📖LearnModule 14 · Lesson 23 of 30Proficient User · CEFR C2, continuedUnit 5 · El matiz
Las palabras que el español no tiene
Module 14 of the free Spanish course (CEFR C2, continued), lesson 23 of 30: It runs both ways. On this page: 9 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line, the conjugation table and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's QR.
The words
Spanish
English
Say it
poco profundo
shallow
POH-koh proh-FOON-doh
dar una patada
to kick
dar OO-nah pah-TAH-dah
el dedo del pie
the toe
ehl DEH-doh dehl pyeh
mirar fijamente
to stare at
mee-RAR fee-hah-MEHN-teh
el hueco
the gap (in a language)
ehl WEH-koh
trabajar más
to work harder
trah-bah-HAR mahs
en ambos sentidos
both ways
ehn AHM-bohs sehn-TEE-dohs
estoy leyendo
I am reading (right now)
ehs-TOY leh-YEHN-doh
ustedes leen despacio
you (all) read slowly
oos-TEH-dehs LEH-ehn dehs-PAH-syoh
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
La regla · The rule
It runs both ways, and knowing where Spanish has to work harder is a C2 skill. There is no single word for shallow (poco profundo), for toe (el dedo del pie), for the verb to kick (dar una patada) or to stare (mirar fijamente).
Y también · And also
Spanish also uses its continuous less than English does: leo covers both I read and I am reading, and estoy leyendo is kept for the moment when the ongoing sense matters.
Ojo · Watch out
leo is both I read and I am reading; add estoy leyendo only when the ongoing sense matters. There is no single word for toe: el dedo del pie. poco profundo is shallow — profundo alone never is.
leer, presente — the table
yo leo · tú lees · él/ella/usted lee · nosotros leemos · ustedes leen · ellos/ellas leen
Do it now — on paper
Say all 9 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the Spanish spelling alone — begin with poco profundo.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the Spanish.
Write out leer, presente in full from memory, every person, and check each form against the table above.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The Spanish Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.