Learn how to use diminutives
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get a breakdown of the dialogue and translations instantly with the Premium line-by-line Audio. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Unlock Lesson Notes and Transcripts for every single lesson. Sign Up for a Free Lifetime Account and Get 7 Days of Premium Access.
| INTRODUCTION |
| Fernando: Good to See You! In this lesson, you will learn about diminutives. The conversation takes place at the refinery, and the conversation is between Jimmy, the receptionist, and Señor Rodriguez. Jimmy and Señor Rodriguez are friends, therefore they will be using the informal register. Jimmy and the receptionist will be using the formal register. |
| JP: Alright, let’s listen to this conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| RECEPCIONISTA: Buenos días, bienvenido a la Refaccionaria Diesel de Cancún. |
| JIMMY: Buenos días, yo tengo una cita con el señor Rodríguez. |
| RECEPCIONISTA: ¿Su apellido? |
| JIMMY: McSherry. |
| RECEPCIONISTA: Un momento, señor McSherry... Señor McSherry, gracias por esperar. Venga conmigo. |
| SR. RODRÍGUEZ: Jimmy, cuánto tiempo sin vernos. |
| JIMMY: Sí, mucho tiempo. Te traigo un regalito de Los Ángeles. |
| SR. RODRÍGUEZ: Ay, gracias, no te hubieras molestado. Te ves muy bien. ¿Cómo te va? |
| JIMMY: Muy bien, gracias, ¿y tú? Tú también te ves muy bien. |
| SR. RODRÍGUEZ: Yo estoy bien. Ocupado, pero bien. Hoy tenemos un día bien cargado. ¿Listo? |
| JIMMY: ¡Sí señor! |
| JP: One more time, with the translation. |
| RECEPCIONISTA: Buenos días, bienvenido a la Refaccionaria Diesel de Cancún. |
| RECEPTIONIST: Good morning, welcome to the Diesel Refinery of Cancún. |
| JIMMY: Buenos días, yo tengo una cita con el señor Rodríguez. |
| JIMMY: Good morning, I have an appointment with Mr. Rodríguez. |
| RECEPCIONISTA: ¿Su apellido? |
| RECEPTIONIST: Your last name? |
| JIMMY: McSherry. |
| JIMMY: McSherry. |
| RECEPCIONISTA: Un momento, señor McSherry... Señor McSherry, gracias por esperar. Venga conmigo. |
| RECEPTIONIST: Just a moment, Mr. McSherry... Mr. McSherry, thanks for waiting. Come with me. |
| SR. RODRÍGUEZ: Jimmy, cuánto tiempo sin vernos. |
| MR. RODRÍGUEZ: Jimmy, long time, no see! |
| JIMMY: Sí, mucho tiempo. Te traigo un regalito de Los Ángeles. |
| JIMMY: Yeah, too long. I brought you a little gift from L.A. |
| SR. RODRÍGUEZ: Ay, gracias, no te hubieras molestado. Te ves muy bien. ¿Cómo te va? |
| MR. RODRÍGUEZ: Oh, thanks, you shouldn't have. You look great! How's it going? |
| JIMMY: Muy bien, gracias, ¿y tú? Tú también te ves muy bien. |
| JIMMY: Fine, thanks. What about you? You look great yourself. |
| SR. RODRÍGUEZ: Yo estoy bien. Ocupado, pero bien. Hoy tenemos un día bien cargado. ¿Listo? |
| MR. RODRÍGUEZ: I'm fine. Busy, but fine. We have quite a day planned. Ready? |
| JIMMY: ¡Sí señor! |
| JIMMY: Yes, sir! |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| JP: Ok, so our boy Jimmy has arrived at the refinery... |
| Fernando: That's right. His first order of business is to check in with the receptionist. And then he sees el señor Rodríguez, who he hasn't seen in a while. |
| JP: Ok, so some of the language we hear here is "getting reacquainted" language. |
| Fernando: Right. I'm kind of impressed that Jimmy brings el señor Rodríguez a gift from LA... very nice. |
| JP: Yah... anyway, they tell each other "you look great" and then it's right down to business! |
| JP: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Fernando: bien [natural native speed] |
| JP: good/well |
| Fernando: bien [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Fernando: bien [natural native speed] |
| JP: Next. |
| Fernando: muy [natural native speed] |
| JP: very |
| Fernando: muy [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Fernando: muy [natural native speed] |
| JP: Next. |
| Fernando: No te hubieras molestado. [natural native speed] |
| JP: You shouldn't have. |
| Fernando: No te hubieras molestado. [slowly - broken down by |
| syllable] |
| Fernando: No te hubieras molestado. [natural native speed] |
| JP: Next. |
