Focused Listening Practice | Learn Spanish in English

Spanish lesson set in a contemporary Madrid everyday setting: In a classroom, two adults review uneven language-study progress and decide to focus on listening practice with a weekly check..

EN → ES / Level: B1

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Dialogue

A

Estudio todos los días, pero mi progreso todavía parece irregular.

eh-STOO-dyoh TOH-dohs lohs DEE-ahs, PEH-roh mee proh-GREH-soh toh-dah-VEE-ah pah-REH-seh ee-rreh-goo-LAHR. I study every day, but my progress still feels uneven.
B

¿Qué parte te falla más cuando hablas con otras personas?

keh PAHR-teh teh FAI-yah mahs KWAHN-doh AH-blahs kohn OH-trahs pehr-SOH-nahs? Which part breaks down most when you talk with people?
A

La comprensión auditiva, especialmente cuando la gente habla a una velocidad natural.

lah kohm-prehn-SYOHN ow-dee-TEE-vah, ehs-peh-SYAHL-mehn-teh KWAHN-doh lah HEHN-teh AH-blah ah OO-nah beh-loh-see-DAHD nah-too-RAHL. Listening does, especially when people speak at a natural speed.
B

Entonces dedica más tiempo a la comprensión auditiva antes de añadir nuevos ejercicios de gramática.

ehn-TOHN-sehs deh-DEE-kah mahs TYEHM-poh ah lah kohm-prehn-SYOHN ow-dee-TEE-vah ahn-TEHS deh ahn-YEER NOO-eh-bohs ehk-sehr-SEE-syohs deh grah-MAH-tee-kah. Then give listening more time before adding new grammar exercises.
A

¿Cómo puedo saber si estoy mejorando sin hacer pruebas todo el tiempo?

KOH-moh PWEH-doh sah-BEHR see ehs-TOY meh-hoh-RAHN-doh seen ah-SEHR PRWEH-bahs TOH-doh ehl TYEHM-poh? How can I tell whether I am improving without taking tests all the time?
B

Usa la misma grabación corta dos veces y compara lo que entendiste.

OO-sah lah MEES-mah grah-bah-SYOHN KOR-tah DOHS BEH-sehs ee kohm-PAH-rah loh keh ehn-tehn-DEES-teh. Use the same short recording twice and compare what you understood.
A

Eso me da una medida más clara que cambiar de materiales cada día.

EH-soh meh dah OO-nah meh-DEE-dah mahs KLAH-rah keh kahm-BYAR deh mah-teh-RYAH-lehs KAH-dah DEE-ah. That gives me a clearer measure than changing materials every day.
B

También muestra si tu estrategia está funcionando, no solo cuánto tiempo estudiaste.

tahm-BYEHN MWEHS-trah see too ehs-trah-TEH-hyah ehs-TAH foon-syoh-NAHN-doh, noh SOH-loh KWAHN-toh TYEHM-poh ehs-too-DYAS-teh. It also shows whether your strategy is working, not just how long you studied.
A

Podría revisar mis apuntes una vez por semana y hacer ajustes a partir de ahí.

poh-DREE-ah reh-bee-SAHR mees ah-POON-tehs OO-nah behs pohr seh-MAH-nah ee ah-SEHR ah-HOOS-tehs ah pahr-TEER deh ah-EE. I could check my notes once a week and adjust from there.
B

Una revisión breve como esa puede mantener tu práctica enfocada.

OO-nah reh-bee-SYOHN BREH-beh KOH-moh EH-sah PWEH-deh mahn-teh-NEHR too PRAHK-tee-kah ehn-foh-KAH-dah. A small review like that can keep your practice focused.

