Category: Spanish as a language

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Spanish as a language

12 Spanish Summer Phrases And Expressions

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12 Expresiones de Verano Para tus Vacaciones | iScribo

The richness of the Spanish language gives us the gift of Spanish summer expressions to use when travelling or other types of expressions in Spain, which may at first glance seem to be about travelling, that we use in our day-to-day lives.

Spanish phrases for travelling and summer moments are related to the number of memories we create along the way. These positive experiences will always lead to happy travel quotes.

iScribo reminds you today some popular Spanish phrases for tourists and Spanish speakers, so that you can enjoy your summer trips with your family, friends or alone. Anything goes when it comes to having a good time in summer.

Spanish Travel Language & Expressions

1. Dar la vuelta al mundo (go around the world): to visit many places in a single trip or in a short period of time, even if it is in several trips.

Este verano he visitado cuatro países diferente, al final voy a dar la vuelta al mundo.

(This summer I have visited four different countries, so in the end I am going to go around the world.)

2. Andar con la mochila a cuestas (backpacking, literally): it means travelling a lot. The adventurous spirit of people also generates beautiful expressions!

Andas con la mochila a cuestas, ¿cuándo vas a dejar de viajar?

(You’re travelling all the time, when are you going to stop?)

3. Perderse por la ciudad (getting lost in the city): visiting a place with intensity, even sometimes without a specific plan, and enjoying it by discovering new places.

Nos perdimos por la ciudad y encontramos la cafetería más romántica que hemos visto nunca.

(We got lost in the city and found the most romantic coffee shop we’ve ever seen.)

4. Hacer la maleta (packing): with this one, we make it easy for you. You can also use the verb preparar. This expression means to pack your luggage for your trip.

Voy a hacer la maleta para las vacaciones.

(I’m going to pack for my holiday.)

Travel Expressions for Everyday Life

5. Poner tierra de por medio (to get out of the way) this is interpreted in its literal sense. It means to go far away to escape from a problem or a situation that causes us discomfort.

Para olvidar a Juan puso tierra de por medio.

(To forget Juan, he got out of the way.)

6. Salir volando (to rush off): also salir pitando, it means to leave quickly from a place, usually because there is a hurry or there is an urgent need to leave it.

Salgo volando a recoger a los niños del colegio.

(I’m flying off to pick up the kids from school.)

7. Estar en las nubes (be daydreaming): to be distracted, it can be to let your mind go blank or to withdraw from a conversation and think about something completely different.

Perdona, ¿qué decías? Estaba en las nubes.

(Sorry, you were saying? I was daydreaming.)

8. Dejar volar la imaginación (let your imagination run wild): unleash your creativity. Daydreaming, imagining situations and stories, anything goes!

Dejé volar mi imaginación y se me ocurrió la solución al problema.

(I let my imagination run wild and came up with a solution to the problem.)

Travel Expressions for Both Travel and Everyday Life

9. Estar de paso (to be passing through): to visit a place for a short period of time.

He venido a hacerte una visita rápida, estoy de paso.

(I’ve come to pay you a quick visit, I’m just passing through.)

Estoy de paso por la ciudad, mañana me voy en tren.

(I’m passing through the city, tomorrow I’m leaving by train.)

10. Echar raíces (to put down roots): to settle in a place for a long period of time, with the intention of staying forever. It can also mean to enter a lasting relationship with someone.

Echó raíces en Viena, el lugar en donde siempre quiso estar.

(They put down roots in Vienna, the place where they always wanted to be.)

Manuel y Ángel han echado raíces, era cuestión de tiempo.

(Manuel and Angel have put down roots, it was only a matter of time.)

11. Tener el mundo a tus pies (having the world at your feet): it can mean travelling with great intensity and, above all, having a range of possibilities and opportunities.

Elisa viaja mucho, tiene el mundo a sus pies.

(Elisa travels a lot, she has the world at her feet.)

No te agobies con la búsqueda de trabajo, tienes el mundo a tus pies.

(Don’t be overwhelmed by the job search, you have the world at your feet.)

12. Callejear (to wander): although it is just a word, it is used both for travelling (to express that a person goes aimlessly) and for everyday life (to express that you go from one place to another through different streets and you don’t take the straight and direct way).

Callejeé por Marruecos y encontré un buen Bazar.

(I wandered around Morocco and found a good Bazaar.)

