How to Speak Spanish (Basics)
Introduce yourself., Find borrowed Spanish words in English., Understand gendered nouns., Memorize Spanish pronouns., Understand the basic sentence structure in Spanish., Pick up situational words and phrases.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Introduce yourself.
One of the easiest things to learn is how to greet others, and it can be a good introduction to the language as well as giving you an essential tool that will open the door to communication with others in Spanish.Hola (OH-la) means "hello" in Spanish.
Even if you know very little Spanish, it's likely you already know and understand this word.
There are other initial greetings in Spanish, such as buenos días (booEHN-os DEE-as), which means "good morning," or buenos noches (booEHN-os NO-chehs), which means "good evening." Following the hello, you might next learn "¿Cómo estás?" (KOH-moh ess-TAHS), which means "How are you?" This might be answered by saying estoy bien (ESS-toy bee-EHN), which means "I'm fine." You also might say mucho gusto (MOO-choh GOOS-toh), which means "nice to meet you." Then learn how to say "my name is": me llamo (meh YAH-moh).
Put them together, and you might greet someone in Spanish by saying "Mucho gusto, me llamo Juan," which means "Nice to meet you, my name is John." -
Step 2: Find borrowed Spanish words in English.
Although you probably don't pronounce them exactly the way a Spanish-speaking person would, there are a number of Spanish words that you probably already know if you are fluent in English.Making a list of Spanish words that you already know can be a good way to build your Spanish vocabulary, because it gives you a foundation on which to build.
For example, there probably are a number of Spanish foods that you already know, such as taco and burrito.
There also are a number of words that are the same in Spanish and in English (although they may be spelled or pronounced differently), such as animal and chocolate. , One of the things that makes Spanish very different from English is the fact that all objects are gendered.
Generally, if a noun ends in an o it is masculine, while if it ends in a it is feminine (although there are some exceptions).In Spanish, unlike in English, there is no pronoun "it." All nouns have a gender, and even inanimate objects are referred to the same as people, using the same pronouns.
Keep in mind that the gender you use matches the gender of the word, not the gender of the thing.
This can be an issue when the thing you're talking about is an animal.
For example, if you're talking about a dog, you would say "el perro" (ehl PEH-rroh), which is masculine, even if the dog was female. , Just as in English, verbs are conjugated according to the pronoun you need to use.
However, in Spanish, it isn't strictly necessary to say the pronoun or even include it in the sentence.
Your reader or listener will understand which pronoun you used by the conjugation of the verb.For example, if you want to say you want something, you could say "yo quiero" (YO kee-EHR-OH), which means "I want," but you could also simply say "quiero" and the pronoun would be understood.
Spanish pronouns include yo meaning I, nosotros meaning we, él meaning he, ella meaning she, and ellos and ellas meaning they.
Use ellas if you are referring to a group that is entirely feminine and ellos for a group that is either entirely masculine, or is a mixed-gender group.
Spanish has two different forms of the pronoun "you" – a formal and an informal form.
Use tú if you are speaking to someone with whom you're familiar, or someone close to you in age or younger.
For older people, people in positions of authority, or people you don't know, use the polite, formal form usted.
The plural of you (meaning "you all") is ustedes.
In Spain, there is another familiar form of the plural you: vosotros or vosotras.
In other Spanish-speaking countries, only ustedes is used. , While the basic sentence structure in Spanish is quite similar to English sentence structure, there are some differences.
Getting in the right structural mindset will help you become more comfortable thinking and speaking in Spanish.Like English, Spanish sentences are formed with a subject, followed by a verb, followed by the object of that verb.
For example, suppose you said "yo quiero un burrito." This means I (subject) want (verb) a burrito (object).
However, unlike in English, in Spanish the adjectives go after the thing they describe.
For example, if you were talking about a red book, in English you would put the adjective (red) first.
In Spanish, you would be talking about a libro rojo (LEE-bro ROH-ho). , Depending upon your reasons for learning Spanish, there may be particular words that will be most useful to you as you're starting to learn how to speak Spanish.
Starting in a familiar area will help you build the foundation you need.Think about words or phrases that you say frequently throughout your day.
For example, you probably say "please" and "thank you" several times a day.
If you're not already familiar with por favor (pohr fah-VOR) and gracías (gra-SEE-ahs), they are easy Spanish words to learn (and also polite things to say).
If someone says gracías to you, you can respond by saying de nada (deh NA-da), which means "you're welcome" (or more literally "it was nothing").
You also want to learn the Spanish words for "yes" and "no" early on, if you don't already know them.
They are sí (see) and no (no). -
Step 3: Understand gendered nouns.
