Práctica con "para" (Part Two)
 

I started yesterday with several sentences: http://forums.tomisimo.org/showthread.php?p=25311 - and have some more today. Again, please tell me (a) if the use of "para" is correct here, and (b) if there are any other issues with the sentences of which I need to be aware.

1) Esta flor es para mi esposo.
2) Susanna me llamó para mi.
3) Estos paquetes son para los niños.
4) La enfermera está buscando para ti.
5) Para mí, los derechos humanos son más importante.
6) Educación es el llave al libertad para el pobre.

Thank you in advance for any and all help!

There are problems with 2, 4, and 6.

2. Susanna me llamó a mí.
4. La enfermera está buscándote a tí. ("to look for" = "buscar", no preposition necessary)
6. "para" is right, but "llave" should be "clave".

Thanks, David. A few more questions to clarify....

2) Is there a difference between saying "Susanna called me" and "Susanna called FOR me"? The second has the feeling of I wasn't there to take the call.... That was what I was trying to say.

6) So "clave" is more ideological and "llave" is the little metal object only?

1) Esta flor es para mi esposo.
This flower is for my husband (you are giving it to him)

Esta flor es por mi esposo.
This flower is for my husband (It represents something from him, Maybe he won an award, ot God forbid he's dead, and you're commemorating)

2) Susanna me llamó por mi.
Susanna called for me

Susana me llamó
Susanna called me

4) La enfermera está buscando por ti.



6) Educación es la llave al libertad para el pobre.




Hope it helps, and that it isn't too convoluted.

Hernan

Not convoluted. :) Thanks for the help. I especially appreciate the distinctions between por y para. That's what I'm trying to study right now.

Another question for you, Hernan - can you help me distinguish between "clave" and "llave"? See my previous post - is it more like the difference between a tangible object and an idea?

Thanks!

no problem...

However, I would like to see that you write in spanish and I reply in english or spanish. I am not sure how this is taken in these forums...

Maybe, we can ask for a spanish only forum, so the people interested in spanish can expose their ideas etc...and the same thing in english. :-)

In english first:

Key, used to open a door, unlock it etc. also as a clue to a puzzle (unlock a puzzle), also Clef in music.

Llave, used in music, to open a door and also to unlock a puzzle or problem.

Clave, only to unlock a puzzle or password

I hope it helps.

And don't forget, please ask in spanish. I would like to know where you are at with spanish, because if you are half as proficient as you are in English, you should be using a Spanish-Spanish dictionary first, in order to look for definitions. If you are still stuck then you should resort to a bilingual dictionary. :-)

The same thing goes for the rest of the people. And if english is the target language, then reverse the usage of the dictionaries. ;->

Hernan

Hernan - thank you VERY much for your explanations about llave y clave. It definitely helps.

As for your other request.... I have, at times, attempted to ask questions IN Spanish. And I will continue to do so. But please remember that I am VERY new to learning Spanish. It takes me hours sometimes to put together a simple question for the forum here, and I simply do not have that kind of time always. Besides - when I ask in Spanish, the replies often answer my initial question AND critique the Spanish in the question (as they should), which sometimes is more than my little teeny weeny brain can handle....... :D

I promise - my use of the language WILL increase (I've even secured a tutor for practicing my conversation ... as of yesterday!) Thank you for your great patience with me!

:-)

Like I stated in a previous reply to another post. If you know how to read, write and express in English, you do not have to re-learn all that in Spanish.

You see, how can I teach you what is a door in Spanish? You already know what a door is in English. Hence, in my little brain, all I can think is that what I have to do is to translate what I already know in English to Spanish.

How?

With a bilingual dictionary. Simple. :-)

It is alright to sound like: mi querer hamburgesa (me want hamburger) because you are going to eat a hamburger in Peru :-)

If after 20 years of living in Peru, you're still asking for food like that. It would seem to me that you are not interested in the Spanish language.

What say you? ;->

Thanks for your encouragement, Hernan - please keep challenging me - it REALLY helps!!!

When I mentioned about living in Peru for 20 years, it was rethorically speaking. I wanted to point out that if you don't pay attention at what you are saying and what the locals are saying then most likely you are not interested in "how" they say it. :-)

Consider this. You know perfectly well how to read and write and the meaning of the following phrase.

This book is mine

Now you look up in the dictionary and read it means le, la, los , las. Most likely you will be able to understand the description, and depending on the dictionary, it will give you more or less example of the use of these words. But for the sake of argument, let us say you make a mistake in judgement and use "la"

and as you look further in the dictionary looking for book, you are going ti get "libro".

Then "es" or "esta" and again make the mistake and use "esta"

and then you are going to get "mio"

So you construct your prase as "la libro esta mio"

Armed with that you tell a friend, and the friend laughs. :-)

However, if you get curious, instead of mad or selfconcious you are going to "learn" or capture a lot of how the language is used.

In this case your friend or interlocutor could correct you and you have to be snappy about the correction and play it in your head, Do not spend too much time mulling it over... :-)

When I arrived inthis country I had to buy a car. So as part of of the ritual, you have to perform a tune on it. I knew whow to say "where is the..." and "oil" but I did not know how to say motor. So I looked up in a little pocket dictionary I had brought with me, and it stated "engine" i tried the pronounciation and I went to Pep Boys. I asked the cashier "where is the engine oil?" :-) The guy looked at kinda puzzled and asked "you mean MOTOR oil?

At that moment a spark of intelligence, which I did not know I had. ;->, ignated my little brain, and I said YES. He told me where it was. And while I was going to get the oil, I was thinking- "incredible, it is said exactly like in spanish..."

That's all. And I hope to ignite your, and everybody else's brain too. :-)

Hernan.