URLLesson Introduction
It's never just about what you know, it's who you know that counts, nowadays. In today's lesson we'll hear what to say when you meet someone you want to stay in touch with. So get out your business cards, and dust off that Rolodex; it's time to network in Spanish!
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jpvillanueva says
Hello Newbies! I'm looking at my business card right now: it's got all sorts of contact info; phone, cell phone, email, fax... even SpanishPod's street address. Of course, I prefer to communicate via email. Prefiero comunicarme por email. I like the immediate access my cell phone gives me to other people, but I don't always want other people to have immediate access to me... so I don't always answer my cell phone. What about you all? How do you like to communicate? (Answer in English or in Spanish, bonus points for Spanish!).February 18, 2008
cyberdiva says
Como tú, JP, usualmente prefiero comunicarme por correo electrónico. Entonces, puedo leerlo y responder cuando es conveniente para mí.February 18, 2008
shep1582 says
¡Hola! Prefiero comunicarme en persona. Porque soy en ventas de finanzas y me gusta hablar a gente cara a cara. Yes, in person absolutely!February 18, 2008
harrypotter4eva says
hi how do u say "i love u" in Spanish & i really like it! harrypotter4evaFebruary 19, 2008
signett says
Te amo!February 19, 2008
luisita says
Prefiero comunicar por e-mail, especialmente cuando viajo. Asi puedo guardar el contacto con mi familia y mis amigos. Es rapido y barato. Sin embargo me gusta mucho el contacto de cara a cara cuando las circonstancias lo permiten.February 19, 2008
carlitos says
¡Tengo una pregunta! La frase, ¿Me puedes dar tu e-mail? Es posible usar ¿Puedes me das tu e-mail? CarlitosFebruary 19, 2008
trinitense says
Hola!!!! JP , mucho gusto y gracias a uds. por crear una página por los que tienen una adicción a esta lengua maravillosa. Estoy viviendo en la República Dominicana, mejorando mi español y enseñando inglés. Me mudé aquí Nov 2005 sin saber más de 6 meses de este idioma y con mis lecciones de audio y libros de grammatica. Como he llegado a un nivel entre intermedio y advanzado, yo tambien les enseño español basico a los otros extranjeros que han vivido aquí más tiempo que yo. Bueno, en cuanto a tú pregunta, a mi me encuentro comunicandome por email con frequencia porque como no tengo ni familia aquí es lo mejor método mandar mis carticas. O sea cartitas :) Atentamente, Shaun, el triniFebruary 19, 2008
trinitense says
Doh! I'm a stickler for my english and so shall I be with my spanish. I meant to write: gramática ;)February 19, 2008
jpvillanueva says
Hello, to all you new S-pod-istas! Welcome to SpanishPod! carlitos, Ooh a sytnax question! Here we go! :)February 19, 2008
- ¿Me das tu e-mail? Will you give (to) me your email?
- ¿Me puedes dar tu e-mail? Can you give (to) me your email?
- ¿Puedes darme tu e-mail?"Can you give (to) me your email?
As you can see, that me (to me) can go either a) before the conjugated verb, or b) stuck on to the end of an infinitive. Either way is great. Remember that poder (can, to be able) wants to be followed by an infinitive. So in this sentence, poder wants dar to follow it; it does not want you to conjugate it, for any reason! Hope this answers your question! trinitense, ¡Me alegro mucho que te sirva SpanishPod para mejorar tu español! Dinos por favor si tienes alguna duda o sugerencia acerca de las lecciones más avanzadas. Y por favor, si has aprendido alguna jerga dominicana, o cualquier modismo, por favor enséñanoslo, ¡para que todos sepamos!trinitense says
¡Diache! (Wow/Holy Cow/Sheesh)¡Tan rápido me has contestado! Verdad, hasta las lecciones "newbies" tienen cositas que debería hacer (debiera?) Ok yo Sí tengo unas jergas de aquí i DO have a few slangs from here!!! (like Diache!) I'll write in english for those newer than I, the newerbies! One thing I learned the hard way was the Dominican usage of Estar Guapo/Guapa, which I'd thought meant Handsome/Attractive. Turns out it's more considered "Pissed (Off) at" as in: "¿Y por qué esa cara? ¿Tú e'tá guapa conmigo?" Not literal but: "What's with that face? Are you pissed off at me? The other thing is "galleta" whcih is a cookie. If someone here jokingly (or not) asks you "¿Tú quieres una galleta?" they are really asking "Would you like a smack (upside the head)?" Normally it's in FUN but there are rare occasions I've heard it during una discusión Chao!February 19, 2008
trinitense says
JP, sorry to post this here. ¿Dónde podría encontrar la prueba de escuchar que mencionó la página de inscripción? It never showed me a link.February 19, 2008
beachhobo says
