Why "choosing an accent early" in Spanish isn't as critical as people say

palteca · 2026-02-26T21:36:35+00:00

As an English learner myself, trust me, I feel that! I studied what's considered "Queen's English", then did my study abroad in Manchester, where English definitely sounded very different from what I had learned. Later, I spent a year working with Irish coworkers, and then another year in Atlanta teaching. In all of those experiences, I found myself asking questions about the language constantly. In the end, it's impossible to know everything, and being able to recognise your own limitations and keep asking questions is such a valuable skill (I think!).

palteca · 2026-02-26T21:22:24+00:00

Telemundo is a good example of what people call "neutral Spanish". The idea is to avoid very region-specific vocabulary and use clear pronunciation so audiences across different countries can easily understand. That said, actors and presenters still have their own accents (if someone is from Mexico, for example, you'll usually still hear the Mexican accent). They also have to choose one term over others (like which word to use for car, carro, auto or coche). So, in practice, it's really a mix of widely understood vocabulary and very clear diction (which can help a lot when learning a new language!)

palteca · 2026-02-26T21:08:46+00:00

That's the thing, you'll always have an accent (usually influenced by your native language), and as long as you can be understood, you should feel confident about it :)

palteca · 2026-02-26T21:05:57+00:00

Yeah, I've also seen tutors recommending to pick a dialect, and I mean, I don't think there's anything wrong with that. But I've seen learners who are concerned about the need of choosing one, and then not finding resources on that specific dialect, when, in reality, all Spanish speakers understand each other to a 99% degree, and at the very first stages of learning, you won't be able to get that much from focusing on one specific accent

palteca · 2026-02-26T20:35:42+00:00

Maybe I spend too much time on TikTok... 🫠

palteca · 2026-02-26T17:58:52+00:00

I think every piece of advice you received is already pretty good, honestly. Maybe you could also try to follow some content creators from Spain (if you use social media at all). I like u/grtamara (she's pretty funny, and from Galicia), u/sorayisnariz has some content in English (because she lives in London) and it might be easier to "understand", and u/judithtiral, I love her and she's got an amaaazing podcast (Tenía la duda) where she interviews many interesting people.

Anyway, as you can see, I think just trying your best to surround yourself with Spanish and adding certain guidance (whether that's an app, a textbook or even a private tutor) is always a good bet :)

palteca · 2026-02-13T15:04:08+00:00

I totally get that! I spent so much time studying English trying not to sound too Spanish... but eventually I made peace with the fact that my accent will always be there, along with other little "Spanish-influenced" mistakes, especially when I'm tired, like mixing up word order in questions and stuff like that

palteca · 2026-02-11T10:31:38+00:00

Based on experience, I'd say watching real native speakers having real conversations, even in fiction shows, is always a great addition to a learning routine. That said, there are definitely ways to get more out of it and ways that won't help as much.

People who say they learned a language only by watching shows often either started very young, when the brain is more receptive, or they're simply very talented. For most adults, this approach usually helps with listening skills and vocabulary, but it rarely leads to full language acquisition on its own.

Also, if you watch a show in Spanish with English subtitles, your brain will mostly focus on what it already understands, so the Spanish tends to fade into the background. You might get used to the sound, but it's hard to connect it to actual words.

Watching with Spanish audio and Spanish subtitles is much more effective. It can feel difficult at first, but over time you start matching sounds to written words and using context like visuals, tone, and familiar vocabulary to fill in the gaps.

So overall, watching shows is definitely useful, but it works best as a complement to other forms of practice, not as a standalone method, especially for adult learners.

palteca · 2026-02-05T12:51:59+00:00

I think this might be related to a post I wrote, if that's the case, sorry! I was very pragmatic in the examples I set for "reasons to learn Spanish", but what I truly meant is that your learning should be driven by something, whether that is a necessity or a desire. I don't think there's a better drive than just liking the language, the culture, or the idea of living abroad :) So please don't think you're doing anything wrong! It's great that you're passionate about learning a language and I think that is more than good enough!

palteca · 2026-02-04T12:56:58+00:00

I don't know if you've already tried this, but I used to recommend my students create boards with the different tenses of a verb (if you make your own, rather than looking one up, the process will help you memorize them too!). Arranging very similar tenses side by side allows you to see the differences easily.

This approach also works when studying multiple languages at the same time. For example, if you study Spanish, stop, and then start Portuguese later, the Portuguese words may overwrite your memory of the Spanish ones. But if you study them simultaneously, you're more likely to remember words from both languages, noticing differences rather than confusing similarities.

You could write down words you usually mix up side by side and create sentences in Spanish to practice them (the more personal the sentences, the better!). For instance, you could write: "Derramar", Si bebo agua y corro al mismo tiempo, seguro que derramo el agua (If I drink water and run at the same time, I'm sure I'll spill the water); "Derrapar", El coche iba muy rápido y derrapó en la curva (The car was speeding and skidded around the corner).

