Have you ever been to Spain and had the surrealist experience of dealing with paperwork?

Have you had the problem of having to write one first name (when you may have two) and two surnames (when you may have only one)?

This is especially interesting for translators when they need to translate personal information forms from English to Spanish or from Spanish to English, because the English form will contain the words "First names" (in the plural) and "Surname" (in the singular) w...

It goes without saying that both tenses are used to describe past actions or states but each is used differently and the following rules will hopefully clear up any confusion.

When to Use the Preterite

The preteri...

Learning Spanish is an enjoyable experience however it can take a good deal of time to achieve a good working knowledge of the language. One area of learning Spanish that often causes more problems than most and is, in part, responsible for many individuals taking the decision to quit learning the language is Spanish verb conjugation.

Verbs are a vital part of every language and being able to use them correctly makes the difference between being understood and confusing whoever ...

Obviously, if you have children and you wish to move to Spain, then the schooling of your children will be your most important priority.

In fact, the overall welfare of your children will probably be the deciding factor as to whether any move to Spain is actually possible and their educational needs may define where you live. Certainly it is true to say that the happiness of your children in Spain will be critical to the success of your relocation. If children are unhappy then ...

List of Spanish Prepositions

When it comes to mastering the uses of POR and PARA in Spanish, there is a very simple, yet powerful approach that can help you in 95 to 98% of the cases and even more.

Rather than teaching all the uses of POR and PARA as all teachers do, I prefer to narrow down my teaching. Does that mean I am teaching "less" than I should? I don´t think so.

After all, my experience has clearly shown me that students are presented with so many rules, patterns and use...

How can we tell if a Spanish word is a verb or not? Seems a strange question to ask but in English we are given a clue as to the answer because all verbs in English have to in front of them. This is not the case with the Spanish language. All verbs in Spanish are recognized by their endings which could be any one of three just to make this more difficult.

Each verb in Spanish comprises of two distinctive parts, the stem and the ending. The stem is often seen as the actual verb ...

One topic that I don´t see discussed in Spanish grammar books is how to use the Spanish verb "llevar." Or maybe I should say that don't find how to use the Spanish verb "llevar" as native Spanish speakers use the verb in everyday speech.

According to a Spanish dictionary that I have, "llevar" means "to carry" or to "take." But I have heard native Spanish speakers use "llevar" to indicate a duration of time or to designate actions that began in the past but that continue into th...

The Tortilla or Spanish omelet is an ancestral and typical recipe from Spain. This dish is always tasty: warm in winter or fresh out of the fridge for a snack outdoors in summer. Its available to anyone, as it is very easy to cook and does not require much time: in 20 to 30 minutes it is ready to serve.

The dish does not require much work or much expense: potatoes, eggs, onion, garlic, salt and olive oil is all you need to surprise your guests. We can experiment with a wide var...

Among world languages, Spanish is recognized as being a foremost medium of communication. Compared to French, Italian, and Russian, learning Spanish is clearly the most practical option for people living in the United States. Given the continuous growth of Spanish speaking populations in Latin America, knowledge of this widely spoken language is a positive advantage. In practice, some schools and universities have already implemented bi-lingual schemes within which students are...

Thinking about learning a second language? Spanish might be a good choice, especially if you live in the United States where there is an ever-growing population of Spanish speakers.

A lot people speak Spanish. In fact, it's one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. About 400 million people speak Spanish, including nearly half of the Western Hemisphere. Spanish is spoken in more than 20 countries including Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Cuba and Costa Rica.

But there are mo...

Information about you or your business needs to be translated accurately and flawlessly, since it will determine the image you project. Mistranslation can pose a serious risk to your company's reputation and have an adverse effect on your business.

Recent advances in globalisation mean that the need for prompt access to accurate information is no longer only reserved for big, multinational organisations. An ever growing number of companies compete for business on an internation...

First of all, paella is not exactly the dish but the recipient this typical plate is cooked in. We all have seen the paella pan before when visiting Spain or browsing the net for paella recipes

The typical paella a la valenciana was "invented" in a small village called El Perelló close to the city of Valencia. The unique situation of the village between a natural lake with sweet water and the sea provided to the habitants of the area all they needed to make a complete dish with...