This year, we have chosen a word that has already been named Word of the Year by other linguistic sources. In fact, it was FundeuRAE's Word of the Year last year. However, we believe that this word has gained new traction in the last twelve months, and, for this reason, have selected it as our Spanish Word of the Year 2023. Let's reveal it!
Is there anything more trendy than AI today? From ChatGPT to MidJourney and everything in between, the concept of AI is totally transforming the world around us. This is why we have chosen the term inteligencia artificial (artificial intelligence) as the Spanish Word of the Year 2023. Let's see how to pronounce this word in the definition that Carlos shares with us in his video about this topic:
la inteligencia artificial es la disciplina científica que se ocupa de crear programas informáticos que ejecutan operaciones comparables a las que realiza la mente humana, como el aprendizaje o el razonamiento lógico.
artificial intelligence is the scientific discipline that deals with creating computer programs that execute comparable operations to the ones that the human mind carries out, like learning or logical reasoning.
Captions 25-29, Aprendiendo con Carlos Inteligencia artificial - Part 1
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Now that the winner has been revealed, here are a couple of things to keep in mind about the term inteligencia artificial:
1. In Spanish as in English, the term inteligencia artificial should be written in lowercase.
2. If you wish to use the acronym for inteligencia artificial, remember to use the Spanish initials "IA" rather than the English version, "AI," which some people mistakenly use in Spanish.
There are several AI-related Spanish words that have been quite popular this year, and dato (data) has definitely been one of them.
La percepción del comerciante coincide con el dato que manejan algunos expertos.
The perception of the merchant coincides with the data that some experts work with.
Caption 6, Los Reporteros Crecen los robos en tiendas - Part 4
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Unfortunately, this word is still trending, especially after what has occurred this year in Israel.
La palabra más fea es guerra.
The ugliest word is war.
Caption 61, Karla e Isabel Palabras
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This year was full of deadly earthquakes. From Turkey and Morocco to Afghanistan and Nepal, the world was shaking far too much this year.
Este mes han muerto muchas personas en el terremoto.
This month many people have died in the earthquake.
Caption 26, Lecciones con Carolina Participios - Ejemplos de uso
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So, there you have it. What do you think of our Spanish Word of the Year 2023, and how do you feel towards AI in general? Can you think of any other word that is worthy of this title? Don't forget to send us your feedback!
Unfortunately, this year that is about to end wasn't the brightest. From the Ukraine war and the never-ending COVID-19 pandemic to global economic woes and the ongoing climate change crisis, this year's Word of the Year summarizes, in just six letters, all of these unfortunate events. With that being said, let's reveal Yabla's Spanish Word of the Year 2022.
The word crisis (with the same spelling as in English) is our Spanish Word of the Year 2022. Let's see how to pronounce this word in Spanish with a sentence we could easily apply to the present times:
Vivimos en tiempos de crisis.
We live in times of crisis.
Caption 3, Los Años Maravillosos Capítulo 2 - Part 1
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By the way, the word crisis in Spanish doesn't necessarily mean something negative, but rather a drastic change in a particular situation. However, for the context of this lesson, we are using the following definition from the Diccionario de la lengua española:
Situación mala o difícil (Bad or difficult situation)
Do you know what the plural of the word crisis is in Spanish? Let's find out with the following clip:
por las crisis que genera,
for the crises it generates,
Caption 40, De consumidor a persona Short Film - Part 6
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Yes, the plural of the Spanish word crisis is... crisis! Why? Because words that have the accent on the second-to-last syllable and end in "s" don't change in the plural. In addition to crisis, words like virus and apocalipsis also follow this rule. For more information about this topic, check out our lesson about Rules for Forming the Plural of Nouns in Spanish.
Considering the coverage that the war in Ukraine received this year, we were tempted to choose the word guerra (war) as our Spanish Word of the Year 2022. However, we opted for a word that takes into consideration all of the other problems affecting our world. Let's take a look at some of this year's runner-up terms.
Yo soy "antiguerra", no me gusta la guerra.
I'm "antiguerra" [antiwar], I don't like war.
Captions 52-53, Ana Carolina Prefijos y sufijos - Part 1
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creo que debido a la incertidumbre que teníamos todas las personas,
due, I think, to all of our uncertainty
Caption 46, El coronavirus Confinamiento en España - Part 1
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La inflación en América Latina será más alta que la media.
Inflation in Latin America will be higher than average
Durante la invasión francesa en mil ochocientos ocho,
During the French invasion in eighteen o-eight,
Caption 60, Marisa en Madrid Parque de El Retiro
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Did you notice anything? That was a lot of words that start with the letter i, which even appears twice in the word crisis! That said, i is definitely the Spanish letter of the year!
