Verbal Comprehension

In lesson 12.2 In ¨Hear It Say It the sentence ¨Quiero empezar una página web.¨, Mauricio says it the following way:

¨Quierem pesar una pagina web¨ but the next sentence ¨Quiero empesar un sitio web¨ he pronounces each word without dropping vowels or tying syllables together from the end of a word to the beginning of the next word as illustrated above.  I notice he does this with many sentences throughout the course. I have also heard many other native speakers verbally change the pattern of a sentence by dropping vowels and tying syllables together creating what seem to be different words. To me it makes words unrecognizable. For instance in the same lesson the sentence ¨Se utilizan las tres formas de decirlo¨ he says it ¨Seu tilizan…¨. Being a learner, I don´t recognize ¨Seu tilizan¨. Apparently, this is normal practice by native speakers but never taught to learners by any online course.  Is there a method to this way of speaking?

¡Hola Spanish51!

Thanks for your question!

Blending syllables like you describe is quite common in many languages and it's unfortunately a very tricky thing to teach. This is because it can vary so much based on so many things, including region, age, desired emphasis, and even personal preference. 

There's good news, though: it gets easier to understand! It's just a matter of getting an ear for it - just like you did for ordinary Spanish sounds when you very first started learning. And as your ears become tuned to this blending, you'll even find yourself doing it in your own speech. So it's just a matter of exposing yourself to as much Spanish audio as possible - through the course, through videos, through podcasts, etc. - to get your ears used to it.

If you're really struggling with it in the course, keep in mind you can always use the settings in the upper right-hand corner to slow the audio down and let you focus on exactly what you're hearing from the native speaker. You can also go back and do some review of Level 1 (since our native speakers slowly increase their speaking speed over time, earlier lessons and levels will always feature slower recordings) to build up your confidence and your Spanish ear some more before returning to Level 2.

I hope that this has been of some help! Let me know if you still have any questions!

Saludos,

Liss

Thank you Liss

¡Hola Spanish51 y Al22!

I'm glad to hear that Mauricio's speech in the lessons is working well for you, Al22! And that's a very good point: native Spanish speakers from different regions may indeed have some trouble understanding each other, due to things like regional accents and slang. It's similar to how someone from the United States and someone from the United Kingdom might have some misunderstandings when speaking to one other, even though both are native English speakers. 

Thanks as well for your feedback about the number of “ah”s that appear in the phrases - I will pass this on.

Saludos,

Liss