Have you ever ventured to use a word in another language without making sure of its meaning first? The answer is probably yes. And it’s also very likely that you have felt embarrassed at least once because you accidently said something completely different or even nonsense.

In today's post, we bring you a compilation of 20 false friends (also called “cognates”) so that next time, appearances won’t fool you. Ready?

Click here to read the post in Spanish.

What are false friends?

False friends are words in another language that sound similar to a word in our language but have a different meaning. As the term indicates, false friends can play dirty tricks on us if we trust them blindly just because they sound or look familiar. While it is true that these words often have a common etymology, they evolved differently, giving rise to distinct meanings.

The term “false friend” comes from the French faux-ami and was introduced by Koessler and Derocquigny in their book Les faux-amis ou les trahisons du vocabulaire anglais (False Friends, or, the Treacheries of English Vocabulary) published in 1928.

List of 20 English - Spanish false friends

1. Actualmente does not mean “actually” (never mind how much we insist):

• Actualmente: currently

• Actually: en realidad

2. In Spanish, if someone gives you an aviso, they are not giving a piece of advice:

• Aviso: notice, warning

• Advice: consejo, recomendación

3. Atender does not mean "attend" (although they are similar):

• Atender: pay attention, help

• Attend: asistir, estar presente

4. In Spanish, when they say that somebody is bizarro, it does not mean that they are strange nor bizarre:

• Bizarro: brave, courageous

• Bizarre: raro, extraño

5. Moreover, Spanish speakers don’t use carpetas to make the floor warmer in winter:

• Carpeta: folder

• Carpet: alfombra, moqueta

6. The term comodidad does not really have anything to do with commodity:

• Comodidad: amenity, comfort

• Commodity: product, mercancía

7. In addition, a complemento is not something to say thank you for:

• Complemento: accessory

• Compliment: cumplido, halago

8. If a Spanish speaker says that they are constipado, they are not being too honest:

• Constipado: have a cold

• Constipated: extreñido

9. In Spanish, discutir is a bit stronger than “discuss”:

• Discutir: argue, have an argument

• Discuss: hablar, exponer, debatir

10. An embarazada has nothing to be ashamed of:

• Embarazada: pregnant

• Embarrassed: avergonzado/-ada

11. Eventualmente is a frequency adverb for Spanish speakers:

• Eventualmente: occasionally

• Eventually: al final, después de todo

12. Éxito is not a way nor passage out, but something to be proud of:

• Éxito: success

• Exit: salida

13. Although it also refers to size, largo is not the same as “large”:

• Largo: long

• Large: grande

14. Spanish people don’t go to the librería to study:

• Librería: bookstore

• Library: biblioteca

15. In Spanish, when somebody pretende something, you can usually trust them:

• Pretender: hope, expect

• Pretend: fingir, simular

16. Realizar has a lot to do with dreaming for Spanish speakers:

• Realizar: make, fulfill

•Realize: darse cuenta

17. If somebody tells you they’re sensible in Spanish, you’d probably need to be tactful:

• Sensible (Spanish): sensitive

• Sensible (English): sensato

18. In Spain, a suburbio is not a nice place to live in:

• Suburbio: slum, ghetto

• Suburb: barrio residencial, afueras

19. When a Spanish speaker says something is terrorífico, they are not normally very happy:

• Terrorífico: terrifying, horrific

• Terrific: genial, espectacular

20. And finally, a tópico is not a subject of discussion, but a word related to stereotypes:

• Tópico: cliché

• Topic: tema

Perhaps this short list of Spanish false friends has given you a new appreciation for professional translators. Think of the disastrous consequences of telling a client you’ve found a new property that’s ideally located in a suburbio! Let this be a reminder (or a warning!) that if you ever need language translation services, it’s important to work with professionals to avoid embarrassing mistakes that may ruin your reputation!

At don Quijote, we hope not only that you’ve enjoyed today’s post, but also that you find it useful and are spared some awkward situations. We encourage you to share this post with your true friends to save them from falling into the trap of false friends when speaking a different language.

Today’s Spanish grammar topic is gender and number agreement. Let’s jump right in!

