Basic Spanish Phrases
These are complete sentences, usable exactly as they are. The formal usted version is given where the two differ.
Introducing yourself
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Me llamo …
meh YAH-moh
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My name is …
Literally I call myself
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¿Cómo se llama?
KOH-moh seh YAH-mah
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What is your name?
¿Cómo te llamas? to a friend
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Soy de …
soy deh
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I am from …
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Mucho gusto
MOO-choh GOOS-toh
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Nice to meet you
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Estoy aprendiendo español
es-TOY ah-pren-DYEN-doh es-pah-NYOL
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I am learning Spanish
When you are stuck
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No entiendo
noh en-TYEN-doh
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I don't understand
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¿Habla inglés?
AH-blah een-GLEHS
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Do you speak English?
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¿Puede repetir?
PWEH-deh reh-peh-TEER
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Could you repeat that?
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Más despacio, por favor
mahs des-PAH-syoh por fah-VOR
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Slower, please
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No sé
noh seh
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I don't know
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¿Cómo se dice … en español?
KOH-moh seh DEE-seh en es-pah-NYOL
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How do you say … in Spanish?
Out and about
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¿Dónde está …?
DOHN-deh es-TAH
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Where is …?
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¿Dónde está el baño?
DOHN-deh es-TAH el BAH-nyoh
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Where is the toilet?
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¿Cuánto cuesta?
KWAHN-toh KWES-tah
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How much is it?
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Quisiera …
kee-SYEH-rah
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I would like …
The polite way to order
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La cuenta, por favor
lah KWEN-tah por fah-VOR
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The bill, please
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¿Me puede ayudar?
meh PWEH-deh ah-yoo-DAR
-
Can you help me?
Switching between usted and tú
The formal phrases here use usted, which takes the same verb form as he or she. ¿Habla inglés? is literally does he speak English, used politely to your listener.
For a friend, add an s: ¿Hablas inglés? ¿Puedes repetir?
Spain moves to tú quickly, Latin America stays with usted longer. Starting formal is never a mistake.
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