Word by Word

Estudio Estudio means “I study” in Estudio todos los días. It is the first-person singular present form of estudiar, and it is used before the rest of the statement about the speaker’s daily routine.
todos Todos means “every” in todos los días. It is the plural form of todo and agrees with los días; the pattern todos los + plural noun expresses a repeated time or group.
los Los is the plural masculine article in los días. Together with todos, it forms todos los días, meaning “every day,” and it comes directly before the noun.
días Días means “days” in todos los días. It is the plural form of día, and the pattern todos los días is used for a daily habit or routine.
pero Pero means “but” and connects the daily study with the uneven progress. It introduces a contrast between two parts of the same statement.
mi Mi means “my” in mi progreso. It is a possessive form placed before a singular noun to identify what belongs to or concerns the speaker.
progreso Progreso means “progress” in mi progreso todavía parece irregular. It is the noun being described by parece irregular, and mi progreso is a useful pattern for discussing development in a skill.
todavía Todavía means “still” in mi progreso todavía parece irregular. It shows that the situation continues to be true, and it commonly appears before the verb or description it modifies.
parece Parece means “seems” in mi progreso todavía parece irregular. It is the third-person singular present form of parecer, with mi progreso as its subject; parece + description expresses an impression.
irregular Irregular means “uneven” here, describing progress that is not consistent. It follows parece and serves as the description of mi progreso.
Qué Qué means “which” or “what” in the question ¿Qué parte te falla más...? The accent marks it as a question word, and qué + noun asks which item or aspect is being identified.
parte Parte means “part” in Qué parte te falla más. It identifies the aspect of language learning being discussed, and qué parte is a reusable way to ask which section causes difficulty.
te Te means “to you” in te falla. It identifies the person experiencing the problem, while the thing that causes trouble is the subject of falla.
falla Falla means “fails” or “gives trouble” in te falla más. It is the third-person singular present form of fallar, and the pattern something te falla describes something that causes difficulty for you.
más Más means “more” in te falla más, indicating a greater degree of difficulty than in other parts. It is used with a verb or description to compare degree.
cuando Cuando means “when” in cuando hablas con otras personas. It introduces the situation in which the problem appears, and cuando + clause is used to connect an event with its time or circumstance.
hablas Hablas means “you speak” or “you talk” in cuando hablas con otras personas. It is the second-person singular present form of hablar, and hablar con + person means to speak with someone.
con Con means “with” in hablas con otras personas. It introduces the people involved in the conversation, and hablar con + person is a common usage pattern.
otras Otras means “other” in otras personas. It is the feminine plural form of otro and agrees with personas; otras + plural noun refers to additional people or things.
personas Personas means “people” in otras personas. It is the plural form of persona and identifies the conversation partners in hablas con otras personas.
La La is the singular feminine article in La comprensión auditiva. It comes before the feminine noun comprensión, and la + noun forms a specific noun phrase.
comprensión Comprensión means “understanding” or “comprehension” in La comprensión auditiva. It is specified by auditiva, creating the expression for listening comprehension; comprensión de + topic is a common way to identify what is understood.
auditiva Auditiva means “listening” or “auditory” in comprensión auditiva. It is the feminine singular form of auditivo and agrees with comprensión, specifying that the comprehension involves hearing.
especialmente Especialmente means “especially” in especialmente cuando la gente habla. It highlights the situation that makes listening difficult, and it can introduce a particularly important case.
gente Gente means “people” in la gente habla a una velocidad natural. It refers to people as a group, and it is used here as the subject of the singular form habla.
habla Habla means “speaks” or “talks” in la gente habla a una velocidad natural. It is the third-person singular present form of hablar, agreeing with la gente; habla a + speed describes the rate of speaking.
a A means “at” in a una velocidad natural. It introduces the rate at which people speak, and the pattern a + una velocidad describes a speed or rate.
una Una means “a” in a una velocidad natural. It is the singular feminine article before velocidad, and una + noun introduces one unspecified instance or measure.
velocidad Velocidad means “speed” in a una velocidad natural. It is the noun that measures how quickly people speak, and velocidad de + activity is a common pattern for specifying the speed of something.
natural Natural means “natural” in una velocidad natural. It describes the speed as the ordinary speaking rate in this context and follows the noun it modifies.
Entonces Entonces means “then” in Entonces dedica más tiempo a la comprensión auditiva. It marks a conclusion or recommendation based on what was just said, and it can introduce the next step in a plan.
dedica Dedica means “devote” or “dedicate” in the recommendation dedica más tiempo a la comprensión auditiva. It is the informal singular command form of dedicar, and dedica tiempo a + activity is a reusable pattern.
tiempo Tiempo means “time” in dedica más tiempo a la comprensión auditiva. It is the amount being devoted, and dedicar tiempo a + noun or activity expresses giving time to something.
antes Antes means “before” in antes de añadir nuevos ejercicios. It places one action earlier than another, and antes de + infinitive is used when the following action is expressed as an activity.
de De links antes to the following infinitive in antes de añadir. In this construction, antes de + infinitive means “before doing something,” so de introduces the action that has not yet been done.
añadir Añadir means “to add” in antes de añadir nuevos ejercicios de gramática. It is the infinitive after antes de, and añadir + object is used when something is added to a plan or collection.
nuevos Nuevos means “new” in nuevos ejercicios de gramática. It is the masculine plural form of nuevo and agrees with ejercicios; adjective + noun describes the exercises being introduced.
ejercicios Ejercicios means “exercises” in nuevos ejercicios de gramática. It is the plural form of ejercicio, and ejercicios de + subject identifies the area the exercises practice.
gramática Gramática means “grammar” in ejercicios de gramática. It identifies the subject of the exercises, and de + subject is used to specify what kind of exercises they are.
Cómo Cómo means “how” in ¿Cómo puedo saber si estoy mejorando...? The accent marks it as a question word, and cómo + verb asks about the way to do or determine something.
puedo Puedo means “I can” in Cómo puedo saber. It is the first-person singular present form of poder, and puedo + infinitive expresses ability or a possible action.
saber Saber means “to know” or “to find out” in puedo saber si estoy mejorando. It is the infinitive after puedo, and saber si + clause is used to ask whether something is true.
si Si means “whether” in saber si estoy mejorando. Here it introduces an indirect question rather than a condition, and saber si + clause asks whether the following situation is true.
estoy Estoy means “I am” in estoy mejorando. It is the first-person singular present form of estar and combines with the following form to describe an ongoing process.
mejorando Mejorando means “improving” in estoy mejorando. It is the gerund form of mejorar after estoy, and estar + gerund describes an action or change in progress.
sin Sin means “without” in sin hacer pruebas. It introduces an action that is absent, and sin + infinitive expresses doing something without carrying out another action.
hacer Hacer means “to do” or “to take” in sin hacer pruebas. It is the infinitive after sin, and hacer pruebas is the expression used for taking or doing tests.
pruebas Pruebas means “tests” in hacer pruebas. It is the plural form of prueba, and hacer pruebas is a common pattern for carrying out assessments.
