5 ways to keep your terminology
in shape
using your inbox
By Gloria M. Rivera
When I moved from Peru to the States in 2005, I focused on improving my B language, English, and sound almost native. I would read books and newspapers in English, watch TV shows and movies in English, listen to music in English, and hang out with people… in English. In short, I was living in English 24/7.
Well, that may sound great, but there was something I did not anticipate: I started having issues with my A language or mother tongue, Spanish. I noticed that retrieving some words from my “mental glossary” while translating or interpreting would take a bit longer or I would have to look them up to confirm the meaning. I also caught myself using a couple of unnecessary Anglicisms (gasp!), and my ear would not detect calques or false cognates as fast as it used to.
This may also happen to a person who works really hard to learn a B language (for example, Spanish) and lives in their A language country (for example, the United States), but does not get to speak, read, or listen to it. The proverbial “use it or loose it” becomes painfully real.
After becoming aware of this issue, I decided to be nice to my brain and look for ways to support it! I have implemented several solutions that help me keep both my A and B languages in shape. This is the easiest one since I just need to check my inbox every morning.
Below, you will find several websites I am subscribed to with a short explanation of what each one provides. Feel free to research, subscribe, and let me know how it goes.
Happy learning!
Gloria
Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day:
- You will receive in your inbox the main meaning and an example of the Word of the Day.
- There is a link included that takes you to the Word of the Day site. Here you will find the word pronunciation (click and listen to it!), a fun fact about the word, synonyms, examples of usage with context, word history, and more.
- My favorite part is that if includes a short podcast about the word that you can listen instead of reading all of the above! So, if you are an auditory learner, this will make you happy.
- If you scroll down, you will find the 6 previous WOD and a link that takes you to ALL the words up to one year back.
- You can register here: https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day#
Merriam-Webster’s The Words of the Week:
- When you are registered for the Word of the Day, you will also receive in your inbox every Friday a list with the Words of the Week.
- These words are some of the most searched in the Merriam-Webster dictionary based on what is trending in the news. These words span from politics, sports, and social media.
- It includes a link to a the Words of the Week site where you will find their meaning, context, and origins.
- Also, if you worry that you missed all the fun Words of the Day, no problem! This email also includes a Word of the Day Recap with links to these words and all the info described above.
- There is no need to register if you are already registered for the Word of the Day.
Dictionary.com’s Word of the Day:
- This email arrives once a week.
- It includes a link to Dictionary.com where you will find the pronunciation in phonetic alphabet, audio pronunciation, meaning, and examples,
- You can register here: https://www.dictionary.com
Collins Dictionary Newsletter:
- This email will arrive once a week.
- It includes blog articles, a round-up of the weeks’ Words of the Day, plus Words of the Week in English, Spanish, and French!
- It also includes a link to their language learners blog.
- You can register here: https://blog.collinsdictionary.com
WordDaily:
- As its name hints, you receive a daily word in your inbox.
- The email includes the word’s pronunciation (in audio!), example sentences, word origin, and a link to a site where you will find more info!
- You can register here: https://worddaily.com
Fundeu: The FundéuRAE is a non-profit organization founded in 2005 in Madrid, Spain. The foundation was created in collaboration with the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE), an institution that standardizes the use of Spanish, and Agencia EFE’s Department of Urgent Spanish.- They send daily recommendations that go from plurals, word choice, and
Diabetes Resource Center de WebMD: En este sitio web encontrarás desde definiciones básicas sobre la diabetes hasta las publicaciones de estudios de investigación. También tiene blogs con el testimonio de personas que viven con la diabetes.
https://www.webmd.com/diabetes/default.htm
Johns Hopkins: este sitio web tiene “la carnecita”o lo mínimo que todo traductor o intérprete debe saber sobre la diabetes. Es buen material para hacer una traducción a la vista y ver qué términos no tienes claros. Lo encuentras aquí.
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/diabetes
Salud de la Argentina: tiene un glosario de salud y ahí puedes encontrar, entre otros temas, información sobre la diabetes. Me encanta porque así aprendo variantes dialectales a la vez que repaso información. Lo mejor es que tienen enlaces a videos cortos, como de 4 a 5 minutos, en Youtube. ¡Che, hacé clic aquí!
Federación española de diabetes (fede): este sitio de la federación española de diabetes es muy completo. Tiene información sobre grupos de apoyo para personas con diabetes, noticias, revistas, información básica sobre la diabetes y ¡hasta un podcast! Todo lo encuentras aquí.
