IN TERMS OF GRAMMAR, VOCABULARY AND PRONUNCIATION

T EACHER:

D OLORES DEL ROCI O ORT EGA AND RAD E

ST UD ENT:

CARMEN J. BAZURT O PALMA

2011 -2012

The similarities and differences between Spanish

and English language

Grammar

Similarities:Both language have a grammar structure

base on the tense.The basic structure of the sentences is the

same, but other function change the positions as adjectives:

I + like + my friends. ◊ It is a yellow car. S V C Me + gustan + mis amigos. ◊ Eso es un carro amarillo. S V C

Grammar

Differences:For Spanish we identify feminine and

masculine article, singular, plural and adjective; but in English we do not have to do that.

Spanish: Mi gato es azul. English: The cat is blue.

Grammar

Differences:Spanish have more heavily inflected

language than English about verb. Example:

ENGLISH SPANISHI run Yo corro

You run Tu corres

He runs El corre

We run Nosotros corremos

They run Ellos corren

Vocabulary

Similarities: Both share Latin influence. Share some words: sofa, idea, bar

and so on.

Example I like the sofa. Me gusta el sofa.

Vocabulary

Differences:Latin-derived words in English tend to be

more formal. Spanish accent give the different meaning of

the words.

Example: Él es un millonario. (Pronoun) El anillo es feo. (Article)

Vocabulary

The meaning of words depend on the position in the sentences.

Example:They miss their country. (Verb)Miss Ecuador is tall. (Title)

PronunciationSpanish has a strong correspondence

between the sound of a word and its spelling in English.

English phonemes with no equivalent in Spanish. English vowels are 5 and 5

diphthongs. Spanish vowels are 12 pure

vowels and 8 diphthongs.

Vowels Consonant/α/ heart/æ/ fat/ε/ said/I/ here/ɔ/ fall/ʊ/ cook/ʌ/ but/ə/ circus/ər/ word/aj/ die/ɔj/ boy/aw/ about

/dʒ/ jail /h/ offer/ŋ/sing/∫/ fish/v/ lover/z/ easy/ð/ then/ʒ/ usual

Conclusion

Language teachers must analyze these types of interference to teach according

the students´ problems and needs.