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Learn Colloquial Spanish Expressions

Are you somewhere between intermediate and advanced levels in Spanish? Have you noticed that the more Spanish you learn, the more you realise there is still to learn? You know “pastilla” (a pill or tablet) — but do you know the expression “a toda pastilla”? Or how about “ni que gaitas”? You can look up “gaitas” (bagpipes), but what does the phrase actually mean?

And then there are all the ways to express agreement, disagreement, refusal, or an offer of help… the list is endless. Plus the words and phrases that pop up in specific situations: making or receiving a phone call, preparing for a job interview, or joining a conversation about bullfighting (if you dare!).

That’s why we created this section. Quite a few of these posts include one of our YouTube videos, Trocitos de Real Spanish, focused on the idioms, everyday expressions, and colloquial phrases that Spanish speakers use all the time. Drop them into conversations and you’ll sound great.

Come across a word or phrase you just can’t figure out? Drop us a comment — we’d love to help!

¡Vamos allá!

Elizabeth from Real Spanish

Falsos amigos 2: some Spanish and English words you should never mix up

This is the English  transcription of our second video about some “false friends” that can cause problems for English speakers.  False friends (falso amigos) are words that look and sound very similar in English and Spanish because they are derived from the same Latin roots, but nowadays they have different meanings. If you just want to listen to the audio, you can get it on Soundcloud. English Transcription: Hello and welcome to Real Spanish! Today we bring you some examples of “false friends”, that is, words that in English sound similar to Spanish but have a different meaning, such as “library” (which in Spanish means «biblioteca») and «librería» (which in English means “bookshop/bookstore”). Another false friend that causes confusion is “to realize”, which doesn’t mean «realizar», as you might expect, but should be translated as «darse cuenta de (algo)». «Realizar» means to carry out, to do. Other frequently-confused words are “large” and «largo». “Large” should be translated as «grande» in Spanish, and «largo» as “long”. Also, the English word “carpet” doesn’t mean «carpeta»; it’s an «alfombra». A «carpeta» is a “folder” in English. Well, as you can see it’s very important to learn these words because if you make a mistake, you could create an embarrassing situation. For example, «nudo» (knot) is not the same as “nude” (desnudo). I encourage you to continue learning with our entertaining lessons on Real Spanish, where you can enjoy your Spanish! Bye for now!   Have you seen the first video in this series? José explains false friends such as «embarazada» and "embarrassed", «eventualmente» and "eventually", «excitante» and "excited", «actualmente« and "actually".  You can see the video on YouTube.  Follow us on YouTube so you never miss our Trocitos de Real Spanish. Get in touch: Tell us about a time when you got confused or made a mistake with a «falso amigo». Please leave us a comment, a question, or a suggestion below: we’d love to hear from you! You can also participate in our Community page on YouTube.  You'll find short quizzes, surveys, and quick explanations of vocabulary or grammar points.     Enjoy your Spanish with us! Click here to learn more about all our great materials.  Real Spanish: online Spanish courses and mini-lessons for people who are serious about improving their Spanish

28 de February de 2023

«Salir de rositas» and other uses of «salir»

In the video above, Antonio explains some uses of the verb «salir». You can choose to view the video before or after reading the text. The English transcription is below. We suggest you also listen to the audio while reading the text, chiming in with Antonio from time to time to improve your pronunciation and intonation. The blog entry below contains even more great expressions with «salir».  English Transcription: Hi! I’m Antonio, a teacher with Real Spanish. Do you know the expression «salir de rositas»?  It means someone has done something to earn a punishment or a scolding, such as a child’s prank, but doesn’t receive blame or the punishment. (To get away with it.) Another expression with «salir» is «salirse con la suya». For example, listen to this conversation between Antonio and Celia, leaving a restaurant. Antonio: I don’t want to go out for dinner with that couple ever again. She’s a real pain, always wants to argue about something. Celia: Well, you’re right, tonight she just wouldn’t stop complaining. Antonio: First she doesn’t eat pizza because she doesn’t eat bread, next she doesn’t like Mexican food, then the bar on the corner is really tacky… Celia: The rest of us wanted to go to Pedro’s bar but in the end she got her own way, as usual. «Salir» has many other uses. You can learn some of them with our mini-lesson «Salir rana». We also have other mini-lessons that explain the different uses of common words. If you haven't tried any of our mini-lessons yet, you can try «Es una chapuza», a free sample lesson about an art restoration project that scandalized everyone. It’s one of our series of mini-lessons based on clips from news programs and documentaries. What are you waiting for? Click below to try it right now. Our blog entry below explains several other uses of the Spanish verb«salir».   If you’ve encountered other expressions with «salir», tell us about it below, in English or in Spanish. Real Spanish: online Spanish courses and mini-lessons for people who are serious about improving their Spanish. If you have other comments, questions or suggestions, we’d love to hear from you!   View all our materials and try some free sample lessons. Entrada de blog If you’ve ever been to Spain I’m sure you’ve gone out for tapas, gone out to a party, or simply gone out to eat in a bar or restaurant. To say this you would have to use the verb salir, and you may have been unsure about how to use it. For example, you can’t say salir a tapas, but you can say salir a tapear or salir de tapas. You can say salir a comprar or salir de compras — but with two different meanings. Salir a comprar means to go out to buy food because you have to, it’s an obligation or a basic necessity, while «salir de compras» is for pleasure, it’s not a necessity: for example, to go shopping for