Hoy he callejeado para ir al trabajo para no hacer siempre el mismo camino.

(Today I wandered to go to work so as not to always take the same route.

iScribo & Expressions

Spanish is a language that comes in handy when speaking and writing. Spanish phrases and expressions are as rich as the language is varied. You just must travel, immerse yourself in culture, speak and write a lot. Mastering the language is in your hands.

With iScribo’s spelling and grammar checker you have the world of Spanish at your feet. Have you tried it yet? By the way, can you tell us about any expression you know related to travelling? Tell us in the comments.

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Spanish as a language

The Ultimate Guide About How To Tell Time In Spanish

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Las Mejores Claves Para Decir la Hora en Español | iScribo

Every language course talks about how to tell time in Spanish, but it is not always an enjoyable way to learn. Some questions always arise, such as How to write time in Spanish?, What are the rules for telling time in Spanish? Telling the time in Spanish is easy if you learn the format and know the numbers.

Today iScribo teaches you the ways to tell the time in Spanish so that you have the basics when practising the language.

How to Write Time in Spanish

The time in Spanish follows a clear structure:

Son las [número] y [minutos] de la mañana/tarde/noche.

(It is the [number] and [minutes] of the morning/afternoon/evening/night.)

Some examples are:

Son las ocho y cuarto de la mañana.

(It is a quarter past eight in the morning.)

Son las nueve y veinticinco de la tarde.

(It is twenty-five past nine in the evening.)

However, when the main number of the hour is 1, the format is used:

Es la una y diez de la mañana/tarde.

(It is ten past one in the morning/afternoon.)

How do you Add Minutes When Telling Time in Spanish

If you are going to tell the time (we speak orally), in most Spanish-speaking countries the twelve-hour format is used, so it is necessary to specify morning, afternoon or evening:

Es la una de la tarde.

(It is one o’clock in the afternoon.)

Although it is true that it is used in a minority of Spanish-speaking countries, there are places where the parameters of y cuarto, y media and menos cuarto are not used:

Son las doce y treinta.

(It is thirty past twelve.)

When the minutes are 00 or almost 00, it is said en punto:

Son las cuatro en punto.

(It is four o’clock.)

When writing numbers, especially in the formal context, the 24-hour format is used and they are always written in letters and not in numbers:

Son las veinte horas y cuarenta y tres minutos.

(It is twenty hours and forty-three minutes.)

If it is an informal context, you can write the time in numerals without any problem:

Son las 18 horas y 49 minutos.

(It is 18 hours and 49 minutes.)

Tips for Learning the Time in Spanish

1) Listen and repeat: if a native speaker gives you the time, remember it and repeat it. Learning is based on repetition and this happens with all languages. The news always gives the time, so maybe it’s a good time to watch it on TV.

2) Learn the vocabulary: knowing the numbers and the type of format is essential.

3) Practice in real situations: tell your friends and family the time, there is no better way to practice.

4) Write down the time: another good way to practice and learn.

iScribo & Learning As we have just seen, practice is the best way to learn. Listen, repeat and, above all, write. When it comes to writing in Spanish, use the iScribo tool to correct yourself in real time. Not only will you learn correct Spanish, but you will also broaden your vocabulary horizons thanks to its suggestions. Have you tried it yet?

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Spanish as a language

Rules for Masculine and Feminine in Spanish

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Claves del Masculino y Femenino en Español | iScribo

Learn what determines masculine and feminine in Spanish today. Some words just need to change the ending to the root but others follow a completely different pattern.

The rules for masculine and feminine in Spanish are easy if you learn them in a logical order. In this article we are going to focus on nouns, adjectives and determiners. Read on so you don’t miss out on the most basic tricks that will always work for you.

Gender of Nouns in Spanish

As a general rule, masculine nouns end in -o (perro, libro – dog, book) and feminine nouns end in -a (playa, motocicleta – beach, motorbike).

As an exception, nouns ending in -e are sometimes masculine and sometimes feminine. To find out which gender they are, you will have to practice:

Masculine: padre, hombre, valle (father, man, valley.)

Feminine: madre, noche, torre (mother, night, tower.)

You will also find that almost all nouns ending in -ción and -sión are feminine: canción, ilusión (song, illusion.)

How to Make Adjectives Feminine in Spanish

In this case it is easier because the adjective will agree with the same gender as the noun.

