Spanish Pronto Reading Practice

Welcome!

The Spanish Pronto Reading Practice is a way for Spanish students—beginners to advanced—to learn more Spanish words by reading real Spanish articles.

The article for this issue is about an ad produced by an animal shelter in Spain. It makes a serious point, but it is a cute video.

INSTRUCTIONS: Click on the article link below to open the original article in a separate window or tab. As you read the rest of this page, the translations, glossaries, and word lists will help you to understand the article—and to learn more Spanish words!

Some of the more interesting words you can learn from this article: gasolinera (gas station), perdedores (losers), and that's about it. This is a short one this time, so hopefully I can get another one posted later this week.

Some words for advanced students (definitions below): can, and darse a la fuga ("dándose a la fuga")

Also worth noting: The English word video is, in Spain, spelled vídeo and pronounced "BEE-day-oh." In Latin America it more often spelled video (without a written accent) and pronounced "bee-DAY-oh." Similar to English's "You say toMAYto, I say toMAHto....", or APEricot, APPricot; ALLmond, AMond; OIL, OHLL; greaSy, greaZy; etc. (to name a few words that have different pronunciation within the U.S.).


This Spanish reading practice is brought to you by these Spanish books available for purchase (click to open in a separate tab or window):

ABC para un mundo nuevo
("ABC for a new world")

Trabalengüero
("Tongue-twister anthology")


SOCIEDAD / SOCIETY

¿Y si tu perro te abandonara en una gasolinera?

What would you do if your dog abandoned you at a gas station?

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.abc.es/20121014/sociedad/abci-perro-abandona-familia-gasolinera-201210141732.html
 

El Refugio lanza una campaña en la que es un can el que deja tirada a su familia en una estación de servicio

El Refugio ("The Refuge") launches an ad campaign in which it is a dog who leaves his family discarded at a service station
 

EL REFUGIO / THE REFUGE

Por primera vez un perro abandona a su familia.

For the first time, a dog abandons its family.
 

[Narrator's voice in video]:
Él nunca lo haría, pero...¿y si lo hiciera?

He would never do it, but [what would you do] if he did?
 

A los perros no hay que abandonarlos; hay que quererlos.

Dogs shouldn't be abandoned; they should be loved.
 

Y si los quieres mucho mucho, hazte socio de El Refugio.

And if you really love them a whole bunch, become a member of El Refugio.
http://www.elrefugio.org/pagina.aspx

«Él nunca lo haría, pero... ¿y si lo hiciera?». Con este lema, la asociación protectora de animales El Refugio ha lanzado una campaña contra el abandono de animales. Se trata de una especie de «remake» de una famosa campaña de publicidad por la misma causa en la que se podía ver a un perro en mitad de una carretera con el lema «él nunca lo haría».

a"personal a"
abandonoabandonment
animalesanimals
asociación (f.)association
campaña(ad) campaign
carreterahighway
causacause
conwith
contraagainst
deof
elthe
élhe
enin
especie (f.)kind, sort
estethis
famosafamous
ha(it) has
haría(he) would do
hiciera(he) were to do it
lathe
lanzadolaunched
lema (m.)slogan
loit
mismasame
mitad (f.)middle
nuncanever
perobut
perrodog
podíase podía ver = (it) could be seen
porby, for
protectoraprotection
publicidad (f.)publicity, advertising
queen la que = in which
refugiorefuge
remakeremake
siif
tratase trata de = (it) is
una
unaa
verto see
yand

En el vídeo, se ve cómo una familia para en una gasolinera a descansar y dejan solo en el coche a su perro «Budy». Cansado de esperarlos, el can roba el coche y abandona a su familia dándose a la fuga.

ato
a"personal a"
abandona(he) abandons
Budymisspelling of English "Buddy"
can (m.)dog
cansadotired
coche (m.)car
cómohow
dándosegiving himself
deof
dejan(they) leave
descansarto rest
elthe
enin, at
esperarloswaiting for them
familiafamily
fugaflight ("dándose a la fuga" = fleeing)
gasolineragas station
lathe
para(it) stops
perrodog
roba(he) robs
soloalone
sutheir, his
unaa
vese ve = (it) is seen
vídeovideo
yand

«Aunque parezca humorística, en realidad esta campaña es un melodrama. A todos nos llena de alegría ver ganar, aunque sea sólo por una vez, a aquellos que son siempre perdedores», señala Nacho Paunero, presidente de El Refugio. Con esta campaña, también han querido hacer reflexionar a la gente sobre «la angustia, la desolación y el sufrimiento que genera el hecho de ser abandonado».

ato
a"personal a"
abandonadoabandoned
alegríahappiness
angustiaanguish
aquellosthose
aunquealthough, even if
campaña(ad) campaign
conwith
dewith, of
desolación (f.)desolation, loneliness
elthe
enin
es(it) is
estathis
ganarwinning
genera(it) generates
gentepeople
hacerto make
han(they) have
hechoact
humorísticahumorous
lathe
llenallena de = (it) fills with
melodrama (m.)melodrama
Nachonickname for "Ignacio"
nosto us
parezca(it) might seem
perdedoreslosers
porfor
presidente (m. or f.)president
quewho, that
queridowanted
realidad (f.)reality
reflexionarto reflect
refugiorefuge
sea(it) should be
señala(he) indicates
serbeing
siemprealways
sobreabout
sólojust
son(they) are
sufrimientosuffering
tambiénalso
todoseveryone
una
unaone
verto see
vez (f.)time ("una vez" = once)
yand

Full article: http://www.abc.es/20121014/sociedad/abci-perro-abandona-familia-gasolinera-201210141732.html

Two-page printable PDF file of this page: readingpractice_2013_008.pdf


Previous reading practices:
http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_001.html Groucho Marx, Pt. 1 (Spain)
http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_002.html Groucho Marx, Pt. 2 (Spain)
http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_003.html Groucho Marx, Pt. 3 (Spain)
http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_004.html Groucho Marx, Pt. 4 (Spain)
http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_005.html Day of the Student (Argentina)
http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_006.html Using "cookie" to mean "galleta" (Spain)
http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_007.html World Animal Day (Mexico)

Please mail comments, questions, or suggestions to: spanishpronto@earthlink.net

URL: http://www.spanishpronto.com/spanishpronto/readingpractice_2013_008.html
Copyright ©1998-2012
Revised -- 2012-10-15