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Wizard
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July 5th, 2012 at 6:50:25 AM permalink
If I may change the topic, what does the last part of this sentence mean:

Esta manaña mamá estaba especialmente animada y se diría que see traía also entre manos.

I would read that as "This morning mother was in particular good mood and I said she brought something between her hands." The last part I tend to think is a figure of speech like "up her sleeve" but I'm not sure.

By the way, my entire childhood my mother scolded me whenever I said "brought" because she thought the past tense of bring is brung. However, to this day, I still disagree with her.
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July 5th, 2012 at 7:41:16 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

The online dictionaries back me up that escama can be used as a flake of soap.



You know my opinion of these particular online dictionaries.
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July 5th, 2012 at 7:43:53 AM permalink
Quote: pacomartin

The word Zucaritas means "sugaries".



It's the name given by Kellogg's to its line of frosted flakes down here. But it's a brand name and not a real word.
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July 5th, 2012 at 7:44:28 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

If I may change the topic, what does the last part of this sentence mean:

Esta manaña mamá estaba especialmente animada y se diría que see traía also entre manos.



"...and you could tell she was up to something."
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July 5th, 2012 at 9:46:58 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

By the way, my entire childhood my mother scolded me whenever I said "brought" because she thought the past tense of bring is brung. However, to this day, I still disagree with her.



The tendency to conjugate bring as bring, brung is ancient (since the middle ages). It is a very common dialecal past tense and past participle even among educated speakers of English. However, standard English is to use "brought" for both the simple past, and the participle (I have brought cookies).

The error is to treat "bring" like similar Class 3 Germanic "strong verbs" such as ring/rang/rung, sing/sang/sung, spring/sprang/sprung, cling/clung and string/strung.
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July 5th, 2012 at 10:54:33 PM permalink
Muchas Bocas Que Alimentar
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July 6th, 2012 at 4:37:27 AM permalink
Fecha: 06-07-12
Palabra: Presumir


While today's SWD can be an easy cognate for presume; I think the more frequent meaning is to be conceited. Where I encountered the word it was used as a translation for brag. However, according to Reverso, the closest equivalent to brag is compadrear.

No la das a Ginger cumplidos, por que es demasiado presumido ya. = Don't give Ginger any compliments, she is too conceited already.
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July 6th, 2012 at 4:50:36 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Fecha: 06-07-12
Palabra: Presumir


While today's SWD can be an easy cognate for presume; I think the more frequent meaning is to be conceited.




The Latin word praesumere, was broken in old French to presumer in the 12the century and in the mid-15c to présomptif.

So English picked up from the French "presume" to mean "to take for granted" and "presumptive" to mean "to be conceited".

Presumably Spanish did not bifurcate the word like French.
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July 6th, 2012 at 6:59:47 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

While today's SWD can be an easy cognate for presume; I think the more frequent meaning is to be conceited. Where I encountered the word it was used as a translation for brag.



Presumir = To show off
Alardear = To brag.

Quote:

However, according to Reverso, the closest equivalent to brag is compadrear.



Really? I've never come across that word before. But "compadre" means a close friend. Initially it meant a clsoe friend you choose to be your child's godfather (the female equivalent is comadre). But since that is a largely "goyishe" custom here, I know very little about it.

Quote:

No la das a Ginger cumplidos, por que es demasiado presumido ya. = Don't give Ginger any compliments, she is too conceited already.



I wont' tray to detranslate becasue it's too FUBAR to do so easily. But I'll point out it's wrong, not mention rude, to reffer to Ginger with masculine adjectives.

"No LE des cumplidos a Ginger, por que YA es demasiado presumidA."
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July 6th, 2012 at 8:16:26 AM permalink
Quote: Nareed

But I'll point out it's wrong, not mention rude, to reffer to Ginger with masculine adjectives.



Sorry. Coming from a language that doesn't have feminine and masculine adjectives, it is a hard habit to get into.

Quote:

"No LE des cumplidos a Ginger, por que YA es demasiado presumidA."



