Let's review some unique Spanish words that you may not have heard of before. 

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Spanish uses a specific word to describe the rheum (more commonly known as "sleep" in English) found in the corner of the eye after sleeping: lagaña (also legaña). This odd word has an uncertain origin, though some experts believe it to be inherited from a Paleohispanic language! It's important to note that lagaña is not a specialized term as "rheum" is in English, but a common word used in everyday conversations:

Esto es que una... una de las glándulas que se encarga de fabricar la lagaña...

This is because one... one of the glands that is in charge of producing rheum...

Caption 79, Animales en familia - La operación de Yaki

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Other unique Spanish words related to the body are entrecejo (the space between the eyebrows).
 

Y esta parte se llama entrecejo.

And this part is called "entrecejo" [the space between the eyebrows].

Caption 16, Marta de Madrid - El cuerpo - La cabeza

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and chapas (blush, the pink tinge on the cheeks):
 

...para obtener las clásicas chapitas de Pikachu.

...to get the classic Pikachu rosy cheeks.

Caption 25, Manos a la obra - Separadores de libros: Pikachu

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Do you know any Spanish words or expressions used to describe different types of rain? The expressions está chispeando and está lloviznando both mean "it's drizzling." The verb chispear comes from the noun chispa (spark), while the verb lloviznar comes from the noun llovizna (drizzle). On the other end, when the rain is really heavy, people may use the noun tormenta (storm) to describe it, though aguacero (downpour) is also very common:
 

Aguacero de mayo, me lleva, papá

May downpour, it's taking me away, man

Caption 44, Kikirikí - Animales

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Of course, people also use idiomatic expressions to talk about the rain. One example is llueve a cántaros (the equivalent of "it's raining cats and dogs," literally "it's raining as if pitchers were being poured from the sky"). Other words that you may want to explore on your own are: chubasco (a very intense, windy storm) and chaparrón (an intense, sudden, and short storm).
 
Another interesting set of unique Spanish words is the group used to talk about family in-laws, a list that is quite big, as you can imagine. It's not only suegro, suegra (father- and mother-in-law), but also yerno, nuera (son- and daughter-in-law), cuñado, cuñada (brother- or sister-in-law), and even concuño, concuña (brother, husband, sister, or wife of one's brother-in-law or sister-in-law)!

Es una champiñonera tradicional que estableció mi suegro.

It's a traditional mushroom farm that my father-in-law established.

Caption 6, La Champiñonera - El cultivo de champiñón

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Estaba en la casa de mi suegra y mi cuñada,

I was in my mother-in-law's house, and my sister-in-law,

la hermana de mi marido...

my husband's sister...

Caption 52, Biografía - Natalia Oreiro

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Interesting tidbit: The equivalent of "in-law family" in Spanish is familia política. You can use the adjective político (political) to describe less close relatives such as primo político (in-law cousin).

Let's continue learning the Spanish imperative. On a previous lesson we explored the use of the informal imperative used with tú (singular "you"), vosotros (plural “you” in Spain) and ustedes (plural “you” in the Americas). Now let's see how to give orders with the formal usted (singular "you"), and ustedes (plural “you” in Spain and in the Americas). 

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Actually, the formal commands are very easy in Spanish, we just need to use the present subjunctive.  

For usted (formal you singular):
 

Vaya y coma todo el plancton que quiera.

Go and eat all the plankton that you want.

Caption 5, Kikirikí - Animales

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For ustedes (formal you plural):
Vayan y coman todo el plancton que quieran.
Go and eat all the plankton that you want.

Actually, this is a great example that gives us the opportunity to introduce an important irregular verb, ir (to go) and it's formal imperative vaya (go).Let's see some variations of the example using the informal imperative. Pay attention to the verb ir (to go):

For tú (you singular informal):
Ve y come todo el plancton que quieras.
Go and eat all the plankton that you want.

For vosotros (you plural informal in Spain):
Id y comed todo el plancton que queráis.
Go and eat all the plankton that you want.

For ustedes (you plural informal in the Americas*):
Vayan y coman todo el plancton que quieran.
Go and eat all the plankton that you want.

But let's continue with another regular verb and the formal imperative:
 

Sí, no espere que me ría. -No, ni por un momento, Madre.

Yes, don't expect me to laugh. -No, not even for a moment, Mother.

Caption 19, Muñeca Brava - 33 El partido

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This is also another great example because it's showing us how to use the formal imperative with negation, which, good news, also uses the present subjunctive, so you only need to add the word "no," that's it! Here are examples using the regular verbs amar (to love), temer (to fear), partir (to leave) as models:

Ame (usted) a su hermano - No (ame) usted a su hermano | Love your brother - Don't love your brother
Tema (usted) a su hermano - No (tema) usted a su hermano | Fear your brother - Don't fear your brother
Parta con su hermano - No parta con su hermano | Leave with your brother - Don't leave with your brother

Finally, an example of formal imperative with ustedes (you plural) that uses the regular verbs caminar (to walk) and perdonar (to forgive), this last one with a suffix pronoun!
 

¡Caminen!

Walk!

¡Perdónenos la vida, patrón!

Spare our life, boss!

Captions 31-32, El Ausente - Acto 3

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And thus we have also learned that you can use the imperative to supplicate as well!

For all the animal lovers out there, here is a collection of Spanish expressions related to pets and their owners.

The word for pet in Spanish is mascota, yes, similar to the English word "mascot." The only difference is that mascota can be used to talk about an animal kept as a companion (a pet), or to refer to a special person, animal or thing used to symbolize a sports team, company, organization or other group (a mascot). Of course, the word mascota meaning "pet" can also be applied to a person, as in the following example:

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...todos eran mucho más viejos que yo.

