Tomarle el pelo a alguien
This wonderful Spanish colloquial expression means to “to fool someone” or “to kid someone”, probably with the intention of teasing them. In English, we might say “to pull someone’s leg”. The origen of the expression “tomarle el pelo a alguien” is uncertain. Some say it has to do with pulling someone’s beard, but others contend […]
Making Your Resolutions Stick
Registrations at our online Spanish school always jump during the first two weeks of January as people embark on a fresh start learning Spanish; we are overjoyed to welcome all our new students and wish them success as they try to improve their Spanish online. No doubt for some of them, this commitment to […]
Learn Some Spanish, Donald.
There are loads of great reasons politicians in the USA should learn to speak Spanish: they could improve their reach into Hispanic communities, improve themselves as role model for school kids, and show adults that it is never too late to learn a new skill. But speaking to friends here in South America, I have […]
Movie Starring Martin Sheen Shot in Spanish and English
A press release about a new movie shot in both Spanish and English caught my eye this morning because of its implications for online Spanish language schools like Web Spanish, and because of its potential impact on the US movie industry, which is rushing to find new ways to capture the growing market of Spanish […]
Spanish for Police Officers in the USA
Police departments in the United States are facing growing pressure to either hire more Latino officers, or to train their current staff to be functional in Spanish. It’s no surprise: according to the US Census Bureau, more than 38 million people living in the United States claim Spanish as their primary language, and while most […]
The No-Fail Recipe for Learning Basic Spanish
Spanish Lesson: Making a Date
In this short Spanish video lesson, you will learn some of the language and grammar used when making a date or arranging a meeting. Watch as Juan Carlos invites Rosita to go check out the museum. The script is included below. SCRIPT We will study the expressions (needed) to make an invitation or […]
Spanish Idiom: “Estirar la pata”
Spanish speakers are as prone as English speakers to use euphamisms when referring to something that is uncomfortable to talk about, and “estirar la pata” slips right into this category. So, false friend alert: “Estirar la pata” does not mean “go stretch your legs”; quite on the contrary, it is a subtle way to refer to someone’s […]
Spanish Classes Online
Visitors drop into our blog for all kinds of reasons: maybe they want to watch our Spanish lessons on video and audio, or to keep up with news related to learning Spanish, such as the rollout of the SIELE exam, but what some of our visitors don´t realize is that Web Spanish is an online […]
How to Express your Opinion in Spanish
One of the first things Spanish students need to learn is how to express their opinion and the opinion of others. In this Spanish video lesson, Juan Carlos will teach you how to say in Spanish “I think”, “I prefer”, and “It seems to me”. Just in case you need it, here is the […]