“Tan”, “tanto”, “tal”: one “so”, three words
CEFR B1 · part 2
edumaterial's parts within the level. The European framework does not subdivide them.
“Si tuviera tiempo…”Building the three conditional patterns, and above all the unreal one: “si” plus…“Es aburrido” is not “está aburrido”The adjectives whose meaning changes with the verb: “aburrido”, “listo”, “rico”…False friends: “embarazada” is not embarrassedThe words that look like an English word and mean something else: “embarazada”…“Dijo que…”: reporting what somebody saidTurning direct speech into “dijo que…”, moving the tense, the person, the possessives…“Busco a alguien que hable inglés”Choosing indicative or subjunctive after “que” depending on whether the person or thing…“Ser” or “estar”: two verbs for one “to be”Choosing between “ser” and “estar” in everyday sentences: who you are and what you are…The rule, in three lines
Tan goes with an adjective or an adverb and never changes: tan alto, tan despacio. Tanto goes with a verb or a noun, and with a noun it agrees: trabaja tanto, tanta gente, tantos libros. Tal goes with a noun in fixed expressions: de tal manera, tal vez.
The usual slip. Mapping the English so onto tan everywhere: tan gente, trabajo tan.
Why it catches you out. It is the same split you already met with “muy” and “mucho”, one level up and with a third piece added. If those two are automatic by now this costs you ten minutes; if they are not, this is the sentence telling you to go back.