...they were all much older than me.

Eh... y, como que, yo era como la mascota.

Uh... and, so like, I was like the pet.

Captions 64-65, Carli Muñoz - Niñez

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Now, in English the word "pet" is also a verb that means to stroke an animal affectionately. But in Spanish there is only one verb you can use instead of "to pet," or "to stroke," or even "to pat." That verb is acariciar (to caress). The following example is not about animals, but it's about el alma (the soul), a word that shares with the word animal a common etymological root: the Latin anima.

Acaricia mi alma, vuélvete la luna

Caress my soul, become the moon

Caption 14, Shaila Durcal - Vuélvete Luna

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Let's talk about the distinction between animales domésticos (domestic animals) and animales salvajes (wild animals). When you tame an animal it becomes domesticated or tamed, right? Spanish uses the verbs domesticar (to domesticate), domar (to tame), which come from the Latin domus (house). Sometimes, Spanish also uses the verb dominar (to dominate), which comes from the Latin dominus (the latin word for master or owner, "the lord of the house"). Ah, but if you want to talk about taming a horse, there's a specific word for that: desbravar (to break in, literally "to take out the braveness").

Another very common word is amansar (to make docile, meek). So it's common to hear people saying about a pet that es manso(a) or mansito(a) to indicate that it's gentle, friendly.Un perro que no muerde (a dog that doesn't bite) es mansito! 

Uy, buena, Pepino.

Oh, good one, Pepino.

-Es mansito. -Tan bonito el gatito.

-He's tame. -Such a pretty kitty.

Captions 57-58, Kikirikí - Animales

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Talking about bites and dogs, there is a famous saying in Spanish, perro que ladra no muerde,which means, literally, "a barking dog never bites." 

Pero perro que ladra no muerde, querida.

But, his bark is worse than his bite, dear [literally, "...the dog that barks doesn't bite"].

Caption 65, Muñeca Brava - 3 Nueva Casa

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It may be a little disrespectful, but some people may use the verb amansar to refer to the action of calming down a person, or even appeasing the gods:

Y tener poderes místicos para amansar las "tulucus".

And having mystical powers to tame the "tulucus".

Caption 26, NPS No puede ser - 1 - El concurso

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What if an animal is not mansito? That means it's fiero (fierce), feroz (ferocious), salvaje (wild), or maybe even feral (feral). A famous one is el lobo feroz, (the Big Bad Wolf) yes, the one that tried to eat Caperucita roja (Little Red Riding Hood) and los tres cerditos (the three little pigs). Can you blame him? Have you ever had un hambre feroz?

Si pones la mesa que no sea para dos,

If you set the table, it shouldn't be for two,

Porque somos como catorce con un hambre feroz

Because we are like fourteen people with a ferocious hunger

Captions 3-4, Mexican Institute of Sound - Alocatel

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One last expression before saying goodbye. It's important to walk your dog everyday, right? Agreed, but never ever ever say something like caminar a tu perro. That makes no sense in Spanish. The correct expression is sacar a pasear a tu perro (to take the dog out for a walk).  The Argentinian band Los Pericos (the Parrots) have a song entitled Fácil de engañar (Easy to Be Fooled) in which a former lover is compared to a pet owner:

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Me tenías en la jaula, me sacabas a pasear

You had me in a cage, you took me out for walks

Caption 8, Los Pericos - Fácil de Engañar

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By the way, if you are not easily fooled, you probably like the saying that goes:

A otro perro con ese hueso.

Don't try that one on me [literally, "To another dog with that bone"].

Caption 31, Muñeca Brava - 8 Trampas

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That was two last expressions. The thing is, there are so many interesting words about pets and owners! We should revisit the subject again in the future.

Pensamos que el agua, que el aire, que el suelo es nuestro y podemos hacer lo que nos dé la gana. No es cierto.

We think that the water, the air, the land is all ours and we can make what we feel like. That's not true.

Captions 10-13, De consumidor a persona - Short Film - Part 2

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Gana, meaning "wish" or "will," is a noun that plays a key role to express wishes or desires in Spanish. The expression darle (a alguien) la gana means "to feel like" or "to want to."

lo que me dé la gana
what I feel like

lo que te dé la gana
what you feel like

...y te puedes venir aquí cuando te dé la gana, ¿yo te voy a perdonar?

...and you can come here whenever you feel like it, I am going to forgive you?

Caption 22, Yago - 11 Prisión

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lo que le dé la gana
what you feel like / what he-she feels like

¡Salte de alegría cuando le dé la gana!

Jump for joy whenever you feel like it!

Caption 4, Kikirikí - Animales

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lo que les dé la gana
what you [pl.] feel like / what they feel like

¿Hasta cuándo van a seguir haciendo lo que les dé la gana?

Until when are you guys going to keep doing whatever you [pl.] feel like?

Caption 42, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 3

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Even more common is the pairing of the verb tener ("to have") with the plural ganas, as in:

Tenía ganas de hacer algo, con eso y...

I wanted to do something, with it and...

Caption 68, Biografía - Natalia Oreiro

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Tengo muchas ganas de aprender español.
I really want to learn Spanish.

A mí... yo tengo muchas ganas.

I... I really want to.

Caption 21, Amaya - Teatro romano

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No tengo ganas de parar ahora.
I don't want to stop now.

Gracias, Merycita, pero no tengo ganas de jugar.

Thank you, Merycita, but I don't feel like playing.

Caption 58, Club 10 - Capítulo 1

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