Let's see a few examples to learn the proper use of the Spanish word falta, a false friend of the English word fault.

First of all, falta does mean "fault" in the context of sports:
 

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El árbitro no vio la falta
The umpire didn't see the fault

The word falta in Spanish is also used in legal contexts. Una falta means "an offense" (the word ofensa also exists):
 

Que una misma persona cometiera distintas faltas de hurto.

That one person committed different robbery offenses.

Caption 49, Los Reporteros - Crecen los robos en tiendas

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Also, in academic or laboral contexts, una falta means "an absence." If you don't go to school tu maestro te pone falta (your teacher marks you absent). Generally speaking una falta means "a lack" or "a shortage" and the verb faltar means "to lack," "to need" or "to be absent." Study the following examples:
 

Me hace falta un aguacate que voy a hacer una ensalada, eh.

I need one avocado and I'll make a salad, uh.

Caption 43, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa

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Hoy estamos protestando por la falta de agua.

Today we are protesting because of the water shortage.

Caption 49, Kikirikí - Agua - Part 2

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It's interesting the way Spanish uses the word falta in expressions of time:
 

¿Qué será? Que falta un mes para la boda, ¿eh?

What would it be? That there is a month until the wedding, huh?

Caption 27, Yago - 8 Descubrimiento

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You can also use the word falta with a pinch of sarcasm:
 

Lo único que me falta es que a los diez meses empiece a caminar...

The only thing I need now is that at ten months old she starts walking...

Caption 44, Biografía - Natalia Oreiro

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In fact, the expression lo único que me falta (or lo único que me faltaba) alone, also exists, and it's commonly used sarcastically:
 

¡Lo único que me falta!

Just what I needed!

Caption 5, Muñeca Brava - 2 Venganza

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Check out the following use of falta combined with the verb hacer and negation. It's a very common way to express that something is not needed or necessary:
 

¡No hace falta un abogado!

A lawyer is not necessary!

Caption 81, Adícora - Venezuela - Darío y el Kitesurfing

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And, of course, you can use falta + hacer without negation:
 

Eres Lo que a mi vida le hace falta si no vienes

You are what my life lacks if you don't come

Captions 6-7, Café Tacuba - Eres

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Finally, a useful tip. How do you say in Spanish "It's your fault?" Unless you are playing soccer with your friends, you shouldn't say "es tu falta." For that, Spanish uses the word culpa (guilt, blame). It may sound really extreme and weird to say "it's your guilt" in English, but es tu culpa is common in Spanish: 
 

Soy el hombre al que iban a enterrar vivo por tu culpa.

I am the man who they were going to bury alive because of you.

Caption 35, El Ausente - Acto 4

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You can use es tu culpa in the most trivial situations:
 

Por tu culpa perdimos el avión, querido.

It's your fault we missed the plane, dear.

Caption 16, Yago - 4 El secreto

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Finally, another use of the word falta is in the expression faltas de ortografía (orthographic mistakes). You can combine it with the verb tener (to have) as in el ensayo tiene muchas faltas de ortografía (the essay has many orthographic mistakes), or with the verb cometer (to commit, to make) as in tú cometes muchas faltas de ortografía (you make a lot of ortographic mistakes). Thank you for reading!

The Spanish verb hacer primarily means "to do" or "to make." This verb is used in a wide range of expressions, which makes it one of the most versatile verbs in Spanish. However, and maybe for the same reason, the meanings and uses of hacer are not always easy to grasp. The fact that this is an irregular verb doesn't make it any easier either. So, to successfully master the verb hacer, the first step would be to memorize its conjugation (the past tense is especially challenging). After that, we recommend that you study it using a case-by-case approach. Luckily, the use of hacer is extremely common, so our catalog of videos offers you plenty of examples. 

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Let's quickly review the two basic meanings of the word hacer. The first meaning is "to make":
 

Vamos a hacer un arroz.

We're going to make rice.

Caption 74, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa

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The second basic meaning of hacer is "to do":
 

¿Y ahora qué hacemos?

And now what do we do?

Caption 12, Guillermina y Candelario - Una película de terror

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Keep in mind that these meanings of the verb hacer as "to do" or "to make" can be used in many different situations that don't necessarily correspond to the uses of "to make" and "to do" in English. For example, in Spanish you can use the verb hacer to say quiero hacer una llamada (I want to make a call), and hazme un favor (do me a favor). But you can also use it in expressions like me haces daño (you hurt me), and ella hizo una pregunta (she asked a question). Here's another example:
 

Tú me hiciste brujería.

You put a spell on me.

Caption 38, Calle 13 - Un Beso De Desayuno

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Hacer is also extensively used in Spanish to express time or duration. It can be used to express for how long you have been doing something:
 

Tengo veinte años y estoy hace dos años acá en Buenos Aires.

I'm twenty years old and I've been here in Buenos Aires for two years.

