Hi! I encountered this word acá meaning here in a book “1000 most frequently used spanish expressions”. Still in my dictionary (with more than 50k entries) it onli gives aquí for ‘here’.
My question is how often and in which cases native Spanish use this kind of word?
Hi Atikker!
“Acá” is an adverb and means “here” but in a less precise way. It’s used in Southern Spain and is very common its use in South America
Some examples:
-Ven acá ahora mismo - come here right now (not at a precise point)
Nowadays, here in Spain, we use the word ‘acá’ only in literatura.
Greetings
From http://www.studyspanish.com/topten_mistakes.htm#seven
"The words “aquí” and “acá” are not interchangeable.
“Aquí” and “acá” both refer to a location that is close to the speaker. These words are not interchangeable. “Acá” is used with verbs of motion, while “aquí” is used in other instances. “Juan, ven acá.” (John, come here.) Puedes registrarte aquí. (You can register here.) "
I know you found this on a Spanish teaching page, but it isn’t always true. It is perfectly fine, and you’ll hear las mamás diciendo “ven aquí ahora mismo.” You can also hear “acá” used for non-motion verbs, especially estar.
In South America, you rarely hear “aquí” and “allí” at all.