Greetings and polite phrases
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| hola | hello | OH-lah | Hola, ¿cómo estás?Hello, how are you? |
| adiós | goodbye | ah-dee-OHS | Adiós, hasta mañana.Goodbye, see you tomorrow. |
| por favor | please | por fah-VOR | Un café, por favor.A coffee, please. |
| gracias | thank you | GRAH-syahs | Gracias por tu ayuda.Thank you for your help. |
| de nada | you're welcome | deh NAH-dah | Gracias. De nada.Thank you. You're welcome. |
| buenos días | good morning | BWEH-nohs DEE-ahs | Buenos días, ¿cómo amaneciste?Good morning, how did you sleep? |
| buenas noches | good night | BWEH-nahs NOH-chehs | Buenas noches, que descanses.Good night, sleep well. |
| lo siento | I'm sorry | loh SYEHN-toh | Lo siento, llego tarde.I'm sorry, I'm late. |
| mucho gusto | nice to meet you | MOO-choh GOOS-toh | Mucho gusto, me llamo Ana.Nice to meet you, my name is Ana. |
| perdón | excuse me | pehr-DOHN | Perdón, ¿dónde está el baño?Excuse me, where is the bathroom? |
Numbers
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| cero | zero | SEH-roh | El número cero es muy importante en matemáticas.The number zero is very important in mathematics. |
| uno | one | OO-noh | Quiero uno, por favor.I want one, please. |
| dos | two | DOHS | Tengo dos perros.I have two dogs. |
| tres | three | TREHS | Hay tres libros en la mesa.There are three books on the table. |
| cuatro | four | KWAH-troh | Son las cuatro de la tarde.It's four in the afternoon. |
| cinco | five | SEEN-koh | Tengo cinco dedos en una mano.I have five fingers on one hand. |
| seis | six | SEHS | El tren llega a las seis.The train arrives at six. |
| siete | seven | SYEH-teh | La semana tiene siete días.The week has seven days. |
| ocho | eight | OH-choh | Como a las ocho de la noche.I eat at eight in the evening. |
| nueve | nine | NWEH-veh | El partido empieza a las nueve.The game starts at nine. |
Colors
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| rojo | red | ROH-hoh | El coche es rojo.The car is red. |
| azul | blue | ah-SOOL | El cielo es azul.The sky is blue. |
| verde | green | VEHR-deh | La camisa es verde.The shirt is green. |
| amarillo | yellow | ah-mah-REE-yoh | El sol es amarillo.The sun is yellow. |
| morado | purple | moh-RAH-doh | Mi color favorito es el morado.My favorite color is purple. |
| naranja | orange | nah-RAHN-hah | Me gusta la camisa naranja.I like the orange shirt. |
| rosa | pink | ROH-sah | La flor es rosa.The flower is pink. |
| negro | black | NEH-groh | El gato es negro.The cat is black. |
| blanco | white | BLAHN-koh | El papel es blanco.The paper is white. |
| marrón | brown | mah-RROHN | La mesa es marrón.The table is brown. |
Family
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| familia | family | fah-MEE-lyah | Mi familia es muy grande.My family is very big. |
| madre | mother | MAH-dreh | Mi madre cocina muy bien.My mother cooks very well. |
| padre | father | PAH-dreh | Mi padre trabaja en un banco.My father works at a bank. |
| hermano | brother | ehr-MAH-noh | Tengo un hermano mayor.I have an older brother. |
| hermana | sister | ehr-MAH-nah | Mi hermana estudia medicina.My sister studies medicine. |
| hijo | son | EE-hoh | Su hijo tiene cinco años.Her son is five years old. |
| hija | daughter | EE-hah | Nuestra hija va a la escuela.Our daughter goes to school. |
| abuelo | grandfather | ah-BWEH-loh | Mi abuelo vive en el campo.My grandfather lives in the countryside. |
| abuela | grandmother | ah-BWEH-lah | Mi abuela hace pan casero.My grandmother makes homemade bread. |
| primo | cousin | PREE-moh | Mi primo viene de visita.My cousin is coming to visit. |
Food and drink
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| agua | water | AH-gwah | Necesito un vaso de agua.I need a glass of water. |
| pan | bread | PAHN | Compramos pan fresco cada mañana.We buy fresh bread every morning. |
| leche | milk | LEH-cheh | Bebo leche en el desayuno.I drink milk at breakfast. |
| queso | cheese | KEH-soh | El queso español es delicioso.Spanish cheese is delicious. |