trinitense....really interesting stuff.....do you know if the spanish-slang in the Dominacan is similar in Puerto Rico, Cuba etc. ? Who would think offering a cookie would mean something like that. ....I've been a bit "shy" to try to speak spanish...ekkksss....now I think maybe I need to learn a lot more before I try breaking into conversation. Really don't want to insult anyone...or make a total fool of myself.February 20, 2008
jpvillanueva says
beachhobo, The thing about slang is that everyone knows it's slang. If you go to the DR and ask for a 'galleta,' they'll give you a cookie, and then maybe chuckle and tell you that in their slang, it means "kiss." No big embarrassing international incidents will be created. It is never too early to practice your Spanish! Real language learning comes from practice, not from study. Once you start the conversation, the learning often starts happening faster than you are conscious of. Fear of accidentally insulting someone or making a fool of yourself will prevent you from learning, if you let it. So don't let it! Besides, Spanish-speakers tend to be very tolerant of language learning mistakes.... trust me on that one! : )February 20, 2008
beachhobo says
Jpvillanueva, Tks for your words of encouragement. I know that you are right. And I really do want to get the hang of this. Oportunities are all around me and when I get the chance...well...I seem to go "brain dead" and can't think of anything to say (short of "hello, how are you, good-bye). But regardless....I will try to be "braver" and speak up. : OFebruary 21, 2008
asturiasmujer says
Me gustan muchas las clases de espanol aqui! Estoy aprendiendo tanta. Muchisimas gracias Liliana y JP! Lo siento no escribo espanol muy bien porque estoy una "newbie".February 22, 2008
estibalitz says
asturiasmujer, escribes muy bien en español para ser una newbie, de verdad. ¡Sigue así! (To be a newbie you write very well in Spanish, really.)February 22, 2008
estibalitz says
trinitense, me parece una maravillosa coincidencia el uso de la palabra "galleta",je, ya que en España también se usa galleta para decir "smack" o "blow" Decimos: - Vaya galleta se ha metido... (What a blow he had/striked...) - ¿A qué te meto una galleta? (Do you want me to smack you?)February 22, 2008
ferdberfel says
in the podcast it is said that this is fairly formal - mucho gusto, igualmente, etc. Then the speaker says "me puedes dar..." - not "me puede dar" .. if I ask the butcher at the carnicería for some beef would I say "¿Me puedes dar dos libras de carne?" - does it matter if he is younger?March 1, 2008
cyberdiva says
That's a really good question, ferdberfel. I'm often unsure whether to use tu or usted. One rule of thumb I've heard is "would you call the person by his/her first name?" If so, use tu. But it's not as simple as that. There are people in subservient positions, e.g., the woman who washes my hair when I get it cut. I know her only by her first name, but it somehow seemed rude for me to assume that I could use tu with her, especially since she addresses me as usted, so I use usted as well. And just to make things more complicated, apparently people from some countries are much more formal than people from other countries. As for the butcher, I'd be tempted to address him as "usted," unless he's a LOT younger than you. And perhaps even then. But, as I say, I'm never sure about this, so I'd love to know what other people think.March 1, 2008
ferdberfel says
thanks - one more question - using tu incorrectly could be seen as cheeky or forward- e.g. a young person talking to an elder. Is the opposite true? Using Usted with someone you've recently become with: could this be taken ( or intended) as an insult?March 2, 2008
lilianamata says
ferdberfel Using "usted" with older person is very polite and usually expected, but sometimes when it is a foreigner talking people are more tolerant, but it is not an insult. Depends on where you are. In Mexico in the north part sometimes you even have to talk to your own parents in the "usted" form, so imagine if a stranger comes and says "tu" form is very impolite.March 2, 2008
hpwolfe says
I moved to Costa Rica recently and SpanishPod is really helping me learn Spanish. I do not have a problem deciding between tu and usted here. Second person singular here is 'vos' and that requires some different conjugations. Even that is not so much a problem because even parents and their children talk with one another using usted. Tu is almost never used here, and then, generally as an indulgence of foreigners who, as Costa Ricans know, learned their Spanish somewhere else. So, I can always being comfortable by using usted without thinking about using tu or vos.April 9, 2008
ewong says
Prefiero comunicarme por email o facebookApril 25, 2008
andlendrem says
When is it right to use 'Quisiera' and when to use 'me gustaría' when asking for things?April 26, 2008
shep1582 says
The short answer is no difference. I answered your question in depth in the "My name is" newbie lession.April 26, 2008