Spanish Vocabulary Drills

By Ronni L. Gordon and David M. Stillman

Practice your way to a bigger vocabulary Learners! and better Spanish skills

If you want to expand your language skills, Spanish Vocabulary Drills is filled with the information and practice you need to reach optimum results. Written by bestselling language-teaching experts Ronni L. Gordon and David M. Stillman, this book features essential Spanish words grouped together into similar themes such as daily life, food, house and home, travel, holidays, technology, arts, and the economy, helping you to grasp meanings and remember terms more easily.

The unique presentation of vocabulary in context bridges the gap between words and conversation. You can practice your new vocabulary with more than 100 written exercises, including fill-in-the-blank, matching, translation, and composition. And Spanish Vocabulary Drills gives you access to an exclusive flashcard app for use on your smartphone, giving you a convenient, on-the-go tool for further language-learning reinforcement.

• Learn more than 2,500 essential terms
• Practice your vocabulary skills with more than 100 exercises
• Check your progress with a helpful answer key
• Study on-the-go with a free companion flashcard app
• Best of all, gain the confidence to communicate in Spanish!

• Language: English
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
• Release date: Sep 26, 2014
• ISBN: 9780071805018

Book preview

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Preface

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When I use a word, Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less.

Through the Looking Glass, LEWIS CARROLL

Spanish Vocabulary Drills is designed to provide beginning and intermediate learners of Spanish with essential vocabulary that will enable them to carry on conversations in Spanish, read a wide variety of materials, and write on a broad range of topics in the language. We have selected vocabulary used by the greatest number of speakers in the Spanish-speaking world, and present commonly used alternative words from Spain, Mexico, and other Latin American countries.

Spanish Vocabulary Drills goes beyond the basic vocabulary found in most first- and second-year textbooks. To this basic vocabulary, we have added high-frequency words and expressions that make it possible for learners of Spanish to express themselves effectively and confidently on everyday topics such as food, clothing, the house, the daily routine, work, travel, entertainment, and leisure activities, as well as topics of a higher intellectual level—science, the computer, technology, the economy, and intellectual and spiritual life.

Structure and features

Spanish Vocabulary Drills has 15 chapters, each built around a specific theme. Each chapter has titled sections that present groupings of similar words. Instead of presenting words in isolation, we introduce them in a meaningful context that makes learning and remembering new vocabulary easier and more productive.

Language boxes In each chapter, there are brief lexical, grammatical, and cultural explanations prompted by certain words or expressions presented. These explanations enhance the study of Spanish vocabulary by deepening the learner’s appreciation of the language and its culture.

Para hablar un español auténtico and Refranes, expresiones y citas These unique sections of idiomatic usage are designed to reinforce and expand the vocabulary presented in the chapter by preparing the learner for interaction with native speakers of Spanish. We include sayings, expressions, and quotations in Spanish that enrich and broaden the learner’s knowledge of the Spanish language.

Exercises The exercises at the end of each chapter help you master the vocabulary introduced. There is a great variety of exercise types from controlled to free expression: multiple choice, fill-in, matching, classification, word families, composition, oral presentation, and translation.

Answer key An answer key for the exercises facilitates self-study.

App Spanish Vocabulary Drills offers an all-purpose vocabulary app that allows the learner to study 450 words and expressions using digital flashcards. The app is compatible with portable devices, so it can be used anytime, anywhere. Visualization of the words on flashcards increases the learner’s ability to remember and internalize new vocabulary. This is a very effective and enjoyable way to learn and review vocabulary. See the copyright page for information on how to access the McGraw-Hill Education Language Lab app.

Spanish Vocabulary Drills gives beginners the words and phrases they need to construct simple paragraphs and oral presentations and furnishes intermediate learners with the lexical tools they need to express themselves in more complex writing tasks and oral presentations on a wide variety of topics. Even the most advanced learners will find this book helpful. User-friendly, it is ideal for learners working on their own or as an ancillary for students using a textbook in a classroom setting. Chapters may be covered in any order, making the book compatible with all texts, types of curricula, and classroom approaches, and facilitating the individualization of vocabulary practice.

Our deepest gratitude to Christopher Brown, our editor and publisher par excellence, and dear friend, for his vision, wisdom, and guidance.

We dedicate this book to Alex and Mimi, whose brilliance and love illuminate and inspire every word we write.

Ronni L. Gordon, PhD

David M. Stillman, PhD

1

En la ciudad

In the city

This chapter presents important vocabulary for traveling around the city and shopping. You will learn the Spanish words for places, sights, and stores, and how to ask for and give directions.

Spanish nouns are divided into two broad classes called masculine and feminine. The words that accompany a noun such as a, the, this, that, good change their form to reflect the gender of the noun and whether the noun is singular or plural.

The definite article the is el before a masculine singular noun but la before a feminine singular noun. El changes to los before a masculine plural noun, and la becomes las before a feminine plural noun.

Quedar means to be (situated) and is used to show permanent location, for example, of a building. Spanish verbs change form depending on whether the subject is singular or plural. Queda is used when the subject is singular. Quedan is used when the subject is plural.

When two nouns are joined by de to form a compound noun, the definite article is omitted before the second noun. The order of the nouns is the reverse of their English equivalents: la oficina de turismo tourist office, la sala de conciertos concert hall, la estación de tren train station.

To form the plural, Spanish adds -s to nouns ending in a vowel and -es to nouns ending in a consonant.

The indefinite article a, an is un before a masculine singular noun but una before a feminine singular noun. Un changes to unos before a masculine plural noun, and una becomes unas before a feminine plural noun.

The verb hay there is, there are can be used with both singular and plural nouns.

Yo I is the first-person singular subject pronoun. Conozco I know, I am familiar with is the first-person singular form (yo) of the present tense of the verb conocer . The present tense yo-form of almost all verbs has the ending -o.

Spanish has two verbs that mean to be: ser and estar . Estar is used to express location or position, whether temporary or permanent. It is conjugated in the present tense as follows: yo estoy, tó estás, él/ella está, nosotros estamos, vosotros estáis, ellos/ellas están.

Quiero I want is the first-person singular form (yo) of the present tense of the verb querer (e > ie) . Quiero means I want and is used here before an infinitive, comprar to buy: quiero comprar I want to buy.

Demonstrative adjectives in Spanish agree in gender and number with the nouns they modify. The four forms for this/these are este (masculine singular), esta (feminine singular), estos (masculine plural), and estas (feminine plural).

The verb salir to go out, to leave is connected to the designation of place by the preposition de : salir del banco, salir de la tienda . The verb entrar to go in, to enter is connected to the designation of place by the prepositions a or en : entrar al / en el cine, entrar a/en la oficina.

Para hablar un español auténtico

There are two contractions in Spanish. The masculine article el combines with the preposition de to form del of the and with a to form al to the. These prepositions do not contract with other forms of the definite article: la, los, las.

Refranes, expresiones y citas

«Granada es una ciudad de ocio, una ciudad para la contemplación y la fantasí.»

FEDERICO GARCÍA