11 de December de 2022

¿«Ver la tele» o «mirar la tele»? Un trocito de Real Spanish

In the video above, José explains some uses of «ver» and «mirar». Below is the English transcription. If you just want to listen to the Spanish audio track,  for example while driving, cooking, or doing the laundry, you can find it on Soundcloud.  Hello and welcome to Real Spanish! Do you know the difference between the verbs «ver» y «mirar»? They seem to mean the same but actually they have different meanings. «Ver» is our physical ability to perceive with our eyes. It's the same as "see" in English. For example, «Lo vi robar la bici con mis propios ojos» (I saw him steal the bike with my own eyes). «Mirar» means to direct our eyes towards something. It's more intentional, a conscious action that requires concentration. It's the same as "watch" or "look" in English. For example, «No me mires, acabo de levantarme» (don't look at me, I just got out of bed), or «Mira a esa bailarina, es increíble» (Watch that dancer, she's amazing). But of course, there are always exceptions. Unlike in English, in Spanish it's more common to say «ver la tele» o «ver una película»... although some people use «mirar» in this context, especially in areas where Catalan is spoken. The same differences exist with «oír», to perceive with the ears, and «escuchar», to pay attention to what is heard... the same as in English. That's why we say «escuchar música» (to listen to music) but, «¿puedes oírme?», for example, when there is static on the phone line. There are many expressions in Spanish with the words «ver» or «mirar».  One of these days we'll explain some of them in a new mini-lesson. Do you know you can try a sample mini-lesson, completely free? Click below to learn more. OK, that’s all for today. I hope you’ve enjoyed this trocito… Bye for now! Please leave us a comment, a question, or a suggestion: we'd love to hear from you! Enjoy your Spanish with us! Click below to learn more about all our great materials. Follow us on YouTube. Real Spanish: online Spanish courses and mini-lessons for people who are serious about improving their Spanish Click here to learn more about all our great materials

7 de November de 2022

Un trocito de Real Spanish: «Mandar a freír espárragos» and other expressions with «mandar»

 Have you ever heard the expression «mandar a freír espárragos»? Telling someone to "go and fry asparagus" sounds amusing, but it's actually an expression of annoyance. It's used to get rid of someone, the equivalent of "Get lost" or "Get out of here". In the video above, Inés explains several other expressions that can be used in the same way... some of them quite vulgar.  Transcription: Hi! I’m Inés Alba, from Real Spanish. Have you ever heard the expression "mandar a freír espárragos"? Although frying asparagus may not seem like an unpleasant action, this expression is used when we want to get rid of someone annoying, who is bothering us. It is a fairly mild expression compared to others with the same meaning but more vulgar, such as: "mandar a la porra" or "mandar al carajo." The porra (baton) is the elongated weapon used by the police, but the expression seems to come from the military world. Formerly porra was a stick that the sergeants stuck in the ground and any soldier who was punished had to stay there. As for the carajo, it seems that it comes from the marine world, since it was the observation post of the ships. This was a very high place and difficult to access. It was the perfect place to send those sailors who were annoying or those whom they wanted to get out of the way. Well, I hope you don't have to use any of these expressions, but just in case, it's better to know them, right? See you soon! Did you enjoy this trocito?  Follow us on YouTube so you don't miss them! Please leave us a comment, a question, or a suggestion: we'd love to hear from you! Enjoy your Spanish with us! Click below to learn more about all our great materials.  Real Spanish: online Spanish courses and minilessons for people who are serious about improving their Spanish Click here to learn more about all our great materials

12 de October de 2022

¡Marchando! (Right away!)

