Islander Posted March 18, 2009 Report Posted March 18, 2009 I would like to find out what would Mexican national say to get the right meaning of "be good !". Thank you.
RVGRINGO Posted March 18, 2009 Report Posted March 18, 2009 Portarse bien. (to a stranger/adult) Portate bien. (to an intimate or a child)
ela Posted March 18, 2009 Report Posted March 18, 2009 Portate bien y si no, me invitas! ¡Viejo verde! Pues, no eres viejo... sonrisas... ¡Híjole!
willieboy Posted March 18, 2009 Report Posted March 18, 2009 Portarse bien. (to a stranger/adult) Portate bien. (to an intimate or a child) Just one quibble, RV. Pórtese - the usted form requires changing the ending of the verb
Islander Posted March 20, 2009 Author Report Posted March 20, 2009 So,... Portese bien (for the usted form) and Portate bien (for the kids)? Thanks
willieboy Posted March 20, 2009 Report Posted March 20, 2009 So,... Portese bien (for the usted form) and Portate bien (for the kids)? Thanks Right. (Tú) Pórtate bien, por favor. (Usted) Pórtese bien, por favor (Ustedes) Pórtense bien, por favor. (Nosotros) Portémonos bien, por favor.
Islander Posted March 20, 2009 Author Report Posted March 20, 2009 Right. (Tú) Pórtate bien, por favor. (Usted) Pórtese bien, por favor (Ustedes) Pórtense bien, por favor. (Nosotros) Pórtemonos bien, por favor. - Thank you
willieboy Posted March 20, 2009 Report Posted March 20, 2009 - Thank you Sorry, that should have been "portémonos bien" for the nosotros form. I changed it in my post above.
Islander Posted March 21, 2009 Author Report Posted March 21, 2009 Right. (Tú) Pórtate bien, por favor. (Usted) Pórtese bien, por favor (Ustedes) Pórtense bien, por favor. (Nosotros) Portémonos bien, por favor. - Would it be same for "be nice" ?.......which has slightly different meaning than "be good". Thanks again.
willieboy Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 - Would it be same for "be nice" ?.......which has slightly different meaning than "be good". Thanks again. You could use "sé buena gente" or "sé amable" However, I've never heard commands used this way here (maybe I wasn't paying attention, or just missed it). But I have heard commands with "ser" in the negative: "No seas malo" or "No seas sangrón". Maybe a native speaker, or someone more proficient in the language can help us out here
willieboy Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 I asked this on another web-board and here's the answer (from a Spanish speaker from Spain). I don't know in Mexico, but in Spain it's very used by mothers :-) : Sé bueno. If we have a date and you had been late other times, I may probably say: Nos vemos a las ocho. Por favor, sé puntual. Another example, if my husband hates my sister and she is coming today for lunch, I can say to him: Por favor, sé amable con ella. I guess the reason I hear the "no seas....." all of the time is because people are always telling me not to be such a pain in the a**:>)
willieboy Posted March 22, 2009 Report Posted March 22, 2009 Here's another response I received from a woman who lives in D.F. "I think you're right. Imperative can be heard more easily from people with a higher education background, and still they might prefer the colloquial change for a negative command... I think it has to do with our "slight phobia" for sounding rude at using imperative. You might also have noticed we often change it for questions. Much people prefers "¿me da un refresco?" instead of "déme un refresco" (even saying "por favor")."
Islander Posted March 22, 2009 Author Report Posted March 22, 2009 Here's another response I received from a woman who lives in D.F. "I think you're right. Imperative can be heard more easily from people with a higher education background, and still they might prefer the colloquial change for a negative command... I think it has to do with our "slight phobia" for sounding rude at using imperative. You might also have noticed we often change it for questions. Much people prefers "¿me da un refresco?" instead of "déme un refresco" (even saying "por favor")." - Thanks Willieboy.....most informative.
raqueteer Posted March 28, 2009 Report Posted March 28, 2009 I asked this on another web-board and here's the answer (from a Spanish speaker from Spain). I don't know in Mexico, but in Spain it's very used by mothers :-) : Sé bueno. If we have a date and you had been late other times, I may probably say: Nos vemos a las ocho. Por favor, sé puntual. Another example, if my husband hates my sister and she is coming today for lunch, I can say to him: Por favor, sé amable con ella. I guess the reason I hear the "no seas....." all of the time is because people are always telling me not to be such a pain in the a**:>) Word of caution, in Mexico NEVER use soy bueno or buena. Very embarrassing to yourself and the listener. Means I'm good in the sack. Buena gente would be the way to put it.
Intercasa Posted April 1, 2009 Report Posted April 1, 2009 But what if you are good in the sack? Do you say soy bien dotado y vas a gustar mamacita o?
raqueteer Posted April 1, 2009 Report Posted April 1, 2009 But what if you are good in the sack? Do you say soy bien dotado y vas a gustar mamacita o? ¡Una advertencia! Si mamacita tiene un novio, peudas estar muerto, y pronto. Si el hermano de mamacita esta cerca, egual. Si el padre de mamacita esta cerca, hijole, esfumate, muy rapido.
gloryforixseal Posted June 18, 2009 Report Posted June 18, 2009 Thanks so much for the info, Christina. That sounds like exactly what I was looking for. Im gonna check it out, and hopefully sign up for a few. Good luck with your own classes, and thanks again. gsulliv4
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