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Uses of PENSAR (to think)

Pensar + "en": to think about, to have something on your mind

¿En qué piensas? What are you thinking about?
Pienso en la película que vi anoche. I'm thinking about the movie I saw last night.


Pensar + "de": to have an opinion about (regarding)

¿Qué piensas de la película? What do you think about the movie? (What is your opinion of the movie?)
Pues, depende de lo que Antonio piensa de la película.. Well, that depends on what Antonio thought about the movie.


Pensar + "que": to think that..... (expressing your opinion)

Pienso que Antonio Banderas es requete sexy. I think that Antonio Banderas is super sexy.
Pienso que es mejor ver la película otra vez. I think that it's best to see the movie again!


Pensar + infinitive: to think about doing something, to plan

¿Qué piensas hacer este fin de semana? What are you planning to do this weekend? (thinking about doing?)
Pienso visitar a mi amiga en Walnut Creek. I'm planning to visit my friend in Walnut Creek. (thinking about visiting my friend in Walnut Creek)

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I found this 'explanation' for the strangeness (in English minds) of the Gustar usage:

Me gusta el libro. The book is pleasing to me.

Me (to me) gusta (is pleasing) el libro (The book).

It may seem confusing because the subject, mi libro, comes after the verb. Do not let the word order influence you!

Think of it this way: it is the responsiblility of other things and people to please you rather than for you to go out actively liking things!

Does this NOT sum up the Tico culture succinctly?

The author also adds this tidbit warning:

Avoid the error of *Me gusto - At best this implies you are physically appealing to yourself which is probably not what you mean to say (at worst it is TMI.)

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As a corallory to the "GUSTAR" usage, I'd also like to give some options to overuse of the "me gusta" phrase. Why? Because I start to feel retarded when I keep Parroting out "I like it", "I like it", "I like it" when presented with objects or ideas.

me gusta. I like it! (it is pleasing to me.)

me interesa. Interesting! (it is interesting to me.)

me fascina. That's fascinating. (it is fascinating to me.)

me encanta. I adore it (love it). (it is adorable to me.)

me importa. That's important. (it is important to me.)

me falta. * tricky one! More of a comedy term, it means that you are lacking as a person without it.

me alegra. It makes me happy. (it is happy to me.)

me extraña. I am surprised. (it is surprising to me.)

me basta. It is enough. (it is enough/sufficient to me.)

me aburre. Boring! (it is boring to me / it bores me.)

me molesta. It bothers me. (it is bothersome to me.)

me fastidia. It annoys me. (it is annoying to me.)

me preocupa. It worries me. (it is worrisome to me.)

There are more, but those broaden the vocabulary.

[EDIT] It seems that speaking the direct object pronoun out of sequence is not unheard of in the streets, it is wrong by language standards. I edited this to remove the "lo" from the examples. In other words, "you will hear "lo me gusta" as a street-slang way of saying "i like IT", but it is bad Spanish to use it.

Keep in mind that the subject would FOLLOW the verb phrase in these instances:

"me gusta el libro" ... I like the book (the book is pleasing to me.)

Quizlet list for the above.

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Is this the costa rican slang? You still taking classes?

No. Studying off the internet. The internet's always right, hmm?

Actually, I use italki.com to ask questions and I get dozens of responses from Spanish natives from all different countries. It's awesome.

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"Use Caer bien (or Caer mal) when discussing friends or acquaintances, because when you use Gustar in reference to human beings, it connotes a physical attraction."

Me gusta Shakira! I like Shakira. I'd really like to get into her pants.

Me cae bien BangBang. I get along with ol' BangBang, though I'd prefer him to keep his pants on.

No me cae bien Alex. I don't like nor dislike Alex. I have no opinion.

Me cae mal Bob. I do not get along with Bob.

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POR vs PARA
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Rules for how por is used
about to, to be in the mood, inclined to do something
an action that remains to be completed
because of
by
cause or reason
duration of time
during
general physical movement in and around a given place
for velocity, frequency and proportion
in favor of
instead of, on behalf of, in place of
mistaken identity
money or exchange, price
multiplication and division
per
period of time
through, along, by, in the area of
to be seen as
to express gratitude or apology
reason (with ir, venir, pasar, mandar, volver, and preguntar)


Rules for how para is used
contrast from what is expected
deadline or specific time
destination
for the purpose of
in order to
object directed toward a goal
recipient
use
employment

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Common errors list I found:

Preguntar = to ask (when you want to know something)
Pedir = to ask for (when you want something)

"Realizar": means to carry out, execute, to make, to conduct. If you want to say "realize" in Spanish you have to say: "Darse cuenta".

"Recordar" (to remember) does not have a reflexive pronoun, nor "de".
Recordar a alguien = remember someone

Prepositions never come at the end of a sentence in Spanish. The preposition must come before a noun, a pronoun or an article.

"Soportar" = "to tolerate" or "to put up with" or "to stand (have patience for)". In most cases we use "apoyar".

Cuento = story or tale
Contar una historia = to tell a story
Cuenta = Cuenta bancaria = bank account
Cuenta = a sum (mathematical calculation)
Cuenta = Bill in a restaurant: Note that we use "cuenta" for a bill with food and drinks, but for other types of bill we use "factura" eg. plumbers, in the garage etc.

To express the idea of giving someone a lift or taking someone somewhere, we use the verb "llevar".
To express the idea of taking something such as a pill, a drink, a bus, etc. we use the verb "tomar".

The "próxima/o" (next) is only used in the present and the future. In the past we must use "siguiente" (the following).

Success in Spanish is "éxito".
"Suceso" is an event.

We use "por" when we speak about an approximate time:
eg: Por la tarde doy un paseo. = I go for a walk in the evening.

