Basic Spanish
This list of Spanish words is to help visitors with the meaning and pronunciation of commonly used words. Many of the words require accents, and some web browsers don't display accents correctly, so we chose not to include them at this time. For correct accent markings, please consult a Spanish/English dictionary - or join us at our Caribbean beach for a focused class session!
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
| The Simple Stuff | ||
| Yes | Si | SEE |
| No | No | NOH |
| Please | Por favor | Pore fah-VORE |
| Thank you | Gracias | GRAH-see-ahs |
| You’re Welcome | De nada | De-NAW-da |
| No, thank you | No, gracias | No GRAH-see-ahs |
| Sorry | Lo siento | Loh see-EHN-toh |
| Greetings | ||
| Good morning | Buenos dias | BWEHnos DHEE ahs |
| Good afternoon | Buenas tardes | BWEHnahs TAHRdh ehs |
| Good evening | Buenas noches | BWEHnahs NO chehs |
| Good bye | Adios | Ah dhee OHS |
| Hello/Hi | Hola | OH lah |
| See you later | Hasta luego | AH-stah LWEH-go |
| What is your name? | Como se llama? | KOH-moh say YAHmah |
| My name is… | Mi nombre es | Mee NOMBreh ehs |
| How are you? | Como esta usted | KOH-mo ehs-TAH OOS-THE-dh |
| Fine, thank you. | Muy bien, gracias | MOOey bee en GRAH see ahs |
| Language | ||
| Do you speak English? | Habla ingles? | AH-bla een-GLASE |
| I’m Canadian. | Soy Canadiense. | Soy kah nah dheeEHN sehs |
| I’m American. | Soy norteamericano | Soy nohr te ah meh ree KAH noh |
| I don’t understand. | No comprendo. | Noh kohm-PREHN-dho |
| Please speak slowly. | Hable despacio por favor. | HAHbleh dhehs-PAH-see-oh, pore fahBOHR |
| Family | ||
| Husband | Esposo | Ehs-POH-soh |
| Wife | Esposa | Ehs-POH-sah |
| Son | Hijo | EE-hoh |
| Daughter | Hija | EE-hah |
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
| Questions | ||
| Where is/are…? | Donde esta/estan…? | DHOHN-dheh ehs-TAH |
| When? | Cuando? | KWAHNdho |
| Who? | Quien? | Kee-EHN |
| Why? | Por que? | Pohr KAY |
| What? | Que? | Kay |
| How long…? | Cuanto Tiempo? | KWAHN-toh TYEHM-po |
| How much does it cost? | Cuanto cuesta? | KWAHN-toh KWEH-stah |
| How far? | A que distancia? | Ah kay dhees-TAN-syah |
| Can you help me? | Puede ayudarme? | PWEH-dhe ah-yoo-dh-AHR-meh |
| What time is it | Que hora es? | Kay OH-rah ehs |
| Useful Statements | ||
| I (don’t) like it | (No) me gusta | Meh GOOS-tah/No meh GOOS-tah |
| I don’t know | No se | NOH say. |
| I’m hungry | Tengo hambre | TEHN-go AHM-breh |
| I’m thirsty | Tengo sed | TEHN-go SEH-dh |
| I’m tired | Estoy cansado | Ehs-TOY kahn-SAH-dho |
| I’m ready | Estoy listo | Ehs-TOY LEEsto |
| Right now | Ahora mismo | Ah OHR ah MEES mo |
| Just a minute | Un momento | Oon mo-MEHN toh |
| Come in! | Entre | EHN-treh |
| It’s cheap | Es barato | Ehs bah-RAH-toh |
