Written by Gabriela Estrada

The spanglish is a dynamic mixture of Spanish and English that emerged in the United States between the 1950s and 1960s, a period marked by a significant increase in migration from Latin American countries, especially Mexico, Puerto Rico and Cuba, to cities such as New York, Los Angeles and Miami. These communities, adapting to a predominantly English-speaking environment, began to mix Spanish and English in their daily communication, thus creating what we know today as the popular Spanglish. But how can we take advantage of this "linguistic graft" as a springboard to the mastery of pure English?

Today we will dedicate our blog to spanglish as a tool for learning English and we will do it with an effective strategy that will lead us to expand vocabulary and increase fluency. Read with me until the end and take note of the expressions in spanglish that you can replace with a pure, more formal and precise English. Are we ready? ready?!

The spanglish as a tool for learning English

"I'm going to park the car."

The expression "I'm going to park the car" is a clear example of how we Hispanics mix English and Spanish without even thinking about strict grammatical rules. is a clear example of how Hispanics mix English and Spanish without even thinking about strict grammatical rules; on the contrary, we do it in a very genuine and creative way. Other common examples include adapted words such as troca (from truck) or lonche (from lunch), which have become part of everyday vocabulary in many regions and which reflect how the spanglish bridge the gap between Spanish and English.

The spanglishfar from being a limitation, can become a powerful tool for Spanish speakers who want to learn English from scratch. By using familiar words that come from English, such as "hacer click" (to clickor "download a file" (download a file), speakers develop an initial familiarity with the language. This natural connection makes the transition to formal English less intimidating.

Without realizing it, these words and structures prepare speakers to become familiar with basic English concepts, such as the use of nouns, verbs and simple tenses. Although not formal knowledge, Spanglish Spanglish gives them a foundation from which to build phrases and sentences for correct use of the language.

List of common phrases in spanglish

Read below, identify the common phrases you have used the most so far and start transcending the language!

1. Freeze (to freeze) - "Put the chicken to freeze" - "Pon el pollo a frizar" - "Put the chicken to freeze".
2. Cachar (to catch) - "Did you catch what the teacher said?"
3. Troll (to troll) - "Stop trolling your friends on social networks".
4. Type (to type) - "I am typing a document for work".
5. Janguear (to hang out) - "Let's go jangling in the park tonight".
6. Text (to text) - "Don't text while driving".
7. Mute (to mute) - "We can mute this part of the video".
8. Flash (to flash) - "Why is it flashing my cell phone?"
9. Chat (to chat) - "I was chatting with my friend all night".
10. My followers support me - "My followers support me"

Let's apply the strategy to move from Spanglish to English with "to hang out". The expression "to hang out in English is very informal and is mainly used to refer to spending time with friends or just relaxing.

Strategy for moving from Spanglish to fluent English with "to hang out"

This phrase is very common among Puerto Ricans. With this activity we seek to help students to understand and use the expression "hang out correctly in English, while working on more advanced grammatical constructions. At the same time, we motivate them to stop relying on Spanglish and to use more formal and precise English.

The sentence "Let's janguear" to refer to "Let's hang out" in English is a good starting point for using the correct form in full English and improving your fluency.

• For example, transform:

"Let's hang out at Juan's house" in correct English: "Let's hang out at Juan's house".

Basic construction of simple sentences with "hang out

The expression "hang out", in simple sentences, is used in the present, past and future tense. Here I share a basic conjugation:

• Present: I hang out/We hang out.

• Past tense: I hung out with my friends yesterday.(Irregular: past tense of "hang" is "hung").

• Future: We will hang out after class.

Expand vocabulary with related expressions

Enter words or phrases that replace and/or complement "hang out" and enrich the vocabulary:

• To chill (relax)
• To spend time (spend time)

More advanced sentence construction

If your level is more advanced, you can create longer and more complex sentences by using "hang out. For example:

• "I usually hang out with my classmates after school to work on group projects.".

Use "hang out in real conversations

Include practical activities to apply "hang out in different scenarios:

• Simulate a conversation where you have to talk about your social activities.
• Practice in scenarios where they invite someone to hang out and integrate dialogues where they use "hang out. "hang out.

Learn English with Planeta Immiland

At Planeta Immiland Education, we offer English and French courses for beginners, intermediate and advanced learners. If you would like to learn more about our school's learning strategies, please contact us at and we will be happy to help you with whatever you need. You can also explore our English programs available from zero to more advanced levels.

We are the first language academy for immigration purposes for Canada and our certified teachers can teach you to speak English for work, school, personal purposes or to immigrate to Canada. In addition, we are certified by Languages Canada, which guarantees a good language learning adapted to the Canadian reality.

The spanglish can be a bridge to English, but moving forward requires commitment to using the full, formal language. Are you encouraged to replace other expressions in spanglish to improve your English? If you want to learn more about our academy, explore the website: https://www.planeta-immiland-education.com/

Thank you very much for reading, see you in the next blog!

With love,

Planeta Immiland Education