For example, if we have “árbol” (tree), a masculine noun, the adjective that accompanies it will also be masculine: “viejo” (old).

The exceptions (of course, there are always exceptions to the rule in Spanish) are made up of adjectives that are invariable in gender and number, for example: “grande” (big), “excepcional” (outstanding):

Ayer vimos una película excepcional.

(Yesterday we saw an exceptional film.)

El coche de Pedro es excepcional.

(Pedro’s car is outstanding.)

The Masculine and Feminine in Articles

As with adjectives, determiners agree in gender and number with nouns in Spanish.

Whether they are determinate or indeterminate, we will agree the determiners with the noun:

La estrella que ves en frente brilla más a final de mes.

(The star you see in front of you shines brighter at the end of the month.)

Un barco velero siempre navegará más despacio.

(A sailing ship will always sail more slowly.)

When we have gender neutral nouns in Spanish, i.e. gender-invariant words, we agree the determiners according to the context:

El miembro del parlamento llegó tarde.

(The member of parliament was late.)

La miembro del club de madres ha organizado un acto benéfico.

(The member of the mothers’ club has organised a charity event.)

iScribo And Inclusive Language

Although we have to generalise with the use of masculine to proceed to the formation of the feminine in Spanish, there are always some tricks to use neutral words that include the whole. Although most languages follow masculine patterns, it is always in our hands to help with the social evolution of the language to the most inclusive way. Do you know how to use the masculine and feminine in Spanish? Our spelling and grammar checker corrects your documents in real time – it’s the best way to help you write perfect Spanish! Have you tried it yet? Tell us about it in the comments.

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Spanish as a language

6 Spanish Expressions for Summer and Their Meaning

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6 Expresiones y Dichos de Verano en Español | iScribo

Summer sayings and proverbs are an institution in Spanish language. Expressions for summer and heat are used throughout the year, but more frequently during these months.

Are you excited for the summer holidays? We must say that we do love summer and Spanish summer phrases! As we already introduced you a few months ago with seasonal expressions, this article aims to help you learn or refresh some expressions about summer that will make you smile.

Summer Idioms and Their Meaning  

We are going to be a bit traditional in this section but it is more than necessary:

1. Hacer el agosto: (make the August, literally) means to make a good deal, as businesses do during this month of summer. In the old days it was related to the storage of the harvest and its use in this very hot month.

2. Pasar una noche de perros: (spending a dog’s night, literally) means that falling asleep on a summer night can be a challenge. The sweltering heat in some areas is not conducive to a good night’s rest. This saying is related to the nightly barking of dogs that prevent neighbours from getting a good night’s rest.

3. Si quieres vivir sano, madruga en el verano: (if you want to live healthy, get up early in the summer, literally) this means that in order to have quality days, it is better to get up early and take advantage of the hours of less heat.

Popular Phrases

Society’s creativity has provided us with some phrases that, over time, have become part of our daily lives:

4. Morirse de calor: (die of heat, literally) we use the verb “morir” in a figurative sense when we experience some extreme sensation, for better or worse. In summer, the intense heat favours the use of this phrase.

5. ¡Cómo aprieta el Lorenzo!: (Lorenzo y squeezing us, literally) the sun is called Lorenzo because the feast of San Lorenzo is celebrated on 10 August in Spain, one of the hottest days of the year. By the way, you can also take advantage of this day to see the famous “tears of San Lorenzo“, an impressive shower of stars.

6. Irse de terraceo : (Going out looking for terraces, literally): with the good summer weather it is more than obligatory to enjoy a few beers on the terrace of a bar, especially at night, is there anything more Spanish than that?

iScribo and Language Preservation

We love to protect and spread the good use of the Spanish language. Our spelling and grammar checker corrects as you write so that your documents have the quality they deserve. Have you tried it yet? Do you know any more Spanish expressions for the summer? Tell us in the comments all the expressions about summer that you know.

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Spanish as a language

Discover the Best Spanish-Speaking Countries to Learn Spanish

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Los Mejores Países para Aprender Español | iScribo

You only have to travel around the best Spanish-Speaking countries to learn Spanish to realise what a privilege this is. The quality of life, the friendliness of the people and the joy that covers the streets will give you an idea of what it is like to live in a Spanish-speaking heaven.

