Rompecabezas does not have anything to do with head banging music that you listened to in high school. Rompecabezas can be any type of puzzle or riddle, but most commonly used to indicate a jigsaw puzzle.

Mueble is furniture. A mueblería is a furniture store. 

Merienda is a new word that I picked up today. It means a mid-afternoon snack. Or what some people would call tea. This would be related to almuerzo which is a mid-morning snack. Sometimes almuerzo is used to mean lunch. Both can be verbs too. Merienda is the noun and merendar is the verb. Almorzar [...]

Restante is what is left over when you take away everything else. It can mean extra. In Mexico the word extra is also used to mean restante. Restar is to subtract. What is left over after subtracting is the restante.

Here’s a word a saw the other day, afición. I had never seen or heard it before so I was curious. Afición is liking or affection. Afecto is another word for this.

Impermeabilizante is the weather proofing your put on your roof to keep the rain from coming in. In much of Latin America the roofs are mostly flat. Though they have some drainage from them, it is best to put the water proofing down so that your roof does not leak. I had a really hard [...]

I had learned that gripe was more the word for the flu, but that it is also the word commonly used for a cold. This week I finally learned that catarro was a better word for the common cold.