And that wraps up Yabla's Spanish Word of the Year for 2022. What do you think of our choice? Please feel free to share your comments and suggestions with us, and here's to hoping that 2023 will be a better year!
Last year, we chose the word pandemia (pandemic) as the Spanish Word of the Year. This year, our choice was a bit predictable. In fact, after reading our lesson about The Spanish Word of the Year 2020, one of our users sent us a message with a very accurate prediction. The following are his words:
"Dear friends from Yabla,
The Spanish Word of the Year 2020 is pandemia. And the Spanish Word for the Year 2021 will be vacuna!
Thanks for all the work, take care and stay safe."
And yes! He was totally right! The Word of the Year 2021 is vacuna (vaccine). Let's hear how that word sounds in Spanish:
Espero que pronto puedan conseguir una vacuna y dar fin a esta situación.
I hope they can get a vaccine soon and end this situation.
Captions 17-18, El coronavirus La cuarentena en Coro, Venezuela - Part 2
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The Spanish word vacuna comes from the English word "vaccine," which in turn comes from the Latin word "vaccīnus," meaning "of or from a cow." In fact, there was a cow involved in the first ever vaccine: the smallpox vaccine developed by British scientist Edward Jenner.
Vacuna, however, wasn't the only trendy word this year. Just like last year, most of the runner-up words were related to the coronavirus pandemic, this year, some of our runners-up are linked to the word vacuna. Let's take a look at some of the other terms that defined 2021.
BY THE WAY, HAVE YOU SEEN OUR SPECIAL SERIES ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS? CHECK IT OUT!
y también a disminuir las dosis necesarias de insulina
and also to reduce the necessary doses of insulin
Caption 55, Los médicos explican Beneficios del ozono
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Keep in mind that because the word dosis is a paroxytone noun ending in "s," it has the same form in singular and plural:
la dosis (the dose)
las dosis (the doses)
For more about this topic, please check out our lesson about the rules for forming the plurals of nouns in Spanish.
La verdad es que no tiene, pues, ningún síntoma, pues, por ejemplo que tenga poco apetito,
The truth is that he doesn't have, well, any symptoms, well, for example if he has lack of appetite,
Captions 70-71, Animales en familia Un día en Bioparc: Microchip para Nacahué - Part 1
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As in the Delta or Omnicron variants.
Just recently, The Economist stated this: "it is time to face the world’s predictable unpredictability." It seem like impredecible is going to stay trendy for a little while. In the meantime, let's see how to say it:
Llueve, hace frío... frío, hace frío, llueve, todo... ah... aquí... es impredecible.
It rains, it's cold... cold, it's cold, it rains, everything... uh... Here... it's unpredictable.
Caption 27, Peluquería La Percha Félix
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If you have been following the conversation about how people are working nowadays, you know why this word is on this list. While some workers have gone back to the office, there are millions of people around the world whose work model is now a hybrid one that mixes on-site and off-site work. Along those lines, another trendy word is teletrabajo (telecommuting):
Por ejemplo, las compañías han tenido que acudir al teletrabajo para seguir con sus actividades productivas
For example, companies have had to resort to telecommuting to continue with their production activities,
Captions 35-36, El coronavirus Efectos y consecuencias
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And that wraps up Yabla's Spanish Word of the Year for 2021. Do you agree with our choice? Can you think of any other pertinent term(s) that we didn't mention? What is your prediction for next year's Word of the Year? Please feel free to share with us your comments and suggestions, and here's to hoping that 2022 is a better year!
Don't you just want 2020 to be over? Without a doubt, this year has been quite challenging, especially due to everything that has occurred as the result of the coronavirus. In fact, 2020's Spanish Word of the Year is one of the terms most associated with this awful virus. Let's reveal this year's tragic winner.
Yes, pandemia (pandemic) is 2020's Spanish Word of the Year. Do we really have to explain why? Our friend Fermin sums it all up in a very simple phrase:
Esta maldita pandemia del coronavirus.
This damn coronavirus pandemic.
Caption 5, El coronavirus - Confinamiento en España - Part 1
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It is important to say, however, that in contrast to the English word "pandemic," which can function as both an adjective and a noun, in the Spanish language, pandemia is only a noun, whereas the adjective is pandémico / pandémica.
Most of the words on this list of runners-up for 2020 Spanish Word of the Year are associated with the coronavirus pandemic. However, at the end of this list, we have also included a word (a name, actually) that represents yet another of the many sad events that have occurred this year. Let's take a look.
Hoy les voy a contar sobre mi cuarentena en casa.
Today I'm going to tell you about my quarantine at home.
Caption 4, El coronavirus - La cuarentena en Ecuador
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Los tres primeros días del confinamiento
The first three days of confinement,
tuvimos sensaciones muy extrañas.