We use "de" when we speak about the exact time:
eg: A las 5 de la tarde doy un paseo. = I go for a walk at 5 o clock in the evening.

When you want to say "to move" in the sense of changing where you live you have to use the verb "mudarse".
"Moverse" is to move as in movement.
"Correrse" is to move over.

"Mirando para" doesn't exist, it's a literal translation from English. You can use "buscar" but it has no preposition.
Note: When the thing we are looking for is a person we add "a" after "buscar".
I am looking for my book. Estoy buscando mi libro.
I am looking at the book. Estoy mirando el libro.

"Boletos" or "Pasajes" are for travel tickets. We use "entradas" for ticket to the theater or cinema or shows.
By the way: A showing in the cinema is the "la sesión" A performance at the theatre is "la función".

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When to use the Subjunctive Tenses:

The Spanish subjunctive expresses sentiment or wishes, doubt about a future event, or conditionality.

The Trigger Method

It is nice to keep this idea of uncertainty, doubt or desire in mind but, if you’re like most people, you’ll learn to use the subjunctive by learning certain “triggers” that tell you your sentence is about to be shot headfirst into the subjunctive. The subjunctive mood often occurs in subordinate clauses that begin with que. For example:

“Es probable que salgamos tarde”. (It’s likely we’ll leave late.)
“Es bueno que tengas tiempo libre”. (It’s good that you have free time.)

In the first sentence, the subjunctive verb expresses a probable, but indefinite, outcome. In the second, it expresses a subjective opinion about whether it is good or bad to have free time.

Note also the beginnings of the sentences: “es probable” and “es bueno.” These are classic subjunctive triggers. A complete list of these triggers would be rather long. So here is a short one:

es importante que … it’s important that …

dudar que … to doubt that …

es bueno que … it’s good that …

es malo que … it’s bad that …

esperar que … to hope/wish that …

es mejor que … it’s better that …

es raro que … it’s strange that …

es posible que … it’s possible that …

es probable que … it’s likely that …

es necesario que … it’s necessary that …

hasta que … until …

ojalá que … hopefully …

no es cierto que … it’s not certain that …

mientras que … meanwhile/while …

sin que … without …

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The Two Most Common Subjunctive Triggers in Spanish

There are a couple of subjunctive triggers that deserve their own separate explanation.

The first trigger is a change in person. This happens with a number of verbs. Take querer: to want. If the verb following querer agrees with the subject of querer, you have not got a subjunctive sentence. If the verb following querer is different to the subject of querer, you’ve got yourself a subjunctive sentence.

For example:

“Yo quiero ir a la piscina” (I want to go to the swimming pool) is not subjunctive. Whereas
“Yo quiero que vayas a la piscina” (I want you to go to the swimming pool) is subjunctive.

The same change happens with the verb esperar:

“Yo espero llegar pronto” (I hope to arrive soon) is not subjunctive. Whereas
“Yo espero que él llegue pronto” (I hope he arrives soon) is subjunctive.

The second trigger is the idea of wishing a certain experience on someone. That’s a weirdly complex way to express the general rule, but it’s basically the equivalent of when you say “Have a safe trip,” or “Have a nice day.” In English this is obviously an imperative sentence. You’re telling someone to have a nice day whether they want to or not. In Spanish the phrase is “Que tengas un buen dia.” Or “Que te vayas bien.” These are subjunctive statements.

Together, these are the two most common ways you’ll encounter the subjunctive in everyday conversation. So they’re worth understanding.

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A simple list of False Cognates:

carta = letter (paper and playing)
tarjeta = card (credit, debit, greeting)

introducir = to insert (an object)
presentar = to introduce (people)

recordar = to remember
grabar = to record

lectura = reading
charla, conferencia = lecture

Gangas = Bargains
Pandillas = Gangs

realizar = to carry out, perform or achieve
darse cuenta = to realize

Qué vergüenza = How embarrassing
Estoy embarazada = I am pregnant

conservante = preservatives
preservativo = condom

constipado = to have a cold
estreñido = constipated

librería = bookstore
biblioteca = library

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Hey BD - not to nit pick (well, maybe just a little), it seems to me the conjugation for 1st person CAER should be caigo

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Very cool, but keep in mind that only the Spanish really care about RAE rules. The rest of the Spanish-speaking world just shrugs them off and gets on with their own business.

Not so. Not so at all. The rest of the Spanish speaking world includes a lot of writers and intellectuals that DO pay attention to the RAE. Don't ascribe what you know about Chicas and folks you meet on your forays to Costa Rica to the way the ENTIRE Spanish-speaking world behaves.

You are right, but in these examples it does not apply. Think GUSTAR! "me gusta" ... not "me gusto".

"Me cae bien Sofia.". "Sofia makes/causes me to fall well". "Cae" is in 3rd person because it references Sofia who is causing the action. In direct English word order it would have been said: "Sofia cae me bien"... which makes no sense in Spanish.

I believe the "me" is the Indirect Object "me" and not the Direct Object "me" ... (if anyone actually gives a shit about that!)

Also, it's not a nitpick. The only way we will ever really learn the language is to correct each other and have discussions on WHY they say things the way they do.

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These writers and intellectuals make up less than .001% of the population. If you are suggesting that the general population checks RAE regularly to make sure their street spanish is correct, I think you'll be disappointed. I doubt if more than a handful of Latin American college students even know about RAE other than a brief orientation to it as a reference to 'proper' spanish for papers. I also doubt if newspaper editors regularly validate RAE to articles that they publish. Frankly, their readership probably would see it as snobby writing.

How many British subjects speak "Queens' English"? Hell, English changes from street to street in London itself.

The RAE is the de facto standard on proper Spanish usage, but it's not particularly good at teaching you a living language. That's the point I am trying to make.

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