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!
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.
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