El Dorado: la leyenda de la ciudad de oro

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About this article

Level A2 Reading focus

What you'll learn

Legends of Colombia, past tense verbs

A text about the legend of El Dorado in Colombia, explaining that it was originally a Muisca ceremony at Lake Guatavita and not a city of gold.

After reading

Article learning block

Phrases, words, grammar, and quick practice from this text.

18 items

Phrases for training

Add useful phrases to SRS or mark them as already known.

Me encanta la magia.

new

I love magic.

"Me encanta" means "I love" or "I am thrilled by". Used to express strong enthusiasm about activities.

Essential phrase for expressing passion about hobbies and interests.

Por fin lo logro.

new

I finally did it!

"Por fin" means "finally". "Lo logro" = "I achieve it / I manage it".

Great for celebrating success after persistent effort.

La paciencia es muy importante.

new

Patience is very important.

Simple sentence with "ser" for describing qualities. "Muy importante" = very important.

Teaches how to express that something is important using ser.

Un mago guarda sus secretos.

new

A magician keeps his secrets.

"Guardar" means to keep or guard. Here it means not revealing secrets.

Useful for talking about rules and obligations.

Que empiece la función.

new

Let the show begin!

"Que empiece" is a subjunctive construction used to express a wish or encouragement.

Great phrase for ending a story or encouraging an action.

¿Creen en la magia?

new

Do you believe in magic?

"¿Creen?" is the ustedes/vosotros form of "creer". "Creer en" = to believe in.

Learn to ask questions about beliefs using creer en.

Ver la cara de sorpresa.

new

Seeing the surprised face.

"La cara de sorpresa" = the face of someone surprised. Seeing this reaction is the best reward.

Describes the emotional payoff after effort.

Key words

Vocabulary that carries the school-day topic.

trick

el truco

trick

"El truco" is a masculine noun. Used with "aprender" to talk about learning skills.

Key word of the article — a magic trick.

practice

la práctica

practice

"La práctica" is a feminine abstract noun. "Requiere práctica" = requires practice.

Shows the effort-result relationship.

to disappear

desaparecer

to disappear

"Desaparecer" often appears in articles about magic. Learn it with "hacer desaparecer" = to make disappear.

Common in magic and illusion contexts.

patience

la paciencia

patience

"La paciencia" is a key trait in the article. Used with "es importante" to describe values.

Links character to success in activities.

concentration

la concentración

concentration

"La concentración" is needed for card tricks. Used with "necesitar" = to need.

Important word for describing mental effort.

secret

el secreto

secret

"El secreto" in the article is the magic technique. "Guardar un secreto" = to keep a secret.

Linked to the magician rule of never revealing secrets.

presentation

la presentación

presentation

"La presentación" means both presentation and manner of delivering. The article says: presentation is 50% of success.

Useful for understanding how delivery matters in any activity.

Grammar in context

Patterns from the text worth noticing after reading.

estar + gerundio

Estoy practicando mis palabras.

Estoy practicando = I am practicing (right now)

The "estar + gerundio" construction shows an ongoing action. "Estoy practicando" = I am practicing now.

Learn to describe actions happening at this very moment.

reflexive verbs

A veces me equivoco.

me equivoco = I make a mistake

Reflexive verbs have "se" and conjugate: me equivoco, te equivocas, se equivoca. "Equivocarse" = to make a mistake.

Important for describing mistakes and corrections.

Past simple (regular)

Mi tío me regaló un libro.

regaló = he/she gave (as a gift)

Verb "regalar" in pretérito indefinido: regalé, regalaste, regaló, regalamos, regalasteis, regalaron. "-ar" → "-ó" for él/ella/usted.

Learn to narrate past events with regular verbs.

tener que + infinitive

Tengo que mover mis dedos.

Tengo que mover = I have to move

"Tener que + infinitive" means "to have to / must". It expresses external obligation, not personal desire.