Your first words
Before diving into grammar, let's build a foundation of essential vocabulary. These words and phrases will let you start communicating immediately.
Greetings
| Spanish | English | When to use |
|---|---|---|
| Hola | Hello | Any time, informal |
| Buenos días | Good morning | Until about noon |
| Buenas tardes | Good afternoon | Noon until sunset |
| Buenas noches | Good evening/night | After sunset |
| ¿Qué tal? | How's it going? | Informal |
| ¿Cómo está? | How are you? | Formal |
| ¿Cómo estás? | How are you? | Informal |
| Adiós | Goodbye | Any time |
| Hasta luego | See you later | Common departure |
| Hasta mañana | See you tomorrow | — |
| Chao | Bye | Informal (Latin America) |
Polite essentials
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Por favor | Please |
| Gracias | Thank you |
| Muchas gracias | Thank you very much |
| De nada | You're welcome |
| Perdón | Sorry (excuse me) |
| Lo siento | I'm sorry (apologising) |
| Con permiso | Excuse me (to pass) |
| Disculpe | Excuse me (to get attention) |
Yes, no, and maybe
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Sí | Yes |
| No | No |
| Quizás / Tal vez | Maybe / Perhaps |
| Claro | Of course |
| Por supuesto | Of course (stronger) |
| Exacto | Exactly |
| Vale | OK (Spain) |
| Bueno | OK/Good (Latin America) |
| De acuerdo | Agreed |
Asking for help
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Habla inglés? | Do you speak English? (formal) |
| ¿Hablas inglés? | Do you speak English? (informal) |
| No entiendo | I don't understand |
| ¿Puede repetir? | Can you repeat? (formal) |
| Más despacio, por favor | Slower, please |
| ¿Cómo se dice...? | How do you say...? |
| ¿Qué significa...? | What does... mean? |
| ¿Puede ayudarme? | Can you help me? |
Introducing yourself
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Me llamo... | My name is... (I call myself) |
| Soy... | I am... |
| Mucho gusto | Nice to meet you |
| Encantado/a | Pleased to meet you |
| ¿Cómo se llama? | What is your name? (formal) |
| ¿Cómo te llamas? | What is your name? (informal) |
| ¿De dónde es? | Where are you from? (formal) |
| ¿De dónde eres? | Where are you from? (informal) |
| Soy de... | I'm from... |
Countries and nationalities
| Country | Spanish name | Nationality (m/f) |
|---|---|---|
| England | Inglaterra | inglés / inglesa |
| USA | Estados Unidos | estadounidense |
| Australia | Australia | australiano/a |
| Canada | Canadá | canadiense |
| Ireland | Irlanda | irlandés / irlandesa |
| Scotland | Escocia | escocés / escocesa |
| Spain | España | español / española |
| Mexico | México | mexicano/a |
| Argentina | Argentina | argentino/a |
Survival vocabulary
Places
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| la estación | station |
| el aeropuerto | airport |
| el hotel | hotel |
| el restaurante | restaurant |
| el café | café |
| el baño | bathroom |
| la farmacia | pharmacy |
| el hospital | hospital |
| el banco | bank |
| el supermercado | supermarket |
| la calle | street |
| la plaza | square |
Getting around
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Dónde está...? | Where is...? |
| a la izquierda | to the left |
| a la derecha | to the right |
| todo recto | straight ahead |
| aquí | here |
| allí | there |
| cerca | near |
| lejos | far |
| el metro | metro/underground |
| el autobús | bus |
| el taxi | taxi |
Eating and drinking
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| el agua | water |
| la cerveza | beer |
| el vino | wine |
| el café | coffee |
| el té | tea |
| el pan | bread |
| la carne | meat |
| el pescado | fish |
| las verduras | vegetables |
| la fruta | fruit |
| la cuenta | the bill |
Useful adjectives
| Spanish | English | Opposite |
|---|---|---|
| bueno | good | malo (bad) |
| grande | big | pequeño (small) |
| caliente | hot | frío (cold) |
| nuevo | new | viejo (old) |
| rápido | fast | lento (slow) |
| caro | expensive | barato (cheap) |
| bonito | beautiful | feo (ugly) |
| fácil | easy | difícil (difficult) |
| abierto | open | cerrado (closed) |
Common expressions
| Spanish | Literal meaning | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| ¿Qué tal? | What such? | How are you? / How's it going? |
| Muy bien | Very well | I'm fine |
| Más o menos | More or less | So-so |
| ¡Qué bien! | How good! | Great! |
| ¡Qué lástima! | What a pity! | That's too bad! |
| No hay problema | There's no problem | No problem |
| ¡Salud! | Health! | Cheers! / Bless you! |
| ¡Buen provecho! | Good benefit! | Enjoy your meal! |
| ¡Buena suerte! | Good luck! | Good luck! |
Numbers 1–20
| Number | Spanish | Number | Spanish |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | cero | 11 | once |
| 1 | uno | 12 | doce |
| 2 | dos | 13 | trece |
| 3 | tres | 14 | catorce |
| 4 | cuatro | 15 | quince |
| 5 | cinco | 16 | dieciséis |
| 6 | seis | 17 | diecisiete |
| 7 | siete | 18 | dieciocho |
| 8 | ocho | 19 | diecinueve |
| 9 | nueve | 20 | veinte |
| 10 | diez |
Note: uno becomes un before masculine nouns (un libro) and una before feminine nouns (una casa).