Caption 40, Buenos Aires - Heladería Cumelen

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Or to express the concept of "ago":
 

Hace unos días me olvidé la mochila en el tren.

A few days ago I forgot my backpack on the train.

Caption 22, Raquel - Oficina de objetos perdidos

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Hacer is also used in weather expressions:
 

Hoy hace tanto viento que casi me deja caer.

Today it is so windy that it almost makes me fall [over].

Caption 22, Clara explica - El tiempo

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And other impersonal expressions, such as hacer falta (to need/be lacking):
 

Se puede poner entero, no hace falta quitar corteza.

It can be put in whole; it's not necessary to remove the crust.

Caption 84, Cómetelo - Crema de brócoli

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To indicate taking on a role:

Siempre quieres que haga el papel de villana.
You always want me to play the role of the villain.

Or to indicate that someone is pretending to be something: 
 

Digo si pasa algo con mi hijo, no te hagas la ingenua.

I'm saying if something is happening with my son, don't play dumb.

Caption 13, Muñeca Brava - 44 El encuentro - Part 5

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The reflexive form hacerse is commonly used in this way in many expressions such as hacerse el loco (to pretend to be crazy), hacerse la mosquita muerta (to look as if butter wouldn't melt in one's mouth, literally "to pretend to be a dead fly"), hacerse el muerto (to play dead), etc. Here is another example:
 

Mira, no te hagas la viva.

Look, don't play smart.

Caption 3, Yago - 3 La foto

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Hacer can also express the idea of getting used to something:
 

No hacerme a la idea de que esto está bien

Not to get used to the idea that this is OK

Caption 32, Xóchitl - Vida en Monterrey

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Hacer is also used to express that something doesn't matter in expressions such as no le hace (it doesn't matter), or no hace al caso (it doesn't pertain to the matter). Or it can mean "to refer to": Por lo que hace al dinero, tú no te preocupes (Concerning money, you don't worry). The list of its possible uses goes on and on! Let's see one last use of hacer, which was sent to us by one of our subscribers:

The expression hacer caso means "to pay attention," "to obey," or "to believe":

Nada, hay que hacerle caso al médico.

No way, you have to pay attention to the doctor.

Caption 63, Yago - 8 Descubrimiento

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Hazme caso que tú eres perfecta.

Believe me that you are perfect.

Caption 58, Biografía - Enrique Iglesias

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Pero yo siempre, siempre, siempre le hago caso a Sor Cachete.

But I always, always, always, do as Sister Cachete says.

Caption 35, Muñeca Brava - 44 El encuentro - Part 2

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The Spanish -azo/aza suffix is mostly used as an augmentative, an affix that reinforces the original word. It may also be used to denote a hit or blow given with (or to) the object to which the suffix is attached. Let's find some examples in our Spanish videos.

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In an installment of the Argentinian telenovela Yago, we hear the protagonist using the -azo/aza suffix as an augmentative, by far its most common use:

Fue un gustazo, Lucio.

It was a great pleasure, Lucio.

-El gusto fue mío.

-The pleasure was mine.

Captions 74-75, Yago - 8 Descubrimiento

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Other common examples of this use are solazo (harsh sun), golpanazo (big hit), and cuerpazo (big body, mostly used figuratively as "great body"). 

On the other hand, a puñetazo is a hit given with a puño (fist):
 

Yo digo que es como un puñetazo en el estómago.

I say it's like a punch in the stomach.

Caption 33, Festivaliando - Mono Núñez

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In the same fashion, a porrazo is a hit given with a porra (club, baton). Probably due to its unfortunate frequent use, porrazo has come to mean any kind of hit, even a self-inflicted one or one not precisely administered with a club:  

Me di un porrazo en la cabeza.
I gave myself a thump on the head.

Some other common examples of this use of the -azo/aza suffix are manazo (a hit given with the hand), cabezazo (a hit given with the head), trancazo (a hit given with a bar, or any hit by extension), cañonazo (a canyon shot), latigazo (a hit given with a whip), and codazo (a hit given with the elbow).

Now, as we previously said, the -azo/aza suffix is also used to express a hit given to the object represented by the word to which the suffix is appended. A good example is espaldarazo (a hit given to the back), which is only used figuratively to mean "support," as in te doy el espaldarazo (I give you my support). In Mexico and El Salvador, you will also hear the expression dar un madrazo (to hit the mother of something or someone, that is to hit really hard). Of course, as with many slang expressions that refer figuratively to motherhood, madrazo is not a polite expression, but extremely common:

A madrazos, en una palabra grosera.

With blows, to use a bad word.

Caption 37, ¡Tierra, Sí! - Atenco

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By extension madrazos are also insults, harsh words:
 

... sino que nos dice un madrazo.

... but rather he says something harsh to us.

Caption 5, Región mundo - Paso a paso

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