In this article you’ll learn 50 important Spanish words and phrases which can make you trip to Spain better. Many people have heard of a basic set of words. There are about 300 of them.
And what if this list was compressed to 100 words? Or even 50 words? After all, the image is also compressed and archived. It takes up several times less disk space. But even a compressed picture gives us a general idea of what it shows. Let’s overcome the language barrier and prepare for a trip to Spain together!
Which parts of speech do we use more often than others?
Which part of speech is the most used? Experts say that nouns are about 20% of words, verbs 15%, pronouns 9%, prepositions 13%, adjectives 6%, adverbs about 7%, and the remaining 30% are distributed among punctuation, determiners, etc… You can find the relevant research by following the link.
The research has been done mostly for the English language. However, it notes that the +/- data for lemmas in other languages is similar.
What are the most important verbs?
All verbs below are only shown in their initial form. I have determined the importance of words for a tourist and made a list for him. Let’s consider it enough.
- To be – “Ser”
- Have – “Tener”
- To have – “Poder”
- To say – “Decir”
- To want – “Querer”.
- To think – “Pensar”.
- See – “Ver”.
- Do – “Hacer”
- Understand – “Comprender”
- Know – “Saber”
- Go – “Ir”
- Love – “Amar”
- Work – “Trabajar”
- To take – “Tomar”
- To eat – “Comer”
What are the most important pronouns?
The logic of pronouns is also simple. With these pronouns, life in Spain will be easier. Let’s skip all the frequent and rare nuances.
- I am – “A yo”.
- You – “Tu”.
- He – “El”
- We – “Nosotros”
- Mine – “Mi”
- Yours – “Tu”
- Who – “Quien”
- What – “Que”.
- This – “Esto”
- How much – “Cuanto” .
The most important nouns
- City – “La ciudad”
- Night – “La noche”
- Store – “La tienda”
- Distance – “Distancia”
- Dad/Mom – “El padre”/”La madre”
- Money – “El dinero”
- Home – “La casa”
- Day – “El dia”
- Lots – “Mucho”
- Little – “Poco”
The most important adverbs
- Always – “Siempre”
- Sometimes – “A veces”
- Never – “Nunca”/”Jamas”
- Everywhere – “En todas partes”
- Tomorrow – “Manana”
- Nowhere – “En ninguna parte”
- All – “Todos”
- Somebody – “Alguien”
- Nobody – “Nadie”
- Here – “Aqui”
- Today – “Hoy”
- Everybody – “Todo”
- Now – “Ahora”
- Nothing – “Nada”
- Yesterday – “Ayer”
Your first phrases in Spanish – Saying hello in Spanish
Where do I start to learn Spanish? The standard answer is “start with the alphabet!” Is it really that important to know the Spanish alphabet? A controversial question.
It’s much more useful to know how Spaniards say hello and goodbye. Knowing the greeting phrases in Spanish, you can use them on your first trip!
So, have you prepared your personal dictionary to put some new words there? Let’s learn how to say hello in Spanish today!
What is Hello in Spanish?
The answer is ”¡Hola!”.
Let us note for ourselves that the word “hello” in Spain is not considered as informal as it is in English. Therefore, it can be safely used in the hotel, at the customs, and when communicating with people of different ages.
Now let’s learn how Spaniards say hello during the day
How to say good morning in Spanish?
Spaniards say ”¡Buenos días!” [buenos días].
Yes, yes, exactly morning! We are often confused by the word “day” in this greeting, so we boldly use it at any time. But Spaniards don’t say it that way. This greeting is valid until noon. That is, until 12 noon. And in the meaning of morning.
How to say Good afternoon or good evening in Spanish?
It’ll be “¡Buenas tardes!” [buenas tardes].
After 12:00, and until sunset (somewhere between 8:00 and 9:00 p.m.), this is the greeting used. Therefore, the translation would be “good afternoon” / “good evening” in Spanish. It depends on the time.
How to say good evening, good night, good night in Spanish?
Just say “¡Buenas noches!” [buenas noches].
After sunset, Spaniards use this version of the greeting. Or “Hola.” If it’s still evening, it means “good evening.” If it’s later, it means “good night”. And with the same expression, you can wish “good night”.
Let us pay attention to another important point. When we first start learning a language, we don’t pay enough attention to the endings.
And this is important!
In all three greetings, we see “buenos” / “buenas”.
This is an adjective with the translation “good, kind.” And adjectives in Spanish necessarily agree in gender and number with nouns. Therefore, “buenOs días”, because the word “día” (day) in Spanish is masculine. And the ending is masculine! And in the other two cases, the nouns are feminine, so the ending changes, and we get “buenAS tardes”, “buenAS noches”. It seems like one insignificant letter. But it shows our level of the language! In Spanish, you have to pay attention to little things!
Spanish is not as difficult as it may seem at first sight. And for those who know English, learning Spanish won’t be very difficult. Many words are pronounced as they are written.
How to say goodbye in Spanish?
You can say “Hasta luego!”.
Learning new words
There are many Spanish words and phrases in this article. It is quite possible that some of them were unfamiliar to you.
Obviously, reading alone will not be enough to help you remember all of these words. We recommend that you add all the new words and phrases you found in this article to your own dictionary and carefully study them.
For example, you can create a language card that looks like this:
Click on the image to add it to your dictionary
It is very important to keep expanding your vocabulary. Don’t forget to dedicate time to this every day.
It is the only way to finally master a foreign language.
Conclusion
Are you a beginner looking to quickly learn a foreign language?
Imagine being able to speak Spanish fluently and confidently. Imagine being able to understand and engage in conversations with native speakers, or even traveling to Spanish-speaking countries without any communication barriers.
Our comprehensive guide on how to learn a foreign language quickly and efficiently will give you the tools and resources you need to achieve your language learning goals. Unlike chaotic and unstructured methods, our systematic approach ensures that you will learn the language in a logical and orderly manner, which will save you time and energy in the long run.
Don’t let a lack of motivation hold you back any longer. Click on the “Get in Now” banner to get access to this material and start your journey to fluency today!