It doesn’t matter if you are looking for the best way to improve your Spanish, if you want to learn while travelling or if you just feel like a change of scenery and want to find out which country is the best to learn Spanish. Read this iScribo article and start making plans to find out in which land you want to perfect the language of Cervantes.

Learning Spanish for Foreigners

If you wonder how to improve your Spanish speaking, it has always been said that the best way is by travelling. However, we always advise that having a good grounding in the language is essential to be able to start speaking and writing properly.

To improve your Spanish as a foreigner, consider your level to rule out or decide on certain countries, we tell you why:

Basic Level

If you are starting practically from scratch, the best countries to learn Spanish might be in Latin American, as the tone of the Spanish they use is slower and the vocalisation may seem easier at first.

– Mexico: you will see how the phoneme /θ/ as in cielo (sky) is pronounced as an /s/. This is a common feature in Latin America, but in Mexico it gives the vocabulary an extraordinary delirium of sweetness.

In Mexico, every letter of every word is pronounced, but watch out! You will also see how the influence of English sometimes plays a trick on the grammar:

Encontrándose cansado se tumbó (incorrecto).

Estaba cansado y se tumbó (correcto).

(Finding himself tired he lay down).

– Peru: If you are looking for a culturally rich and affordable country, this might be your best option. Little English is spoken in Peru, so you will learn much more quickly when communicating in Spanish. The Spanish of this area is unique due to Spanish, Andean, Chinese and African influences.

In Peru they make the distinction between ll and y, so you’ll notice the difference in accent between a llama (flame) and a yunque (anvil). They also tend to reverse the order of sentences and express the verb at the end.

Intermediate Level

Neither too much nor too little, these countries speak a type of Spanish that is accessible to all levels:

– Colombia: A welcoming and generous country per se. Colombia’s gastronomy and Spanish, indigenous and African influences make it one of the most interesting countries to visit. It might be the Latin American country that best respects the grammar of academics, with a rhythmic and slow accent so that you learn quickly and easily. Be careful! The danger of Colombia is that if you go for a couple of weeks, you’ll never want to leave, not just because of the affordable prices, but because of its charm.

– Spain: Perhaps what strikes foreigners most is the speed at which Spaniards speak, as if they are running out of time and can’t say everything they think! In reality, European society is one of the most revolutionary per excellence, which is why there is always so much to tell.

Joking aside, the great diversity of accents in the country will make you learn a cultured spoken Spanish, as in Salamanca, or a more plain and friendly Spanish typical of the south.

Proficiency Level

I hope you like the challenges because there are areas where learning Spanish can be a real one because of the accent, we tell you why:

– Chile: Chile’s location means that the Spanish language evolves at its own pace and with its people. It is difficult to classify this type of Spanish, but it can be easily recognised by its melody, its idioms and its disruption. Did you know that the proposal to end adjectives and nouns in -e for the inclusion of the Spanish language was born in Chile? They can greet you with a cachai or invite you to a carrete (party).

– Argentina and Uruguay: Speaking of accents, the accent of these two countries may be the most peculiar, and I say peculiar because it is very mellow. It is completely impossible not to distinguish a speaker from these areas. One of the characteristics is that they turn proparoxytone words into graves and graves into acutes, a fact fully accepted by the RAE:

¿Qué miras? (Normal Spanish variant everywhere).

¿Qué mirás? (Normal variant of Spanish in Argentina and Uruguay).

(What are you looking at?)

Believe it or not, Argentinean and Uruguayan Spanish has a lot of influence from Italian and French due to historical immigration.

It is also curious how they pronounce the ll and the y as if it were /sh/: plasha instead of playa (beach).

Live It Yourself!

Have you already identified the best Spanish-speaking country to live in? We can only advise you on our favourites ones, but the decision is ultimately yours. Weigh up the pros and cons and decide which one suits you best. iScribo is our spelling and grammar checker that corrects as you type. It also distinguishes different varieties of Spanish and is a great alternative to improve your language. Have you tried it yet? Tell us in the comments.

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Spanish as a language

11 Resources for the Correct Use of Spanish

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11 Recursos Para Utilizar Correctamente el Español | iScribo

When it comes to writing, it is normal to have doubts. Even native speakers ask themselves how to spell a certain word or phrase. Luckily, if you wonder what the best way is to learn Spanish as an adult, there are resources for the correct use of Spanish, both official and unofficial, that you’ll find quite helpful.

