seems to be describing someone who is "pussy-whipped" for want of a better term. Of course, it wouldn't be the first time that a dictionary definition of colloquial term wasn't quite right.

I am not sure I understand the "not sloppily" comment. Anything that involves excessive <<drool>> sounds pretty sloppy to me. Maybe I don't quite get the context.

For what it's worth, I got the term from my fiance (From Argentina). She says it isn't used like you described above. I guess it depends on the region.

Hehehe. With the not sloppily, I meant that guys that aren't completely wasted. Wasted dudes have another name. This is to imply a guy, after a few drinks, or not, that is constantly chasing tail or just really getting close to other chicks at a bar or casino. Maybe forget I mentioned drool.

In my example I should have used a different word:

Quote:

This baboso over there, he isn't having any luck tonight, what an idiot.

There isn't really a good single english word to translate it to. At least not that I can think of right now.

Cheers.