Speak Spanish Quickly

Would you like to speak Spanish quickly? Follow this five-step plan.

If you want to speak Spanish quickly, here is your plan:

1. Get a Spanish Lesson Book

Buy a book that focuses on phrases that you can use to start speaking right away. You will need to learn grammar, of course, but the finer points can wait. First learn to communicate in the most basic ways. Know how to say hello and to ask where things are.

This is the natural way to learn, by the way. A baby knows how to communicate long before he knows what it means to conjugate a verb, right? If you are more interested in actually communicating than in analyzing the structure of the language, start with the simple Spanish phrases that you need.

2. Learn The Phrases That Make Everyone Your Teacher

There are some basic phrases that will get the native speakers to be your teachers. Learning these is essential if you want to learn to speak Spanish quickly.

For example, "Cmo se dice…" (How do you say…), and "Cul es la palabra para esto?" (What is the word for this?) are great phrases to know. You can say "Cul es la palabra para esto?" and point at something. If the person you’re speaking to knows a little English, you can say, for example, "Cmo se dice, ‘breakfast’ en espaol?"

Another good phrase to know is "Por favor, habla mas despacio." (Please, speak more slowly.) One that you’ll use often: "Yo no entiendo." (I don’t understand.) It is also very useful to know the phrase "Cmo se escribe?" (How do you write it?)

People are generally very tolerant, and love to help you learn Spanish. Knowing these kinds of key phrases lets any Spanish speaker become your teacher.

3. Speak Spanish In Your Mind

Speaking Spanish in your mind is a powerful way to learn many ways to express yourself, even if you still have a very limited vocabulary. Just imagine the conversations you are likely to have. Putting your thoughts into Spanish means you learn not just words and rules, but specific ways to express what you want to say. It is a great way to practice and remember your new language.

4. Carry An English-Spanish Dictionary

Don’t just carry it, but use it. It should be more than an emergency back-up for when you are stuck for a word. You should use it proactively to prepare for conversations. Also use it when you are stuck for a word in your imagined conversations.

Use the dictionary after conversation as well. Look for other ways you could have said something. Look up words that you heard but didn’t recognize. Randomly browse it and stop to learn the words that catch your attention.

5. Speak With Native Spanish Speakers

One of the best ways to quickly speak Spanish (or any language you want to learn) is to start talking with native speakers. Actually talking in your new language will quickly show you where you need the most work. If you can’t do this where you live, start talking as soon as you arrive in any Spanish-speaking country. You want to learn to speak Spanish in order to communicate, so start communicating.

Steve Gillman has been working on his Spanish with his wife Ana, a native of Ecuador. Together they have built a website where you can get free lessons in Spanish. Visit: http://www.TheSpanishLesson.com By Steven Gillman
Published: 6/4/2007

Mexican Days: Journeys into the Heart of Mexico

As Cohan travels from Guanajuato to Mexico City, to Oaxaca, and to the Yucatan, the sights and the people he encounters reflect intractable problems left over from repeated disastrous collision[...]

Ask a Mexican | Best of ‘08 Edition – Salt Lake City Weekly

Other phonetical laws not mentioned by Waterhouse that influence Mexican Spanish nicknames include apocopation (the dropping of a word’s last letters or syllables—Caro for Carolina),[...]

Mexico Bob: Learning Spanish with Bart and Archie

Now if you are really serious about learning Spanish, especially Mexican Spanish, then get out there and look around for some Spanish comic books.

Learn Mexican Spanish

 To learn Mexican Spanish is to make an investment into your future. I have learned it the hard way. A lot of my friends and co-workers got the boot, because the company could only keep[...]

Technorati Tags: learn spanish for beginners, learn spanish lessons, learn spanish word