If you’re not sure whether to use buongiorno or buonasera, there are plenty of different ways to formally say hello that don’t depend on the time of day. Come sta? means “How are you?” and can be used in any formal context. Mi scusi means “excuse me” and is a good starter...
You’ll notice a common theme among many ways to say goodbye in Spanish. Adiós— Goodbye Adiósshould be your basic go-to word whenever you’re not sure how to appropriately say goodbye. That’s because it’s incredibly common and can be used formally or informally. It’s also the closi...
I speak French, German, and Spanish, and I’m busy working on learning Russian and Chinese. One of the things I’ve learned is if you say something in your limited language and someone doesn’t seem to understand it, rephrase it and say it again. If they still don’t understand, reph...
Friendship is a universal concept, but the words we use to express it can vary widely depending on the culture and region. In Spanish, the slang words for “friend” reflects the incredible diversity of the language across different countries—in fact, there are over 100 ways to say it. Be...
In English, people use “you” generically (e.g., “You win some you lose some”) to express and interpret norms. Here, we examine how norms are conveyed and interpreted in Spanish, a language that—unlike English—has two forms of you (i.e., formal, informal), distinct generic ...
If you are parting company, or heading to bed for the evening, say “Spokojnoj Nochi,” which sounds like "spah-kohy-nuhy noh-chee." This phrase may be used both formally and informally. You may also use “Poka,” a phrase used in very informal settings. It sounds ...
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When starting a day at a school or workplace in China, it’s rarer to hear someone sayingzǎoshang hǎounless they’re speaking quite formally. You might greet the school headmistress that way. Or she might greet you that way. There’s nothingwrongwith wishing someone a good morning in ...
Desu is added if the word is being used formally. You may recognize the -nai part of the ending if you’re already familiar with Japanese verb conjugations. Dictionary form Negative form English 小さい(ちいさい)chiisai 小さくないですchiisakunai desu is not small 大きい(おおきい)ōkii...
Sometimes, placing the stress on the wrong syllable completely changes the word. The word ADdress, for instance, isn’t the same as the word adDRESS. ADdress refers to a physical location where someone lives, and adDRESS means to formally speak to a group of people. ...