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Step 4: Memorize Spanish pronouns.
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Step 5: Understand the basic sentence structure in Spanish.
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Step 6: Pick up situational words and phrases.
Detailed Guide
One of the easiest things to learn is how to greet others, and it can be a good introduction to the language as well as giving you an essential tool that will open the door to communication with others in Spanish.Hola (OH-la) means "hello" in Spanish.
Even if you know very little Spanish, it's likely you already know and understand this word.
There are other initial greetings in Spanish, such as buenos días (booEHN-os DEE-as), which means "good morning," or buenos noches (booEHN-os NO-chehs), which means "good evening." Following the hello, you might next learn "¿Cómo estás?" (KOH-moh ess-TAHS), which means "How are you?" This might be answered by saying estoy bien (ESS-toy bee-EHN), which means "I'm fine." You also might say mucho gusto (MOO-choh GOOS-toh), which means "nice to meet you." Then learn how to say "my name is": me llamo (meh YAH-moh).
Put them together, and you might greet someone in Spanish by saying "Mucho gusto, me llamo Juan," which means "Nice to meet you, my name is John."
Although you probably don't pronounce them exactly the way a Spanish-speaking person would, there are a number of Spanish words that you probably already know if you are fluent in English.Making a list of Spanish words that you already know can be a good way to build your Spanish vocabulary, because it gives you a foundation on which to build.
For example, there probably are a number of Spanish foods that you already know, such as taco and burrito.
There also are a number of words that are the same in Spanish and in English (although they may be spelled or pronounced differently), such as animal and chocolate. , One of the things that makes Spanish very different from English is the fact that all objects are gendered.
Generally, if a noun ends in an o it is masculine, while if it ends in a it is feminine (although there are some exceptions).In Spanish, unlike in English, there is no pronoun "it." All nouns have a gender, and even inanimate objects are referred to the same as people, using the same pronouns.
Keep in mind that the gender you use matches the gender of the word, not the gender of the thing.
This can be an issue when the thing you're talking about is an animal.
For example, if you're talking about a dog, you would say "el perro" (ehl PEH-rroh), which is masculine, even if the dog was female. , Just as in English, verbs are conjugated according to the pronoun you need to use.
However, in Spanish, it isn't strictly necessary to say the pronoun or even include it in the sentence.
Your reader or listener will understand which pronoun you used by the conjugation of the verb.For example, if you want to say you want something, you could say "yo quiero" (YO kee-EHR-OH), which means "I want," but you could also simply say "quiero" and the pronoun would be understood.
Spanish pronouns include yo meaning I, nosotros meaning we, él meaning he, ella meaning she, and ellos and ellas meaning they.
Use ellas if you are referring to a group that is entirely feminine and ellos for a group that is either entirely masculine, or is a mixed-gender group.
Spanish has two different forms of the pronoun "you" – a formal and an informal form.
Use tú if you are speaking to someone with whom you're familiar, or someone close to you in age or younger.
For older people, people in positions of authority, or people you don't know, use the polite, formal form usted.
The plural of you (meaning "you all") is ustedes.
In Spain, there is another familiar form of the plural you: vosotros or vosotras.
In other Spanish-speaking countries, only ustedes is used. , While the basic sentence structure in Spanish is quite similar to English sentence structure, there are some differences.
Getting in the right structural mindset will help you become more comfortable thinking and speaking in Spanish.Like English, Spanish sentences are formed with a subject, followed by a verb, followed by the object of that verb.
For example, suppose you said "yo quiero un burrito." This means I (subject) want (verb) a burrito (object).
However, unlike in English, in Spanish the adjectives go after the thing they describe.
For example, if you were talking about a red book, in English you would put the adjective (red) first.
In Spanish, you would be talking about a libro rojo (LEE-bro ROH-ho). , Depending upon your reasons for learning Spanish, there may be particular words that will be most useful to you as you're starting to learn how to speak Spanish.
Starting in a familiar area will help you build the foundation you need.Think about words or phrases that you say frequently throughout your day.
For example, you probably say "please" and "thank you" several times a day.
If you're not already familiar with por favor (pohr fah-VOR) and gracías (gra-SEE-ahs), they are easy Spanish words to learn (and also polite things to say).
If someone says gracías to you, you can respond by saying de nada (deh NA-da), which means "you're welcome" (or more literally "it was nothing").
You also want to learn the Spanish words for "yes" and "no" early on, if you don't already know them.
They are sí (see) and no (no).
About the Author
Deborah Nelson
Specializes in breaking down complex lifestyle topics into simple steps.
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