Spanish C1
CEFR C1 · Advanced
At C1 you control register: the difference between currar and trabajar, between un montón de and una gran cantidad de, and when a Spaniard reaches for the subjunctive to hedge rather than to doubt. You build cleft sentences for emphasis (fue ella quien..., es de eso de lo que...), use the pasiva refleja and the impersonal se of journalism, and deploy idioms such as tirar la toalla and no tener pelos en la lengua with a native speaker's precision. The vocabulary is that of essays, editorials and literature: soslayar, esgrimir, acuciante, huelga decir.
60 words · 3 units · 3 grammar points
Spanish C1, unit by unit
Estilo y registro
Master idiomatic versus formal Spanish, hedging, and discourse markers to shift fluidly between colloquial and academic registers.
- Modismos y expresiones - Hedging with the subjunctive and conditionalRecognize and use high-frequency C1 idioms in conversation · Choose idioms appropriate to context and register
- Registro formal vs coloquialDistinguish formal and colloquial equivalents of common expressions · Adapt vocabulary to the social context (peer chat vs business email)
- Marcadores discursivosUse discourse markers to organize complex spoken and written arguments · Signal digressions, reformulations and concessions naturally
- She doesn't mince words when she criticizes the management.
- No tiene pelos en la lengua cuando critica a la dirección.
- After three failed attempts, they're throwing in the towel.
- Tras tres intentos fallidos, están tirando la toalla.
- Out of the blue, he called me to apologize for everything.
- De buenas a primeras, me llamó para disculparse por todo.
Closing conversation: making the same awkward request twice - once to a close friend, once to your boss
Argumentación compleja
Build sophisticated arguments using cleft and emphatic structures, the full passive system, and formal causal and concessive connectors.
- Estructuras enfáticas - Cleft sentences for emphasisForm cleft sentences with the correct relative and preposition · Foreground information for emphasis in formal speech and writing
- Voz pasiva e impersonalDistinguish ser + participio, pasiva refleja and impersonal constructions · Choose the right impersonal form for academic and journalistic register
- Cadenas causales y concesivasUse formal causal connectors in argumentative writing · Form concessive clauses with por más que / por mucho que + subjunctive
- It was María who called me at midnight, not her sister.
- Fue María quien me llamó a medianoche, no su hermana.
- That's why we left the meeting before it ended.
- Es por eso por lo que nos fuimos de la reunión antes de que terminara.
- What I mean is that nobody checked the figures.
- Lo que quiero decir es que nadie revisó las cifras.
Closing conversation: holding a position your tutor keeps challenging, and backing it with evidence
Informar y negociar
Report what other people said, hold your own in the professional register of meetings and proposals, and read the news: trends, figures and the language of current affairs.
- El discurso indirecto - Reported speech: how the tenses shiftReport a statement, a question and an order in indirect speech · Choose a reporting verb that carries the speaker's attitude
- El registro profesionalChair and take part in a meeting in formal Spanish · Raise an objection and make a counterproposal without giving offence
- La actualidad y las cifrasFollow a news report and summarise what it claims · Describe a trend and the figures behind it
- The spokesman stated that there was no risk.
- El portavoz afirmó que no había ningún riesgo.
- The minister admitted that mistakes had been made.
- El ministro reconoció que se habían cometido errores.
- She asked me whether I had read the report.
- Me preguntó si había leído el informe.
Closing conversation: reporting what someone else told you, then negotiating a compromise on it
C1 grammar points
Spanish C1 vocabulary
All 60 words, in frequency order.
