There are many different ways to practice Spanish, and with a little creativity, possibilities tend to be endless. In today’s post will take a look at the popular Ricky Martin song known as Maria and we will use it as a tool to practice your comprehension skills while learning Spanish for beginners.
First, you will find a video with the song and the lyrics in Spanish. Click on play so you can hear the song as you scroll down to read the lyrics in Spanish and the translation of each sentence in English.
It is important to keep in mind that the translations are aimed at making it easy to understand what the song is about and there may be idiomatic expressions that could have been translated in a different way, but in the majority of the cases they have been translated literally in order to work as a language learning tool (feel free to pause and rewind as much as needed).
Further down in the post, you’ll find the same video and the lyrics in Spanish again so you can practice your listening skills without the help of an English translation.
Are you ready to get started? (this is a sad song, so be ready to pause and rewind as much as necessary okay?) Let’s begin…
Here is the video (lyrics start at 1:00, feel free to fast-forward as needed):
Lyrics of María by Ricky Martin:
- Ella es, una mujer especial
- She is, a special woman
- Como caida de otro planeta
- As if she had fallen from another planet
- Ella es, un laberinto carnal
- She is, a carnal labyrinth
- que te atrapa y no te enteras
- The catches you and you don’t even know about it
- Así es Maria,
- Maria is like that,
- Blanca como el dia
- White like the day
- Pero es veneno,
- But she is poison,
- Si te quieres enamorar
- If you want to fall in love
- Así es Maria,
- Maria is like that
- Tan caliente y fria
- So hot and cold
- Que si te la bebes,
- That if you drink her,
- De seguro te va a matar
- She will surely kill you
- Un, Dos, Tres
- One, Two, Three
- Un pasito pa’delante Maria
- One small step forward Maria (pa’delante is a short way to say “para adelante”)
- Un, Dos, Tres
- One, Two, Three
- Un pasito pa’atras
- One small step back
- Aunque me muera ahora, Maria
- Even if I die now, Maria
- Maria, Te tengo que besar
- Maria, I have got to kiss you
- Ella es, como un pecado mortal
- She is, like a mortal sin
- Que te condena poco a poco
- That damns you little by little
- Ella es, Un espejismo sexual
- She is, a sexual mirage
- Que te vuelve loco, loco
- That drives you crazy, crazy
- Asi es Maria,
- Maria is like that
- Blanca como el dia…
- White like the day…
- Asi es Maria,
- Maria is like that
- Tan caliente y fria…
- So hot and cold…
- Un, Dos, Tres
- One, Two, Three
- Un pasito pa’delante, Maria
- One small step forward Maria
- Un, Dos, Tres
- One, Two, Three
- Un pasito pa’atras
- One small step back
- Aunque me muera ahora, Maria
- Even if I die now, Maria
- Maria, a mi que mas me da
- Maria, I don’t care anymore
Now, we will look at the lyrics without the English translation so you can further exercise your comprehension skills.
This is a fairly fast song, so don’t hesitate pause and rewind as much as needed. The important thing is that you manage to understand it. It is easy; it’s only a matter of being persistent and practicing.
Here is the video again (remember, the lyrics start at 1:00):
María by Ricky Martin
Ella es, una mujer especial
Como caida de otro planeta
Ella es, un laberinto carnal
que te atrapa y no te enteras
Asi es Maria,
Blanca como el dia
Pero es veneno,
Si te quieres enamorar
Asi es Maria,
Tan caliente y fria
Que si te la bebes,
De seguro te va a matar
Un, Dos, Tres
Un pasito pa’delante Maria
Un, Dos, Tres
Un pasito pa’atras
Aunque me muera ahora, Maria
Maria, Te tengo que besar
Ella es, Como un pecado mortal
Que te condena poco a poco
Ella es, Un espejismo sexual
Que te vuelve loco, loco
Asi es Maria,
Blanca como el dia…
Asi es Maria,
Tan caliente y fria…
Un, Dos, Tres
Un pasito pa’delante, Maria
Un, Dos, Tres
Un pasito pa’atras
Aunque me muera ahora, Maria
Maria, a mi que mas me da
Listening to songs in Spanish is a great way to practice your comprehension skills while acquiring new vocabulary and learning common expressions. If possible, include a few songs in Spanish in your MP3 player so you can listen to them throughout your daily activities. Make sure you have fun and keep practicing!
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