Common mistakes

Every learner makes mistakes. Knowing the most common ones helps you avoid them and understand why native speakers might misunderstand you.

Ser vs estar confusion

The problem

Choosing the wrong "to be" verb is the most common mistake for English speakers.

Common errors

Incorrect	Correct	Why
Soy cansado.	Estoy cansado.	Tiredness is temporary (estar)
Estoy alto.	Soy alto.	Height is a characteristic (ser)
El banco es allí.	El banco está allí.	Location uses estar
La fiesta está en mi casa.	La fiesta es en mi casa.	Events use ser

How to fix it

• SER: identity, origin, profession, characteristics, time, material, possession
• ESTAR: location, temporary states, emotions, conditions, progressive tenses
• Some adjectives change meaning with each verb (see Ser vs estar)

False friends

The problem

Words that look like English words but mean something different.

Dangerous false friends

Spanish	Looks like	Actually means
embarazada	embarrassed	pregnant
constipado	constipated	having a cold
sensible	sensible	sensitive
éxito	exit	success
librería	library	bookshop
largo	large	long
actualmente	actually	currently
realizar	realise	to carry out
asistir	assist	to attend
pretender	pretend	to try/attempt
introducir	introduce	to insert
recordar	record	to remember
soportar	support	to tolerate
éxito	exit	success

Correct translations

English	Spanish
embarrassed	avergonzado
constipated	estreñido
sensible	sensato
exit	salida
library	biblioteca
large	grande
actually	en realidad
to realise	darse cuenta
to assist	ayudar
to pretend	fingir
to introduce (someone)	presentar
to record	grabar
to support	apoyar

Gender agreement errors

The problem

Forgetting to match article and adjective gender with the noun.

Common errors

Incorrect	Correct	Why
el problema difícila	el problema difícil	problema is masculine
la mapa	el mapa	mapa is masculine
el agua fría	el agua fría	agua is feminine (uses el before a-)
las fotos bonitos	las fotos bonitas	foto is feminine

How to fix it

• Learn nouns with their articles
• Remember that -ma words from Greek (problema, tema, sistema) are masculine
• El agua, el alma, el águila use el but are feminine (for pronunciation)

Verb conjugation errors

The problem

Using wrong verb forms, especially with irregular verbs.

Common errors

Incorrect	Correct	Why
Yo sabo	Yo sé	saber has irregular yo form
Yo ha ido	Yo he ido	haber conjugates: he, has, ha...
Él tene	Él tiene	tener: tengo, tienes, tiene...
Nosotros queramos	Nosotros queremos	querer: e→ie except nosotros

How to fix it

• Learn the irregular verbs thoroughly
• Pay attention to stem-changing patterns
• Practice common verbs daily

Pronunciation mistakes

The problem

Applying English pronunciation rules to Spanish.

Common errors

Error	Correct	Explanation
"gway-rah" for guerra	"geh-rah"	u is silent after gu before e/i
"hwAn" for Juan	"hwan"	j = h sound, not English j
"rojo" with English r	rolled or tapped r	Spanish r is different
pronouncing h	h is always silent	hola = "ola"

How to fix it

• H is always silent
• J and G (before e/i) sound like English h
• LL and Y sound like English y (or "sh" in Argentina)
• R is tapped or rolled
• Vowels are pure and short

Por vs para confusion

The problem

Both can translate to "for," but have different uses.

Quick guide

PARA (destination, purpose, deadline):

• Es para ti. — It's for you. (recipient)
• Estudio para aprender. — I study to learn. (purpose)
• Para mañana. — For/By tomorrow. (deadline)
• Voy para Madrid. — I'm heading to Madrid. (destination)

POR (cause, exchange, duration, through):

• Gracias por todo. — Thanks for everything. (cause)
• Lo compré por diez euros. — I bought it for ten euros. (exchange)
• Trabajo por la mañana. — I work in the morning. (time period)
• Camino por el parque. — I walk through the park. (through)

Common errors

Incorrect	Correct	Why
Esto es por ti.	Esto es para ti.	recipient = para
Gracias para ayudarme.	Gracias por ayudarme.	cause/reason = por

Literal translations

The problem

Translating word-for-word from English.

Common errors

English	Incorrect Spanish	Correct Spanish
I am hot	Soy caliente	Tengo calor
I am 25 years old	Soy 25 años	Tengo 25 años
I miss you	Te pierdo	Te echo de menos
I like it	Yo gusto	Me gusta
What's your name?	Qué es tu nombre?	¿Cómo te llamas?

Spanish uses "tener" (have) for many states

Spanish	Literal	English meaning
tener hambre	to have hunger	to be hungry
tener sed	to have thirst	to be thirsty
tener frío	to have cold	to be cold
tener calor	to have heat	to be hot
tener sueño	to have sleep	to be sleepy
tener miedo	to have fear	to be afraid
tener razón	to have reason	to be right
tener prisa	to have hurry	to be in a hurry

Gustar structure

The problem

Gustar works backwards compared to English "like."

How it works

The thing liked is the subject; the person is indirect object:

• Me gusta el café. — Coffee pleases me. (I like coffee.)
• Te gustan los libros. — Books please you. (You like books.)

Common errors

Incorrect	Correct
Yo gusto el café.	Me gusta el café.
Me gusto los libros.	Me gustan los libros.
Ella gusta nadar.	Le gusta nadar.

Similar verbs

Other verbs work like gustar:

• encantar (to love): Me encanta la música.
• interesar (to interest): Me interesa la historia.
• molestar (to bother): Me molesta el ruido.
• faltar (to lack): Me falta tiempo.
• doler (to hurt): Me duele la cabeza.

Preterite vs imperfect

The problem

Choosing the wrong past tense changes the meaning.

Common errors

Sentence	Issue
Ayer hacía calor.	Use preterite for completed: Ayer hizo calor.
De niño, fui a la playa una vez.	Use imperfect for habits: De niño, iba a la playa.

Quick guide

• Preterite: completed, specific, what happened
• Imperfect: ongoing, habitual, background

Accent marks

The problem

Forgetting accents changes meaning or is grammatically incorrect.

Meaning changes

Without accent	With accent
si (if)	sí (yes)
tu (your)	tú (you)
el (the)	él (he)
como (like, as)	cómo (how)
que (that)	qué (what)
mas (but)	más (more)
solo (alone)	sólo (only)*

*Note: The accent on sólo is now optional per RAE.

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