Watch out for bad advice
It pays to be careful where you get your advice about speaking Spanish.
I have seen this happen so many times, native speakers giving bad advice about Spanish.
I’m not sure why it happens, some people like to criticize to make themselves sound big I guess.
You know, although native Spanish speakers will always speak better than someone who learned as an adult, they often have no idea how to teach it.
In fact, native speakers often have a disadvantage as teachers.
Why?
They have never had to learn the language as an adult and so they never really had to think about it.
This is true with me, I am a much better Spanish teacher than an I am as an English teacher, because I have been through the learning process.
one of my students got some horrible advice from some friends. Here’s his email to me.
Hola,
I have questions about something in Lesson 2.
I WANT TO SEE HIM
Method 1: Lo quiero ver
Method 2: Quiero verlo
You recommend using Method 2. I have some Spanish speaking friends that disagree. They say that it is not correct and much better to use Method 1.
I am sure that you have considered this before making your recommendation of Method 2. And, as this occurs so close to the beginning, I am sure that it must be fundamental and the subsequent lessons build on it. My questions are:
1) Is there a significant difference between the two methods and can someone, at a later date, easily unlearn what might be considered a convenient, but “incorrect” or “not preferred” gramatical structure?
2) Will there be other similiar situations - Method 1 (preferred) v Method 2 (convenient) - throughout the course?
Saludos,
Wilf
Hi Wilf
Frankly, I don’t get why your friends would tell you that.
Both methods are grammatically correct and used every day by Spanish speakers.
Here’s a way to prove it.
Type into google
“Lo quiero ver”
then type in
“Quiero verlo”
Make sure it’s in parenthesis, that way Google will only give you the hits on the exact phrase.
I did it out of curiosity and this is the result I got.
“Lo quiero ver”
Resultados 1 - 10 de aproximadamente 45,900 de “Lo quiero ver”. (0.15 segundos
“Quiero verlo”
Resultados 1 - 10 de aproximadamente 107,000 de “quiero verlo”. (0.08 segundos
45000 vs 107000, method 2 wins in real world use.
That’s why we use method 2 in Synergy Spanish, it’s easier for a beginner to use and and it’s how people speak.