From resources to learn Spanish and write it like academics to expert channels that occupy a privileged place in the development of the language, read this article and learn these websites that will help you every time you need it.

Online Resources to Help Learn Spanish

This article must begin, as it could not be otherwise, with the official online resources of our academics and other tools to help learn Spanish from organisations that try to preserve the good use of the language.

1. RAE: you’ve probably guessed it. The Real Academia Española not only has numerous publications, but its channels and web pages are here to help us and show us the way to perfect Spanish. In addition to consulting their dictionaries in Spanish, the RAE has a quick consultation channel or a dictionary of doubts, among others. Take the time you need to familiarise yourself with its websites and make the most out of them.

2. Fundéu: Our second favorite resource, as you probably know too. You can search for queries that have already been solved and ask what you can’t find. There is always an expert ready to help. Not only on their website, you can also contact them in real time through social networks.

3. Academia Mexicana de la Lengua: you already know that Spanish has many variants and all of them are valid. This resource is the key to Latin Spanish, the most widely spoken in the world. Do you know Guido Gómez de Silva’s dictionary of Mexicanisms?

Resources for Learning Spanish as a Foreign Language

The community of experts is immense and you can always turn to more than one tool to help you with your Spanish. If the language of Cervantes is not your native language, don’t worry, in addition to the resources already mentioned, you can check the following:

4. Instituto Cervantes: this institute oversees bringing Spanish to any part of the world. As a foreigner learning Spanish, you will be more than familiar with the work of this organisation. Today we recommend El libro del español perfecto whose title speaks for itself.

5. RTVE: learning and improving Spanish through podcasts is a very original idea to develop multitasking and the language itself. When you are in the car, relaxing on the beach or on a fishing day, listening to testimonials and stories will make you improve in no time – and you won’t even realise it!

6. Wikilengua: This comprehensive resource expands your Spanish horizons. Here you will see how the rules of Spanish are applied as dictated by the RAE. A wealth of wisdom in an intuitive searching format.

Other Resources for the Correct Use of Spanish

We could talk about institutions or people who improve our language all day long! In the end, there are so many Spanish lovers spread around the world. Here we leave you some personalities or entities that have collaborated so that the good use of Spanish reaches all users.

7. The Diccionario de uso del español by María Moliner: is not so much focused on the norm but on usage. It is worth using it frequently to learn how far the frontiers of Spanish extend.

8. Diccionario de sinónimos y antónimos by El País: newspapers have their own style guides and sometimes they use their own resources to apply the rules and bring them to us. Look up a meaning and be surprised by its family of words.

9. Minucias del lenguaje: this work by Jose G. Moreno presents reflections, doubts, explanations, research, etc. on Spanish in Mexico. It is a very comprehensive publication on the syntactic, orthographic and phonetic resources of Spanish, among others.

10. El dardo en la palabra by the illustrious Fernando Lázaro Carreter: it is a work that compiles journalistic articles and explains their impact on the evolution of Spanish as a language.

iScribo, your Tool to Write in Spanish

It is normal to have doubts when writing any language, so it is increasingly common to look for resources to write in Spanish in the best possible way.

11. iScribo: it aims to help everyone write Spanish as correctly as possible. This is one more tool to add to the list in terms of proper Spanish writing. What other tools do you know of, and what other resources are used in Latin America? Tell us in the comments and remember that it’s all about learning!

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Spanish as a language

8 Examples of Acronyms in Spanish & Their Meaning

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8 Ejemplos de Acrónimos en Español y su Concepto | iScribo

Nowadays it is trendy to abbreviate when writing, well, this has been around all our lives! What does ‘acronyms’ mean in Spanish? Believe it or not, Spanish acronyms are group of words that can be read naturally syllable by syllable. For example:

1. ONU: /ó-nu/, acronym for ‘Organización de las Naciones Unidas’ (United Nations).

The rule says also that when two or more words are put together to form a single word, it is an acronym.

If you want to know what the difference between acronyms and abbreviations is, read on. iScribo helps you to clarify the aspects of grammar that, at first glance, may seem more complicated for all of us.

Difference Between Acronyms and Abbreviations

The difference between acronyms and initialisms (siglas) is simple. What are siglas? Siglas in Spanish are linguistic signs formed, as a general rule, by the initial letters of the terms they express. For example, BCE for ‘Banco Central Europeo’ (European Central Bank).

