I desperately need to learn how to speak fluent Spanish. I know basic grammar and vocubulary, but?

I cannot hold a decent conversation with someone. Whenever I try to talk to someone at school who speaks Spanish, they either speak too fast or use vocabulary that I do not understand. What can I do?

How do you feel about mexican spanish? Why can't they speak spanish correctly?

I feel they say a lot of wrong stuff like abuja for aguja- rompido for roto, nadien for nadie and that's just for starters!
pityakk- they do not speak "a different sort of spanish" tons of their words aren't even found in the freaking dictionary!
asaih- your a moron Spanish is Spanish incorrect spanish is spoken by fools- got it?
Just as english must be spoken correctly or others will deem you a fool!
Hurry- correct english , correct german, correct french and correct spanish THAT MEANS NO INVENTED WORDS THAT DON'T EXIST!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
Mona- that's my point lack of freaking simple elementary education!
zola- I'm a beautiful latina with european ancestry. I speak both languages perfectly without an accent--love your mex. so much go back and stay there.
Lahooto- that isn't true all my latin american brothers and sister Peru, Equador, Columbia, Spaniards, Venezulans, Argentinian, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, and many MORE speak correctly except these us mexicans!
pitty- The Spaniards invaded and colonized EVERY Latin American country! and we're not crying about it like the mex.
Lahi- Caribbean spanish have a different way of pronouncing they drop their s's just like east coasters- EVERY SPANISH COUNTRY HAS A DISTINCNT WAY OF SPEAKING
BUT, correct usage of simple vocabulary is BASIC- It's basic spanish period.

Is Rosetta Stone Spanish worth the cost? I am looking to speak Spanish fluently.?

I already have 4 years of spanish in high school and 2 yrs in college. I can understand it and have an excellent vocabulary in it. I am looking to be able to speak it in 4 yrs by the time I graduate from Chiropractors school. With this program is speaking Spanish fluently obtainable?

How do you say "Hello may I speak to…" in Spanish?

I'm calling my best friend over the telephone tomorrow, and i don't want to sound stupid considering her whole family doesn't understand English. I can speak with a Mexican accent, infact they say i sound hispanic most of the time even thought i'm white and can only understand and barely speak spanish. I need to know the correct wording in Spanish for the phrase " Hello may i speak to..." I'm calling a girl, if that makes the difference in the vocabulary.

Why do most Spanish teachers just speak Spanish in their classes?

Don't you have to learn the vocabulary before you learn the language? What is the best way to learn Spanish? Could a person learn spanish by just listening to Spanish without knowing what the words meant?

Why have American English speakers adopted the Mexican intonation?

I read a lot of anti-immigrant chatter here, but I notice that more and more Americans are using the same tonal "sentence end rise" typical of Mexican street Spanish. Calling it "Valley-speak" may fool some people, but discerning polyglots can spot it immediately. It is particularly prevalent in young people and I've detected it on both coasts. The only other instance of this type of intonation occurs in certain Irish populations, but that variation is developed locally, without outside influence..

Is this one a precursor of things to come, ese?
Chukie411 & others:
I'm sure it is not intentional. In that sense language is organic and it evolves.
The intonation I refer to is when the end of a sentence is said in a higher tone than the beginning. It's one of the characteristis of California "Valley talk." You can also hear it in 90% of teen movies.
Be the way, Spanish & English are 2 of my favorite languages, so I'm OK regardless of the outcome.
Christopher: It can't make sense if you don't read it. I'm referring to intonation, not particular phrases of vocabulary.
And you're asking ME to use English?? Hee Hee.
Rosebuds & whatdoiknow:
I never said I disapprove of the change. I'm fine with it.

Mexicans don’t speak two languages only as most people think?

If they reside in the United States then they most likely speak three languages. English, Spanish and Nahuatl. Most Mexicans don't know that when they speak Spanish they are actually using a lot of vocabulary from the so called Aztec language. As many of you may know. Mexicans are basically a combination of the l Aztec Warrior and the Imperialist Spaniard from Europe. They use a lot of words from the Nahuatl language and dont even realize it. Mexicans speak a hybrid of the Nahuatl language and Spanish. Now three with English haha.

Differences in Latin American and mainstream Spanish linguistics?

I've noticed that there seems to be a lot of differences in "proper" Spanish and Latin American Spanish, yet they all seem to be able to understand each other. The problem is, I'm finding it more difficult to learn vocabulary because some of my CD's are Latin American dialect, and some are Spain's, which is causing me a lot of confusion.

My question is, though I love altavista babelfish, it generally only translates from English to Spanish that is common to Spain. To get it to translate common Cuban, Puerto Rican, etc...Spanish, I have to already know the word I'm looking for in Spanish, then have it translate to English (ie. babelfish translates "table" to "tabla"...to get it to bring up "mesa" I have to do a reverse translation).

Anyway, are there any good translation sites that can help me with this issue? I want to learn as many forms as possible, so if I need the spelling help (I have trouble placing accents), I need a site that will translate the proper spelling of the word I'm looking for from my Latin American Spanish CD's...

Hope this isn't confusing.
I apologize if I've offended because when I said "proper", I didn't mean it to sound like I meant the right way...which is why I put it in parenthesis. I couldn't, for the life of me, think of the word 'regional'. That's why I'm looking for better translating methods, because I know that regionally, I would be more likely to hear the more it than the Spanish peninsular form.

What’s the difference between Latin American and Castilian Spanish?

I'm a writer and I have a decent enough grasp of the Spanish language (I'm not fluent, but I can read a lot of it) from study and teaching myself and studying Latin for the past three years, but I want to be fluent in both Latin American and Castilian Spanish, though, no matter how long that I've been studying, I've been unable to find an accurate, simple description of Latin American versus Castilian Spanish. Are they similar, just with different slang, such as British versus American English?

I know that one comes from Spain while the other is from Latin American countries (hence the term, "Latin American" Spanish), but what I really am not getting is the difference between their grammar and vocabulary. Is there any?

And anyone who speaks Latin American Spanish, can you understand what someone from Spain is saying, or vice versa? Some people say that you can and others say that you can't. I personally haven't personally been able to understand all Latin American Spanish, but that's because I'm not quite fluent yet and don't speak it enough, mostly writing.

I speak some Spanish (Castilian) but want to start studying Latin American Spanish because I'm setting more of my stories in a Latin American culture as opposed to Spanish or New Mexican and want to have an idea of what I need to study. Is it universal? Or will I need to get a Latin American Spanish dictionary? And how long does it take for one to learn Latin American Spanish after studying Castilian for a little over two years?

Thanks in advance! :D

What is the most common Mexican Spanish word (esp in the north along the border) for “fan”, as in baseball fan?

I want to learn the most common vocabulary (and expressions) of the El Paso/Juarez area. I'm 58 years old and STILL struggling to come up of the right words when I need them. Thanks for your help.

How do I learn to speak spanish within a month?

I'm going to visit orphans in Mexico and need to learn spanish by then. I already know some and understand quite a bit I just need to expand my vocabulary and learn how to speak it better.