[Course Forum] Spanish (Mexico) 1 - 7 by Memrise

Official Memrise Courses Spanish (Mexico)
85

I had this problem too.

86

In Spanish Mexico 5 “me reuní con el secretario de Estado para preguntarle” is translated as “I met with the Minister to ask him.” Why is this not the literal translation “secretary of state”? It seems as if this is the usual English translation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabinet_of_Mexico

2 Likes
87

In Spanish Mexico 5 the male voice and written text says “en mexico no hay ni rey ni reina,” but the female voice says “en mexico no hay rey ni reina.” Isn’t the latter more correct, or more usual? In any case, the voices are inconsistent.

1 Like
88

Hi @mraby,

Thanks for reporting that inconsistence. Actually both are correct but the construction “ni 
 ni” is more used. I have deleted the female audio. Thanks again.

Best regards,

Ángela

89

In Spanish (Mezico) 1, a speed review asked for the translation of “the fish”. “El pez” and “el pescado” were both choices. I spotted “el pez” first and selected it, and was marked wrong. My understanding is that they are both correct translations of “the fish”, though tending to be used in different contexts (swimming fish vs fish for food). However, possibly only one is used in Mexico?

1 Like
90

Hi @jonesnori!
I think you are right. Pez is a live fish and pescado is a food fish. If @angileptol agrees with us she will answer next week on how to disambiguate those on tests

2 Likes
91

Spanish Mexico 5: “they’re, for example, pretty good at maths” is given as “por ejemplo, son muy buenos en matemáticas”

It would be less confusing if the English were “for example, they’re pretty good at maths” (although in US English it is “math” not “maths.”)

92

Hi @jonesnori,

Thanks for reporting that problem. I have added “el pez” as an alternative for “the fish” so that you can also select it without getting marked wrong. I hope this helps. :slight_smile:

Best,

Ángela

1 Like
93

Hello @mraby,

Thanks for your suggestion. Are you learning Spanish for US English speakers or for UK English speakers? Thanks.

Best,

Ángela

94

It’s not Arabic––it is Spanish (Mexico) 5 for US English speakers.

95

Shouldn’t “piensan” be “you think (plural formal); they think”? It’s listed as informal, not formal.

1 Like
96

Why are there so many sentences where the order of phrases seems to be arbitrarily chosen in the translation? For example, in Spanish (Mexico) 5:
“Cuando lleguĂ© a casa, mi padre estaba hablando con mi madre” is given as:
“My father was speaking to my mother when I arrived home.”

Why not “when I arrived home, my father was speaking to my mother,” since this works just as well in English? I’d rather focus on learning the language than on memorizing the specific order of phrases for different cards. Or, better yet, multiple correct answers could be accepted.

5 Likes
97

In the spanish one course, level 13 (final level) when taking listening tests, the audio for se/sé is indistinguishable as they are pronounced identically (especially in isolation). When both options pop up as answers, they should both be acceptable.

2 Likes
98

The female audio for Course 6, level 28 “the department” is using the audio for “the diamond”

1 Like
99

Hello @Jessica_Fitch45,

Thank you very much for reporting that mistake. I have deleted the wrong audio item. Thanks again for helping us improve our courses.

Best wishes,

Ángela

100

Hello @adoette,

Thank you for reporting that issue. I have added the alternative for that item so that both options are acceptable. Thanks for helping us improve our courses. :slight_smile:

Best,

Ángela

101

Hello @mraby,

Thank you for your suggestion. It makes sense at least in this particular example you are mentioning and I can change the English translation there.

Best,

Ángela

102

Hello @jonesnori,

That is actually the difference between Spanish from Spain and from Latin America. “Piensan” would be plural formal in Spain but informal in Latin America. I hope this helps.

Thanks!

Ángela

103

@jonesnori @angileptol But why is the course specifying either formal or informal for plural you? I think that it would be more clear to learners to drop those terms and simply say that it is plural you.

Yes, a big difference between Spanish in Latin America and Spain is that the plural informal vosotros tense isn’t used, and Ustedes covers BOTH informal and formal.

Sounds like Memrise took the Spanish course and changed a vosotros entry to Ustedes, which makes sense. But leaving the word “informal” there seems odd.

Screen Shot 2017-04-10 at 08.54.21.png1622×1214 369 KB

Actually, in that conjugation set, it seems that you would want to differentiate between formal and informal singular. Piensas = you think (singular informal); piensa = you think (singular formal) + he/she; piensan = you think (plural)+they

2 Likes
104

Because they don’t use vosotros. Of course. But then, what would plural formal be? Or is it simply plural, not informal or formal?
LenoreLenore Jean Jones, CPASent from my mobile device.