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You are planning to travel to one of the Spanish-speaking countries but you aren’t confident enough to talk to locals, are you?
Or you are good at Spanish but too afraid of making mistakes?
Take a break for a moment and think about how perfect it would be to have a list of useful Spanish phrases for conversation. Since making mistakes would be at the minimum, you would be more confident to talk to native speakers, expand your horizons, and even improve your vocabulary.
Having all that in mind, we’ve listed the 101 most useful Spanish phrases to help you in daily conversations.
If you want to gain a little more confidence before interacting with the natives, learning Spanish with Spanish tutors will save you time and enable you to practice the language with native speakers from the comfort of your home.
And now, let’s dive in.
The 101 Most Useful Spanish Phrases to Help You in Every Situation
Greeting someone, introducing yourself, talking about work or hobbies is always good to know.
That’s why we’ve prepared The 101 Most Useful Spanish Phrases List with translated phrases from Spanish to English so that you can download it and save to your device (or print it if you want to).
Greetings
Greetings are the first step in every conversation.
Surely you’re familiar with ‘Hola’ or ‘Buenos dias.’
However, there are plenty of useful Spanish greetings you can use besides these.
Here are some of them:
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Hola! - Hello!
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Buenos dias - Good morning/ day
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Buenas tardes - Good afternoon
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Buenas noches - Good evening / Good night
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Encantada(o) de conocerte - Nice to meet you
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Mucho gusto - Nice to meet you
‘How Are You?’
It’s always polite to ask a person how they are. Here are several variants of this question:
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Cómo estás? - How are you? (informal)
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Cómo está (usted)? - How are you? (formal)
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¿Cómo te va?- How’s it going?
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¿Qué pasa?- What’s up?
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¿Qué haces? — What are you doing?
To answer the question, you can choose between the following phrases:
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Bien, gracias - Good, thanks
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Muy bien - Very good
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Bien ¿y tú? - Good, and you?
Being Polite
Being polite doesn’t depend on the language but on your behavior. Knowing some phrases that express politeness is vital.
Here are some Spanish phrases:
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¡Gracias! — Thank you!
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¡Muchas gracias! — Thank you very much!
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¡De nada! — You’re welcome! / No problem!
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Por favor — Please
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¡Perdon! — Excuse me!
Note that the phrase ‘Por favor’ is generally used at the end of a sentence.
Introduce Yourself
When you want to ask a person for their name, you ask this:
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¿Cómo te llamas? - What is your name?
To introduce yourself, you can choose between three similar phrases.
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Me llamo... — My name is…
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Mi nombre es... — My name is...
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Hola, soy ...— Hi, I’m …
When you greet a person and say your name, you usually ask about age.
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(Yo) tengo … años — I am … years old.
Getting to Know
Once you greet a person and introduce yourself, you can use some of the following phrases for the conversation to go a bit further.
The usual question people ask, especially when talking to foreigners is ‘Where are you from?’
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¿De dónde eres? - Where are you from?
The answer is:
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(Yo) soy de... — I come from…
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Inglaterra- England
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los Estados Unidos - the United States
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Asking about your job is one more way to continue the conversation:
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¿Qué haces? / ¿A qué te dedicas?- What do you do (for work)?
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Soy…- I’m...
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abogado(a) - a lawyer (m,f)
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profesor(a) - a teacher ( m,f)
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estudiante- a student
When the conversation goes in a pleasant and relaxed direction, you can ask something more personal such as the following:
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¿Qué te gusta hacer en tu tiempo libre?- What do you like to do in your free time?
In case a person asks you what you like to do in your free time, you can answer this:
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Me gusta...- I like...
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ver películas- to watch movies
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Leer- to read
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bailar- to dance
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caminar en el parque- to walk in the park
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Talking about favorite movies or books is always a good topic. How to ask or answer, see below.
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¿Cuál es tu…- What 's your…?
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película favorita- favorite movie
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libro favorito- favorite book
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Mi … es- My … is
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película favorita- favorite movie
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libro favorito- favorite book
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At the Restaurant
Restaurants are great places to make new friends, bond with the old ones, or learn some Spanish food traditions.
That’s why in the following lines, you can see some of the Spanish phrases that are being used in restaurants.
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¿Vamos a tomar una copa? - Shall we go for a drink?
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Una mesa para dos, por favor - A table for two, please
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¿Le pido un(a)_____? - Can I ask you for a…?
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La carta, por favor - The menu, please
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Tengo hambre - I’m hungry
Traveling
Whether you have to buy a ticket for the bus or train, or perhaps you don’t know how to get to the National Gallery, these common Spanish phrases for traveling can help.
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¿A qué hora llega el tren / el autobús?
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Un billete sencillo / pasaje de ida para...., por favor - A single ticket for ..., please
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¡Buen viaje! - Have a safe journey!
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¿Dónde está la estación de autobuses? - Where is the bus station?
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Está a la izquierda / a la derecha - It is to the left / to the right
Special Occasions
As you probably know, the Spanish people are a nation that puts family first.
Therefore, it’s normal that holidays and celebrations make a central part of their lives. This way, they spend time with their families and make stronger bonds with each other.
So, let’s learn some of these beautiful Spanish phrases used on special occasions.
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¡Felicitaciones! - Congratulations!
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¡Feliz Año Nuevo! - Happy New Year!
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¡Feliz Navidad! - Merry Christmas
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¡Salud! - Cheers!
Common Spanish Questions And Answers
Even if you have the list of the 101 most useful Spanish phrases, a moment can come when you simply don’t know what to say and which phrase to use.
To fill in the gap, you may need some of the common Spanish questions on your list.
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¿Cuánto cuesta? - How much does this cost?
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¿Qué hora tienes? - What time is it?
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¿Puede ayudarme? - Can you help me?
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¿Entiende? - Do you understand?
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¿Qué significa [word]? - What does [word] mean?
Of course, you should also know the proper answers.
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Si - Yes
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No - No
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Claro - Of course
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No entiendo - I don’t understand!
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(No) hablo español - I (don't) speak Spanish
Saying Goodbye
Thanks to movies, ‘Adios’ and ‘Hasta la vista’ are world-known Spanish phrases.
Saying goodbye, however, can be expressed with other phrases. Here are some of them:
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Chao - Goodbye
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Hasta luego - See you later
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Nos vemos - See you (informal)
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¡Tenga un buen día! - Have a nice day!
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Hasta mañana — See you tomorrow
Final Thoughts
With these useful phrases all in one place, very soon, you will find yourself interacting with Spanish native speakers.
One of our tips to learn Spanish quickly is to practice these phrases frequently.
Book a lesson with Spanish tutors 1-on-1. Not only will you master these expressions but you will learn many new things.