| manzana | apple | mahn-SAH-nah | Como una manzana al día.I eat an apple a day. |
| pollo | chicken | POH-yoh | Cenamos pollo con arroz.We had chicken with rice for dinner. |
| arroz | rice | ah-RROHS | El arroz es un alimento básico.Rice is a basic food. |
| café | coffee | kah-FEH | Tomo café por la mañana.I drink coffee in the morning. |
| huevo | egg | WEH-voh | Desayuno un huevo frito.I have a fried egg for breakfast. |
| verdura | vegetable | vehr-DOO-rah | Debemos comer más verduras.We should eat more vegetables. |
Animals
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| perro | dog | PEH-rroh | El perro corre en el parque.The dog runs in the park. |
| gato | cat | GAH-toh | El gato duerme todo el día.The cat sleeps all day. |
| caballo | horse | kah-BAH-yoh | El caballo corre muy rápido.The horse runs very fast. |
| pájaro | bird | PAH-hah-roh | El pájaro canta en el árbol.The bird sings in the tree. |
| pez | fish | PEHS | El pez nada en el río.The fish swims in the river. |
| vaca | cow | VAH-kah | La vaca da leche.The cow gives milk. |
| león | lion | leh-OHN | El león es el rey de la selva.The lion is the king of the jungle. |
| oso | bear | OH-soh | El oso duerme en invierno.The bear sleeps in winter. |
| conejo | rabbit | koh-NEH-hoh | El conejo come zanahorias.The rabbit eats carrots. |
| ratón | mouse | rah-TOHN | El ratón se esconde del gato.The mouse hides from the cat. |
Common verbs
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| ser | to be (permanent) | SEHR | Ella es doctora.She is a doctor. |
| estar | to be (state or place) | ehs-TAHR | Estoy en casa.I am at home. |
| tener | to have | teh-NEHR | Tengo dos hijos.I have two children. |
| hacer | to do or make | ah-SEHR | ¿Qué haces los fines de semana?What do you do on weekends? |
| ir | to go | EER | Voy al mercado.I am going to the market. |
| comer | to eat | koh-MEHR | Como fruta todos los días.I eat fruit every day. |
| beber | to drink | beh-BEHR | Bebo agua con la comida.I drink water with meals. |
| hablar | to speak | ah-BLAHR | Hablo un poco de español.I speak a little Spanish. |
| vivir | to live | vee-VEER | Vivo en Madrid.I live in Madrid. |
| querer | to want or love | keh-REHR | Quiero aprender español.I want to learn Spanish. |
Adjectives
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| grande | big | GRAHN-deh | La casa es grande.The house is big. |
| pequeño | small | peh-KEH-nyoh | El perro es pequeño.The dog is small. |
| bueno | good | BWEH-noh | Este libro es bueno.This book is good. |
| malo | bad | MAH-loh | El clima está malo hoy.The weather is bad today. |
| feliz | happy | feh-LEES | Estoy feliz de verte.I am happy to see you. |
| triste | sad | TREES-teh | Se siente triste hoy.He feels sad today. |
| rápido | fast | RAH-pee-doh | El coche es muy rápido.The car is very fast. |
| lento | slow | LEHN-toh | El tren es lento.The train is slow. |
| nuevo | new | NWEH-voh | Tengo un teléfono nuevo.I have a new phone. |
| viejo | old | VYEH-hoh | Ese edificio es muy viejo.That building is very old. |
Question words
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| qué | what | KEH | ¿Qué hora es?What time is it? |
| quién | who | KYEHN | ¿Quién es esa persona?Who is that person? |
| dónde | where | DOHN-deh | ¿Dónde vives?Where do you live? |
| cuándo | when | KWAHN-doh | ¿Cuándo llegas?When do you arrive? |
| por qué | why | por KEH | ¿Por qué estudias español?Why do you study Spanish? |
| cómo | how | KOH-moh | ¿Cómo te llamas?What is your name? |
| cuánto | how much | KWAHN-toh | ¿Cuánto cuesta esto?How much does this cost? |
| cuál | which | KWAHL | ¿Cuál prefieres?Which one do you prefer? |
Time, days and seasons
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| hoy | today | OY | Hoy es lunes.Today is Monday. |
| mañana | tomorrow | mah-NYAH-nah | Nos vemos mañana.See you tomorrow. |
| ayer | yesterday | ah-YEHR | Ayer llovió mucho.It rained a lot yesterday. |
| semana | week | seh-MAH-nah | Trabajo cinco días a la semana.I work five days a week. |