Read this grammar guide in Spanish.

Gender and Adjective Agreement in Spanish

Examples:

• La escuela [femenino singular] es bonita [femenino singular]
• Los manuales [masculino plural] son prácticos [masculino plural]
• Los estudiantes [masculino plural] son simpáticos [masculino plural]
• El café [masculino singular] es barato [masculino singular]

Examples:

• Mi compañero es muy amable
• Nuestro profesor es budista
• Mozart fue un músico precoz
• El animal salvaje más peligroso de África es el búfalo

Variable adjectives: these adjectives become female by adding -a. They can be divided into two groups:

1. Masculine adjectives that end in -o, -ete, or -ote

Examples:

• Ending in -o: bonito/-a; feo/-a; cansado/-a
• Ending in -ete: regordete/-a; guapete/-a;
• Ending in -ote: grandote/-a; malote/-a

1. Masculine adjectives that end in a consonant

Examples:

• Trabajador/-a; andaluz/-a; chillón/-a

Number and Adjective Agreement in Spanish

• Examples: precoz/(c)-es; azul/-es

• By adding  -s: for adjectives that end in a vowel, when the last syllable is unstressed
  • Examples: bueno/-s; bonito/-s; barato/-s
• By adding -es: for adjectives that end in a vowel when the last syllable is stressed, or adjectives that end in a consonant
  • Examples: ceutí/-es; ideal/-es

Need some practice? Travel to Spain and Latin America to learn Spanish and see the world.

Thanks to Lucas from our school in Seville for teaching us how adjectives work in Spanish.

When our students use a dictionary — whether it’s a physical one or an application installed on their phone — to look up the Spanish verbs saber and conocer, they usually find the same translation for both words: in English, to know. As a result, in addition to realizing their search was pretty useless, they start to feel a bit stressed as they remember other classic Spanish grammar issues they’ve studied, like the differences between ser and estar or por vs. para.

Today we aim to ease your mind by explaining the differences between saber and conocer. If you want to read this post in Spanish, click here.

Since both verbs have very similar meanings, and in many languages a single verb is used to translate both of them, we recommend you keep the following cheat sheet in mind:

When to use SABER

We use the verb saber to talk about knowledge we have acquired through instruction, training, study, or any other means.

• Sabemos cuál es la capital de Bolivia, sabemos las reglas de juego del baloncesto, sabemos los verbos irregulares o sabemos el significado de una palabra.
  •  (We know what the capital of Bolivia is, we know the rules of the game of basketball, we know irregular verbs, and we know the meaning of a word.)

We also use saber to talk about abilities.

• Sabemos hablar español, sabemos nadar, sabemos dibujar o sabemos preparar una paella.
  •  (We know how to speak Spanish, we know how to swim, we know how to draw, and we know how to make a paella.)

When to use CONOCER

We use the verb conocer to talk about knowledge we have gained through experience (or perception).  

• Conocemos a los padres de mi novia, conocemos el norte de España o conocemos el mejor sitio para comer paella en la ciudad. 
  •  (We know my girlfriend’s parents, we have been to* the north of Spain, or we know the best place to eat paella in the city.)

*Note that conocer + a place means that you have been there

SABER vs. CONOCER

Take a look at these pairs of sentences:

1. Sé el calor que hace en Málaga en verano.
   • (I know how hot it gets in Malaga in summer.)
2. Conozco el calor que hace en Málaga en verano.
   • (I know how hot it gets in Malaga in summer.)

In the first case (a), we are referring to knowledge that we have acquired through studying or reading about the weather in Malaga.

In the second case (b), we are talking about a lived experience we have had. We have personally enjoyed/suffered the summer heat in Malaga.

1. Sé quién es el jefe de estudios.
   • (I know who the director of studies is.)
2. Conozco al jefe de estudios.
   • (I know the director of studies.)

In the latter case (b) we know the director of studies personally (we have talked to him, said hi to him, or asked him a question at some point or another).

In the former case (a) we know his identity (who he is, what his name is, where his office is) but haven’t actually had the pleasure of meeting him in person.

