Lesson Ten: Ya te lo Traigo

Today’s lesson was tamer than I had expected, unfortunately. After last episode’s raunchiness, I was hoping that the hilarity would continue. Nope, just weekend vocabulary, cognates, present vs. future tense, and letras mudas. Still useful, but no LOL'ing.

We learn in this episode about cognates and false cognates. I will always remember when I was 16 and at the dinner table in Brazil, explaining why I didn’t eat food with preservativos—only to find out later that preservativos in Portuguese is the word for condoms. Should have seen my host grandmother’s face during that one. Oops.

While studying at Universidad de Belgrano, I had definitely heard some Yanqui dudes saying that they are embarazada, or pregnant, when they were really trying to say they are embarrassed. It happens. I wonder if Bueno, entonces...will cover the doble sentido that they use a lot here, as well. Argentine humor revolves around doble sentido and sexual connotation. I love this H2Oh! ad—it so perfectly describes the awkwardness that is a parent unaware of doble sentido:

We also learn about present and future tenses, or how they sort of use present for future in Argentina. I find this sort of ironic, considering the speed of things here is so much slower than that of most English-speaking countries. “Ya te lo traigo” literally means that I am already bringing it to you. However, if you hear this in a café in Buenos Aires, it could mean that your order will be brought out in anywhere from five minutes to 35 minutes. My bet is it’s closer to 35.

Lastly, we learn about some slang for cheating. The term that immediately grabbed my attention was estafar. This means to cheat or trick someone out of money—sometimes Argentines call this a truco. There is a fabulous movie that I have to recommend that perfectly describes truco in Buenos Aires. The movie is called Nueve Reinas, and it stars Darín, who is a total fox. Capo total.

Now after you see that movie, see the new one, El Secreto de Sus Ojos, which also stars Francella, who is also amazing. Along with programs like Bueno, entonces...the Argentine film/ television industry is great tool in learning about the culture/language of this country—it also gives you an excuse to watch loads of TV and not feel guilty about it.