In this case, are the compliments the direct object or indirect object? I thought they were a direct object, which is why I used la.
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July 6th, 2012 at 8:27:06 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

In this case, are the compliments the direct object or indirect object? I thought they were a direct object, which is why I used la.



Huh? Don't get technical. :)

In the first aprt you're addressing a second person, right? therefore it's "No LE des..." or "No LE de..." because that's how you address someone. The compliments have nothing to do with it.
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July 6th, 2012 at 11:33:15 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

In this case, are the compliments the direct object or indirect object? I thought they were a direct object, which is why I used la.



No des = negative imperitive form
Cumplidos = direct object
le = indirect object pronoun
a Ginger = a prepositional phrase is added for clarity

"No LE des cumplidos" is a complete phrase, but the indirect object is ambiguous

So your statement is correct, that "cumplidos" is the direct object, but you should use the "le" for the indirect object .

The cheat sheet: personal pronouns in spanish
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July 7th, 2012 at 9:21:03 AM permalink
Thanks for the help above. So, in No LE des cumplidos. would this be the breakdown:

Subject: The unnamed person who is being commanded to not give compliments.
Verb: Give
Object: Ginger.
Indirect object: The compliments.

Would this also be the case in English, although I'm sure that it matters?

I'm running very busy today. If somebody else wants to post the SWD for July 7, have at it.
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July 7th, 2012 at 10:21:25 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Thanks for the help above. So, in No LE des cumplidos. would this be the breakdown:

Subject: The unnamed person who is being commanded to not give compliments.
Verb: Give
Object: Ginger.
Indirect object: The compliments.



Subject: The unnamed person who is being commanded to "not give compliments". (why you use 2nd person)
Verb: Give (in negative imperative conjugation "no des")
Direct object: The compliments. (the action is "to give", the direct object of that action is "the compliments")
Indirect object pronoun: Le
Indirect object: Ginger (if you add the clarifying prepositional phrase)
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July 7th, 2012 at 10:37:25 AM permalink
Word: Talavera


Talavera is a town outside of Toledo Spain which is known for their distinctive pottery. Upon the discovery of a town where the Aztecs made pottery using particularly fine quality clay in the region, the Spaniards converted the production to making copies of the Talavera pottery from Spain.

Authentic Mexican talavera (with a certificate of authenticity) is made by licensed shops such as Uriarte outside of Puebla (near Mexico city) and is very expensive. Talavera manufacturers are regulated by Consejo Regulador de la Talavera, a body which monitors the authenticity and assures the high standards of the craft. If a workshop passes their criteria, it gets a certification. So far, only nine workshops have been given certification. The style is widely imitated in inexpensive copies which can be purchased anywhere in Mexico.

Authentic Talavera


Imitation Talavera
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July 8th, 2012 at 1:11:02 PM permalink
Quote: Nareed

besides, no one in Mexico says "perro caliente," unless they are trying to make fun of the expression. We say <drumroll> "hot dogs."



Now I'm not saying this isn't true, of course, but evidently people do say perro caliente in the Spanish speaking parts of Miami. Please watch my video of Claudia as evidence. You can forward the 1:20 point where this question is addressed.
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July 8th, 2012 at 1:43:23 PM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Now I'm not saying this isn't true, of course, but evidently people do say perro caliente in the Spanish speaking parts of Miami.



And perhaps in other parts of the world as well. I fail to see, however, how Miami has anything to do with mexico. Florida was a Spanish colony, then it was bought by the US at some point, and most of the Latino population there are either Cuban, Caribbean or South American.

Better yet, try these links:

http://eventosdeprimera.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/405061.jpg

http://safe-img02.olx.com.mx/ui/2/88/95/34378395_1.jpg

http://safe-img02.olx.com.mx/ui/4/48/65/1266961829_75874365_1-CARRITO-PARA-HOT-DOGS-chapultepec.jpg

http://safe-img03.olx.com.mx/ui/2/47/51/35444651_1.jpg
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July 8th, 2012 at 3:17:59 PM permalink
Quote: Nareed

I fail to see, however, how Miami has anything to do with mexico.



