Spanish Phrases

One of the Ibero-Romance languages, Spanish is most closely related to Catalan, Galician and Portuguese. There are around 40 million Spanish speakers within Spain. Spanish is the official language in Spain, including the Balearic and Canary Islands and the Northern African enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla. There are Spanish-speaking communities in the UK, France and Germany. It is one of the official languages of the European Union and of the United Nations.

Pronunciation

Vowels

A: as in the 'u' in 'nut, or a shorter sound than the 'a' in 'art'

E: as in 'et'

I: between the 'i' in 'marine' and the 'i'  in 'flip'

O: similar to the  'o' in 'hot'

U: as the 'oo' in 'fool'

Consonants

B: soft, as the 'v' in 'van

C: as in 'cat' before 'a', 'o', 'u' or a consonant; as the 'th' in 'thin' before 'e' and 'i'

Ch: as in 'choose'

D: as 'dog' when word initial; elsewhere as the 'th' in 'thin'

G: as in 'go' when initial and followed by 'a', 'o' or 'u', elsewhere softer. Before 'e' or 'i' it's a harsh, breathy sound, a bit like the 'h' in 'hit'

H: always silent

J: a harsh, glutteral sound similar to the 'ch' in Scottish loch

Ll: between the 'lli' in 'million' and then 'y' in 'yell'

Q: always followed by a silent 'u' and either 'e' (as in que) and 'i' (as in aqui), the combined sound of qu is like the 'k' in 'kick'

R: a rolled 'r' sound; longer and stronger when word-initial or doubled

S: as in 'send'

V: same sound as Spanish b

X: as the 'x' in 'taxi' when between two vowels; as the 's' in 'say' before a consonant

Z: as the 'th' in 'thin'

 

Greetings

Hello: Hola!

Goodbye: Adiós!

Yes: Si

No: No

Please: Por favor

Thank you: Gracias

Your'e welcome: De nada

Excuse me: Perdón

 

Getting Around

What time does: A qué hora sale/llega el .?

the . leave/arrive?        

Bus: Autobús

Train: tren

Underground: metro

Next: próximo

First: primer

Last: ultimo

 

Signs

Entrance: entrada

Exit: salida

No vacancies: completo

Information: información

Open: abierto

Closed: cerrado

Police station: comisaría

Toilets: servicios

Men: hombres

Women: mujeres

 

Around Town

I'm looking for .: Estoy buscando .

A bank: un banco

The city centre: el centro de la cuidad

The embassy: la embajado

My hotel: mi hotel

The market: el mercado

The police: la policía

The post office: los correos

Public toilets: los aseos públicos

A telephone: un teléfono

 

The church: la iglesia

The hospital: el hospital

The main square: la plaza mayor

The mosque: la mezquita

The old city: la cuidad antigua

The palace: el palacio

 

Times & Dates

What time is it?: Qué hora es?

Today: hoy

Tomorrow: mañana

Yesterday: ayer

In the morning: demla mañana

In the afternoon: de la tarde

In the evening: de la noche

 

Monday: lunes

Tuesday: martes

Wednesday: miércoles

Thursday: jueves

Friday: viernes

Saturday: sábado

Sunday: domingo

 

Numbers

Zero: cero

One: uno, una

Two: dos

Three: tres

Four: cuatro

Five: cinco

Six: seis

Seven: siete

Eight: ocho

Nine: nueve

Ten: diez

 

Food

Breakfast: desayuno

Lunch: almuerzo/comida

Dinner: cena

Menu: carta

Spoon: cuchara

Knife: cuchillo

Fork: tenedor

Bill: cuenta

Table: mesa

Plate: plato

Glass: vaso

 

Sugar: azúcar

Hot: caliente

Cold: frio/a

Jam: mermelada

Honey: miel

Salt: sal

Pepper: pimienta

Sauce: salsa

Rice: arroz

Macaroni: macaronnes

Bread: pan

Strawberry: fresa

Lemon: limón

Apple: manzana

Orange: naranja

Pineapple: pina

Banana: platano

Grape: uva

Onion: cebolla

Mushrooms: champinones

Lettuce: lechuga

Potato: potato

Tomatoe: tomate

Carrot: zanahoria

 

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