| Spanish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| el ardid | the ruse, ploy, stratagem (m.) | El acusado recurrió a un ardid legal para dilatar el juicio durante meses.The defendant resorted to a legal ploy to drag out the trial for months. |
| la argucia | the sophistry, specious argument, quibble (f.) | Recurrió a una argucia legal para retrasar el juicio.He resorted to a legal trick to delay the trial. |
| el acervo | the body, heritage, collective stock (m., formal: cultural/linguistic) | Estas palabras forman parte del acervo cultural que heredamos de generaciones anteriores.These words are part of the cultural heritage we inherited from earlier generations. |
| la salvedad | the caveat, proviso, exception (f.) | Aprobaron el informe con la salvedad de que se revisaran las cifras finales.They approved the report with the proviso that the final figures be reviewed. |
| el desacato | the contempt (of court), defiance of authority (m.) | El juez lo acusó de desacato por negarse reiteradamente a comparecer.The judge charged him with contempt for repeatedly refusing to appear. |
| la mella | the dent, damage; esp. in 'hacer mella en' = to take its toll on (f.) | La crisis hizo mella en la confianza de los pequeños inversores.The crisis took its toll on small investors' confidence. |
| el arraigo | the roots, rootedness, deep-seated presence (m.) | El movimiento tiene un profundo arraigo en las comunidades rurales del sur.The movement is deeply rooted in the rural communities of the south. |
| el desdén | the disdain, scorn (m.) | Habló del asunto con un desdén que incomodó a todos los presentes.He spoke about the matter with a disdain that made everyone present uncomfortable. |
| la premura | the urgency, haste (f., formal) | La premura con que se redactó la ley explica muchas de sus lagunas.The haste with which the law was drafted explains many of its gaps. |
| el afán | the eagerness, drive, zeal (m.) | Su afán de notoriedad terminó por eclipsar el valor real de su obra.His craving for notoriety ended up overshadowing the real value of his work. |
| la merma | the reduction, depletion, shrinkage (f.) | El informe advierte de una merma considerable en los recursos hídricos disponibles.The report warns of a considerable depletion of available water resources. |
| el revuelo | the stir, commotion, fuss (m.) | Las declaraciones del ministro causaron un revuelo inesperado en la prensa nacional.The minister's remarks caused an unexpected stir in the national press. |
| la injerencia | the interference, meddling (f., esp. in others' affairs) | El país denunció ante la ONU la injerencia extranjera en sus asuntos internos.The country denounced foreign interference in its internal affairs before the UN. |
| el desempeño | the performance, discharge of a role (m.) | Su desempeño al frente del ministerio ha sido objeto de duras críticas.His performance at the head of the ministry has drawn harsh criticism. |
| la pauta | the guideline, standard, pattern (f.) | El estudio marca la pauta para futuras investigaciones sobre el envejecimiento celular.The study sets the standard for future research on cellular ageing. |
| el cariz | the look, aspect, turn something takes (m.) | La negociación tomó un cariz inquietante tras la ruptura del alto el fuego.The negotiation took a worrying turn after the ceasefire broke down. |
| la sinrazón | the senselessness, unreason, injustice (f., literary) | El poema denuncia la sinrazón de una guerra que nadie supo detener.The poem denounces the senselessness of a war nobody managed to stop. |
| el menoscabo | the detriment, impairment (m.); 'sin menoscabo de' = without prejudice to | La medida se aplicará sin menoscabo de los derechos ya adquiridos.The measure will be applied without prejudice to rights already acquired. |
| la connivencia | the collusion, complicity (f.) | Se investiga la posible connivencia entre los inspectores y las empresas sancionadas.Possible collusion between the inspectors and the penalized companies is under investigation. |
| el hastío | the weariness, tedium, ennui (m., literary) | Un hastío profundo recorre las páginas finales de la novela.A profound weariness runs through the closing pages of the novel. |
| soslayar | to sidestep, skirt, get around (an issue) | El autor soslaya deliberadamente las contradicciones de su propia tesis.The author deliberately sidesteps the contradictions in his own thesis. |
| esgrimir | to wield, put forward (an argument, a weapon) | El abogado esgrimió argumentos jurídicos que el tribunal terminó por desestimar.The lawyer put forward legal arguments that the court ultimately dismissed. |
| supeditar | to subordinate, make conditional on | La ayuda económica quedó supeditada al cumplimiento de las reformas prometidas.The financial aid was made conditional on carrying out the promised reforms. |
| dilucidar | to elucidate, clarify, establish (formal) | Aún no se ha dilucidado quién ordenó destruir los documentos comprometedores.It has still not been established who ordered the incriminating documents destroyed. |
| socavar | to undermine, erode | Las filtraciones socavaron la credibilidad del gobierno ante la opinión pública.The leaks undermined the government's credibility with public opinion. |
| cercenar | to curtail, cut back, sever | La reforma cercena derechos que la Constitución reconoce expresamente.The reform curtails rights that the Constitution expressly recognizes. |
| entrañar | to entail, involve, carry with it | Cualquier reforma de este calado entraña riesgos que conviene calcular.Any reform of this magnitude entails risks that ought to be weighed. |
| atisbar | to glimpse, catch sight of, discern faintly | En sus primeros cuadros ya se atisba el talento que desplegaría después.In his early paintings one can already glimpse the talent he would later display. |
| desvirtuar | to distort, misrepresent, detract from | Sacar la cita de contexto solo sirve para desvirtuar el sentido del texto.Taking the quote out of context only serves to distort the meaning of the text. |