Now that you know the difference between saber and conocer, we invite you to put what you’ve learned into practice on the ground. Visit one of our 32 destinations in Spain and Latin America!

Thanks to Ramón from our school in Malaga for writing this post.

Welcome to the second part of our por vs. para guide. Last week, we went over the common uses of por and para (cause and purpose, respectively). So, this time around we’ll focus on the different ways to use por and para. Let’s begin!

Click here to read this grammar guide in Spanishs.

Uses of por

• FREQUENCY
  • Voy a clase cinco veces por semana
    • (I go to class five times per week)
• APPROXIMATE PLACE
  • don Quijote está por el centro de la ciudad
    • (don Quijote is around the downtown area)
• WAY OR MEANS OF DOING SOMETHING
  • Me ha enviado la tarea por correo electrónico
    • (The homework was sent to me via email)
• PRICE
  • Te vendo este manual de español por 35 €
    • (I’ll sell you this Spanish guide for €35)
• DISTRIBUTION
  • Hay un máximo de 8 estudiantes por clase
    • (There’s a maximum of 8 students per class)
• = IN EXCHANGE FOR
  • Te doy este bolígrafo por tu goma de borrar
    • (I’ll trade you this pen for your eraser)

Uses of para

• = TO A PLACE
  • Si vas para Barcelona este fin de semana avísame y vamos juntos
    • (If you’re going to Barcelona this weekend, let me know and we can go together)
• SPECIFIC DEADLINE
  • La tarea debe estar lista para este viernes como fecha límite
    • (The homework must be ready by this Friday at the latest)
• RECIPIENT
  • Esta carpeta es para ti, se la damos a todos los estudiantes de don Quijote
    • (This folder is for you, we give one to all don Quijote students)
• OPINION
  • Para mí el subjuntivo no es tan difícil como dicen
    • In my opinion, the subjective isn’t as difficult as it’s made out to be
• = “ALTHOUGH”
  • Para llevar estudiando español solo un año, hablas muy bien
    • For only have studied Spanish for a year, you speak very well

As you can see, there are lots of different ways to use por and para! The best way to really get the hang of how to use por and para in different contexts is by spending time with native Spanish speakers. We have Spanish schools in Spain and 12 different Latin American countries. So you can choose your dream destination and come learn Spanish with us to get all the por and para practice you need!

Thanks to Lucas from our Spanish school in Seville for writing this week’s post.

Along with ser and estar, one of the most common Spanish grammar difficulties that drive students crazy is knowing how to tell the difference between por and para.

In our experience, the trouble arises due to two main problems:

1. As with other prepositions, translating the Spanish into students’ native language doesn’t always work
2. In many languages, there’s only one preposition for the main uses of both por and para

We’ll help you overcome these common stumbling blocks so you can clearly understand when to use por and para and how your choice can change the meaning of the sentence. Click here to read this post in Spanish.

Por indicates the cause

The preposition por is used to point to the cause, motive, or reason of an action, the “why” behind it. Let’s see some examples:

[ por + noun ] Luis se ha mudado a Barcelona por trabajo.

(Luis moved to Barcelona for work.)

[ por + pronoun ] He preparado una paella por ti.

                (He prepared a paella for you.)

[ por + infinitive ] Ha perdido el trabajo por llegar tarde.

                (He lost his job because he arrived late.)

Para indicates the purpose

Para is used to indicate the purpose or objective of an action. For example:

[ para + infinitive ] Me he levantado más temprano para llegar a tiempo.

                I got up earlier in order to arrive on time.

[ para que + subjunctive ] He comprado arroz para que prepares una paella.

                I bought rice for you to make a paella.

[ para + noun ] Ya tengo las entradas para la película.

                I already have the tickets for the movie.

Comparing por and para

It can get complicated when we have an action that can be both the cause and the purpose of another main action. In these cases, it’s important that we clearly understand the meaning we want to give our sentence before we decide whether to use por or para. Here are some examples:

Ana ha ido a Madrid por trabajo. (Ana went to Madrid for work).

