The Official 'Ask Dave' Section ----

Question

Hola Dave

Mi llama Sammy (Sandra)

Me gustaria saber, qual es la diferencia entre “Quiero IR al correo” y “Tengo Que ir al correo”.

[English: I would like to know, what is the difference between “Quiero IR al correo” and “Tengo que ir al correo.”]

No entendi [I didn’t understand]. They both seem to say that I have to go somewhere, but why does one use the IR verb and the other adds the Que Tomar? Puede ayudarme? [Can you help me?]

Sammy

Answer

Hola Sammy,

The word "quiero" means "I want" and the word "tengo que" means "I have to".

There is no real reason why you put the "que" after the word "tengo". It is simply done that way and has to be done that way to be correct. A common saying is that "everything doesn't translate from one language to another". This is a perfect example.

If you want to say "I have to go", it is "tengo que ir". If you said "tengo ir" - and left out the "que" it would simply be incorrect and sound incorrect. To carry it one step farther, if you say "tengo" and then add any other verb (or Group 2 word from your course) on afterward, you always have to put a "que" in between them.

To answer your original question, the phrase "Quiero ir" means "I want to go", and "Tengo que ir" means "I have to go".

When you get into Level II, you will find a few more verbs, like "tengo que", that have to add a word like "que" on afterwards.

Hopefully that answers your question.

Hasta luego,

Dave

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Words of the Week -----
Taken from our complete CD-ROM course. (Click for a discount)

Weekly Spanish Lesson ----

For the weekly lesson this week, click below to learn numbers from 1-62. You'll hear María from Mexico model each number.

To check it out, click here: Interactive Spanish Lesson on Numbers

P.S. - If you don't have the Complete Visual Link Spanish™ Course, click below and get free shipping through the newsletter!



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Culture ----- Spanish Names

I have heard it said that of all the words in a language, our own first name is one of our most favorite and pleasing words to hear. We all like to be called by our first name. Using first names is an unwritten requirement of becoming good friends with someone. One of the most uncomfortable situations for me was when I when to my ten-year high school reunion and I couldn't remember the first names of people I had been friends with. It was also uncomfortable for them when they couldn't remember my name.

According to the National Public Registry of a Latin American country, the names "María" and "José" are the most popular first names in Spanish. They are followed by "Luz" (female name) and "Juan". It is thought that these names are the most popular due to the religious nature of Latin Americans; both names are very prominent in the Bible.

In English, there are some names that are still used but may be considered somewhat outdated or maybe a little less common. A specific name I'm thinking of is "Olga". We don't hear that name much any more and it's not on the "top ten" list of most popular names. The interesting thing is that in Spanish, the name "Olga" is a frequently heard name. It is not considered outdated and is fairly common and well-liked.

Here are a couple of fun outdated names that most Latin American kids wouldn't want to be named. A few close Latin American friends told me about these names. They are "Tiburcia" and "Anacleta". They also have a male counterpart: "Tiburcio" and "Anacleto". Now that you have this powerful and possibly dangerous information, you need to be careful. I wouldn't recommend going around calling people these names. There are still people that have and use them that could get offended.

Next let's take a look at a few crossover names from English to Spanish. This is not an all-inclusive list and some of the crossover names have been debated, but here they are:

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Responses to Past Newsletters:



Note: Formatting on responses may have been changed to fit your screen.
Response #1

Bonjour Dave,

I have to say that the dishes are quite different to what I am used to eating in France, but we have some dishes which might seem weird for you as well, like snails "escargots" and frogs' legs "cuisses de grenouilles", which I think are the weirdest with calves' brain, venison, tripe, pigeon, boar, ostrich, duck's liver "foie gras"...these are quite strong tasty meat.

I personnally like frogs' legs and rabbit which tastes better than chicken especially with the sauce...! (but I prefer the dishes with cheese to be honest). As I teach English pupils French in England, my pupils ask me questions on frogs' legs and snails all the time and think we eat that everyday, I'd like to add that these dishes are only eaten once a year, especially for christmas as it is quite expensive. I have personnally tested them once in 25 years!

We are also taught to eat everything in our plates, especially with our grand parents who have suffered from the lack of food taken by the Germans' soldiers during world war 2.

I finally want to answer to laurie from chicago who puts the left-overs in a bag in a restaurant, well (advice) if you travel to France and eat in any french restaurants, don't do that because people will look at you badly as it is considered by us (French) as impolite, even rude and it means that you are mean!

Thanks for reading,
marion

Response #2

Hi Dave

I had a laugh reading about the way chicken is eaten right down to the marrow in Latin America, I witnessed this myself whilst living in Cuba with my Spouse and his family. When he came to the UK to live my family were so shocked to see my Cuban husband clean off his chicken and suck the bones that they thought he must be starving and so they all passed him their chicken to finish off!

Thanks, Tina

Response #3

thats is really funny you just wrote about the cow intestines and chicken feet- thats what we had to eat at Mexico with my boy friends family- I went into the kitchen and sure enough feet were in the soup- ect..

Response #4

Dave,

Yes! It's great to hear your heart expressing a kind of mourning over injustice. We Americans need to work hard to share our wealth with developing nations.

Here at Samaritan's Heart, we do administration for an awesome ministry in Guatemala City called Potter's House. They reach down, grab whoever they can reach out of the dump, and pull them up, introducing them to a life lived in HOPE. This includes schooling, nutrition, family reconciliation, and micro enterprise.They are run by nationals, we are just a support to them. They will celebrate their 20th anniversary in December! www.pottershouse.org.gt

Thanks for the great writing!

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