My point being that maybe they shouldn't make fun of people who say perro caliente in Mexico, when it is a legitimate term for a hot dog in some Spanish-speaking parts of the world.
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July 8th, 2012 at 3:47:45 PM permalink
Quote: Wizard

My point being that maybe they shouldn't make fun of people who say perro caliente in Mexico, when it is a legitimate term for a hot dog in some Spanish-speaking parts of the world.



Oh, well. There's this popular way of complaining about bad tacos sold on the street: "Estos tacos ladran cuando los muerdo," implying the tacos are made of dog meat. Given that, no sane person would call a hot dog a "perro caliente," even if the English term means just that. In particular people who sell hot dogs won't call them that, especially those sold from carts or stands on the street.
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July 8th, 2012 at 6:30:15 PM permalink
Claudia made a joke about the name. It was noisy so I didn't hear exactly what she said, but it was along the lines that perro caliente comes off in Spanish like a dog in heat. I vaguely recall asking my father when I was about five why they called it a "hot dog." He probably was just making this up, but he said that the wiener looks like a dachshund, and of course you're supposed to serve it hot.


Image source: Wikipedia.

Fecha: 08-07-12
Palabra: Sobresalir


This one is easy to get if you know the components, which are often-seen Spanish words.

Sobre = above/on top. It can also mean an envelope.
Salir = leave.
Sobresalir = stand out.

I think of it as being so above that rest that you left everybody else and stand out as the best. Of course, things can stand out not just for being the best, but I find it a good memory device.

The assignment for the advanced readers is to compare and contrast sobresalir y destacar.

Ejemplo time.

Creo que Ginger se sobresale por la muchacha más hermosa de la isla. = I think Ginger stands out as the prettiest gal on the island.
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July 8th, 2012 at 6:37:31 PM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Creo que Ginger se sobresale por la muchacha más hermosa de la isla. = I think Ginger stands out as the prettiest gal on the island.



"Creo que Ginger sobresale COMO la...."
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July 8th, 2012 at 6:46:12 PM permalink
Quote: Nareed

"Creo que Ginger sobresale COMO la...."



Dang, I should have thought of como! I knew por didn't feel right.

Add 10 push-ups to my tally.
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July 8th, 2012 at 8:09:55 PM permalink
This is Claudia on the left. I tortured here with my terrible Spanish during a party while Bovada was in town. The least I could do was give her a free book.

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July 8th, 2012 at 8:30:17 PM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Now I'm not saying this isn't true, of course, but evidently people do say perro caliente in the Spanish speaking parts of Miami.



It appears to be Puerto Rican slang.
Wizard, note the use of the indirect object pronoun throughout the lyrics.



Pon el pan que yo pongo el Cheese Whiz
Si hay mosquitos échamele Flea
Dale fuego al sartén pa' que se caliente
Dime si te gusta mi perro caliente
(Caliente, mas caliente!)
Dime si te gusta mi perro caliente
Pégale el diente... (Al perro caliente!)

Neuronas a trabajar
Que la rubia de ojos verdes
Modelando acaba de entrar
Media coqueta, tiene un piquete raro
Le gustan los hoteles y los carros caros
Ella es romántica, pero _________________
Después de un par tragos se suelta
Y te enseña el thong
Y después de un par de tragos me pongo valiente
Yo le pregunto, "Do you like my perro caliente?"
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July 8th, 2012 at 9:03:48 PM permalink
Quote: Wizard

The assignment for the advanced readers is to compare and contrast sobresalir y destacar.



A common expression
AL CLAVO QUE SOBRESALE ¡hay que molerlo a martillazos!

tacar means to hit the ball, so destacar means to enhance something to make it stand out.
sobresalir just means to "stand out" without the concept that you did something to make it that way.

In the expression "The nail that stands out, gets hit with a hammer" there is not the implication that you did something to make it stand out.
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July 9th, 2012 at 6:36:26 AM permalink
Thanks for the above.

Fecha: 9-7-12
Palabra: Colchón


Today's SWD means mattress. A nice clean word -- no homonyms or synonyms.