Work was the cause of Ana’s trip to Madrid. For example, she had a meeting there.

Ana ha ido a Madrid para trabajar. (Ana went to Madrid to work.)

Work was the objective of Ana’s trip to Madrid. For example, she went to look for a job there.

He hecho gazpacho por ti. (I made gazpacho for you.)

I made the food because I know you like it. You are the reason, the cause.

He hecho gazpacho para ti. (I made gazpacho for you.)

I made the food so that you will eat it. You are the recipient of the action.

Questions

When we ask a question, we have to know if we’re asking about the cause (por qué or why) or the purpose (para qué or for what). Often, when we ask por qué (cause), the answer can refer to the cause (por, porque) or the objective (para), and vice versa. For example:

¿Por qué vas a estudiar español en don Quijote?

(Why are you going to study Spanish at don Quijote?)

(Cause) Porque tengo un examen en mi país y necesito ayuda.

                (Because I have an exam in my home country and I need help.)

(Purpose) Para hacer el DELE la próxima convocatoria.

                (In order to take the upcoming DELE exam.)

¿Para qué vas a hacer el DELE?

                (What are you taking the DELE for?)

(Cause) Porque quiero obtener la nacionalidad española.

                (Because I want to get Spanish nationality.)

(Purpose) Para matricularme en un máster en una universidad española.

                (To enroll in a master’s program at a Spanish university.)

Por, backwards. Para, forwards.

From a cognitive perspective, we can say that the cause (por) is behind the main action (it pushes or motivates the action from behind), while the purpose (para) is in front of the action, like the dangling carrot that makes the donkey walk forward.

por + cause >>>>>>>>>> main action

main action >>>>>>>>>> para + purpose

That pretty much sums it up! To get more por and para practice, sign up for one of our Spanish courses in Spain and Latin America. Between getting help from our experienced teachers and listening to how people talk as you experience everyday life in Spanish, you’ll be an expert on por and para before you know it.

A special thanks to Jose Ramón from our school in Malaga for writing this quick and easy por vs. para guide. 

One of the classic questions we’re often asked by our Spanish students is when to use ser and when to use estar. In today’s post, we’ll try to answer the main questions about ser vs. estar by looking at each verb separately to see how it’s used. In a future post, we will go over cases in which we can choose to use either ser or estar and see how the meaning of the sentence changes. Click here to read this post in Spanish. Let’s get into it!

We use ser in the following situations:

To identify:

• Our identity: “Soy Mandi” (I am Mandi)
• Our nationality: “Soy china/soy de China” (I am Chinese/I’m from China)
• Our profession or hobby: “Soy estudiante/Soy abogado/Soy deportista” (I am a student/I am a lawyer/I am an athlete)
• Our beliefs: “Soy musulmán/judío/católico/budista/…” (I am Muslim/Jewish/Catholic/Buddhist/etc.)

To describe:

• Our physical characteristics: “Soy alto/bajo/delgado/grueso/fuerte…” (I am tall/short/thin/heavy/strong/etc.)
• Our abilities: “Soy inteligente/listo/tonto/...” (I am intelligent/smart/dumb/etc.)
• Our personality: “Soy alegre/abierto/extrovertido/tímido/…” (I am cheerful/receptive/extroverted/shy/etc.)
• Our relationships: “Sophie es mi hermana/Soy primo de Tomoyo/Soy novia de Giovanni” (Sophie is my sister/I am Tomoyo’s cousin/I am Giovanni’s girlfriend)
• The material something is made of: “La mesa es de madera/metal/plástico…” (The table is made of wood/metal/plastic/etc.)

To locate events:

• In a place: “El concierto es en el estadio de fútbol” (The concert is in the soccer stadium)
• On a specific date: “La clase sobre ser y estar es el martes/en abril/la semana próxima…” (The class about ser and estar is on Tuesday/in April/next week/etc.)
• In a period of time: “Las rebajas son en primavera/verano/otoño/invierno” (The sales are in spring/summer/fall/winter)
• At a specific time: “La conferencia es a la una de la tarde” (The conference is at 1 p.m.)

