Vokally

In Spanish, when something happens accidentally, we use SE + ME + the verb in the indicative form.

• Se me cayó el celular. → I dropped my phone..
• Se me olvidaron las llaves. → I forgot my keys..
• Se me rompieron los lentes. → I broke my glasses..
• Se me perdió la cartera. → I lost my wallet..
• Se me quemó el arroz. → I burned the rice..

Important: The verb agrees with the thing, not with you:

• Se me olvidó su nombre. → I forgot his name..
• Se me olvidaron sus nombres. → I forgot their names..
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Your turn. Fill in the blank:

• SE ME ______ el nombre de la película. .

Leave your answer in the comments.
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In English, RIGHT works in many situations.
In Spanish, the word changes depending on what you mean.

1. Gira a la derecha. → Turn right..
2. Esa es la respuesta correcta. → That's the right answer..
3. Tienes razón. → You're right..
4. Todos tenemos derecho a opinar. → We all have the right to speak up..
5. Vas a estudiar español con nosotros, ¿verdad? → ...right?.

Try one today.
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Some expressions don't translate word for word.
Different words, same situation, same meaning.

1. "You're right" → Tienes razón.
2. "You're wrong" → Estás equivocado.
3. "Don't turn your back on me" → No me des la espalda.
4. "Keep it in mind" → Ten en cuenta.

The words change, but we use them in the same situations
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Comment an example below, and I'll send you a free guide to pratice more mistranslations.
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In Spanish, some expressions always come with the subjunctive.
The structure is always the same: one subject + QUE + a second subject, and that second verb goes into the subjunctive.
They fall into 4 groups.

1. WISHES

• Quiero que vengas a mi casa el sábado. → I want you to come to my house on Saturday..

2. EMOTIONS

• Me alegra que estés aquí. → I'm glad you're here..

3. ADVICE AND REQUESTS

• Te recomiendo que pruebes las arepas. → I recommend that you try the arepas..
• Solo te pido que practiques todos los días. → I only ask that you practice every day..

4. DOUBT

• Dudo que terminemos hoy. → I doubt we'll finish today..

Entonces: wishes, emotions, advice, and doubt. Those four ask for the subjunctive.
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In Spanish, SABER and CONOCER both translate as "to know."
But SABER also means "to taste" and in the past it means "to find out."

SABER for information

• No sé dónde dejé las llaves..

SABER + infinitive for skills

• Mi hijo sabe resolver un cubo de Rubik..

SABER for flavors

• ¿A qué sabe ese plato?.

CONOCER for people and places

• ¿Conoces Austin, Texas?.

And in the past, both change

• Supe la noticia esta mañana. → I found out..
• Conocí a mi mejor amigo en el colegio. → I met..
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In Spanish, DEJAR can mean completely different things depending on how you use it.
Let's practice four of the most common meanings.

1. DEJAR as "to leave something somewhere"

• Dejé mi celular en el restaurante. → I left my phone at the restaurant..
• ¿Dejaste tu pasaporte en la casa? → Did you leave your passport at home?.

2. DEJAR as "to drop someone off," or "to leave a person"

• Dejé a mi hijo en la escuela esta mañana. → I dropped my son off at school this morning..
• Ella lo dejó después de 20 años de matrimonio. → She left him after 20 years of marriage..

3. DEJAR as "to quit" and DEJAR DE + infinitive as "to stop doing something"

• Mi hermana dejó su trabajo en marzo. → My sister quit her job in March..
• Dejé de tomar alcohol hace 3 años. → I stopped drinking alcohol 3 years ago..

4. DEJAR as "to let or allow someone to do something"

• Yo no dejo a mi hijo jugar videojuegos entre semana. → I don't let my son play video games on weekdays..
• Mis padres no me dejaban salir de noche. → My parents didn't let me go out at night..

