LTS #3: Let's Talk Cebolla, Caballo, & Cabello!


Sounds confusing, right?

Especially if you're not a native hispanohablante!

Allow me to unconfuse you, in a way that makes perfect sense to me, a hispano... (is there a word like hispanohablante but for learners of Spanish?)

Anyway, let us begin!

  1. Imagine an onion. Onions are usually red and round. Hold that thought.
  2. Now imagine an apple. Why? Apples are also usually red and round.
  3. The word for apple in Punjabi (my native language) is seb.
  4. Therefore, we know that the Spanish word for onion starts with that sound.
  5. Onion. Apple. Seb. Ceb.. Cebolla. ¿Comprendes?
  6. Now imagine a horse. The color is not relevant in this case.
  7. Horses like to eat grass, which is usually green, but who cares! It's just grass!
  8. The word for grass in Punjabi is gha (kah for simplification).
  9. Therefore, we know that the Spanish word for horse starts with that sound.
  10. Horse. Grass. Kah. Ca..b.. hold that thought.
  11. Imagine a sheep. Sheep also eat kah, and then go baa baa.
  12. Therefore, we know that the Spanish word for horse contains that sound.
  13. Horse. Grass. Kah. Sheep. Grass. Kah. Baa. Caba.. Caballo. ¿Entiendes?
  14. Almost done, stay with me por favor.
  15. Imagine your head. Look inside and recall that the head is called la cabeza.
  16. Also recall el pelo, the word for hair that's not on your head.
  17. Therefore, we know that cabeza (head) + pelo (hair) somehow lead to the hair on your head.
  18. Head. Cabeza. Hair. Pelo. Math. Cabello. Head hair. ¿Comprendes?
  19. Speaking of hair, horses also have hair (coat), including on their head (mane).
  20. No wonder caballo and cabello are just one letter off, and head, horse, and hair all start with H.

There you have it folks! Never confuse an onion for a horse for the hair on your head again!

Did you find this information useful? Want me to do more of these? Just hit reply with confusing words in English, Spanish, Swedish, or Italian and I'll see what I can do.

Gurleen Deol

I read words. I write words. Sometimes I speak words. Sometimes even in other languages. Follow along for all the updates!

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