To talk about the price of something when the cost is stable: ¿Cuánto es el café? Es 1,20€ (How much is the coffee? It is €1.20)

We use estar in the following contexts:

To describe:

• Our mood: Hoy estoy contento porque he aprobado el DELE (Today I am happy because I passed the DELE exam)
• Our physical characteristics that can change: “Zoe ha ido a la playa y ahora está muy morena”/Katie ha hecho dieta y ahora está más delgada” (Zoe went to the beach and now she is very tan/Katie has been dieting and now she is thinner)
• Our marital status: “Tatiana está casada/soltera/divorciada” (Tatiana is married/single/divorced)
• The way in which something has been made/built: “El anillo está hecho en plata/con oro/a mano” (The ring is made in silver/with gold/by hand)

To locate physical spaces: “Nuestra escuela de español en Sevilla está en el centro de la ciudad, muy cerca del mercado” (Our Spanish school in Seville is downtown, very close to the market)

When using the preposition a or en to indicate:

• A date: “Estamos a 24 de julio del 2019” (Today is July 24, 2019)
• A season: “Estamos en primavera/verano/otoño/invierno” (We are in spring/summer/fall/winter)

To talk about the price of something when the value is not stable: “La gasolina está a casi cinco euros el litro”/Los tomates están a unos cuatro euros el kilo” (Gas is at almost five euros a liter/Tomatoes are at about four euros a kilo)

Esperamos que estéis contentos con la explicación, aunque como sois muy listos con un poco de práctica no vais a tener ningún problema para entenderla. (We hope you are happy with the explanation, although since you are very smart, with a bit of practice you will have no problem understanding it.)

A special thanks to Lucas, our Director of Studies in Seville, for this detailed explanation of when to use ser vs. estar.

The Spanish verb haber is a common source of confusion for many Spanish learners, but it’s easy to use once you get the hang of it. The best part is that haber has only one form in each verb tense: you don’t have to conjugate it! Today’s quick Spanish grammar lesson will teach you how to use haber and how it’s different from the verb estar. Read on in English or click here for the Spanish version of this post.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Understanding the Differences Between Haber and Estar

1. Haber is an impersonal verb. This means that it doesn’t have the six usual forms for each person (yo, tú, él, nosotros, vosotros, ellos). It has only one form, which is hay in the present tense.
2. We use haber to indicate the location of people, objects, or places in a general way when we don’t know the people, objects, or places we’re talking about.
   • For example, in the sentence Hay un teléfono en la mesa (There is a telephone on the table), we don’t know what telephone it is or who owns it, and in the sentence Hay cuatro alumnos en la clase (There are four students in the class), we don’t know who the students are.
3. Estar can also be used to refer to the location of people, objects, and places, but in a concrete way, when we know the things we are talking about
   • For example, in the sentence Mi teléfono está en la mesa (My phone is on the table), we’re talking about a specific phone, my phone. In the sentence Pierre, Elena, Mohammed y Jennifer están en la clase (Pierre, Elena, Mohammed, and Jennifer are in the class), we’re referring not to four students in general but to these specific four students.

4. If we look at the examples above (2 and 3), we can see that haber doesn’t change (hay + singular subject; hay + plural subject), while estar does (está or están, depending on the subject).
5. We also use haber to talk about things that do or do not exist, especially when referring to abstract nouns: No hay tiempo, tenemos que salir ya (There is no time, we have to leave now) or uncountable nouns: ¿Hay café? (Is there any coffee?).
6. Up to this point, we have only used examples in the present tense. Hay is the impersonal form of the verb haber in the present. In other verb tenses, the third person singular is used to express the impersonal form: Hubo un acccidente en el centro (There was an accident downtown) or No había nadie en la clase (There was nobody in the class).

Si no hay preguntas (If there aren’t any questions), that brings us to the end of today’s Spanish grammar review. A special thanks to José Ramón Rodríguez, one of our teachers in Malaga, for sharing his expertise.