The first three days of confinement, we felt very strange feelings.
Captions 7-8, El coronavirus - Confinamiento en España - Part 2
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The Diccionario de la Lengua Española (DLE) states that the word desinfectante is an adjective. Let's see it in action:
La segunda tarea que realizo es rellenar el gel desinfectante,
The second task I perform is refilling the sanitizing gel,
que se encuentra ubicado en tres posiciones distintas:
which is found in three different locations:
Captions 16-17, Sergio - Socorrismo y COVID-19
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However, throughout Latin America, the word desfinfectante is also used as a noun:
También recuerda ocupar desinfectante para mano,
Also remember to use hand sanitizer
que tenga por lo menos unos [sic] sesenta por ciento de alcohol.
that has at least sixty percent alcohol.
Captions 16-17, El coronavirus - Cómo protegerse
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Las medidas sanitarias que utilizo son:
The sanitary measures that I use are:
la mascarilla y desinfectarme las manos.
the mask and sanitizing my hands.
Captions 12-13, Sergio - Socorrismo y COVID-19
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Y una gran crisis a nivel sanitario, económico y social.
And a great health, economic and social crisis.
Caption 60, El coronavirus - Introducción y vocabulario
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From Kobe Bryant to Sean Connery, this year, the world has lost some of its most beloved people. In fact, the Spanish-speaking world has lost one of its most iconic figures: Diego Armando Maradona, and the death of the football/soccer superstar has been deeply felt throughout the world.
Si yo fuera Maradona, nunca me equivocaría
If I were Maradona, I would never make a mistake
Si yo fuera Maradona, perdido en cualquier lugar
If I were Maradona, lost anywhere
La vida es una tómbola de noche y de día
Life is a raffle [lottery] by night and day
La vida es una tómbola y arriba y arriba
Life is a raffle and up and up
Captions 3-6, Manu Chao - La Vida Tómbola
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That's all for today. What do you think of the Spanish Word of the Year 2020? Do you agree with this choice? Can you think of a better word? Please, feel free to share with us your comments and suggestions, and let's hope 2021 brings us less tragedy and more joy.
There are many words that have defined the year that just ended. However, we believe there is a word that was crucial in 2019, not only in Spanish but in all languages! With that being said, the Spanish word of the year 2019 was... "protesta" (protest)! Let's dive into the meaning and use of this word.
If you followed the news in 2019, you probably won't need an explanation. From the ongoing protests in Hong Kong to the more recent protests throughout South America, it looks like the whole world was protesting in 2019. The following are some of the headlines that dominated the news in 2019:
Continúa represión en Chile tras nueve semanas de protestas
Repression continues in Chile after nine weeks of protests
5 rostros que simbolizan las protestas en Chile, Colombia, Hong Kong, Irak y Líbano
5 faces that symbolize the protests in Chile, Colombia, Hong Kong, Iraq and Lebanon
De Chile a Hong Kong: el virus de la protesta se extiende por el mundo
From Chile to Hong Kong: the protest virus spreads throughout the world
Protesta has the same meaning that the English word "protest." However, this word doesn't only refer to "a usually organized public demonstration of disapproval" (Merriam-Webster). For instance, the word protesta in Spanish also refers to the oath taken by a President during his/her inaugural ceremony. Also, generally speaking, protesta can be simply understood as a complaint or objection:
Ahí se oye un poco el... la protesta del leopardo.
There you can hear a bit the... the leopard's protest.
Caption 7, Animales en familia - Un día en Bioparc: Cachorro de leopardo
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Check out the following video clips so you can practice the pronunciation of the word protesta and its plural protestas (protests).
Y es un lugar donde normalmente
And it's a place where usually
mucha gente que quiere venir a expresar sus ideas o protestas.
many people who want to come and express their ideas, their protests.
Captions 4-5, Yabla en Buenos Aires - Plaza Mayo
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Tú hazme el favor, dámele una pequeña razón a ese señor.
Do me a favor, deliver a little message to that man.
Mamá, ninguna razón, reclamo, ni protesta.
Mom, no message, complaint or protest.
Captions 77-78, X6 - 1 - La banda
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Also, check out the following clips where you can hear the pronunciation of the verb protestar (to protest).
Porque el veintiocho de diciembre lo que hacemos nosotros aquí es protestar...
Because on December twenty eighth what we do here is to protest...
Caption 30, Estado Falcón - Locos de la Vela
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Esa no es la forma de protestar.
That is not the way to protest.
Caption 27, Kikirikí - Agua
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So, there you have it. What do you think of protesta as the word of the year 2019? Can you think of any other word worth this title? What do you think of all these protests around the world, anyway? Please, send us your feedback, comments and questions. We will be happy to hear from you!
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