Category: Grammar

To Be or To Be: Ser vs. Estar

Ser vs. estar, one of the main grammatical components of A1 Spanish courses, might seem intimidating at first, but it’s not as scary as it looks. However, once you remember the rules on when to use each one, it’ll start feeling natural to you. Pay attention to the following tips to help you use ser […]

Record Yourself Speaking to Improve Pronunciation

Sometimes, finding someone to practice speaking with is the absolute hardest part of learning a language. Whether you’re excited to chat or anxious to speak in front of others, if you want to improve your pronunciation, it’s a good idea to record yourself. We’ll give you some tips to use any voice recorder you have […]

¿Cómo Eres? What Are You Like?

Although it might sound similar to the question ¿Cómo estás?, which is asking about how you are feeling right now, ¿Cómo eres? is asking what you are like. If you think about the differences between ser and estar, it makes sense that the first question is asking about your condition right now, and the second […]

Get the Hang of Stem-Changing Verbs

Every language has irregular verbs, which means you conjugate them slightly different than other verbs. If you already feel comfortable conjugating regular verbs in the present tense that end in -ar, -er or -ir, then it’s time to learn stem-changing verbs! What are stem-changing verbs? First, we need to review the parts of a verb. […]

Pro-Drop Like a Pro

Have you ever heard the term “pro-drop”? It stands for “pronoun-drop” and it’s a grammatical concept that some languages have. Pro-drop might seem like something really small, but learning about it and how to use it will make you feel and sound a little more like a native speaker. Keep reading to learn about it. […]

Vocabulario Viernes: Days of the Week

Welcome to Vocabulario Viernes! Today’s topic is days of the week, or in Spanish, los días de la semana. You use days of the week to ask what day it is, to make plans, to understand deadlines, and so much more. In this article, we’ll show you the days of the week, and a few […]

Mind your P’s and Q’s: Being Polite in Spanish

Whenever you meet someone new, it’s natural to want to put your best foot forward. You want to be kind, courteous, and not seem rude. Did you know that what one culture considers rude, another one might not? For example, in the United States, it’s not common to stare at people you don’t know because […]

Reflecting on Reflexive Verbs

At the very beginning of your Spanish classes, you probably learned “Me llamo…” to say “My name is…” but did you know it literally translates to “I call myself”? In fact, this introductory phrase is part of a category of verbs called reflexive verbs. There are lots of reflexive verbs in Spanish that have special […]

Master Gustar and Similar Verbs

“Me gusta” is one of the very first phrases students learn to say “I like.” However, did you know that it literally translates to “to me, it pleases”? Gustar conjugates a bit differently than other verbs, which is why we’ve dedicated this article to gustar and similar verbs. You’ll master them in no time! How […]

Do You Have Doubts about Using the Subjunctive?

If you grew up as a native English speaker, you had probably never even heard of the subjunctive before. That’s because we tend not to learn grammar as a native speaker in the same way we do when we learn another language. This grammatical tense is so common, you hear it every day. Here, we’ll […]