todo Todo means “all” in todo el tiempo. It contributes the idea of the whole amount of time, and todo el + singular noun is used to express an entire period.
el El is the singular masculine article in todo el tiempo. It comes before tiempo and forms the fixed time expression todo el tiempo, meaning “all the time.”
Usa Usa means “use” in Usa la misma grabación corta. It is the informal singular command form of usar, and usa + object gives a direct instruction to use something.
misma Misma means “same” in la misma grabación corta. It is the feminine singular form of mismo and agrees with grabación, emphasizing that the recording should not change.
grabación Grabación means “recording” in la misma grabación corta. It is the object of Usa and provides the material to be listened to twice; grabación de + content is a common way to identify what was recorded.
corta Corta means “short” in grabación corta. It is the feminine singular form of corto and agrees with grabación, describing the length of the recording.
veces Veces means “times” in dos veces. It is the plural form of vez, and a number + veces expresses how many repetitions occur.
y Y means “and” in Usa la misma grabación corta dos veces y compara. It joins the two instructions, showing that comparing follows using the recording.
compara Compara means “compare” in compara lo que entendiste. It is the informal singular command form of comparar, and compara + object gives an instruction to examine two results or things against each other.
lo Lo is the neutral element in lo que entendiste, referring to the content that was understood rather than to a masculine noun. Together with que, it forms lo que, meaning “what” or “that which,” and it functions as the object of compara.
que Que helps introduce the clause in lo que entendiste. Together, lo que means “what” or “that which,” while que links the understood content to the action entendiste.
entendiste Entendiste means “you understood” in lo que entendiste. It is the second-person singular completed past form of entender, referring to the result of listening to the recording.
Eso Eso means “that” in Eso me da una medida más clara. It points back to the method just described, and a demonstrative like eso can refer to a previous action or idea.
me Me means “to me” in me da una medida más clara. It identifies the person receiving the result, and dar + person + thing is a common word order for saying that something gives someone something.
da Da means “gives” in Eso me da una medida más clara. It is the third-person singular present form of dar, with Eso as its subject; dar + person + object describes what someone receives.
medida Medida means “measure” in me da una medida más clara. It refers to a way of judging progress, and medida de + quality or result can identify what is being measured.
clara Clara means “clear” in una medida más clara. It is the feminine singular form of claro and agrees with medida; más clara means “clearer” because más adds the comparison.
cambiar Cambiar means “to change” in que cambiar de materiales cada día. It is an infinitive used as the activity being compared, and cambiar de + thing means to switch from one thing or set of things to another.
materiales Materiales means “materials” in cambiar de materiales cada día. It is the plural form of material and identifies the study resources being changed.
cada Cada means “each” or “every” in cada día. It is placed before a singular noun, and cada + singular time expression describes a repeated interval.
día Día means “day” in cada día. It is the singular form of día, and cada día means that something happens every day.
También También means “also” in También muestra si tu estrategia está funcionando. It adds another result of the method, and it commonly appears near the beginning of a sentence to add information.
muestra Muestra means “shows” in También muestra si tu estrategia está funcionando. It is the third-person singular present form of mostrar, and muestra si + clause introduces what the evidence reveals.
tu Tu means “your” in tu estrategia. It is a possessive form without an accent and comes before the singular noun it identifies as belonging to or concerning the listener.
estrategia Estrategia means “strategy” in tu estrategia está funcionando. It names the learner’s method, and estrategia para + activity is a common pattern for describing a plan for doing something.
está Está means “is” in está funcionando. It is the third-person singular present form of estar and combines with funcionando to describe the strategy’s current operation.
funcionando Funcionando means “working” in está funcionando. It is the gerund form of funcionar after está, and estar funcionando asks or states whether a method is producing the intended result.
no No means “not” in no solo cuánto tiempo estudiaste. With solo, it forms no solo, meaning “not just” or “not only,” and it limits the idea that follows.
solo Solo means “just” or “only” in no solo cuánto tiempo estudiaste. Together with no, it contrasts study duration with the additional question of whether the strategy works.
cuánto Cuánto means “how much” in cuánto tiempo estudiaste. The accent marks it as an indirect question word, and cuánto + singular quantity noun asks for an amount.
estudiaste Estudiaste means “you studied” in cuánto tiempo estudiaste. It is the second-person singular completed past form of estudiar, and cuánto tiempo estudiaste asks about the amount of time spent studying.
Podría Podría means “I could” in Podría revisar mis apuntes. It is the first-person singular conditional form of poder, expressing a possible or considered action; podría + infinitive is a useful way to suggest a plan.
revisar Revisar means “to check” or “to review” in Podría revisar mis apuntes. It is the infinitive after podría, and revisar + object describes examining notes, information, or results.
mis Mis means “my” in mis apuntes. It is the plural possessive form used before a plural noun and identifies the notes as belonging to the speaker.
apuntes Apuntes means “notes” in revisar mis apuntes. It is the plural form of apunte and is the direct object of revisar; revisar apuntes is a common study-related pattern.
vez Vez means “time” or “occasion” in una vez por semana. It is the singular form used after una, and una vez por + time period expresses a frequency.
por Por means “per” in una vez por semana. It establishes the frequency rate, and vez por semana is used to say how often something happens.
semana Semana means “week” in una vez por semana. It is the time period used to measure the frequency, and por semana means “per week.”
partir Partir is part of a partir de ahí, meaning “from that point onward” in this dialogue. The pattern a partir de + point or time marks where a new action or decision begins.
ahí Ahí means “there” in a partir de ahí. Here it refers back to the weekly review and its results, and a partir de ahí can mark the point from which someone continues or adjusts.
revisión Revisión means “review” in Una revisión breve como esa. It names the short check of notes and progress, and revisión de + material or result is a common way to specify what is reviewed.
breve Breve means “brief” or “short” in una revisión breve. It describes the limited length of the review and follows the noun it modifies.
como Como means “like” or “as” in como esa. It introduces a comparison, showing that the review is like the one just proposed; como + demonstrative can compare one thing with another.
esa Esa means “that” in una revisión breve como esa. It is the feminine singular form of ese and refers to the review already mentioned, agreeing with revisión.
puede Puede means “can” in puede mantener tu práctica enfocada. It is the third-person singular present form of poder, with Una revisión breve as the subject; puede + infinitive expresses what the review is capable of doing.
mantener Mantener means “to keep” in puede mantener tu práctica enfocada. It is the infinitive after puede, and mantener + object + description expresses keeping something in a particular state.
práctica Práctica means “practice” in mantener tu práctica enfocada. It is the object being kept focused, and práctica de + skill or activity is a common pattern for naming a type of practice.
enfocada Enfocada means “focused” in mantener tu práctica enfocada. It is the feminine singular form of enfocado and agrees with práctica; mantener la práctica enfocada describes preserving a clear direction for study.

