Leche y manzanas

[programador]

I just started learning Spanish about a week ago. I'm using Rosetta Stone, and I'm really learning a lot; however, there are some things that it doesn't explain.

This is what I'm having trouble with:

When I type un manzana it means, one apple. When I change it to una manzana it means an apple.

However, when I do the same thing with milk:

una leche, I get one milk. When I change it to un leche I get a breast.

I might be translating it incorrectly, but I'm confused as to what is happening. I don't understand why changing un to una completely changes the meaning of the word leche. I can't think of any instances in English where that happens.

Either I'm doing something wrong, or I'm not understanding what's happening.

Thanks for any help!

[Rusty]

You're using a bad translator.

Neither word can be preceded by 'un', since that can only be used with masculine words.

If you want to say 'a' or 'one' before a feminine word, use 'una'.

una manzana = an apple | one apple
una leche = a milk | one milk

[programador]

Rusty,

Thanks for the quick reply. I remember that from the first Spanish lesson I had, un niño was male and una niña was female.

How do I tell what words are masculine or feminine? What makes apple and milk feminine?

[Rusty]

The dictionary is how you learn which words are masculine and which are feminine. There are some guidelines, which can be found on several sites online, but there are exceptions to the guidelines. Check out the web for the guidelines AND the exceptions.

The best guideline is 'to dismiss the idea of gender'. There are two types of nouns. One type happens to be called 'masculine' and the other type happens to be called 'feminine', but these classifications shouldn't be confused with gender.

The best way to learn a noun is with its definite article.
If the noun is countable (can be made plural), memorize the plural noun with its plural definite article.
This will help you with words that seem to bend the rules.

[programador]

I tried finding a Spanish dictionary, but I didn't have any luck with that either. I wanted a real dictionary (not an electronic version) that I could keep on the shelf for reference.

When I searched on Amazon.com, the only Spanish dictionaries I could find were Spanish/English translation dictionaries.

[poli]

Look here
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss...ripbooks%2C181

[programador]

Thanks,

I think I can see the problem. I'm still speaking English. So when I was searching, I was entering "Spanish Dictionary" into the search box. Which is probably why I didn't find what I was looking for.

I never even thought about searching in Spanish.

Edit:
By the way, I picked out these. I'm hoping they are going to be good dictionaries. Diccionario.

I did notice that there were dictionaries that are a lot newer than these.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

It's fantastic that you are willing to use a Spanish dictionary. It will help you go through the language much better than by translating.
If you want to find a dictionary through Amazon, try these results.


Edit: Oh, that was already found. Well, it's still good that you want to approach a Spanish dictionary, and even better, a printed one.

By the way, the dictionary of the Spanish Academy is also available online: http://www.rae.es/recursos/diccionarios

[programador]

I'm sure that I'm not going to understand the Spanish dictionary at first, so I'll still need some type of translating until I get better with the language. I just think it would be a nice reference to have.

I also purchased an English/Spanish dictionary since they were only a couple dollars.

I was also thinking about getting a bunch of little kids books from Amazon.com. Books that kids use when learning to speak/read. I was thinking that would help. As I get better at the language, I could move up to teenage books, and adult books.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Of course it's not easy, and it takes a lot of time going from one definition to another, but you'll be acquiring a natural form of putting sentences together and you'll start understanding much sooner than you expect.

Good decision about books. I think that's a good progression. =)
You can also try books that you have already read in English so you can follow the plot with less effort.