If you study Spanish you have probably heard this verb more than once in your classes, in a conversation, on TV..., although it is quite possible that you still do not understand what it means exactly or how you should use it. If so, don't worry! Your doubt is the same as that of many other students, because the verb quedar has many uses and meanings.

In this article we want to help you better understand the verb quedar in Spanish. So read on or click here to switch to the English version of the article.

Quedar con alguien

Quedar con alguien means to meet a person intentionally, usually at a certain time and place. In other words, it is the verb we use to meet someone.

• Los domingos quedo con mis padres y vamos a comer fuera (On Sundays I meet up with my parents and we go to eat out).
• ¿Quedamos mañana para ir al cine? (Shall we meet tomorrow to go to the movies?)

Quedar as a result

In these sentences, quedar expresses the result or state in which something is found after an action or process.

• Después de la reforma, la casa ha quedado preciosa (After the renovation, the house has become beautiful)
• No quiero que uséis el móvil en clase. ¿Queda claro? (I don't want you to use your cell phone in class. Is that clear?)

Quedar for an agreement

Quedar en algo expresses 'to agree on something'. We can use this structure to express that we come to an agreement with someone.

• ¿Por qué no me has enviado todavía el informe? ¿No quedamos en que lo terminarías ayer? (Why haven't you sent me the report yet? Didn't we agree that you would finish it yesterday?)
• Para la boda, hemos quedado en que él se encarga del restaurante y yo del fotógrafo (For the wedding, we agreed that he would take care of the restaurant and I would take care of the photographer)

From this sense, we derive the question “¿En qué quedamos?” (What did we agree on?), an expression that we use to ask someone to decide between different options or alternatives:

• Ayer me dijiste que quieres empezar a ahorrar para tus vacaciones y ahora estás pensando en comprarte un coche nuevo. ¿En qué quedamos? Decídete. (Yesterday you told me that you want to start saving for your vacation and now you are thinking of buying a new car. What shall we agree on? Make up your mind)

Other uses

In these contexts, quedar indicates the point at which a process is at or the amount left over of something, as happens in the second sentence.

• Esta mañana me he gastado casi todo el dinero en el supermercado. Solo me quedan 20 € (This morning I spent almost all my money at the supermarket. I only have €20 left)
• Quedan 20 minutos para terminar la clase (There are 20 minutes left to finish class)

Quedar resembles in these cases the verb haber, since it expresses the existence or non-existence of something:

• No queda leche. ¿Puedes comprar antes de venir a casa por favor? (There is no milk left. Can you buy before you come home please?)
• ¿Queda alguna persona en la sala o ya han salido todos? (Is there any person left in the room or has everyone already left?)

The verb quedar can be used with adjectives and adverbs such as bien, mal, genial, etc. to indicate that a color, an article of clothing, or the like does or does not aesthetically favor a person or thing.

• Esa camiseta no te queda bien. No es tu talla. (That shirt doesn't fit you. It's not your size)
• Yo creo que el azul queda genial en este salón (I think the blue looks great in this living room)

While, when we use quedar bien/quedar mal con alguien, we express the idea of causing a good or bad feeling in a person:

• No puedes quedar bien con todo el mundo. A veces, alguien puede pensar que no eres simpático. (You can't look good to everyone. Sometimes, someone may think you are not nice)
• Estoy muy nervioso porque hoy voy a conocer a los padres de mi novia y no quiero quedar mal ante ellos (I'm very nervous because I'm going to meet my girlfriend's parents today and I don't want to look bad in front of them)

After all these examples and explanations, we hope that now the verb quedar has finally become clear to you and you have no doubt.

Although Catholicism is the most popular religion in Spain today, it wasn’t always that way. In fact, the Moors (a term used to describe the Muslim Arab and Berber conquerors of Spain) ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula for almost 800 years. As a result, the Moorish influences in Spain are multifold and can be seen in customs, food, art, science, culture, and, of course, the Spanish language.

To celebrate this special time of the year, let’s have a look at the impact that Arabic, one of the languages spoken by the Moors, has had on Spanish. Click here to read this post in Spanish.

