Spanish Word of the Day

Quote: Wizard

It seems to me in Spanish the "it" is often omitted because it is implied. For example, I think if you wanted to say "It is snowing." you would say Está Nevando. No need to put something for "it" because it is implied, as you seem to be saying.

Yes. While English uses the dummy pronoun "it" Spanish simply conjugates verbs in 3rd person only for weather:
amanecer (to dawn), anochecer (to get dark), helar (to freeze), granizar (to hail), llover (to rain), nevar (to snow), relampaguear (to flash lightning) and tronar (to thunder)

Grammatically, the word "impersonal" is used in both cases. In English it is an "impersonal" pronoun, in Spanish it is an "impersonal" verb.

I am not sure how you would translate the following sentence


Joe Hayes said I sometimes think I should have gone with the technically incorrect, but more popularly used verb form "El dia que llovio tortillas."

Quote: Pacomartin

Joe Hayes said I sometimes think I should have gone with the technically incorrect, but more popularly used verb form "El dia que llovio tortillas."

I hope he will somebody write something explaining the grammar of both titles, including what is incorrect about what you just wrote.

Okay, I'm starting to get the feeling that Spanish stories tend to end in sentences that are very difficult to translate. Por ejemplo:

1. Y, zapatito roto, te toca a ti contarme otro.
2. Y, colorín colorado, este cuento se ha acabado.

¿What the &#%*?

amazon link to Joe Hayes book

You can read his account at the end of the book. He published the story under both titles, but there was so much disagreement that they wrote to the RAE and got a formal ruling directly from them backed up by examples from their corpus. The RAE said the plural "nevaron" was correct (with no "de" or "se" in the sentence).

Quote: Wizard

colorín colorado, este cuento se ha acabado.

we actually discussed this phrase earlier. It is a nonsensical rhyme that is the traditional way to end a Spanish fairy tale.


It's not really differant than
TICK TACK PADDY WACK - GIVE THE DOG A BONE

Quote: Pacomartin

It is a nonsensical rhyme that is the traditional way to end a Spanish fairy tale.

99 times out of a hundred, all rhymes in all languages are silly and/or nonsensical. The genius in poetry comes not from finding rhymes, but in finding something meaningful to say in rhyme.

Quote: Nareed

The genius in poetry comes not from finding rhymes, but in finding something meaningful to say in rhyme.

My idea of good poetry begins with "There was an old man from Nantucket."

All of these phrases are standard endings to fairy tales.

…y fueron felices y comieron perdices.

…y fueron felices, comieron perdices y nos dieron con los huesos en las narices.

…zapatito roto, usted me cuente otro.

…los cuentos se los lleva el viento.

…y colorín colorado, este cuento se ha acabado.

…y colorín colorete, por la chimenea se escapó el cohete.

…esto es verdad y no miento y como me contaron lo cuento.

…y se acabó el cuento de Periquito Sarmiento que lo llevó el viento. Puso tres pilitas: una para Juan, otra para Pedro y otra para el que hablase primero.

…y así se cuenta y se vuelve a contar este puentecito de nunca acabar.

After taking this test I feel I don't know a damn thing about Spanish.

Quote: Pacomartin

…y fueron felices y comieron perdices.

And they went happy and ate partridges.

Quote: Pacomartin

…y fueron felices, comieron perdices y nos dieron con los huesos en las narices.

And they went happy and ate partridges y they tell us with the bones in the noses.

Quote: Pacomartin

…zapatito roto, usted me cuente otro.

Broken shoe, tell me another one.

Quote: Pacomartin

…los cuentos se los lleva el viento.

The stories are gone with the wind.

Quote: Pacomartin

…y colorín colorado, este cuento se ha acabado.

And color it red, this story had ended.
Note: What exactly is the verb tense colorín?

Quote: Pacomartin

…y colorín colorete, por la chimenea se escapó el cohete.

And color it rouge, by the fireplace escapes the rocket.

Quote: Pacomartin

…esto es verdad y no miento y como me contaron lo cuento.

That is true and I can't lie y as it was told to me I tell it to you.

Quote: Pacomartin

…y se acabó el cuento de Periquito Sarmiento que lo llevó el viento. Puso tres pilitas: una para Juan, otra para Pedro y otra para el que hablase primero.

What is a pilita?

Quote: Pacomartin

…y así se cuenta y se vuelve a contar este puentecito de nunca acabar.

And so is the story and return to tell it to this little bridge that never ends.

Quote: Wizard

After taking this test I feel I don't know a damn thing about Spanish.

What is a pilita?

Well, I didn't mean it so much as a test, as a compilation of well known phrases from the tradition of story telling. Most of the fairy tales we are familiar with were published over 400 years ago.

A pilita is a "little pile". Presumably if you were telling stories with children you would divide up candies into three little pile. One for John, one for Pedro and one for whomever speaks first (to tell another story).

El Periquillo Sarniento is the first Latin American novel to be published after independence, translated as "The Mangy Parrot".