Spanish Word of the Day
Monday, July 1, 2013
puente, noun
bridge
bridge
The basic meaning of this word is bridge:
París tiene muchos puentes famosos.
Paris has many famous bridges.
But it also has two other meanings:
el puente aéreo entre Medellín y Bogotá
the shuttle service between Medellín and Bogotá
hacer puente
to make a long weekend of it
In Latin America and Spain, when a public holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, employers often make the Monday or Friday a holiday as well, to give everyone a long weekend. This is known as hacer puente.
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Spanish Word of the Day
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
quinceañero, noun
teenager
teenager
This word is formed from quince - fifteen - año, meaning year, and the suffix -ero, which usually denotes a person belonging to a group or type. Despite appearances, a quinceañero is not necessarily a fifteen-year-old, but a teenager of any age.
When Latin American girls reach the age of fifteen, it is a tradition for them to hold coming-out balls to celebrate. In Mexico, bands of musicians called los mariachis wearing the traditional costumes of sequin-studded cowboy-style suits and wide-brimmed Mexican hats, play serenades - mañanitas to entertain the guests.
When Latin American girls reach the age of fifteen, it is a tradition for them to hold coming-out balls to celebrate. In Mexico, bands of musicians called los mariachis wearing the traditional costumes of sequin-studded cowboy-style suits and wide-brimmed Mexican hats, play serenades - mañanitas to entertain the guests.
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Spanish Word of the Day
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
quinto, adjective
fifth
fifth
Once you’ve mastered the basic numbers in Spanish, it’s useful to get to learn the ordinal numbers such as quinto, fifth. This one is rather different from the number it’s related to, cinco, but thinking of ‘quintets’ and ‘quintuplets’ may help you to remember it.
Ecuador ocupa el quinto lugar.
Ecuador is in fifth place.
en el quinto piso
on the sixth flooron the fifth floor
Una quinta columna - a fifth column - is a phrase that was coined during the Spanish civil war and then came into English from Spanish. It refers to a group of infiltrators or enemy sympathisers in your own ranks.
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