BBC SPANISH PHRASE BOOK & DICTIONARY

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This book contains a wonderful selection of interesting Spanish short stories for beginners that are designed to be understood by learners who have only been learning Spanish for a short period of time. In Spain (Except in some parts of Andalusia, and in the Canary Islands) a English ci/ce or z sound makes a English "TH". In Latin America, it makes the "S" sound.

Chunking is more about parroting what you hear and trying to speak as naturally as possible, rather than learning Spanish verb conjugations. Phrasebooks like this are not only for holiday-makers looking to get by with a few friendly words in the bar or restaurant! The book shows how many Spanish words are very similar in English and gives the learner confidence by showing them how much they already know before they even start!The phrasebook is organized thematically with popular categories like conversation and directions. You can also “favorite” phrases for easy access. Unlike in English numbers of years are always pronounced as normal numbers (i.e. in thousands, not hundreds) thus it is "mil novecientos noventa y dos" ("a thousand nine hundred ninety and two") not "diecinuevecientos noventa y dos" ("nineteen hundred ninety and two"), as the literal translation from the English convention would suggest. Counting in hundreds in general is not used once numbers get to 1000.

As a new Spanish learner, you might know your hola from your gracias and a handful of common Spanish phrases, but things get real when you’re asked to talk about your hobbies, emotions or language skills. The verb "to take", as in to take a bus or train is coger in Spain, and tomar in Latin America. The former is not used in this context in Latin America, where it is a vulgar sexual term. Spanish ( español), also known as Castilian ( castellano), is the third most-spoken language in the world (after English and Mandarin Chinese), with around 540million speakers. Originating in Spain and spoken by most residents there, it is also an official language in Mexico and all of Central America except Belize (though it is widely understood there as well), and of most countries in South America: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela. Spanish as a second language is generally understood to some level in most of the rest of the continent. If you’re not impressed with region-specific options, you should be! Don’t underestimate this valuable insight. For instance, you might not need to know a lot of terms to refer to monkeys in Spain, but you will in Costa Rica! Choosing the right phrasebook for the job can make the difference between clear communication and awkward pointing. The Spanish institution in charge of the language is the " RAE" (often pronounced as a word rather than the individual letters) the Real Academia Española or Royal Spanish Academy of the language founded in the 18th century with the perhaps somewhat antiquated motto to "clean, make certain and give splendor" to the language. While their linguistic prescriptivism may rub some the wrong way and despite efforts to include more Latin American voices it is still a largely eurocentric institution, one can be certain that any use endorsed by the RAE will be acceptable in all corners of the Spanish speaking world if in some cases a bit stilted. Still, the reluctance of the RAE to embrace change, particularly Anglophone loanwords or efforts at gender neutral language, has made it lose a bit of its influence even though it is still seen as the "gold standard" of the language in Spain, it is much less influential in Latin America where people tend to speak (and to some extent write) without giving heed to the linguistic commandments from Madrid.rolled r: Written "r" at the beginning of the word, or "rr" between vowels. It's a trill, a multiply vibrating sound. Whereas most English speakers can learn to tap out a single r, many adults learning Spanish find this sound impossible to produce; in this case, pronouncing it like a Spanish r or fumbling out a d-r will be better understood than pronouncing it like a long English r. Students appreciate the clutter-free layout of the book and the interactivity offered by its practice exercises. Months [ edit ] NOTE All the months in Spanish are written in lower case letters. January enero ( eh-NEH-roh) February febrero ( feh-BREH-roh) March marzo ( MAR-soh) April abril ( ah-BREEL) May mayo ( MAH-joh) June junio ( HOO-nyoh) July julio ( HOO-lyoh) August agosto ( ah-GOHS-toh) September septiembre ( sehp-TYEHM-breh) October octubre ( ohk-TOO-breh) November noviembre ( noh-VYEHM-breh) December diciembre ( dee-SYEHM-breh) Seasons [ edit ] Spring primavera ( pri-ma-VEH-rah) Summer verano ( VEH-ra-no) Autumn otoño ( OH-to-NYO) Winter invierno ( in-VYEH-no) Writing Dates [ edit ]

However, what really sets Lonely Planet’s phrasebooks apart from other phrasebooks is that they focus on specific regions. They go beyond the differences between Castilian and Latin American Spanish and offer Costa Rican, Mexican and Latin American. These provide regionally-specific terms and phrases (including idioms) in addition to more common travel terms. Learn Spanish Phrasebook is a convenient app that gives you offline access to a useful phrasebook. It’s designed primarily for people traveling in Spain, so some of the information is specific to this region. Most diphthongs can be approximated by blending the first vowel into the second in a single syllable. However, according to the Real Academía Española only diphthongs containing an i or u are "one syllable", all others are two syllables (this is relevant in questions of where to place accents) WikiPedia:Spanish language This is a guide phrasebook. It covers all the major topics for traveling without resorting to English. But please Plunge forward and help us make it a star!

Why Use a Spanish Phrasebook?

January enero ( eh-NEH-roh) February febrero ( feh-BREH-roh) March marzo ( MAR-soh) April abril ( ah-BREEL) May mayo ( MAH-yoh) June junio ( HOO-nyoh) July julio ( HOO-lyoh) August agosto ( ah-GOHS-toh) September septiembre ( sehp-TYEHM-breh) October octubre ( ohk-TOO-breh) November noviembre ( noh-VYEHM-breh) December diciembre ( dee-SYEHM-breh) Writing time and date [ edit ] An accent can also be used to differentiate between words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings:

You can safely rely on any of these books to help you learn Spanish in a clear and comprehensive manner. The best part of this book, though, is the opportunity it gives the reader to practice what they have been learning. The book progresses in a logical sequence and builds the student’s skills in a very organized and methodical manner.Easy Spanish Step-By-Step is the best book to learn Spanish if you like a structured approach to learning. Start by selecting a couple of Spanish phrases. Perhaps the ones you’re most likely to need in your next conversation.