Overview

He who does not know foreign languages does not know anything about his own.                                                              -- Johann Wolfgang von GoetheThe Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice,Second Edition, is a uniquely comprehensive, integrated, and engaging review book that will provide learners with the solid knowledge needed to increase their confidence in using Spanish to express their own thoughts, to comprehend those of Spanish speakers, and to communicate in both speaking and writing in a wide variety of situations.Designed to provide advanced beginners, intermediate students, and advanced learners of Spanish with a powerful tool for review and progress in the language, this book presents clear, concise, and well-organized grammar explanations with examples that reflect every day usage, most often in the form of conversational exchanges. The presentations of structure are easy to understand, and the examples will encourage learners to see the study of grammar as a stepping stone to communication.We have expanded and enhanced the exercises to give you even more practice. The exercises provide extensive practice for all the grammar topics that learners of Spanish at this level should know. These engaging exercises are contextualized, and the instructions in Spanish help set the scene and prepare you for the task at hand. Vocabulary lists provide a review of the vocabulary common to most first- and second-year Spanish textbooks, as well as new words and phrases essential for particular exercises, thus increasing your vocabulary and enhancing your ability to express yourself on a variety of topics. Vocabulary presentations are grouped by topic and are integrated with the exercises. Exercises reflect authentic, everyday language usage and touch on all areas of modern life, including business and technology.Many self-expression exercises are included to encourage you to use the target grammar and vocabulary presented to express your own ideas. The Ejercicio oral at the end of each chapter of Parts I through III is a culminating exercise in which you and a friend or colleague can practice the grammatical structures and topics presented in the chapter by exchanging information with each other.The Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice, Second Edition, has 28 chapters divided into four parts.I    Verbs - Forms and UsesII   Nouns and Their Modifiers; PronounsIII  Other Elements of the SentenceIV  Idiomatic Usage     Notas culturales are featured throughout the book. These cultural notes enhance the effectiveness of the grammar exercises by providing an authentic Hispanic context in which to practice. To further your progress, we have also included a chapter of important idioms and proverbs (Chapter 26), a chapter on word formation, and a chapter that aims to help you eliminate some of the most common errors made by English-speaking learners of Spanish: ¡Ojo! Common Errors and Pitfalls (Chapter 28).For convenient learner reference, the appendices of The Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice, Second Edition, include easy-to-read verb charts. Also included in the appendices is a section on written conventions, which explains Spanish rules of spelling, punctuation, and stress. The Answer Key provided at the end of the book allows you to check your work.The CD-ROM component of The Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice, Second Edition, contains hundreds of multiple-choice exercises that allow you to practice the tenses, grammatical structures, and idiomatic usage included in the four parts of the book. The Diagnostic Test and Review Test provide you with an excellent tool to assess your progress. To aid you in your comprehension and pronunciation, Listening for Key Contrasts drills help you distinguish verb endings that may sound similar to English speakers but are very different in meaning. This section targets some of the most important sound contrasts in the Spanish verb system. The Audio Modules, recorded by native speakers of Spanish, present dialogues and narratives designed to improve your listening comprehension and pronunciation. Preceding each audio passage is a list of Ten Key Words and Expressions for listening and repeating that helps you prepare for listening to the passage. After listening to and repeating the audio passage, you will do exercises to test your comprehension. You can read a Transcription of the audio passage as you listen to the passage a second time. A Glossary of words and expressions can be activated to check meaning, and you can highlight words in the audio passage to view definitions in English.The Audio Modules present delightful, authentic scenes with real people who talk about their families, work, travels, and life goals in settings and with stories that reflect our daily lives - buying a house, business and the office, remodeling a home, love, problems at the airport, owning a restaurant, family problems, career changes, conversing on the telephone, shopping, and others. The passages contain useful, authentic vocabulary that will serve you well in your communication with native speakers of Spanish. You will be amazed at how much you will understand and be able to say after you have worked through the CD-ROM!The Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice, Second Edition, retains the highly effective pedagogy and most important features that made the first edition so popular and successful with users. It is ideal for learners working on their own and as an ancillary for students using a textbook in a classroom setting. Chapters may be covered in any order, allowing learners and teachers to individualize grammar practice.Ronni L. Gordon, PhDDavid M. Stillman, PhD