Heather Broster
Heather is a graduate in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario and an aspiring polyglot. Her primary focus lies in the fields of language acquisition, education, and bilingual instruction. When she isn’t studying languages, she enjoys the great outdoors, exercising and spending time with her young son.
If you have mastered the cinco sentidos (five senses) in Spanish, you will already be aware that the word for taste is gusto. A helpful way to remember this word is to think of the more formal synonym of taste, which is gustation. The other four senses are vista (sight), oído (hearing), tacto (touch), and …
My family is very lucky because we live right by the seaside, and just a stone’s throw away from our doorstep is an expansive playa (beach). If my son could have his way, he would spend hours there every day! Latin American Pronunciation European Pronunciation The word is derived from the Late Latin plagia, which …
Is there someone in your life who would complain about paying even a dollar more when you divides la cuenta (split the bill)? If so, you could easily call him avaro, a word with many possible English translations including stingy, cheap, avaricious, greedy, grasping, miserly, penny-pinching, or tight-fisted. In short, it describes someone who is …
Because I am going to be turning 40 in just a few months, I recently started going to the gym – or gimnasio in Spanish – four days a week. Call it my crisis de la mediana edad (mid-life crisis), but I feel so much better for it. I have more energía (energy) to chase …
It’s impossible to ignore the iconic song Feliz Navidad when Christmas rolls around. If you’ve listened to the lyrics, you’re likely already familiar with the Spanish word for happy: feliz! Latin American Pronunciation European Pronunciation Feliz is an adjective whose plural form is felices. It is derived from the Latin felix, which means both happy …
At this moment, I’m savouring a delightful custard and rhubarb caramelo (candy / sweet), and I couldn’t help but think to myself: what a delectable Spanish word of the day it could be! Latin American Pronunciation European Pronunciation The word was borrowed from the Portuguese caramelo, which most likely derives from Late Latin calamellus. Caramelo …