Here are just a few of the thousands of Spanish words with Arabic origins. Keep in mind that these words came from the Arabic spoken in Al-Andalus hundreds of years ago. An, Arabic, like all languages, has continued to evolve and change.

Andalusian Arabic                            Spanish                                               English

aṭ-ṭūb                                                   adobe                                                  adobe

al-ḥabqa                                              albahaca                                              basil

al-bunduqa                                          albóndiga                                            meatball

al-jumra                                              alfombra                                              rug

al-ŷabr                                                álgebra                                                 algebra

al-mujjadda                                         almohada                                            pillow

as-sukkar                                            azúcar                                                  sugar

ar-ruzz                                                 arroz                                                    rice

bādinyana                                            berenjena                                            eggplant/aubergine

kitār                                                     guitarra                                               guitar

laymūn                                                limón                                                   lemon

nārinŷa                                                naranja                                                orange

law ša'a allah                                       ojalá                                                    hopefully

ŷarra                                                    jarra                                                     pitcher

isfinnāriyya                                         zanahoria                                             carrot

Thanks to Arabic, many of these concepts have been included in the Spanish language and continue to be used today. Do you know of any other word that does not appear in this list?

Spanish Language Rules

The Royal Spanish Academy (Real Academia Española or RAE in Spanish) was created in Spain in 1713 to regulate the Spanish language. The academy’s existence today, still based in Spain, often seems to generate more questions than answers.  Should Spanish speakers outside of Spain adhere to the language rules dictated by the Spanish academy? How do academicians decide what words and grammar rules to accept? Why have only 8 women been elected to seats in its 300 year history?

The RAE’s dictionary (DRAE) currently includes over 88,000 entries of accepted words, and its members continue accepting, often outraging Spanish speakers around the world. The REA recently approved the word Cederrón as the accepted Spanish translation of CD Rom, a move that has received heavy criticism and lead many observers to wonder if the Spanish Academy’s royal members have run out of relevant matters to tend to. They also decided to guillotine the letters ch and ll from the Spanish alphabet and oust accent marks from certain words like solo and este. Other recent additions to the dictionary include friki, which refers to a strange or eccentric person, presumably from the English “freak”, peñazo meaning a person or thing that is boring or annoying, and pepero, a member of the PP (Spain’s main conservative party).

Although often criticized for being overly conservative, the RAE has made progressive changes to the definitions of certain words like matrimonio (marriage), which is now not only defined as a union between a man and a woman, but one that can also be between two people of the same sex. They’ve also updated their entry for the word memoria to not only include meanings related to human memory, but also electronic devices designed to store information. Tableta is now not only a “flat, rectangular piece of chocolate”, but also “a multi-beneficial, touch screen portable electronic device”. 

The DREA also allows a number of curious alternatives to common words. The royal preservers of proper Castilian have given the nod to Murciégalo instead of the more standard murciélago for bat, almóndiga instead of albóndiga to refer to meatballs, and toballa instead of toalla for towel. Perhaps more surprisingly is agora, an acceptable alternative to ahora to mean “now” and dotor instead of doctor.

Properly expressed onomatopoeia

Ox according to the DREA means “a sound to scare away chickens”. Za means a sound to scare off dogs "and other animals". These words, along with ño and lle are valuable to know during Spanish language Scrabble competition, but probably not during everyday conversation. The Fundéu BBVA’s style book, created in collaboration with the RAE, offers 95 onomatopoeias, which detail appropriate ways to describe sounds as specific as those made by the springs of a mattress (¡ñeeec, ñeeec!), silk being rubbed on silk (frufrú), wind (sss sss sss), and buzzing bees (zzzzzzzz [8 z's, one more or one less and I think it would technically be a spelling error]).

The DRAE and the The Fundéu BBVA’s style book are not the only reference resources for standardized Spanish. The Associated Press’ Spanish language style book considers language in the DRAE, but it also accepts a more liberal helping of English loan words, such as picop for pick-up truck.

Besides the Royal Spanish Academy, there are 21 other Spanish language academies around the world including the US’s Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española (although called North American, it is a US institution, Mexico has its own academy of language), and the Academia Filipina de la Lengua Española.