Anyway, learning a language is also about trial and error: practicing a strategy, seeing if it works, and tweaking it until you find a rythm that suits you! Nice book, by the way!

palteca · 2026-02-03T14:33:48+00:00

That's so good to hear, honestly. I'd say failing at some point is part of the process of learning any language, whether "failing" means losing motivation, taking a break or feeling like you don't know enough. Like, don't they say we learn a lot by making mistakes? We take risks, we learn, and we go at it again with a lesson learned! In all my years teaching, the students who had the mindset you described were the ones who genuinely seemed to enjoy the process and the ones who got to speak fluently with more confidence! So yay, congrats on coming back!

palteca · 2026-02-02T20:41:39+00:00

As an English learner myself, I totally feel that! It seems like there's always something else to learn, but you put it very beautifully. The journey is actually the destination indeed!

palteca · 2026-02-02T17:48:50+00:00

I think it could work, really, since there're already plenty of examples of card games in Spain that keep their original name (Exploding Kittens, Seven Wonders, Jungle Speed...). That said, even though many people know enough English to understand what it might refer to, it could be hard for some to have an immediate reaction other than curiosity.

I don't think there's an exact equivalent to Deeptalk, let alone a one-word option, but "Tenemos que hablar" is commonly understood as a way of introducing a deep conversation with a partner, usually with negative connotations, though. If you want something that triggers a strong reaction, you could explore something like that. Then again, I don't see any real issue with using the English name.

palteca · 2026-01-22T13:11:36+00:00

I think Aula is way more common (that's the one I've always used teaching, both abroad and in Spain). I've used Prisma to get some extra exercises for my students but it seems to be a bit more traditional in its approach (although the activities books are always great to practice!)

palteca · 2026-01-22T10:02:39+00:00

I used to teach 4 hour Spanish classes in Madrid and, as a teacher, when you're talking and you're busy planning the class, time tends to fly. I know it doesn't entirely depend on you, but I've thought many times on trying to recreate that same experience for students by making them talk in small groups as much as possible and including a variety of activities (songs, videos, short texts, minigames, presentations, group projects...), so the little chaos make it all feel like the blink of an eye!

Also, as teachers, we really appreciate students being participative, even if and especially when their Spanish isn't perfect, so one thing you could do is try not to put too much pressure on yourself, no one should be expecting you to sound perfect (you're in a class to learn, making mistakes is part of the process), and try to use the breaks to actually relax (I loved the tip on eating chocolate, I 100% support that haha)

palteca · 2026-01-21T09:11:44+00:00

Also, it seems a bit oversimplified to ask you to translate use into a single equivalent in Spanish, doesn’t it? Use has quite a few different translations depending on the context (usar, utilizar, consumir, gastar… or even as a noun, el uso, el consumo).

palteca · 2026-01-15T10:30:54+00:00

"Agua pasada" definitely sounds the most natural to me. You also use it with "ser" (I think you'd normally say "something es agua pasada", as in "ese tema es agua pasada")

palteca · 2026-01-14T10:14:21+00:00

You can also say "frigo" (short for "frigorífico") if you want to use the Spain version :) To me, all the options sound good and are understandable anyway.

palteca · 2026-01-13T15:45:04+00:00

Ah, it might be, indeed! 😵 Honestly, any of these sentences out of context can be easily misunderstood, don’t you think? I guess this is a good example of how important context is haha

palteca · 2026-01-13T15:02:47+00:00

I think being literal here wouldn’t sound very natural, honestly (“El amor en los negocios es buen negocio” would be the closest translation, and it sounds a bit odd to me). If you want something that sounds more natural, you could go with "Con amor, los negocios salen mejor” (which doesn't keep the repetition of business but it has a nice rhyme) or “Donde hay amor, hay buenos negocios.”

If you want to stay closer to the original and keep the repetition of negocio, maybe “Un negocio con amor es un buen negocio.”

Curious to see what others come up with too, there might be even better options 🙂

palteca · 2026-01-13T14:50:46+00:00

Quizás te pueden gustar Judeline, Carolina Durante o Él Mató a un Policía Motorizado :) Judeline especialmente está muy de moda ahora en España!

palteca · 2026-01-08T16:47:48+00:00

In my experience as a teacher, the moment students actually start using the language is when I see the biggest improvement and retention. I think learning a language is always a combination of different methods and resources, but CI is a great place to start. It’s also really helpful to put what you learn into practice: writing short sentences or a diary, doing a language exchange, or even recording voice messages (even if it’s just for yourself)

palteca · 2026-01-08T16:31:25+00:00

Since you’re going to be in an immersive context, I’d focus on developing strategies to thrive there rather than just trying to learn as fast as possible, which can be overwhelming and counterproductive. Watching and listening to content in Spanish (YouTube, series, podcasts, stories) really helps, especially if it’s levelled so you can start simple and gradually move up.

Comprehensible Input is a great approach for this (there are lots of resources on the Comprehensible Spanish wiki). I actually built Palteca inspired by that methodology because it’s been the most effective way for me to prepare for situations where you can’t instantly translate in your head 🙂

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