| Fernando: el regalo [natural native speed] |
| JP: the gift |
| Fernando: el regalo [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Fernando: el regalo [natural native speed] |
| JP: Next. |
| Fernando: la cita [natural native speed] |
| JP: the appointment |
| Fernando: la cita [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Fernando: la cita [natural native speed] |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| JP: Ok, now let’s take a look at these words and phrases, what do we got? |
| Fernando: Let's look at the word "bien." |
| JP: Bien. it means well. bien. |
| Fernando: Yes, usually if someone asks you how you're doing, you answer "bien." |
| JP: I'm doing fine. Right, because when they ask you how you're doing, usually, they're not really asking, like you're not supposed to go into how you're actually doing... you just say "fine." "bien." |
| Fernando: If you're really doing well, you can actually say "muy bien." That "muy" is our second vocab item." |
| JP: Muy... it means "very." So muy bien means "very well." muy bien. |
| Fernando: muy bien. Next we have a phrase... "No te hubieras molestado." |
| JP: No te hubieras molestado. El señor rodríguez says this after Jimmy gives him a gift, no te hubieras molestado. |
| Fernando: Right, it's our way of saying "oh, you shouldn't have" |
| JP: You shouldn't have gone to all the trouble! Ok, the grammar in this phrase is pretty complex, it's the pluperfect subjunctive used to express regret... but if you don't know what I'm talking about don't worry about it at this level, just know that when someone unexpectedly brings you a gift, you can say to them "no te hubieras molestado" |
| Fernando: No te hubieras molestado.... and then you accept the gift! By the way, the next item is the word for gift... it's "el regalo" |
| JP: el regalo, means gift... el regalo. Ok, what's the last word? |
| Fernando: the last word is "la cita." |
| JP: La cita. Ok, this means a date, or an appointment. |
| Fernando: When you agree to meet someone somewhere, it could be a doctor's appointment, it could be a romantic date... la cita. |
| JP: La cita. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| JP: Ok, today in the grammar section, we're going to talk about those cute suffixes -ito, and -cito. |
| Fernando: Diminutives? |
| JP: Yes, these are the suffixes we add nouns or adjectives to make them little. For example in the dialog, Jimmy says "I bring you a little gift from Los Angeles. |
| Fernando: Te traigo un regalito de Los Ángeles. |
| JP: right so we have that word "regalito" which is the diminutive form for the noun "regalo." |
| Fernando: "regalo" means "gift," so "regalito" means "little gift." |
| JP: you can hear we just added -ito to regalo... regalito. So the purpose of the diminutive is to make something little, but sometimes it just makes something cute. Like, when you say you like you prefer your toast to be "toastadito." there's the sense that toast that's toastadito is toasted to a cute perfection, and you're affectionate for it. One time I heard a couple of friends weighing themselves, and they discovered that they weigh the same so they said they were igualitos... this is igual, with means the same, but not just igual, igualito, like “perfectly equal.” |
| Fernando: So using a diminutive doesn't always mean small. |
| JP: Nope. Ooh, also you can use the diminutive to ridicule somebody, to diminish their significance. Like when you're about to get mad at someone, you tell them "cuidadito"... watch it... using the diminutive makes it a little patronizing. they're always saying that in soap operas. That and "hombrecillo," when they're belittling your boyfriend in the soap operas, they won't call him an 'hombre,' they'll call him an 'hombrecillo.' |
| Fernando: Yes. "Hombrecillo" can also be a compliment. |
| JP: Right, depending on the tone, that diminutive form can either be an expression of affection, or a sarcastic way to belittle someone's significance. |
Outro |
| Fernando: I think that just about does it for today, JP. |
| JP: For now, I think it’s time to go, so hasta luego. |
| Fernando: Bye! |
Comments
Hide