I studied Spanish in high school and college, and I even spent a semester abroad in Spain. At that point, I was very proficient at reading, writing, and speaking it. Sadly, in the 8 years since graduation, I feel as though I have forgotten everything.
I am looking to get into a field where knowing Spanish would be very helpful, and I am trying to figure out the best way to both relearn what I knew (and possible go beyond that).
Obviously for speaking, I will need to get out there and practice, but before that, should I just pick up my old textbooks and get going? Or, is there a better way?
posted by aka_anon
on May 15, 2013 -
14 answers
Looking for help prouncing the RR sound in words such as sonrisa, alrededor, las rosas
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posted by iamsuper
on May 3, 2013 -
18 answers
What's a good resource for looking up the Latin roots of Spanish words? (There are a number of fantastic resources for finding the Latin roots of English words, but I'm having a harder time with Spanish words.)
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posted by jtothes
on Apr 30, 2013 -
4 answers
A few months ago I found a certain online Spanish tutoring site I wanted to try out, but now I'm unable to locate it after much Googling. The site (which may have offered languages other than Spanish) had private tutors who conduct sessions via Skype. The main page showed photos and bios of the many available tutors, with star ratings and links to reviews written by students. As I recall, each tutor could set his/her own price. What site might this have been?
posted by iamisaid
on Apr 25, 2013 -
5 answers
I'm an intermediate Spanish speaker, and I have an interview in a couple days to assess my Spanish level. How can I be as successful as possible, both as far as brushing up/practicing, as well as keeping my nerves under control?
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posted by EmilyClimbs
on Apr 25, 2013 -
12 answers
I have a theory about the origin of the expression “I know, right?” that’s been fairly popular among young and youngish Americans (and others, for all I know) for the past several years. I’m testing that theory with this question.
I understand that Mexicans (and maybe other Latin Americans) have an equivalent expression, “Sí, ¿verdad?” - even with the same intonation as “I know, right?”. Well, one source has told me this, anyway. Can other people verify this? And if so, how common is/was the Spanish version of the expression, and roughly when (and where) did people start saying it?
posted by Mechitar
on Apr 18, 2013 -
9 answers
One night in Atlantic City, me and three other drunk, high, exhausted bachelor party gamblers went to our hotel room and ended up watching a program that may have just been some sort of shared fever dream. It was also in Spanish.
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posted by Potloaf
on Apr 13, 2013 -
0 answers
I am looking for Spanish language documentaries (with English subtitles) that I can watch online, through Amazon, Hulu, Netflix, etc. What are your favorites?
posted by ocherdraco
on Apr 3, 2013 -
9 answers
Why does the U.S. media pronunce certain non-English names with a native accent, while other names are "Americanized" in their pronunciation?
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posted by deathpanels
on Mar 13, 2013 -
45 answers
Hi Mefi! I'm a native Spanish speaker but, due to years of English-language immersion and doing my education solely in English, my Spanish is horrendous. I'm still very much fluent and can understand everything being said, but my grammar and more technical language have been completely demolished by English. I just got an internship where I'm going to have to speak with Spanish-only speakers and occasionally translate documents to Spanish, and I'm a little scared! Are there any good, quick grammar references or other resources for someone who just needs to brush up on things like correct prepositions and such, or similar resources for learning medical and technical vocabulary? Books especially welcome.
posted by Papagayo
on Mar 8, 2013 -
2 answers
¡Hola! I want to improve my Spanish listening-comprehension abilities before I go off to Spain this summer for a month by listening to some eclectic, non-chart-driven, at-least-partially, ideally-completely Spanish-language radio online. Perhaps something like BBC's
Radio 6, Radio France's
FIP or KCRW's
Eclectic 24.
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posted by mdonley
on Mar 7, 2013 -
7 answers
What are your tips and techniques for learning advanced vocabulary and grammar in a foreign language?
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posted by kristi
on Feb 26, 2013 -
15 answers
Are there any magazines from Mexico or South/Central American countries specializing in travel to the region, in Spanish, directed towards the Spanish speaking reader, that are available via subscription in the US? If so, which would you recommend?
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posted by pwb503
on Dec 18, 2012 -
7 answers
How do I say "sewer" in Spanish? Not the pipe that waste water goes into, but a person who sews on a sewing machine?
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posted by buzzv
on Nov 28, 2012 -
9 answers
Canarian Spanish slang filter: On a recent trip to rural Tenerife I found some graffiti on a water pumping station wall. It reads:
"Tierra Guanche - only local - no nos hacemos responsables de posibles tolmasos o vignazos"
'Tierra Guanche - only local" seems pretty clear; a (possibly non-literal) identification with the Guanche (pre-Castilian indigenous people of Tenerife) and a comment on tourism or immigration. My rudimentary Spanish says the rest runs "we take no responsibility for possible ..." but 'tolmasos' and 'vignazos' seem to be local slang. Does anyone know what they mean? There's a photo (not mine)
here.
posted by cromagnon
on Oct 15, 2012 -
4 answers
Best structured cheap or free Spanish conversation classes in Toronto (better yet, at the University of Toronto)?