| paliar | to alleviate, mitigate, palliate | Las ayudas apenas palian los efectos de la sequía en el campo andaluz.The subsidies barely alleviate the effects of the drought in the Andalusian countryside. |
| propiciar | to bring about, foster, make possible | La falta de control propició un clima de impunidad que duró años.The lack of oversight fostered a climate of impunity that lasted for years. |
| zanjar | to settle, put an end to (a dispute) | El presidente zanjó la polémica con un comunicado escueto y contundente.The president settled the controversy with a terse, forceful statement. |
| eludir | to evade, dodge, avoid | El testigo eludió las preguntas más comprometedoras del interrogatorio.The witness dodged the most incriminating questions in the examination. |
| enmendar | to amend, correct, put right | El Congreso enmendó el texto para incorporar las objeciones de la oposición.Congress amended the text to incorporate the opposition's objections. |
| vislumbrar | to glimpse, make out, foresee dimly | Todavía no se vislumbra una salida negociada al conflicto fronterizo.A negotiated way out of the border conflict is still not in sight. |
| ceñirse a | to stick to, confine oneself to, abide by | Le rogamos ceñirse a los hechos y evitar las conjeturas.We ask you to stick to the facts and avoid conjecture. |
| granjearse | to earn, win for oneself (respect, enemies) | Con su honestidad se granjeó el respeto incluso de sus adversarios políticos.Through his honesty he won the respect of even his political adversaries. |
| subsanar | to rectify, remedy, put right (a defect, an error) | Es urgente subsanar las deficiencias detectadas en la auditoría anterior.The shortcomings identified in the previous audit must be remedied urgently. |
| deslindar | to demarcate, draw a clear line between | Conviene deslindar los hechos probados de las meras especulaciones periodísticas.It is advisable to separate proven facts from mere journalistic speculation. |
| imperar | to prevail, hold sway, reign (formal) | En aquella época imperaba una censura que asfixiaba cualquier disidencia.At that time a censorship prevailed that stifled any dissent. |
| acuciante | pressing, urgent | La escasez de vivienda se ha convertido en un problema acuciante.The housing shortage has become a pressing problem. |
| consabido | the usual, well-known, aforementioned (often faintly ironic) | Terminó su intervención con el consabido llamamiento a la unidad nacional.He ended his speech with the usual call for national unity. |
| taxativo | categorical, strict, admitting no exception (formal/legal) | El reglamento es taxativo: no admite excepción alguna.The regulation is categorical: it admits no exception whatsoever. |
| baladí | trivial, of no importance (formal; invariable in gender) | La cuestión no es baladí, pues afecta a millones de contribuyentes.The issue is no trivial matter, as it affects millions of taxpayers. |
| mordaz | scathing, biting, caustic | Su crítica mordaz desnudó las contradicciones del discurso oficial.His scathing critique laid bare the contradictions of the official narrative. |
| displicente | offhand, dismissive, disdainful (in manner or tone) | Respondió con un tono displicente que irritó a los periodistas presentes.He answered in a dismissive tone that irritated the journalists present. |
| huidizo | elusive, evasive, fleeting | El personaje resulta huidizo: el lector nunca llega a comprenderlo del todo.The character is elusive: the reader never quite comes to understand him. |
| prolijo | long-winded, exhaustively detailed (often pejorative) | El informe es prolijo en detalles pero escaso en conclusiones útiles.The report is exhaustive in detail but short on useful conclusions. |
| lacónico | laconic, terse | Su mensaje fue lacónico y dejó abiertas todas las interpretaciones.His message was laconic and left every interpretation open. |
| aciago | ill-fated, fateful, disastrous (literary) | Aquel fue un día aciago para la economía y la moral del país.That was a fateful day for the country's economy and morale. |
| farragoso | convoluted, turgid, hard to wade through (of texts) | El texto legal resulta farragoso incluso para los propios juristas.The legal text is turgid even for lawyers themselves. |
| atinado | apt, well-judged, on the mark | Hizo un comentario muy atinado sobre las limitaciones del método empleado.He made a very apt remark about the limitations of the method used. |
| huelga decir | needless to say, it goes without saying | Huelga decir que sin financiación estable el proyecto no prosperará.Needless to say, without stable funding the project will not thrive. |
| amén de | besides, in addition to (formal) | Amén de costoso, el plan resulta difícilmente aplicable a corto plazo.Besides being expensive, the plan is hard to implement in the short term. |
| a la sazón | at the time, then (formal/literary) | El ministro, a la sazón alcalde de la ciudad, negó siempre los hechos.The minister, at the time mayor of the city, always denied the facts. |
| de soslayo | sideways, out of the corner of one's eye; obliquely | Miró de soslayo a su rival antes de responder a la pregunta.He glanced sideways at his rival before answering the question. |
| habida cuenta de | given, in view of, considering (formal) | Habida cuenta de los antecedentes, la sentencia no sorprendió a nadie.Given the precedents, the ruling surprised no one. |
| por añadidura | in addition, on top of that (formal connective) | Es un trabajo mal pagado y, por añadidura, sumamente precario.It is a poorly paid job and, on top of that, extremely precarious. |
| a todas luces | clearly, by any measure, manifestly | La decisión es a todas luces desproporcionada y carece de fundamento jurídico.The decision is by any measure disproportionate and lacks legal grounding. |
| poner en tela de juicio | to call into question, cast doubt on | El estudio viene a poner en tela de juicio las conclusiones aceptadas hasta ahora.The study calls into question the conclusions accepted until now. |