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Lesson 156 of 238

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Free Spanish CourseLesson 156 of 238

Not as good as in Spanish

Justin is stuck between two gyms, and Amanda is about to talk him through it.

You'll learn to say one thing isn't as good as another, that two things are almost the same, and that it depends. You'll also weigh both sides with 'on one hand, on the other'.

These are the lines that make a real comparison sound natural.

By the end of this lesson

Say the difference, say two things are almost the same, and say it depends.

  • ___ no es tan ___ como ______ isn't as ___ as ___
  • La principal diferencia es ___The main difference is ___
  • Son casi igualesThey're almost the same
  • No hay mucha diferenciaThere isn't much difference
  • Depende de lo que necesitesIt depends what you need
  • Por un lado, ___; por otro, ___On one hand, ___; on the other, ___

Scene — two gyms, one napkin

Café Laurel, late morning. Justin has drawn two columns on a napkin: Atila on one side, the park gym on the other.

Amanda walks in on her day off, coffee in hand, ready to settle the debate. Yako is already leaning over the napkin.

Amanda arrives with coffee at a table where Justin and Yako lean over a napkin with two drawn columns.

Learn — not as, almost the same, it depends

Six lines cover the whole middle ground of comparing: a little worse, nearly identical, no real gap, and 'it depends'.

Two of them are frames, so you'll fill them with your own words.

  1. Justin gestures at one napkin column while making a comparing gesture with two hands at different heights.

    ___ no es tan ___ como ___

    ___ isn't as ___ as ___

    When to use it: Say this when something falls short of something else.

    Tan sits between es and como; swap the adjectives in the blanks.

  2. Amanda leans in and points decisively at the gap between the two napkin columns.

    La principal diferencia es ___

    The main difference is ___

    When to use it: Use this to introduce the biggest difference between two things.

  3. Amanda holds her two hands close together at equal height to show the columns are nearly the same.

    Son casi iguales

    They're almost the same

    When to use it: Say this when two things are nearly identical.

    Say it: Casi is KAH-see, two short vowels.

  4. Michael, passing by the table, pinches his thumb and finger nearly together as if to say there's barely any difference.

    No hay mucha diferencia

    There isn't much difference

    When to use it: Say this when the gap between two things is small.

  5. Amanda leans back with open palms and a thoughtful face, weighing the choice.

    Depende de lo que necesites

    It depends what you need

    When to use it: Say this when the answer changes with the person's needs.

    After depende de lo que, Spanish uses the subjunctive: necesites.

  6. Justin leans in over the napkin weighing both columns, one hand over each column like balancing scales.

    Por un lado, ___; por otro, ___

    On one hand, ___; on the other, ___

    When to use it: Use this to weigh one point against another.

Story — Amanda sums it up

Amanda walks Justin through the two gyms, summing up with today's lines.

Watch how she weighs both sides before giving her verdict. Turn on Show English if you need it.

  1. Amanda arrives and finds Justin's napkin covered in notes about two gyms.
  2. JustinAmanda, ¿Atila o el gym del parque?Amanda, Atila or the park gym?
  3. AmandaEl del parque no es tan grande como Atila.The park one isn't as big as Atila.
  4. YakoPero Atila está siempre lleno.But Atila is always packed.
  5. AmandaCierto. La principal diferencia es el horario: Atila abre más temprano.True. The main difference is the schedule: Atila opens earlier.
  6. Justin¿Y en precio?And price-wise?
  7. AmandaEn precio son casi iguales.Price-wise they're almost the same.
  8. YakoNo hay mucha diferencia, créeme.There isn't much difference, believe me.
  9. AmandaAdemás, el del parque es tan nuevo como Atila.Besides, the park one is as new as Atila.
  10. JustinEntonces, ¿cuál escojo?So which one do I pick?
  11. AmandaPor un lado, Atila abre temprano; por otro, el del parque está más cerca.On one hand, Atila opens early; on the other, the park one is closer.
  12. Yako leans over the napkin and nearly knocks over the sugar.
  13. Justin¿Y tú qué opinas, Yako?And what's your take, Yako?
  14. YakoYo solo pasaba.I was just passing through.
  15. AmandaDepende de lo que necesites: madrugar o caminar menos.It depends what you need: getting up early or walking less.
  16. JustinNecesito caminar menos. Listo, el del parque.I need to walk less. Done, the park one.

Practice — compare and weigh

Ten exercises ahead: listen, match, fill gaps, and build one line from scratch.

One of them brings back the comparisons you learned last time, so watch for 'as as' and 'better than'.

0 of 10 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. Match the pairs

    Spanish

    La principal diferencia es ___Drop the English here
    Depende de lo que necesitesDrop the English here
    ___ es tan ___ como ___Drop the English here

    English

    Drag an English line onto its Spanish, or tap one and then the other.

  3. What do you say?

    Yako asks which gym is bigger. Tell him the park gym isn't as big as Atila.

  4. Fill the gap

    There isn't much difference

    No hay ____ diferencia

  5. What do you say?

    Justin asks why you picked the smaller phone plan. Tell him the main reason is the price.

  6. Fill the gap

    They're almost the same

    Son ____ iguales

  7. What do you say?

    You've checked both gyms. Amanda asks if they're very different. Tell her the main difference is the schedule.

  8. Build the line

    It depends what you need

    Tap the words in order.

  9. Put the chat in order

    1. JustinWhat comes first?
    2. Amanda…
    3. Justin…
    4. Amanda…

    Tap the line that comes next, or drag it into the chat.

  10. Which one doesn’t belong?

Say it — give your verdict

Now the gym debate is yours to run. Yako and Amanda ask, and you compare, weigh and decide.

Tap ▶ to hear the model line first. Tap the microphone when it's your turn. Your recording stays on your device.

  1. Yako¿Atila o el gym del parque?Atila or the park gym?
  2. Justin (you)Say the park gym isn't as big as Atila.

    ___ no es tan ___ como ___

    ___ isn't as ___ as ___

0 of 5 said

Recap — what you can say now

SpanishEnglish
___ no es tan ___ como ______ isn't as ___ as ___
La principal diferencia es ___The main difference is ___
Son casi igualesThey're almost the same
No hay mucha diferenciaThere isn't much difference
Depende de lo que necesitesIt depends what you need
Por un lado, ___; por otro, ___On one hand, ___; on the other, ___
Next: lesson 157What I mean is

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Keep practicing with Yak Cards

Want these comparison lines on hand for your next debate? Grab the Yak Cards for this lesson and review them anywhere.

A quick daily round with the Yak Cards keeps your 'almost the same' and 'it depends' ready to go.

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