| lunes | Monday | LOO-nehs | El lunes empieza la semana.Monday starts the week. |
| verano | summer | veh-RAH-noh | En verano hace mucho calor.In summer it's very hot. |
| invierno | winter | een-VYEHR-noh | En invierno nieva mucho.It snows a lot in winter. |
| hora | hour | OH-rah | La clase dura una hora.The class lasts one hour. |
| noche | night | NOH-cheh | Trabajo por la noche.I work at night. |
| año | year | AH-nyoh | Este año viajo a España.This year I am traveling to Spain. |
Travel and places
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| viaje | trip | VYAH-heh | El viaje fue muy divertido.The trip was a lot of fun. |
| aeropuerto | airport | ah-eh-roh-PWEHR-toh | Llegamos al aeropuerto temprano.We arrived at the airport early. |
| hotel | hotel | oh-TEHL | Reservamos un hotel cerca del mar.We booked a hotel near the sea. |
| ciudad | city | syoo-DAHD | Madrid es una ciudad grande.Madrid is a big city. |
| calle | street | KAH-yeh | Vivo en una calle tranquila.I live on a quiet street. |
| tren | train | TREHN | Tomamos el tren a Barcelona.We took the train to Barcelona. |
| mapa | map | MAH-pah | Necesito un mapa de la ciudad.I need a map of the city. |
| playa | beach | PLAH-yah | Pasamos el día en la playa.We spent the day at the beach. |
| maleta | suitcase | mah-LEH-tah | Hice la maleta anoche.I packed my suitcase last night. |
| pasaporte | passport | pah-sah-POR-teh | No olvides tu pasaporte.Don't forget your passport. |
Art, business and Christmas
| Spanish | English | Say it | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| arte | art | AHR-teh | Me encanta el arte moderno.I love modern art. |
| pintura | painting | peen-TOO-rah | Esa pintura es muy famosa.That painting is very famous. |
| museo | museum | moo-SEH-oh | Visitamos el museo el sábado.We visited the museum on Saturday. |
| dibujo | drawing | dee-BOO-hoh | El niño hizo un dibujo bonito.The child made a nice drawing. |
| negocio | business | neh-GOH-syoh | Mi tío tiene un negocio pequeño.My uncle has a small business. |
| empresa | company | ehm-PREH-sah | Trabajo para una empresa grande.I work for a big company. |
| dinero | money | dee-NEH-roh | Necesito ahorrar más dinero.I need to save more money. |
| reunión | meeting | reh-oo-NYOHN | Tenemos una reunión a las diez.We have a meeting at ten. |
| Navidad | Christmas | nah-vee-DAHD | Celebramos la Navidad con la familia.We celebrate Christmas with family. |
| árbol de Navidad | Christmas tree | AHR-bohl deh nah-vee-DAHD | Decoramos el árbol de Navidad.We decorated the Christmas tree. |
| regalo | gift | reh-GAH-loh | Le di un regalo a mi madre.I gave my mother a gift. |
| villancico | Christmas carol | vee-yahn-SEE-koh | Cantamos villancicos en diciembre.We sing Christmas carols in December. |
Study tips for Spanish
- Spanish spelling is very regular, so once you learn the sound of each letter you can read almost any new word aloud correctly.
- Stress usually falls on the second-to-last syllable of words ending in a vowel, n or s; an accent mark shows any exception, as in perdón.
- Practice grammatical gender by learning nouns together with their article, such as el perro or la casa, rather than in isolation.
- Say new words out loud inside short example sentences instead of memorizing single words, since this helps you recall them in real conversation.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say purple in Spanish?
Purple is morado in Spanish, as in Mi color favorito es el morado, meaning 'My favorite color is purple.' Púrpura is also used, especially for a deeper shade.
What are some basic Spanish family vocabulary words?
Common family words include familia (family), madre (mother), padre (father), hermano and hermana (brother and sister), and abuelo and abuela (grandfather and grandmother).
What is basic Spanish vocabulary for beginners?
Beginners usually start with greetings like hola and gracias, numbers, colors, and everyday words for family, food and common verbs such as ser, estar and tener.