TRANSLATING 'AMANECER' AND 'ANOCHECER':

In our Skype English classes (online) Spanish students often forget the words to translate 'anochecer' and 'amanecer' into English. We can use 'dawn', 'daybreak' or 'sunrise' for 'amanecer' whilst 'dusk' or 'sundown' or 'sunset' or 'nightfall' are used for 'anochecer'. 'Twilight' is the soft glowing light when the sun is still below the horizon. Hope that helps.
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‘CARRERA’ IS A FALSE FRIEND:

In our Skype English online classes Spanish students often wrongly translate ‘carrera’. One of the meanings of ‘carrera’ in Spanish refers to studies which are done at university whilst this is not the case in English. ‘Career’ refers to your professional working life which is normally carried out after university, school or college is finished. It does not refer to studies done at university in English. When you study at university this is often called in the UK a ‘degree course’ a ‘degree’ or simply your ‘studies’. Happy New Year!
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SOME VERBS REQUIRE AN OBJECT IN ENGLISH:

Some verbs must have an object in English. These are called transitive verbs. The object is the person or thing affected by the action described by the verb. For example, many people translate the sentence ‘me gusta’ with ‘I like’. This is really bad. What you must employ is an object as ‘like’ is a transitive verb. For example, you could say ‘I like it/her/the film/the sunny day’ etc. So please avoid just saying ‘I like’ or ‘I like a lot’ or ‘I don’t like’. Similarly, we must not say ‘the film, I like’. The word order is wrong so we must say ‘I like the spray’ (subject, verb, object).

Common transitive verbs that students have issues with include:

To like
To miss (extrañar)
To enjoy
To bring
To give
To send
To leave
To make
To owe
To tell
To show
To use

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COMMON PHRASAL VERB: 'TO BE PUT OFF'

This means that something or someone discontinued your desire for something or someone.

Examples: 1. The hair in my soup put me off wanting to eat the soup. 2. The girl's strange habits put me off her. 3. They no longer want to vote for that candidate. His speech put the voters off.

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¿POR QUÉ TE FALLAS CON TU INGLÉS?

Aquí está un consejo para aprender el inglés más facilmente que damos a los alumnos de nuestros clases de inglés online (vía skype).

Minimice su esfuerzo estudiando menos gramática:

Teniendo una base de gramática, la mejor y más divertida forma de mejorarla es conversando y conversando mientras alguien corrige tus errores gramaticales como en nuestras clases de inglés online. Hablar correctamente de temas entretenidos e interesantes es mucho más divertido que estudiar solo con los libros de gramática.
http://www.clasesinglesonline.com

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TO 'TAKE/HAVE A BATH' AND 'TO BATHE' (BAÑARSE):

There is often confusion in our skype English classes concerning the verb 'to bath'. Well, although it exists in British English we don't usually use it. According to wordreference.com 'bañarse' can mean 'to take/have a bath/shower'. When you 'take or have a bath' it is what you do when you want to relax or wash yourself usually at home or in a hotel. When you do this you lay down horizontally in the water in a bathtub (bañera). In British English the verb 'to bathe' (meterse al agua) is usually employed when you want to go in the sea, in a lake, river or in a swimming pool. The primary objective is enjoyment and not to wash yourself although some people may bathe to wash themselves especially in less developed countries. 'Bathing' is usually done outside whilst 'to have a bath' is usually done indoors. I hope that helps. http://www.clasesinglesonline.com

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 'FUN' AND 'FUNNY':

In our skype English classes students often have issues with 'fun' and 'funny' The difference of the use of these two words is very subtle. When a mistake is made, nearly always students say ‘funny’ (‘e.g. ‘we had a funny time at the shopping centre’) when they should be saying ‘fun’ and not the other way round. This is because using ‘fun’ is a lot more common than ‘funny’. Thus if you have a doubt about which one to use after reading the following, always go for ‘fun’. More than likely you will be correct. Now on to the grammar:
‘Fun’ is both an adjective and a noun whilst ‘funny’ is an adjective only.
‘Fun’ refers to when you have a good time or when you enjoy yourself (cuando 'lo pasas bien' o 'cuando te disfrutes'). For example, we could say ‘visiting my friend was fun’ or ‘it was fun to go skiing’ or ‘the party will be lots of fun’. Using ‘fun’ as a noun (remember, it is uncountable) we could say ‘we had fun at the event’ or ‘we will have fun on holiday’.
‘Funny’ is employed when a situation or person makes you laugh. For example, ‘the comedy is funny’ or ‘the clown is funny’.
In British English slang ‘funny’ can also mean ‘strange’, ‘odd’ or ‘bizarre’. For example, ‘the man painted his nails and that is a funny thing to do’.
Many times the translation of ‘fun’ as an adjective is ‘divertido’ in Spanish, whilst ‘funny’ could be ‘comico’.
http://www.clasesinglesonline.com