Ejemplo time.

Necesito un colchón más duro para mi espalda doliendo. = I need a harder mattress for my aching back.
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July 9th, 2012 at 6:54:59 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Necesito un colchón más duro para mi espalda doliendo. = I need a harder mattress for my aching back.



That's a rather peculiar expression you don't hear very often. If you must use it, though, you'd say "...para mi espalda adolorida."
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July 9th, 2012 at 8:03:28 AM permalink
Quote: Nareed

Quote: Wizard

Necesito un colchón más duro para mi espalda doliendo. = I need a harder mattress for my aching back.



That's a rather peculiar expression you don't hear very often. If you must use it, though, you'd say "...para mi espalda adolorida."



Quote: Present Participles in Spanish

One of the major differences between the present participles in English and Spanish is that while the English present participle can frequently be used as an adjective or a noun, in Spanish the present participle is nearly always used in conjunction with other verbs.Reference



Another way to say it is that the "-ing" form has many more grammatical uses in English than the equivalent "-ando, -iendo" in Spanish. It is not a stand alone adjective in Spanish. So while "aching" is correct English as an adjective, in Spanish you want to use the adjective form of "dolor" .

There is also a subtle difference with or without the prefix "a-", which maybe Nareed can explain.
...para mi espalda adolorida == "for my sore back"
...para mi espalda dolorida == "for my back pain"
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July 9th, 2012 at 8:23:31 AM permalink
Quote: pacomartin

There is also a subtle difference with or without the prefix "a-", which maybe Nareed can explain.
...para mi espalda adolorida == "for my sore back"
...para mi espalda dolorida == "for my back pain"



I've never seen "dolorida" used in any way, shape or form.
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July 9th, 2012 at 8:41:36 PM permalink
Fecha: 07-10-12
Palabra: Espiar


Today's SWD means to spy on. It should not be confused with espirar, which means to breathe.

The question for the advanced readers is whether the English "spy" and Spanish espiar share the same root, and if so, what does it mean?

Ejemplo time.

Me pregunto si Mary Ann sabe que espiarla desde el árbol de palma cuando ella está en la regadera. (or is it ducha). = I wonder if Mary Ann knows I spy on her from the palm tree while she is in the shower.
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July 9th, 2012 at 8:56:11 PM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Today's SWD means to spy on. It should not be confused with espirar, which means to breathe.



Respirar. Espirar means to exhale.


Quote:

Me pregunto si Mary Ann sabe que espiarla desde el árbol de palma cuando ella está en la regadera. (or is it ducha). = I wonder if Mary Ann knows I spy on her from the palm tree while she is in the shower.



"I wonder if Mary Ann knows spying from the tree of palm..."

"...sabe que LA espío desde la PALMERA..."
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July 10th, 2012 at 2:45:58 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

The question for the advanced readers is whether the English "spy" and Spanish espiar share the same root, and if so, what does it mean?



Spanish also has the noun espía to mean "a spy"

In old French the espier means "to spy" which gave us the English word "spy". Also in Old French espie means a "spy".

They are clearly the same word with one vowel change. The exact etymology of the word is confusing. The word is listed as coming from either a Portuguese word, Gothic, Frankish, Germanic, Middle Dutch, and ultimately from Proto Indo European. Missing from the etymology is Latin or Greek.
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July 10th, 2012 at 3:12:35 AM permalink
Quote: Nareed

I've never seen "dolorida" used in any way, shape or form.



That is puzzling, because the DRAE does not list it as a regional variation.
DRAE definition: dolorido, da
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July 10th, 2012 at 11:41:44 AM permalink
Quote: pacomartin

[In old French the espier means "to spy" which gave us the English word "spy". Also in Old French espie means a "spy".



Any connection to esperanza (hope)?
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July 10th, 2012 at 1:07:45 PM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Quote: pacomartin

[In old French the espier means "to spy" which gave us the English word "spy". Also in Old French espie means a "spy".


Any connection to esperanza (hope)?