Grammar Points

entendiste

Entendiste la medida.

ehn-tehn-DEES-teh lah meh-DEE-dah.

You understood the measure.

entendiste is the tú form of the preterite of entender, used for a completed past action.

a partir de ahí

A partir de ahí.

ah pahr-TEER deh ah-EE.

From there.

This fixed phrase introduces the point or situation from which something continues or changes.

Spanish Vocabulary

comprensión auditiva phrase
kohm-prehn-SYOHN ow-dee-TEE-vah listening comprehension

La comprensión auditiva, especialmente cuando la gente habla.

dedica verb
deh-DEE-kah devote

Entonces dedica más tiempo a la comprensión auditiva.

especialmente adv
ehs-peh-SYAHL-mehn-teh especially

Especialmente cuando la gente habla.

estudio verb
eh-STOO-dyoh I study

Estudio todos los días.

falla verb
FAI-yah fails

¿Qué parte te falla más?

hablas verb
AH-blahs you speak

Cuando hablas con otras personas.

irregular adj
ee-rreh-goo-LAHR uneven

Mi progreso todavía parece irregular.

natural adj
nah-too-RAHL natural

A una velocidad natural.

parte noun
PAHR-teh part

¿Qué parte te falla más?

progreso noun
proh-GREH-soh progress

Mi progreso todavía parece irregular.

todavía adv
toh-dah-VEE-ah still

Mi progreso todavía parece irregular.

velocidad noun
beh-loh-see-DAHD speed

A una velocidad natural.

Quiz

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

still

Show Answertodavía

part

Show Answerparte

I study

Show Answerestudio

uneven

Show Answerirregular