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posted by 256
on Oct 9, 2012 -
2 answers
I spend a lot of time sitting around waiting, with my iPhone. I also spend a fair amount of time having very similar conversations, in my very poor conversational spanish, with native-speakers who (usually due to tragic life circumstances) lack education in their own language. What I don't do is expand my vocabulary or learn proper grammar. As a consequence, while I can usually understand the gist of what people say and make myself generally understood, I don't understand the details, can't express myself precisely, and I'm not getting any better at any of those tasks.
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posted by Nx
on Oct 6, 2012 -
13 answers
Recommend some good Spanish language media (TV series, online radio, podcasts etc) for my girlfriend to immerse herself in while she learns Spanish.
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posted by knapah
on Oct 2, 2012 -
13 answers
I live in Austin, TX. My girlfriend is training to be a manager in a restaurant. She would like to improve her Spanish to be able to better communicate with the kitchen staff. (Her current level of Spanish is VERY basic: mostly common nouns, question words, and verbs like "is" and "has", etc.) Do you know of any websites or books that specifically cater towards learning "kitchen Spanish"? Do you know any phrases that would be helpful for her to learn?
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posted by 23skidoo
on Sep 29, 2012 -
8 answers
I'm trying to revive my rather rusty Spanish. One of the green's favourite tips for language learning seems to be to immerse yourself in TV programmes/films/music in the target language. So I want to start listening to Spanish-language music, and I need some recommendations.
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posted by badmoonrising
on Sep 24, 2012 -
13 answers
What is the best way to teach a child a foreign language that you yourself don't know very well, if immersion is not an option and you are limited to what you can do in your home?
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posted by Alexander Hatchell
on Sep 5, 2012 -
18 answers
I like PC games and metal music. I also need to learn Spanish. I'd like to use Spanish-language media. Can anyone recommend any good Spanish-language PC games? Or bands similar to Bad Religion in Spanish?
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posted by Sleeper
on Aug 22, 2012 -
9 answers
How can I brush up my language skills, given I seem to have a difficulty with rote learning?
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posted by mippy
on Aug 3, 2012 -
21 answers
The comedian
Louis C.K. is Mexican, having grown up in Mexico with Spanish as his first language. His family is still in Mexico too. Can anyone help me find audio/video of Louis actually speaking Spanish?
posted by vacapinta
on Jul 17, 2012 -
15 answers
What would be the best way for someone to develop / re-learn Spanish in four months or so of part-time study?
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posted by Lame_username
on Jul 17, 2012 -
9 answers
I majored in journalism and Spanish. My only work experience has been internships at newspapers and lots of Spanish tutoring. I do not want to be a teacher. Journalism jobs are pretty much unavailable for the conceivable future, at least for young people 3 years out of college like me. What else can I do? Where can I put my skills to use? My plan was to work in journalism or publishing. What else is there now that these industries are sinking, fast?
posted by sunrisecoffee
on Jul 13, 2012 -
12 answers
Spanish-translation-filter. As part of this month's Mefi music challenge, I'm doing a cover of Radiohead's Subterranean Homesick Alien in Spanish, and need translation help.
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posted by hanoixan
on Jul 5, 2012 -
7 answers
How could I go about setting up a language exchange partnership with a Spanish speaker in my community?
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posted by geegollygosh
on Jun 6, 2012 -
5 answers
I'm in the process of translating a play, and am having a killer time with the second half of one line. I'm assuming it's because the language is artistic. Apologies for not including accent marks (can't figure out how to do them on my keyboard).
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posted by Sakura3210
on May 23, 2012 -
14 answers
My college's language lab has
a bunch of Spanish language movies that I can watch to fulfill my language lab requirement for my Spanish class. But I know very very little about Spanish language film. Which of these movies should I watch? For an added level of difficulty, assume I can only watch five films in a semester.
posted by ocherdraco
on May 16, 2012 -
32 answers
Have you successfully learned Spanish while working and without travel? What was your process?
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posted by abdulf
on May 1, 2012 -
10 answers
I'm interested in translating someone's dissertation/book from Spanish to English. Is there some way I can make this happen? If so, how do I go about it?
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posted by anonymous
on Apr 30, 2012 -
9 answers
My dad speaks fluent Spanish (and English). I am third-year student of Spanish. Mom and dad know some French. My younger brother (13 years old) only knows English. We all like good plots, good music, and good cinematography. Please suggest some non-English language movies, documentaries, TV series, etc. that we would all enjoy. Bonus points if it's available through Netflix streaming or DVD.
posted by gray17
on Apr 25, 2012 -
15 answers
Can you help me find Spanish-language songs covered in Portuguese, and Portuguese-language songs covered in Spanish? Bonus points if the singers and songs are Latin American, and if the songs are available on YouTube or Spotify.
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posted by StrikeTheViol
on Apr 24, 2012 -
11 answers
I'm seriously fucking up my senior year of High school. Senioritis is just the worst. Is [my university] going to drop my scholarships or acceptance? I need to know if I have to take drastic measures now to prevent screwing up my whole life.
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posted by NotSoSiniSter
on Apr 17, 2012 -
32 answers
For a project I'm doing, I'm looking for songs in Spanish that demonstrate
voseo (the use of the informal second-person singular pronoun
vos). This way of speaking isn't technically "standard" Spanish, so I don't exactly know how to search for songs that show this usage.
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posted by huxham
on Apr 15, 2012 -
15 answers