No! That word esperanza is from Latin spērō. The word "hope" is from "hopian" of Anglo Saxon origin.

Etymological analysis says there may have been a word spelled "spiare" that existed in Vulgar Latin that has never been seen in any source, but the word ultimately comes from some Germanic source.
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July 10th, 2012 at 1:31:16 PM permalink
Question:

No state or empire in the history of the world has functioned without spies. Given there existed one big Latin empire and several Greek ones, how come their word for spies and espionage did not get passed down to their descendent languages?
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July 10th, 2012 at 5:59:48 PM permalink
Quote: Nareed

Question:

No state or empire in the history of the world has functioned without spies. Given there existed one big Latin empire and several Greek ones, how come their word for spies and espionage did not get passed down to their descendent languages?



The Latin noun for spies was curiosi which did get passed down as English curious, curiousity and Spanish curioso,-sa y curiosidad. It just no longer means "spy" in English. I don't think it means spy in Spanish either. The dictionary defines the noun as (mirón) or pey (chismoso).

Greek for spy is κατάσκοπος (katáskopos) where skopos means "aim, target, watcher," which is obviously related to "scope".

κατά (katá)
(with accusative) towards
το δωμάτιο βλέπει κατά την ανατολή (the room faces east)
(with accusative) during
κατά τη διάρκεια του ταξιδιού (during the trip)
(with accusative) around, about, close to
θα έρθω κατά τις έξι το απόγευμα (I will come at about six pm)
(with genitive) versus, against
Έγινε έγκλημα κατά της Ελλάδας! (Crimes were committed against Greece!)
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July 10th, 2012 at 10:02:04 PM permalink
Fecha: 11-7-12
Palabra: Ortographía
(per Nareed's correction, the orthography should be Ortografía.)

Today's SWD means orthography/spelling (noun). It should not be confused with deletrear which is the verb for to spell. To introduce an English word as well, "orthography" is the act of spelling words correctly. One good thing about learning Spanish is it helps your English as well.

Ejemplo time.

El profesor ganó el concurso de ortografía. Ginger era la última. = The Professor won the spelling contest. Ginger came in last.
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July 11th, 2012 at 3:55:52 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Today's SWD means orthography/spelling (noun). It should not be confused with deletrear which is the verb for to spell. To introduce an English word as well, "orthography" is the act of spelling words correctly. One good thing about learning Spanish is it helps your English as well.



'Deletrear' means to spell, but it implies that you are "sounding out" the syllables of the word as well. Orthography is "spelling" but not so much in the sense of "you spelled the word wrong", as in "what is the proper way to spell a word". For example, the capital of China, should it be spelled 'Peking' or 'Beijing'. In English you have "receipt, conceit, deceit" which are clearly variations of a base word, but only one of them has a silent 'p'. That decision about correct spelling is an orthographic one.

When I was in my Spanish class the teacher made reference to a rather obscure grammar point. Everyone else in the class agreed that it was exactly the same in French, which of course didn't help me at all. I am willing to guess that most English speakers only learn the terminology of grammar because they are studying another language.
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July 11th, 2012 at 6:52:30 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Palabra: Ortographía



Don't edit your post.

In Spanish the phoneme "PH" doesn't exist. You see it in foreign brand names, like Philips, but it's not used in Spanish words.

Quote:

El profesor ganó el concurso de ortografía. Ginger era la última. = The Professor won the spelling contest. Ginger came in last.



"...Ginger was last."

"Ginger FUÉ la última." or "Ginger quedó en último lugar."
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July 11th, 2012 at 7:53:28 AM permalink
Quote: Nareed

In Spanish the phoneme "PH" doesn't exist. You see it in foreign brand names, like Philips, but it's not used in Spanish words.



Thanks, I always welcome corrections to my orthography.
"For with much wisdom comes much sorrow." -- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (NIV)
pacomartin
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July 11th, 2012 at 7:57:46 AM permalink


It's interesting than when I google search orthographic projection, I get dozens of images like the one above. These kind of drawings are the principal use of the word "orthographic" in English. Of course, we are very used to the word in mathematics, but those are not the images that show up in a google search.


