Bad translations
1. Dear Mr. ________.
Querido Sr. _______. - Wrong! Why? Because even though the translation is correct the Spanish language does not use the word "dear" "querido" in formal letters.
Most formal Spanish letters will have: Estimado/a or Apreciado/a in front of the name.
2. I am embarrassed - Estoy embarazado/a.- Wrong! embarazada means pregnant. False cognate. The correct word in this case would be. Estoy "apenado/a" or "avergonzado/a".
3. Do you want any tea? - Quieres te? - Wrong! Questions in Spanish must start with an upside down question mark. Also, the word te does not mean tea. It must have an accent over the e. "Te" means you or yourself.
4. Accents are very important in Spanish. They can change the meaning of a sentence:
- si if , sí yes
- el the , él he
- mi my, mí me
- que that, qué what
- como I eat, cómo how,what
