When the U goes silent in Spanish
It's Sunday, you bring your guitar and something to eat to the park, and the kids are already running through the grass.
The phrase
Nos vemos en el parque junto a los árboles.10 words10 sentences
The ten words
- parque/ˈpaɾke/
parknoun
Open area with trees, grass and benches where people go for a walk.
- guitarra/ɡiˈtara/
guitarnoun
Wooden instrument with six strings played with the fingers.
- queso/ˈkeso/
cheesenoun
Solid food made by curdling milk.
- mosquito/mosˈkito/
mosquitonoun
Very small flying insect that bites to suck blood.
- águila/ˈaɡila/
eaglenoun
Large bird with a curved beak that hunts other animals.
- juguete/xuˈɡete/
toynoun
Object made for children to play with.
- quemar/keˈmaɾ/
to burnverb
To destroy or damage something with fire.
- quedar/keˈdaɾ/
to stayverb
To be in a certain place, said of something that doesn't move.
- seguir/seˈɡiɾ/
to continueverb
To keep doing something without stopping.
- pequeño/peˈkeɲo/
smalladjective
Having little size.
The sentences
Nos vemos en el parque junto a los árboles.
See you at the park next to the trees.
Traigo la guitarra al parque para tocar un rato.
I'm bringing the guitar to the park to play for a while.
Traigo pan, queso y fruta para compartir.
I'm bringing bread, cheese and fruit to share.
Me picó un mosquito en el brazo otra vez.
A mosquito bit me on the arm again.
Mira, un águila enorme está volando sobre los árboles.
Look, a huge eagle is flying over the trees.
El niño dejó su juguete debajo del árbol.
The kid left his toy under the tree.
Cuidado, el sol te puede quemar la espalda.
Careful, the sun can burn your back.
¿Nos podemos quedar hasta que baje el sol?
Can we stay until the sun goes down?
Quiero seguir tocando la guitarra un rato más.
I want to keep playing the guitar a bit longer.
Le compramos un juguete pequeño para el bebé.
We bought a small toy for the baby.
Pronunciation
guitarra/ɡiˈtara/
The u is silent and the rr is trilled; the stress falls on the middle syllable, gui-TA-rra.
águila/ˈaɡila/
The stress falls on the first syllable: A-gui-la, and the u is not heard.
juguete/xuˈɡete/
The stress falls on the middle syllable: ju-GUE-te.
seguir/seˈɡiɾ/
The u in 'gui' is not pronounced, and the stress falls on the last syllable: se-GUIR.
pequeño/peˈkeɲo/
The u in 'que' is silent: pe-KE-ño.
Good to know
- la comida
- "La comida" is the midday meal, and Sunday is a common day for families to bring food to the park to eat together.
- puestos ambulantes
- Street vendors selling snacks, drinks and small toys are common in Mexican parks, especially on weekends.
- música en el parque
- It's common to see people playing guitar or other instruments casually in the park on a Sunday.
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Get the Pass7 days free, then USD 5.99 a monthToday's words are freeQuestions
- How do you say "guitar" in Spanish for this scene?
- Guitarra, as in "Traigo la guitarra al parque para tocar un rato."
- What does "quedar" mean here?
- To stay in a place, said of something that doesn't move, as in "¿Nos podemos quedar hasta que baje el sol?"
- How do you say "eagle" in Spanish?
- Águila, as in "Mira, un águila enorme está volando sobre los árboles."