Free Spanish Lesson #53. Regional Variations in Spanish

Vocabulario semanal – Weekly Vocabulary

hace unas semanas – a few weeks ago

voy a hablar un poco acerca de – I’m going to speak a little about

la mayoría de la gente piensa que – most (the majority) of people think that

la verdad es que – the truth is that

diferencias básicas en el idioma – basic differences in the language

una de las diferencias principales – one of the main differences

pero no suelen usarlo – but they’re not accustomed to using it

hay tres maneras de decir – there are three ways to say

se usa – is used

cuando habla con un grupo de amigos – when you (formal) talk with a group of friends

de nuevo/otra vez – again

que se llama – that is called

las diferencias en el acento – the differences in the accent

de región a región – from region to region

cambiando de tema un poco – changing our theme just a little

con un curso como el nuestro – with a course like ours

hay unas pequeñas diferencias – there are a few little differences

compartiré – I will share

es – it is

significa – means

o – or

en algunas regiones de Sudamérica – in some regions of South America

la palabra – the word

es – is

en España – in Spain

sin embargo – however

entonces – so

es importante saber un poco – it’s important to know a little

en el idioma de español – in the Spanish language

pero no tan importante – but not as important

One of our subscribers, a few weeks ago, asked me to address the differences between Spanish in Latin America and in Spain. This week, I’ll talk a little about those differences as well as a few regional word differences from South America to Central America and so forth.

Most people think that Spanish in Spain and Latin America are completely different. The truth is that people from each country have different accents and there are a few basic language differences, but they can understand each other just fine.

One of the main differences is that in Spain, they use a word for “you” called “vosotros”. In Latin America, they have seen the word “vosotros” and know about it, but they don’t use it in everyday speech. In Spanish, there are three ways to say “you” (we’ll talk more in-depth about this concept next week.) In a nut-shell, “vosotros” is used when you are talking to more than one person in an informal way. For example, you would use “vosotros” in Spain when talking to a group of friends, individuals younger than yourself, or those you are on a first-name basis with.

Again, Latin America doesn’t use “vosotros,” however, in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay (South America), they use a form of “vosotros” called “vos”. It is basically a very casual way to say “you”.

Beyond the differences in the accent, the use of “vosotros” and “vos” is probably the biggest major difference in the Spanish language from region to region.

Changing our theme just a little, there are also some differences in vocabulary from region to region. If you learn Spanish with a course like ours, you’ll learn vocabulary that is pretty much used internationally. However, there are a few little differences in vocabulary that are fun to know about. I’ll share a couple of them in the next few paragraphs:

The word for “soda” in Perú is “gaseosa”, and in the Dominican Republic it is “refresco”. The word “refresco” in Perú means “sweetened drink” or “punch”.

The word for “cake” in some regions of South America, is “torta”, in the Caribbean it is “biscocho” (which is “roll” in South America), and in some regions of Central America is “queque” or “biscocho”.

The word for “bus” is “autobus” in Spain, “camión” in Mexico, and “guagua” in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. However, the word “guagua” in Chile means “baby”. So, if you are from Chile and visit Puerto Rico, don’t ask “How’s your guagua?”, because instead of asking “How’s your baby?”, you would actually be asking “How’s your bus?”

Moral of the Story: It is important to know a little about the major differences in the Spanish language so you don’t get completely thrown off track. The minor vocabulary differences are fun to know about but not as important to your success in Spanish.

¡Hasta luego! (“Until later”)

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Written by David S. Clark President/Director, U.S. Institute of Languages. Copyright © 1999-2010 US Institute of Languages All rights reserved.

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.