Why a ‘chuleta’ should be part of your English language learning.

Working with native Catalan and Spanish speakers here in Barcelona, I discovered that there isn’t a good English equivalent of the word ‘chuleta’ in Spanish, or ‘xuleta’ in Catalan. The nearest description would be something like a ‘cheat sheet’, but this translation never seemed quite so good.

In fact, I always thought it was kind of great that you can discover words that can’t be translated directly into another language. For this reason, I adopted the word ‘chuleta’ to descibe this useful tool many years ago, and it has become an integral part of my teaching methodology.

The idea of a chuleta is normally associated with something we would use to cheat, for example in an exam. But when I offer a chuleta to the professionals I work with, they are grateful to have this reference, (and more than happy to ‘cheat ’ as much as they possibly can.) Why? Because in business, the language we use is often repetitive, boring even, and that’s a very good thing. There is an accepted level of formality, politeness, and language which is understood by everyone and used specifically for that context and company culture. For this reason, we could say that learning ‘Business English’ is easier than ‘General English’ because the vocabulary and skills can be learnt and used and repeated. Applying English, and working within the same sector everyday is not the same as having to change topics whilst attending a family dinner, or socialising with friends, when the conversation can easily switch from weather, to food, to travel to politics. 

So, I would like to suggest that a chuleta is a very good friend to have.

When you think about writing a business email, you won’t win any extra points for trying to remember, or inventing phrases which maybe similar, but are not exactly the same as the common business phrases which are considered professional and correct. Basically, one different or extra word, just one small variation, can sound just plain wrong and it’s almost better not to use the phrase at all. 

The practice of using your chuleta is probably most applicable to writing, since you will probably have more time and you are sitting at your computer where it is easier to cheat, (sorry, check…) the correct phrase. However, there are many other professional skills where a chuleta is also the perfect tool, in presentations, conference calls, project reporting and more. It is true that integrating new phrases into these other professional contexts takes more practice, but if you introduce them gradually you will be amazed at how quickly they become yours to keep. 

So if you want to improve your level of English across many professional skills, take the smart option, save yourself a lot of time and use a chuleta. 

If you are interested in improving your skills in any of the areas mentioned above, please take a look at my intensive courses available here. 

Photography by Annie Spratt