Tips to Avoid Grammatical Errors: Improve Your Spanish

Learning Spanish is a journey full of challenges and discoveries. One of the most interesting and challenging aspects of adopting this beautiful language as a second language is mastering grammar correctly. Making grammatical mistakes is common at the beginning of the learning process, even for many advanced Spanish students, no matter how much knowledge and experience they possess. Don't worry, we've got your back!

Join us and discover the most common grammatical errors and how to overcome them efficiently. This will boost your confidence when speaking and bring you closer to the much-desired advanced Spanish level.

Let's get started!

What is Grammar?

In short, grammar is the study of the set of rules and regulations governing the use of a specific language. This science facilitates communication by studying its three fundamental pillars:

• Phonetics

 Studies the production, perception, and transmission of the sounds used by humans to communicate.

• Morphology

 Determines the structure of words, their formation processes, and variants.

• Syntax

 Studies the system of organization and combination of words prioritizing communicational coherence.

Now that we know the definition of this science, we understand that a grammatical error is any use of language, both written and oral, that deviates from the grammatical guidelines of a particular language.

Common Mistakes

Accidentally ignoring grammatical rules is easy. Therefore, both advanced students and beginners should periodically analyze their skills to identify those mistakes that prevent them from improving their Spanish.

Use the following examples of common grammatical errors to identify yours:

• Remembering something / remembering something

 Confusing the use of these actions is very common due to their similarity. Keep in mind that 'recordar' (to remember) does not necessarily carry the preposition 'de', but 'acordarse' (to remember) generally does.

• Correct: Aún recuerdo tu sonrisa. (I still remember your smile.)
• Incorrect: Aún recuerdo de tu sonrisa. (I still remember of your smile.)
• Correct: ¿Te acuerdas de mi prima? (Do you remember my cousin?)
• Incorrect: ¿Te acuerdas mi prima? (Do you remember my cousin?)
  
  
• Subject-verb agreement 

Identify the precise number of the subject, whether singular or plural, to correctly adjust the verb conjugation.

• Correct: Los perros juegan en el parque. (The dogs play in the park.)
• Incorrect: Los perros juega en el parque. (The dogs plays in the park.)
• Correct: El niño come manzana. (The boy eats apple.)
• Incorrect: El niño comen manzana. (The boy eat apple.)
  
  
• De and dé 

The way we pronounce words significantly affects the meaning of sentences. 'De' without an accent is a preposition, while 'dé' with an accent is used to express the subjunctive mood of the verb 'dar' (to give). Don't confuse them!

• El papá de Pedro es muy amable. (Pedro's dad is very kind.)

Espero que tu mamá te dé el dinero. (I hope your mom gives you the money.)

• Si no and sino

 Despite the phonetic similarity between 'sino' and 'si no', differentiating their applications is essential. 'Si no' is used in negative conditional sentences.

• Tu and tú

For advanced students, perfecting the use of homophone words is essential. These words are those that are written and sound almost or completely the same but differ in meaning.

• 'Tu' without an accent is used to refer to the properties or characteristics of the person you are talking to.
  Example: Me gusta mucho tu casa. (I really like your house.)
  
  
• 'Tú' with an accent is a personal pronoun that identifies the person you are talking to.
  Example: Tú eres muy buena persona. (You are a very good person.)
  
  
• Por and para 

To avoid mistakes using these two prepositions, remember that 'por' is used to talk about reasons and causes, while 'para' is used to refer to purposes or objectives.

Example: Me esfuerzo por salir adelante. (I strive to move forward.)
Example: Bailo para desestresarme. (I dance to de-stress.)

General Tips

Did you manage to identify your grammatical errors? We hope so. Next, we will provide some tips that will help all those advanced students improve their Spanish. Take notes!

• In-depth and detailed study: 

The first recommendation is to study the grammatical and spelling rules deeply and in detail. Building a solid foundation from the beginning of the learning process will save a lot of time and mistakes in the future.

• Surround yourself with the language: 

Replace all recreational materials originally created in your native language with others in Spanish. This includes books, magazines, blogs, podcasts, movies, series, music, radio, etc. Listening and reading regularly in Spanish will familiarize you with the grammatical rules effectively.

• Support from Spanish speakers: 

If you have friends or family who are Spanish speakers, take advantage of their knowledge and experience to polish details and correct mistakes. Ask them to correct your general skills, from pronunciation to conversational and written grammar.

• Spanish teachers: 

Go beyond the academic hours corresponding to the training course. Tell your teachers that you would like to reinforce your skills through constant feedback outside of academy classes. This way, you will identify and address your mistakes more quickly.

• An extra support: 

Instead of  spending so much time on social networks, take advantage of your phone by downloading Spanish dictionaries and grammar guides. So, whenever you're away from home and have some free time, you can practice and polish your skills.

Belonging to the group of advanced students in a Spanish academy is admirable. However, this does not mean that we do not make grammatical mistakes occasionally. We hope you found these tips useful for avoiding grammatical errors in Spanish. Remember, the important thing is not to avoid making mistakes, but the attitude with which we face them to overcome them.

See you next time!