Autorentext

Gail Stein, MA has more than 30 years' experience teaching languages in New York City public junior and senior high schools. She is also the author of Spanish Workbook For Dummies. Cecie Kraynak, MA has taught and tutored Spanish for more than 30 years. She is the author of Spanish For Dummies, Spanish Verbs For Dummies, and Spanish All-In-One For Dummies.

Klappentext

The perfect guide for new Spanish learners and anyone looking for an expert refresher Interested in a fast and effective guide to learning Spanish that avoids fluff and focuses on key concepts that you need to know to improve your ability to speak, write, and understand the language? Spanish Essentials For Dummies, 2nd Edition walks you through Spanish fundamentals you can use for at-home, solo learning, to supplement your progress in a Spanish class, or as a companion to language instruction. Inside:

• Get practical tips on Spanish grammar, pronunciation, and sentence structure
• See conversational Spanish examples to amplify your learning

• Understand all the core concepts taught and tested in a typical introductory Spanish course Perfect for Spanish students looking for a quick reference to supplement classroom or app-assisted Spanish learning, Spanish Essentials For Dummies, 2nd Edition is a great resource for everyone looking to brush up on their conversational Spanish.

  Inhalt

  Introduction 1

  About This Book 1

  Foolish Assumptions 2

  Icons Used in This Book 2

  Where to Go from Here 3

  Chapter 1: Brushing Up on the Basics 5

  Pronouncing Properly 5

  Voicing vowels 6

  Practicing diphthongs and vowel combinations 6

  Verbalizing consonants 7

  Understanding stress and diacritical marks 8

  Counting Down 9

  Using cardinal numbers 10

  Using ordinal numbers 13

  Dealing with Dates 14

  Expressing the days of the week 14

  Naming the months of the year 15

  Making a date 16

  Telling Time 17

  Identifying Parts of Speech 20

  Using nouns 20

  Substituting pronouns 21

  Acting with verbs 21

  Describing with adjectives 22

  Clarifying with adverbs 22

  Joining with prepositions 23

  Chapter 2: Embracing the Gender Gap 25

  Being Specific with Definite Articles 25

  Identifying the definite articles 26

  Using definite articles 26

  Omitting the definite articles 28

  Contracting with definite articles 28

  Table of Contents iii

  Being General with Indefinite Articles 28

  Identifying the indefinite articles 29

  Omitting indefinite articles 29

  Being Demonstrative with Adjectives 30

  Explaining Gender 31

  Determining the gender of nouns 31

  Doing an about face with gender 32

  Using the same noun for both genders 33

  Changing the meaning of nouns 33

  Understanding special nouns 34

  Forming Plural Nouns 35

  Showing Possession 36

  Using de 37

  Employing possessive adjectives 37

  Substituting with Object Pronouns 39

  Dealing with direct object pronouns 39

  Understanding the personal a 40

  Coping with indirect object pronouns 41

  Choosing the proper pronoun 42

  Constructing sentences with gustar 44

  Positioning object pronouns 46

  Doing double duty 47

  Chapter 3: Living in the Present 49

  Identifying Types of Verbs 49

  Selecting Subject Pronouns 50

  Being inclusive 50

  Using subject pronouns 52

  Omitting subject pronouns 54

  Communicating in the Present Tense 55

  Recognizing regular verbs 56

  Changing verb stems 57

  Changing the spelling of verbs 62

  Modifying verbs with two changes 63

  Using irregular verbs 63

  Communicating with irregular verbs 65

  Spotting reflexive verbs 67

  Making Progress with the Present Progressive 71

  Using estar to form the present progressive 71

  Understanding present participles 72

  Chapter 4: Being Descriptive 75

  Adding Color with Adjectives 75

  Making adjectives agree 75

  Positioning adjectives 81

  Shortening certain adjectives 82

  Describing Actions with Adverbs 82

  Forming adverbs 82

  Positioning adverbs 85

  Making Comparisons 85

  Conveying equality 85

  Stating inequality 85

  Articulating the superlative 86

  Communicating irregular comparisons 86

  Expressing the absolute superlative 87

  Linking with Prepositions 88

  Selecting the correct one 89

  Using prepositions with verbs 92

  Using the right pronoun after a preposition 95

  Chapter 5: Making Inquiries 97

  Posing a Yes/No Question 97

  Using intonation 98

  Employing the tags " No? and verdad?" 98

  Using inversion 99

  Responding to a Yes/No Question 99

  Staying positive 100

  Being negative 100

  Getting the Facts 103

  Using interrogative adjectives 103

  Getting information with interrogative adverbs 104

  Employing interrogative pronouns 105

  Providing Information 107

  Chapter 6: Reliving the Past 109

  Living in the Past 109

  Forming the preterit of regular verbs 110

  Forming the preterit of spelling change verbs 111

  Constructing the preterit with verbs with stem changes 112

  Forming the preterit of irregular verbs 113

  Using the preterit 116

  Reminiscing with the Imperfect 117

  Forming the imperfect of regular verbs 117

  Forming the imperfect of irregular verbs 118

  Using the imperfect 119

  Choosing the Preterit or the Imperfect 120

  Signaling the preterit 120

  Signaling the imperfect 121

  Creating the Present Perfect 122

  Forming the present perfect 122

  Using the present perfect 124

  Chapter 7: Looking to the Future 127

  Talking about the Future without Using the Future Tense 127

  Using the present to express the future 127

  Expressing the near future 128

  Mastering the Future Tense 128

  Forming the future of regular verbs 128

  Forming the future of irregular verbs 130

  Using the Future to Foretell, Predict, and Wonder 131

  Chapter 8: Understanding Verb Moods and the Conditional 133

  Giving Commands with the Imperative Mood 134

  Forming commands with Ud and Uds 134

  Forming commands with tú 135

  Forming the let's command 136

  Forming the Present Subjunctive 137

  Creating the present subjunctive of regular verbs 137

  Working with verbs irregular in the yo form 138

  Tackling verbs with spelling changes 139

  Coping with stem changes 141

  Understanding verbs with both spelling and stem changes 143

  Conjugating irregular verbs 144

  Using the Present Subjunctive 144

  Expressing your desires, needs, or doubts 146

  Demonstrating feelings or emotions 148

  Employing impersonal expressions 149

  Using relative clauses 151

  Examining the Present Perfect Subjunctive 152

  Making Actions Conditional 153

  Forming the conditional of regular verbs 153

  Exploring verbs with irregular conditional forms 154

  Using the conditional 155

  Chapter 9: Ten Key Verb Distinctions 157

  Ser versus Estar 157

  Saber versus Conocer 159

  Tomar versus Llevar 159

  Deber versus Tener Que 160

  Preguntar versus Pedir 160

  Jugar versus Tocar 160

  Gastar versus Pasar 161

  Dejar versus Salir 161

  Volver versus Devolver 161

  Poder versus Saber 161

  Appendix: Verb Charts 163

  Index 177