Blog | Above Marketing Inc.

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 17

Halla, haya, and aya. Very different meanings! The majority of Spanish speaking people pronounces “ll” and “y” the same way, but it is important to be aware of the difference in writing among Halla, haya and aya. Haya- It can be a verb or a noun. As a verb, it is the first and third person singular of the verb “Haber” in present subjunctive. Examples: Espero que Luis haya aprobado. Ni cree que el niño se haya vestido solo. As a noun, it is a feminine word and it means a type of tree. Examples: Hay que podar el haya del jardín. Se sentó a la sombra de una frondosa haya. Halla- It is the third person singular of the indicative present, or the second person (tú) of the verb “Hallar” in singular

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 16

Has vs. Haz. What is the difference? “Has” corresponds to the verb “Haber”, and it is the second person of the present perfect tense. For example: ¿Has comido ya? “Haz” is the command (imperative) for the verb “Hacer”. For example: ¡Hazlo! Source: www.rae.es

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 15

Dequeismo. Anyone familiar with this term? If you went to school in a Spanish speaking country, you might remember it from your Spanish class. "Dequeismo" is using the preposition “de” with “a menos que”, which La Real Academia de la Lengua advices to avoid. It is common to hear people saying: No acepta participar en una película, a menos de que esté completamente convencido. El crecimiento de Estados Unidos seguirá débil, a menos de que la productividad suba inesperadamente. La península de Yucatán estaría fuera de peligro, a menos de que ese sistema ciclónico retrocediera. But, the correct way to say the phrases above is: No acepta participar en una película, a menos que esté completamente

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 14

Los ciudadanos y las ciudadanas, los niños y las niñas, los alumnos y las alumnas I hear this question a lot when translating from English to Spanish. Do I need to translate the pronouns that refer to animated beings as both, masculine and feminine? For example, “boys and girls” to “los niñas y las niñas”? The answer is no. For pronouns that refer to animated beings you can use the masculine generic to designate the category: “Todos los ciudadanos mayores de edad tienen derecho a voto”, instead of “Todos los ciudadanos y las ciudadanas mayores de edad tienen derecho a voto.” The only exception when a feminine mention is necessary is when the opposition of genders is relevant in the context:

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 13

The adverb “solo” and the demonstrative pronouns, no accent marks anymore The word “solo”, when it is an adverb and means “solamente” (Solo llevaba un par de monedas en el bolsillo), as when it is an adjective (No me gusta estar solo), and the demonstratives “este”, “ese” and “aquel” in feminine and plurals modes as well, when they are pronouns (Este es tonto; Quiero aquella) or determiners (aquellos tipos, la chica esa) should not have an accent mark according to the general accent rules. Previous grammar rules advised on the use of accent marks in the adverb “solo” and the demonstrative pronouns so there was no confusion with the adjective “solo” and the demonstrative determiners, when bot

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 32

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 31

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 30

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 17

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 16

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 15

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 14

¡La Esquina de la Gramática! Rule 13