When I google search ortografía proyecta I get almost no equivalent images. Instead I get a lot of images associated with spelling.


It is as if the word has the same meanings in both languages, but English primarily uses it for one meaning (right angles), while Spanish primarily uses it for another meaning (proper representation of a spoken language as a written language).
Nareed
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July 11th, 2012 at 8:35:05 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Thanks, I always welcome corrections to my orthography.



There's some controversy on whether "SH" is proper Spanish, too. I don't think any Spanish words use it, but it can be seen in brand names and proper names. And when you shush someone you do say "Shh!"

But "PH" definitely isnt'. In words that are about the same in English and Spanish, the "F" is used instead, for example:

Photography = Fotografía
Seismograph = Sismógrafo
Electroencephalograpgh= Electoencefalografía

And so on...
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pacomartin
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July 15th, 2012 at 10:02:50 AM permalink
Quote: Nareed

But "PH" definitely isnt'. In words that are about the same in English and Spanish, the "F" is used instead, for example:

Photography = Fotografía
Seismograph = Sismógrafo
Electroencephalograpgh= Electoencefalografía

And so on...



The English spelling is to try and preserve the greek letter phi Φ. There are some people who believe that the 'ph' and 'f' in English were pronounced slightly different several hundred years ago, but today they are identical. One ancient relic of the past is that some English speakers in response to a bad smell do not say "phew", but they spell out "P.U." in an elaborate attempt to recreate the old pronunciation of the letter 'phi'.

So English is stuck with thousands of words with this anachronism in the orthography. Remember, that most of the common Latin words in English came from the Norman occupation of England. They seem to be the only Romance language that preserved the 'ph' orthography.

phonograph - English
phonographe - French
fonografo - Italian
fonógrafo - Portuguese
fonograf - Romanian
Wizard
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July 16th, 2012 at 4:21:02 AM permalink
Fecha: 16-07-12
Palabra: Detengar


I'm not sure what to make of today's SWD. To begin, I suspect it isn't a legitimate Spanish word. It isn't in the two usual online dictionaries, nor the DRAI. However, if you Google it you'll find it used in lots of web sites in Spanish (example). In the place I found it the word was used as a translation of arrest as in "The suspect was arrested by the police," but I think it can also mean to detain.

The questions for the advanced readers are:

1. Compare and contrast detengar y detener.
2. Why don't the dictionaries list it?

Ejemplo time.

El maestra me detengó después de la escuela para masticando la goma en la aula. = The teacher kept me after school for chewing gum in classroom.
"For with much wisdom comes much sorrow." -- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (NIV)
Nareed
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July 16th, 2012 at 7:25:34 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

I'm not sure what to make of today's SWD. To begin, I suspect it isn't a legitimate Spanish word.



It's as legitimate as "yor" and "theyr" in English.

Quote:

1. Compare and contrast detengar y detener.



The former is not a word, the latter is.

Quote:

2. Why don't the dictionaries list it?



I'm guessing because its not a word.

Here's the source of confussion: the verb is "detener," meaning to stop, to detain, and to arrest. In some conjugations, it can come out as "deténgalos," "deténgase," and so on; though it can also come out as "detente," "detenme," and others.

Quote:

El maestra me detengó después de la escuela para masticando la goma en la aula. = The teacher kept me after school for chewing gum in classroom.



Oy vey! (BTW that's Yiddish for "oy vey!"):

"The teacher dretained me after school for to be chewing the eraser in the classroom."

Not to mention that you used a masculine article "el" for a femenine noun "maestrA."

To be fair, "goma" is part of the translation of "chewing gum," but the usage in Mexico renders it non-existent. Som packages of gum are marked as "goma de mascar," but most people use the word "chicle," which is the name of the tree whose sap is used in making gum. "Goma" is any kind of rubber eraser, like that found on one end of a pencil, used to erase pencil marks on paper (or erasable ink, if you have any such).

So: "LA maestrA me detuvo después de clases por masticar chicle en el aula."

