Suggesting words and topics
The list started with the words the owner chose. It grows the way the pictures do: someone proposes, the community judges, and an accepted word opens for pictures like any other.
What a word needs
- The Spanish word, spelled correctly, with its gender if it has one.
- The meaning in plain English. One meaning per word; a second meaning is a second word.
- A sound-alike, if you have one. Not required, but a word with a good keyword gets its first picture much sooner.
What makes a good sound-alike
Say the Spanish out loud and listen for English. It doesn't have to cover the whole word; it has to cover enough to pull the word back. It has to be drawable: an object or a short scene, not an idea. And it should connect to the meaning in one gesture, so the picture can show both.
| Word | Meaning | Sound-alike | Why it works |
|---|---|---|---|
| casa | house | casserole | a house shaped like a casserole dish |
| perro | dog | pear oar | a dog rowing a boat carved from a pear |
| cerradura | lock | cereal door | a cereal-box door with a padlock |
| azotea | rooftop | zoo tea | animals having tea on a roof |
| taladro | drill | tally drawer | a drill boring into a drawer of tally marks |
A word can have more than one keyword competing. Casa via casserole and casa via "quesay" can both exist, and the vote decides. Pictures are tied to a keyword, so two keywords are two separate contests.
Topics
Words are grouped into topics: the house, food, the body, travel, and so on. Topic pages show every word in the group with its picture state, so you can see at a glance which words still need one. A suggested word goes into a topic when it's accepted.
Sentences
Words carry one short Spanish sentence that puts them in a natural place; it's what the app speaks, and what stands in for a picture on words that don't have one yet. The first words have theirs; the rest follow. Sentences are drafted at a beginner level and reviewed by the owner. If you have a better one, say so in the word's comments.
Scope at launch
The full list is large. At launch the app may show only the words that have a picture or were chosen by the owner, and grow the visible list as pictures arrive. Either way, every word that has a picture is in.