Useful Spanish Words and Phrases
The owners of the rental villa Casa Vista Hermosa, located in the Pedregal of Cabo San Lucas, Los Cabos, Mexico, offer these Spanish words and phrases useful in Cabo.
With some exceptions, English is spoken in the tourist areas of Cabo San Lucas by most, including in the downtown shops and restaurants. Even so learning a little Spanish can be fun and useful.
There are many good CDs available providing useful Spanish. Watch out, however, as Spanish on CDs is often European Spanish, not Mexican Spanish. It is mostly the same but some words are different and certainly the idioms. By way of example, the words used in Spain for waiter and swimming pool are different than those used in Mexico. Also, be careful when attempting direct translations from a dictionary. It might be “hard” to learn Spanish, but did you really mean “difficult?”
English Spanish Pronunciation
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
| NUMBERS | ||
| One | uno | OO noh |
| Two | dos | dohs |
| Three | tres | trays |
| Four | cuatro | kwah troh |
| Five | cinco | seen koh |
| Six | seis | sayees |
| Seven | siete | seeay tay |
| Eight | ocho | oh tchoh |
| Nine | nueve | nway bay |
| Ten | diez | deeays |
| BASICS | ||
| Yes | sí | see |
| No | no | noh |
| Please | por favor | por fah fOR |
| Thank you | gracias | grah see ahs |
| You’re Welcome | de nada | day nah thah |
| No, thank you | no, gracias | noh, nrah see ahs |
| GREETINGS | ||
| Good bye | Adiós | Ah dee ohs |
| Hello/Hi | hola | oh lah |
| Good morning | Buenos días | bweh nohs dee ahs |
| Good afternoon | Buenas tardes | bweh nahs tahr days |
| Good evening | Buenas noches | bweh nahs noh tchays |
| How are you? | Cómo está? | Koh moh ays tah |
| Fine, thank you. | Bien, gracias | bee ayn grah see ahs |
| Very good, thank you | Muy bien, gracias | bee ayn grah see ahs |
| Good-bye | Adios | Addi-ohs |
| See you later | hasta luego | ahs tah lway goh |
| I don’t understand | no entiendo. | Noh ayn teeayn doh |
| QUESTIONS | ||
| Who? | ¿quién? | keeayn |
| What? | ¿qué? | kay |
| Where? | Donde? | Dohn day ays tah |
| When? | ¿Cuando? | Kwahn doh |
| However: if you want to know | “at what time?” you say, | ¿A que hora? Ah kay oh rah |
| Why? | ¿por qué? | pohr kay |
| Can you help me? | ¿Puede ayudarme? | Pway day ah yoo dahr may |
| What time is it | ¿Qué hora es? | Kay Oh rah Ays |
| STATEMENTS | ||
| I (don’t) like it | (No) me gusta | (Noh) may GOOS tah |
| I don’t know | No sé | NOH say |
| I need | necesito | nay say SEE toh |
| I’m hungry | Tengo hambre | TAYN goh AHM bray |
| I’m thirsty | Tengo sed | TEHN goh sayd |
| I’m tired | estoy cansado | ays TOY kahn SAH thoh |
| I’m ready | estoy listo / lista | ays TOY LEES toh / LEES tah |
| Right now | ahora mismo | ah OH rah MEES moh |
| Just a minute | un momento | oon mo MAYN toh |
| Come in! | entre / pase | EHN tray / PAH say |
| It’s cheap | es barato | ays bah RAH toh |
| It’s expensive | es caro | ays KAH roh |
| It’s cold (weather) | hace frío | AH say FREE oh |
| It’s hot (weather) | hace calor | AH say kah LOHR |
| I’m hot (temperature) | tengo calor | TAYN goh kah LOHR |
| I’m cold | tengo frío | TAYN goh FREE oh |
| A little | un poco | oon POH koh |
| A lot | mucho | MOO cho |
| Some | unos / unas | OO nohs / OO nahs |
| Tomorrow | mañana | mahn YAH nah |
| Morning | a mañana | lah mahn YAHN ah |
| Afternoon | la tarde l | ah TAHR thay |
| evening / night | la noche | lah NOH tchay |
| Next week | la semana próxima | lah say MAH nah PROHK see mah |
| THE RESTAURANT | ||
| Waiter / waitress | mesero / mesera | may SAY roh / may SAY rah |
| I want / I’d like | quiero / quisiera | KEYAY roH / key SEEAY rah |
| The bill please | La cuenta, por favor | lah KWAYN tah, pohr fah BOHR |
| Breakfast | desayuno | day sah YOO noh |
| Lunch | almuerzo / comida | Ahl MWAYR soh / koh MEE dah |
| Dinner (at night) | cena | SAY nah |
| Knife | cuchillo | koo TCHEE yoh |
| Fork | tenedor | tay nay THOHR |
| Spoon | cuchara | koo TCHAH rah |
| Tea | te | tay |
| Black coffee | café negro | kah FAY nay groh |
| Coffee with milk | café con leche | kah FAY kohn LAY tchay |
| Milk | leche | LAY tchay |
| Ice | hielo | EEAY loh |
| Mineral water | agua mineral | AH gwah mee nay RAHL |
| Wine | vino | VEE noh |
| Beer | cerveza | sayr BAY sah |
| White wine | vino blanco | VEE noh BLAHN koh |
| Red wine | vino tinto | VEE noh TEEN toh |
| Lemonade | limonada | lee moh NAH dah |
| Juice | jugo | HOO goh |
| Egg | huevo | WAY boh |
| Scrambled eggs | huevos revueltos | WAY bohs reh BWAYL tohs |
| Cheese | queso | KAY soh |
| Butter | mantequilla | mahn tay KEE yah |
| Bread | pan | pahn |
| Fruit | fruta | FROO tah |
| Salt | sal | sahl |
| Pepper (black) | pimienta negra | pee MEEAYN tah NAH grah |
| Sugar | azúcar | Ah SOO kahr |
| Fish | pescado | pehs KAH thoh |
| Salad | ensalada | ayn sah LAH thah |
| Soup | sopa | SOH pah |
| Dessert | postre | POHS tray |
| Ice cream | nieve / helado | NEEAY bay / ay LAH thoh |
| THE HOTEL | ||
| The Bathroom | el baño | ayl BAHN yoh |
| The Swimming | Pool l | a alberca |
| Open | abierto | ah BEEAYR toh |
| Closed | cerrado | say RAH thoh |
| Bed | cama | KAH mah |
| Towel | toalla | toh AH yah |
| Soap | jabón | hah BOHN |
| Pillow | almohada | ahl moh AH thah |
| Shower | la ducha / el baño | lah DHOO tchah / ayl BAHN yoh |
| Iron | plancha | PLAHN tchah |
| Hair dryer | secador de pelo | say kah DOHR day PAY loh |
| There are no towels | no hay toallas | noh eye toh AH yahs |
| I have a problem | tengo problema | TAYN goh pro BLAY mah |
| DIRECTIONS | ||
| straight ahead | derecho | day RAY tchoh |
| right | la derecha | ah day RAY tchoh |
| left | la izquierda | lah ees KEEAYR dah |