This is the English transcription of the video above. José explains some expressions with «marcha» or «marchar». In the blog entry below we explain many more. You can also get a mini-lesson that deals with the same topic.  Click below to learn more about all our minis.  Remember you can get  5 mini-lessons for the price of four: ¡Qué ganga! If you just want to listen to the audio (for example, while driving, cooking, doing the laundry...), you can listen on Soundcloud. Transcription: Hello, I’m José from Real Spanish! Spaniards really like to «salir » (or «ir») de marcha». What does this mean? Well, partying, spending the whole night out in bars or clubs. We also say «salir de juerga» or «salir de parranda». If someone really likes to party, we can say «tiene mucha marcha» or «es muy marchosa». There is also the adjective «juerguista» but with a slightly stronger sense. «La marcha» is also used to talk about the gears of a car engine: to engage first gear, second gear, etc. The expression «marchar como la seda» means that something is going very well, without difficulties. Silk is a very soft fabric, and you can pass your hand over it very smoothly, hence the expression.  Another expression that we use a lot is to do something «sobre la marcha», which means to improvise, to do something “on the go”, without a plan, without preparation. There are many more expressions with «marcha»,  «marchar», or «marcharse», and we explain some in the mini-lesson «Marchando». You ought to add them to your repertoire, because they are used a lot in everyday speech. To encourage you, we have a special offer: if you buy four mini-lessons, we'll give you another one free... so you can save 20%. Click below to see more information. See you soon! The blog entry below deals with this topic in more depth. To view the transcription or the blog entry in Spanish, click on «español» in the main menu above.  Click below for more information on the related mini-lesson, «¡Marchando!». If you live in Spain, or often visit the country, you must have heard a waiter say this in a bar: «¡Marchando!». It means the waiter is going to bring your order right away, or is going to get to work right away, like switching on a machine. But the verb «marchar» and the noun «la marcha» have many different uses. The verb «marchar» has two principal meanings: In the armed forces «marchar» means «to march». For example: Los soldados marchan en fila durante el desfile militar. Referring to a machine, a business, a relationship, «marchar» means “to work”, in the sense of function well. For example: Esta lavadora no marcha bien, necesitas llamar al mecánico. Este restaurante no marcha bien desde que cambiaron al cocinero. Su relación con su novia no marcha bien. The pronominal verb «marcharse» means “to leave a place”. For example: Me marcho de casa de mis padres porque quiero vivir sola y

6 de August de 2022

"Embarrassed" and «embarazada» and other false friends

This is the English transcription of the video above. José explains some common «falsos amigos» in English and Spanish (words that are easily confused because they are very similar, but don't have the same meaning).   Hello and welcome to Real Spanish! Today we bring you some examples of falsos amigos (false friends), that is, English words that sound similar to Spanish words but have a different meaning, such as embarrassed (which in Spanish means avergonzado/a) and embarazada (which in English means pregnant). Another false friend that confuses a lot of people is “eventually”, which does not mean eventualmente as one might think, but should be translated as finalmente, al final. Eventualmente means “occasionally”. Other words often confused are “excited” or "exciting"and excitante. “Exciting” normally translates to emocionante in Spanish; be careful with excitante because it often has a sexual meaning. Also the English word “actually” does not mean actualmente, but en realidad. And actualmente translates as “currently” or “at present” in English. Well, as you can see, it is important that you learn these words well because if you make a mistake, it can create very embarrassing situations. And now I encourage you to continue learning with our entertaining lessons on Real Spanish lessons. See you later! If you liked this video, you'll love our complete courses and mini-lessons. Click here to try some free sample lessons. Do you know any other «falsos amigos»? Tell us below!  You can also leave us a comment, a question or a suggestion. We'd love to hear from you! Improve your Spanish with us. Click below to learn about all our great materials . Real Spanish: online Spanish lessons for people who are serious about improving their Spanish.  Click here to learn about all our great materials

15 de May de 2022