Now, I just said "aula" is archaic and falling into disuse. That is so. Besides, merely chewing gum in a calssroom is not a criminal school offense if done when no classes are being conducted. The problem is the common name for a classroom is "salón de clases," but most people would refer to it simply as "clase." This means the same word is used both for the classroom and the class. "Clases(s)" also means the duration of the school day, the lessons taught, etc. It gets confusing. So I had to resort to an odd word in order not to repeat the same word, with different meanings, twice in one sentence.

BTW, at my old school there were plaques in some rooms which said "Esta Aula Fué Donada Por...." (This classroom was donated by...). All of these plaques were altered numerous times per year by students. They found ways to add a "J" before "aula," so it would read "Esta Jaula fué..." "Jaula" means "cage." Of course the school authorities fixed the vandalism, but it woudl recurr. To the mind of a 7 to 12 year old, that's hilarious. And it may be a reason why "aula" fell into disuse.
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Wizard
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July 16th, 2012 at 10:21:27 AM permalink
I think I owe at least 30 pushups for today's SWD entry.

First, upon doing my due diligence, which I didn't do before, I find that the particular wonder I encountered, detengan is the subjunctive form of ellos/as of detener. So, the subjunctive gets me again. One of these days I would like to write an article about the trickiest things about learning Spanish, and the subjunctive is definitely going to be on it. Then again, that is no excuse, so I owe 10 pushups for that.

I absolutely am guilty again of not matching genders with the el maestra. I owe 20 for that, because I have broken that rule so many times. It seems so simple to check myself for that, but I keep focusing on the more difficult words that I overlook the obvious.

Regarding aula, I also considered clase, but I was afraid it was an anglified word that my first tutor would reprimand me for. So I took the safe choice and went with something that sounded like better Spanish, even if not used often.

Regarding goma, I knew that usually means rubber, but thought that it also meant chewing gum. Reverso seems to back me up on that. However, I'll try to use chicle or goma de masticar next time.

For the record, I'm not going to indicate today's SWD in the index on the first page of this thread, since detengar is not a legitimate word, as Nareed made perfectly clear.
"For with much wisdom comes much sorrow." -- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (NIV)
Nareed
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July 16th, 2012 at 10:49:30 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Regarding aula, I also considered clase, but I was afraid it was an anglified word that my first tutor would reprimand me for. So I took the safe choice and went with something that sounded like better Spanish, even if not used often.



It may be used more in other places. You do see the word used now and then, especially in writing, but in spoken Spanish it's rare.

Quote:

Regarding goma, I knew that usually means rubber, but thought that it also meant chewing gum.



As I explained, it does. It's just not used much as such. Someone asking for gum is very unlikely to say anything other than "chicle."

BTW, the common word for "rubber" is "hule." "Goma," as I said, almost universally means eraser. And "gomita," means "gummy."

Quote:

Reverso seems to back me up on that. However, I'll try to use chicle or goma de masticar next time.



"Goma de MASCAR."

As far as I know, "mascar" and "masticar," both mean "to chew," but for some reason the former is used in connection with gum (and tobacco, too).
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Wizard
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July 16th, 2012 at 11:06:24 AM permalink
Quote: Nareed

As far as I know, "mascar" and "masticar," both mean "to chew," but for some reason the former is used in connection with gum (and tobacco, too).



Thanks, I was wondering about that. Could it be said that mascar is for chewing things you don't consume, and masticar when you do?

Speaking of synonyms, if you'll forgive me changing the topic, what is the difference between cara y rostro. Until now it seems I've always seen cara. However, on Mount Whitney I was reading a book of classic Spanish literature and the word rostro came up a lot.
"For with much wisdom comes much sorrow." -- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (NIV)
Nareed
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July 16th, 2012 at 11:21:53 AM permalink
Quote: Wizard

Thanks, I was wondering about that. Could it be said that mascar is for chewing things you don't consume, and masticar when you do?



I can't say one way or another.

Quote:

Speaking of synonyms, if you'll forgive me changing the topic, what is the difference between cara y rostro.



As far as I know, they are just synonims.
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