| It’s expensive | Es caro | Ehs KAH-ro |
| It’s cold (weather) | Hace frio | AH-say FREE-o |
| It’s hot (weather) | Hace calor | AH-say kah-LOHR |
| A little | Un poco | Oon POH-ko |
| A lot | Mucho | MOO-cho |
| Tomorrow | Manana | Mah-ny-AH-nah |
| Next week | La semana proxima | Lah-say-MAHN-ah PROK-see-mah |
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
| The Hotel | ||
| Bathroom | Banos | BAH-ny-os |
| Swimming Pool | Piscina | Pee-SEE-nah |
| Open | Abierto | Ah-bee-ehr-toh |
| Closed | Cerrado | Seh RAH dho |
| Bed | Cama | KAH-mah |
| Towel | Toalla | Toh-AH-yah |
| Soap | Jabon | hah-BOHN |
| Pillow | Almohada | Ahl-moh-Ahdah |
| Shower | Una ducha | oo-nah DHOO-chah |
| Iron | Plancha | PLAHN-chah |
| Hair drier | Secador | Say-kah-DOHR |
| There are no towels | No hay toallas | Noh Ah-ee toh-AH-yahs |
| I have a problem. | Tengo un problema | TEHN-go oon pro-BLEH-mah |
| The Restaurant | ||
| Waiter/waitress | Camarero/camarera | Kah-mah-REH-roh/rah |
| I’d like…. | Quiero | KYEH-ro |
| The bill please | La cuenta, por favor | Lah KWEHN-tah, pohr fah VORE |
| Breakfast | Desayuno | Dhe-sah-YOO-noh |
| Lunch | Almuerzo | Ahl-MWEHR-so |
| Dinner | Cena | SAY-nah |
| Knife | Cuchillo | Koo-CHEE-yo |
| Fork | Tenedor | Tay-neh-dh-OHR |
| Spoon | Cuchara | Koo CHAH-rah |
| Tea | Te | Tay |
| Black | Café negro | Kah-FEH naygro |
| Coffee with milk | Café con leche | Kah-FEH kon LEH-cheh |
| Milk | Leche | LEH-cheh |
| Ice | Hielo | Yellow |
| Mineral water | Agua mineral | AH-gwah mee-neh-RAHL |
| Wine | Vino | BEE-no |
| Beer | Cerveza | Sehr-BEH-sah |
| White wine | Vino blanco | BEE-no blawn-coh |
| Lemonade | Limonada | Lee-moh-NAH-dh-ah |
| Juice | Jugo | HOO-go |
| Egg | Huevo | WEH-boh |
| Scrambled eggs | Huevos revueltos | WEH-bohs reh-BWEHL-tos |
| Cheese | Queso | KAY-soh |
| Butter | Mantequilla | Mahn-te-KEE-yah |
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
| Restaurants | ||
| Butter | Mantequilla | Mahn-the-KEE-yah |
| Bread | Pan | Pahn |
| Fruit | Fruta | FROO-tah |
| Salt | Sal | Sahl |
| Pepper | Pimienta | Pee-mee-EN-toh |
| Sugar | Azucar | Ah-SOO-kahr |
| Fish | Pescado | Pehs-KAH-dho |
| Salad | Ensalada | Ens-sah-LAH-dha |
| Soup | Sopa | SOH-pah |
| Dessert | Postre | POH-streh |
| Ice cream | Helado | Eh-LAH-dho |
| Days of the Week | ||
| Sunday | Domingo | Doh-MEEN-goh |
| Monday | Lunes | LOO-nehs |
| Tuesday | Martes | MAHR-tehs |
| Wednesday | Miercoles | Mee-ER-cohl-es |
| Thursday | Jueves | HWEH-behs |
| Friday | Viernes | Bee-ER-nehs |
| Saturday | Sabado | SAH-bah-doh |
| Numbers | ||
| 1 | Uno | OON-o |
| 2 | Dos | Dhos |
| 3 | Tres | Trehs |
| 4 | Cuatro | KWAH-tro |
| 5 | Cinco | SEEN-koh |
| 6 | Seis | Say-ees |
| 7 | Siete | See-EH-te |
| 8 | Ocho | OH-choh |
| 9 | Nueve | NWEH-beh |
| 10 | Diez | Dee-EZ |