Sometimes, acronyms and siglas can share functions and designate a word equally, as in the case above explained of the ONU.

But what is the difference between abbreviations and acronyms? Now that we are clear on the concepts of acronyms and siglas, we will explain the concept of abbreviations. Abbreviations are one or more letters used to represent a word briefly, for example, ‘tel.’ for ‘teléfono’ (telephone).

Examples of Acronyms in Spanish

There are different Spanish acronyms, for example, those that function as siglas or those that join several words without having to be siglas. Here are some examples:

2. Docudrama: from ‘documental’ and ‘drama.’

3. Fundéu: Of course, we couldn’t leave the ‘Fundación del Español Urgente’ out of this article.

4. Euríbor: ‘Tipo europeo de oferta interbancaria.’ This acronym is formed from the English interbank offered rate. As you can see, there are acronyms that follow a very peculiar formation.

5. Ovni: ‘Objeto volador/volante no identificado’ (Unidentified flying object, UFO.)

6. Láser: ‘Amplificación de luz mediante emisión inducida de radiación’. As with number four on this list, it is “borrowed” from English. It stands for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.

7. RAE: of course, our favourite institution, the ‘Real Academia de la Lengua Española’, is both an acronym and a sigla.

8. Unesco: ‘Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura’ (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation).

iScribo and Spanish Acronyms

Our tool helps you to write acronyms properly, as well as other grammatical and spelling aspects in Spanish. Also, we always recommend to know the rules, as there are many things you need to learn about acronyms: are they capitalised, lowercase, italicised, etc.? It’s a whole world! Tell us in the comments how you deal with acronyms, siglas and abbreviations. Write us some examples too, what are you waiting for?

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Spanish as a language

15 Spring Sayings & Quotes About Spring in Spanish

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15 Frases y Expresiones de Primavera en Español | iScribo

Spring is finally here! What better way to celebrate it than with these spring expressions in Spanish about this beautiful season. The flowers, the trees, the colours, the beginning of the good weather… We have endless reasons to teach you the best weather Spanish phrases.

Learn today with iScribo some common expressions in Spanish and practice them to improve your cultural knowledge of the language. Some of them are traditional, others are beautiful spring quotes and there are also those of writers and artists. We’ve already told you about some Spanish expressions in the past, but today it’s all about expanding your spring vocabulary. Read on to find out what they are.

Spring Sayings in Spanish

1. La primavera, la sangre altera (spring is in the air): just as the weather changes, psychology studies the reasons for mood swings in this season. These “issues” in people’s mental health gave rise to this saying.

2. En abril, aguas mil (April showers bring May flowers): although it is used by all Spanish-speaking countries, its origin dates back to the driest and most arid areas of Spain, when it always used to rain a lot in April. Nowadays it doesn’t usually happen.

3. Hasta el cuarenta de mayo, no te quites el sayo: (one robin doesn’t make a spring): don’t trust it! Spring is treacherous and you might be warm and then cold the next day. That’s why you should always carry a jacket just in case… That’s what this proverb says.

4. Camina ligeramente en la primavera; la madre tierra está embarazada (literal – walk lightly in the spring; mother earth is pregnant): this is a Native American Indian proverb from the Kiowa tribe about blooming in spring. You can find many more here in this very interesting article in Spanish.

5. Al cruzar el sol por Aries, crecen los días y cambian los aires (literal – as the sun crosses Aries, the days grow longer and the air changes): it means that as spring arrives, the days grow longer and it affects people’s moods. It has a similar meaning to the first weather Spanish phrases.

6. El romero verde o malva, en la primavera estalla (literal – the green or mauve rosemary, in the spring bursts): in the spring flowers bloom. This season implies the rebirth of plant life in almost all its majority, as is the case with rosemary.

7. Cuando al sapo veas andar, agua primaveral: (literal – When you see the toad walk, (sing of) spring waters): This proverb tells us that with the good weather, many animals begin to live outdoors, even if it coincides with the spring rains.

Spring Sayings and Quotes By Authors

8. “Podrán cortar todas las flores, pero no podrán detener la primavera” (They can cut all the flowers, but they can’t stop spring), by Pablo Neruda. Spring is so eagerly awaited that nothing can take away our illusion.

