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Spanish phrasebook
S3U / Beginner conversations / Version 1
Meet at the plaza
Hola is a friendly hello. Buenos días is a morning greeting. Gracias thanks someone; de nada replies to their thanks. Learn the whole expression instead of translating one word at a time.
| Spanish | English meaning |
|---|---|
| Hola. | Hello. |
| Buenos días. | Good morning. |
| Buenas tardes. | Good afternoon. |
| Gracias. | Thank you. |
| De nada. | You're welcome. |
| Hasta luego. | See you later. |
Try a conversation: A classmate arrives. Give a friendly hello.
Fun fact: Spanish writes an opening question mark as well as a closing one: ¿Dónde está la biblioteca?
Find the library
¿Dónde está...? asks where a place is. La biblioteca is the library. Derecha means right; izquierda means left. Siga recto is a polite instruction to one person to go straight ahead. The accent marks in dónde and está belong to these words.
| Spanish | English meaning |
|---|---|
| ¿Dónde está la biblioteca? | Where is the library? |
| Está a la derecha. | It is on the right. |
| Está a la izquierda. | It is on the left. |
| Siga recto. | Go straight ahead. |
| Por favor. | Please. |
| Gracias. | Thank you. |
Try a conversation: You want to visit the library. Ask where it is.
Fun fact: Biblioteca means library. A place that sells books is a librería, a different word.
A stop at the café
Por favor makes a request polite. No, gracias politely declines an offer. Sí, por favor accepts it. Sí meaning yes has an accent. La cuenta is the bill in this café conversation.
| Spanish | English meaning |
|---|---|
| Agua, por favor. | Water, please. |
| No, gracias. | No, thank you. |
| Sí, por favor. | Yes, please. |
| La cuenta, por favor. | The bill, please. |
| Por favor. | Please. |
| Gracias. | Thank you. |
Try a conversation: You want water. Ask for water politely.
Fun fact: The accent distinguishes sí, meaning yes, from si, meaning if.
Ask for help in a lesson
No entiendo says you do not understand. Puede repetir is a polite way to ask one person to repeat. Más despacio asks them to speak more slowly. Ahora entiendo says the explanation makes sense now. Asking for help is part of learning, not a mistake.
| Spanish | English meaning |
|---|---|
| No entiendo. | I don't understand. |
| ¿Puede repetir, por favor? | Can you repeat, please? |
| Más despacio, por favor. | More slowly, please. |
| Ahora entiendo. | Now I understand. |
| Por favor. | Please. |
| Gracias. | Thank you. |
Try a conversation: The explanation is not clear yet. Say that you do not understand.
Fun fact: Spanish can leave out yo, meaning I: entiendo already shows who is speaking in these replies.
Visit the fruit market
¿Cuánto cuesta? asks the price of one item. Cuesta tres euros answers with its price. Dos manzanas means two apples. Solo una refers to just one apple here; una matches the feminine word manzana. These are example prices, not real shopping advice.
| Spanish | English meaning |
|---|---|
| ¿Cuánto cuesta? | How much does it cost? |
| Cuesta tres euros. | It costs three euros. |
| Quiero dos manzanas, por favor. | I want two apples, please. |
| Solo una, por favor. | Just one, please. |
| Por favor. | Please. |
| Gracias. | Thank you. |
Try a conversation: You point to one item at the pretend stall. Ask how much it costs.
Fun fact: Manzana can mean an apple or a city block. In this fruit-stall conversation, it means an apple.
s3u.com/spanish / Accents are part of the spelling. These are the expressions used in this introductory practice; other wording may also be appropriate.
Spanish fold-over cards
S3U / Version 1 / Cut around each pair; fold along its center line.
s3u.com/spanish / Spanish on one side, English on the other.