Entonces, DEJAR can mean to leave, to drop off, to stop, to quit, or to let.
All depending on the context.
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In Spanish, when a sentence has two object pronouns, the indirect object (le, les) comes first, and the direct object (lo, la, los, las) comes second.
But there's one combination we never say: LE LO.
When LE or LES meets LO, LA, LOS, or LAS, it turns into SE.
Let's practice:

1. Le di el libro a Ana. → Se lo di. → I gave it to her.
You can also be redundant and say "Se lo di a Ana."

2. Le envié un correo a la directora de la escuela. → Se lo envié. → I sent it to her.
Redundantly: "Se lo envié a la directora de la escuela."

3. Les expliqué las reglas a los estudiantes. → Se las expliqué. → I explained them to them.

4. Le compré los zapatos a mi hijo. → Se los compré. → I bought them for him.

Entonces: LE and LES become SE before lo, la, los, and las.
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In Spanish, we have 4 different ways to say "TO BECOME."
Each of them tells you what kind of change you are talking about.
Let's practice:

1. HACERSE, a change about effort or personal choice

• Mi hermano se hizo médico después de años de estudio. → My brother became a doctor after years of study..
• Ella se hizo vegetariana el año pasado. → She became a vegetarian last year..

2. VOLVERSE, a sudden or natural change you don't consciously plan

• Se volvió loco cuando supo la verdad. → He went crazy when he found out the truth..
• Después de mucha práctica, hablar español se volvió natural. → After a lot of practice, speaking Spanish became natural..

3. LLEGAR A SER, a change that focuses on the obstacles to reach the top

• John Ternus llegó a ser el CEO de Apple tras 25 años en la compañía. → John Ternus became the CEO of Apple after 25 years at the company..

4. CONVERTIRSE EN, a complete transformation into something entirely new

• Los libros de Harry Potter se convirtieron en un fenómeno mundial. → The Harry Potter books became a worldwide phenomenon..
• Cristiano Ronaldo se convirtió en una leyenda del fútbol. → Cristiano Ronaldo became a football legend..

Entonces: four verbs, four kinds of change.
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Spanish has vocabulary words for rain and weather that we use a lot and are rarely taught in classrooms.
Let's practice 5 of them:

1. LLOVIZNAR, to drizzle

• Está lloviznando, no necesitas un paraguas. → It's drizzling, you don't need an umbrella..

2. AGUACERO, downpour

• De repente cayó un aguacero y tuvimos que correr. → A downpour came suddenly, and we had to run..

3. CHARCO, puddle

• Mi sobrino Tomás salta en todos los charcos. → My nephew Thomas jumps in every puddle..

4. LODO, mud

• Los zapatos quedaron llenos de lodo. → The shoes ended up covered in mud..

5. RELÁMPAGO, lightning

• El Relámpago del Catatumbo es un fenómeno natural de mi estado, el Zulia. → Catatumbo Lightning is a natural phenomenon from my state, Zulia..

Entonces: 5 words we use often, and now you can use them too.
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Spanish has some reflexive verbs that native speakers use quite often, but Spanish students rarely know them.
Here are 4 of them:

1. ASOMARSE, to look out or lean out

• Me asomé por la ventana para ver quién era. → I looked out the window to see who it was..

2. DESVELARSE, to lose sleep or to stay up late

• Me desvelé pensando en la presentación de hoy. → I lost sleep thinking about today's presentation..
• Me desvelé viendo televisión. → I stayed up late watching TV..

3. EMPAPARSE, to get soaked or to soak up a subject

• De repente empezó a llover y me empapé. → It suddenly started to rain, and I got soaked..
• Tenemos que empaparnos de la cultura española antes del viaje. → We have to soak up Spanish culture before the trip..

4. ATRAGANTARSE, to choke on food or drink

• Mi mamá decía: "Come despacio para que no te atragantes." → My mom used to say: "Eat slowly so you don't choke.".
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Entonces: 4 reflexive verbs that we use quite often, and now you can use them too.
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Comment an example below, and I'll send you a free guide to practice more similar reflexive verbs.
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