9. “Mientras haya en el mundo primavera, ¡habrá poesía!“(As long as there is spring in the world, there will be poetry), by Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer. What a beautiful simile between art and this season.

10. “En una rosa caben todas las primaveras” (In a rose, there is room for all the springs), by Antonio Gala. Each flower is unique, just like people, and spring!

11. “La primavera es el momento de los planes y los proyectos” (Spring is the time of plans and projects), by Leon Tolstoy. Spring is the best time to try new things.

12. “El invierno está en mi cabeza, pero la eterna primavera está en mi corazón” (Winter is on my head, but eternal spring is in my heart), by Victor Hugo. This metaphor compares difficult times with the hope we feel inside that power to make us strong when we face adversity.

13. “La primavera le brinda un espíritu de juventud a todo” (April hath put a spirit of youth in everything), by William Shakespeare. This is another phrase to encourage us to take up new projects. The joy of spring has touched even the most tragic writers!

14. “Era uno de esos días de marzo cuando el sol brilla cálido y el aire sopla frío, cuando es verano en la luz pero invierno en la sombra” (It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade), by Charles Dickens. This describes the bleak transition from winter to spring in one day.

15. “En la primavera he contado 136 tipos diferentes de clima en 24 horas” (In the spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours), by Mark Twain. The truth is that nobody understands what is going on with the weather during spring!

The Desire to Learn Also Blossoms

Not only at the beginning of each year, spring is a time for personal renewal. We can think about our resolutions as we approach the halfway point of the year and start new challenges. iScribo wants you to write in Spanish without grammatical, spelling or stylistic errors. Our proofreader is here to help you. How about trying some weather expressions in Spanish for spring with some inspiring ideas? Tell us in the comments what you’ve come up with.

Categories
Spanish as a language

What Are Spanish Toponyms & What is Their Origin?

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Qué Son los Topónimos y Cuál es su Origen | iScribo

As we have learnt on other occasions, there are several ways of telling different types of nouns in Spanish. One of the most important one is to differentiate between proper and common nouns and, within proper nouns, we find the Spanish toponymy.

What are Spanish toponyms? According to the RAE, it is a proper name of a place, that is, a geographical feature and toponymy is the science that studies the names of places, the toponyms!

Toponyms sometimes have personal names or surnames, for example, Baena, which is a town in Cordoba, Spain. In many other cases, proper names have been transformed over time and have acquired another form due to their use or the natural spelling of the Spanish language or social context.

Different Toponyms

Let’s take a closer look at the meaning of toponyms according to their origin, that is the formation of the words.

– Arabic Toponymy: the long stay of the Arabs in the Iberian Peninsula provided not only infrastructure, heritage and genetics, but also gave Spanish numerous phonemes and Arabic places names that have endured throughout history:

* Alcalá: comes from calá, which means castle, so, it is “the castle”.

* Gibraltar: comes from gebel, meaning mountain, so it is “Tarik’s mountain”.

* Guadalquivir: comes from wad, which means river, so it is “big river”.

– Canarian toponymy: the African islands also have a lot to contribute with Guanche – Canarian language – toponyms:

* Icod de los Vinos: on Tenerife, Icod comes from the indigenous Guanche kingdom Icode.

* Garachico: on Tenerife and means “small rock”.

* Isora: also in Tenerife, it means “high place”.

– Quechua toponymy: the Quechua territory covers the area comprising the Andes. This vast territory also enriches the language with so many Quechua words and phrases:

* Cochabamba: in Bolivia, it comes from q’ucha and panpa, and means “lake and plain”.

* Lonquimay: in Chile, it comes from lonco and mayu, meaning “head and river”.

* Carhué: in Argentina, it comes from carre and hue, and means “green place”.

Anthroponymy and Toponymy

The meaning of anthroponym is the proper names that designate humans, i.e. people. Although some people share a name, they are used to differentiating us from each other.

Some examples are Claudia, Timothy, William, Eulàlia or Mar, like the members of the iScribo team, although not all of them are in Spanish.

As Many Place Names as Places in the World!

There are as toponyms, as many places, rivers, mountains, etc. exist in the Spanish-speaking countries. Different types of nouns in Spanish can be a lot of fun because there are many ways to do it. Have you tried correcting Spanish toponyms with iScribo’s spelling and grammar checker? Anyway, while you are practising, can you tell us in the comments some toponyms and anthroponyms that catch your attention?

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