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Spanish Phrases and Spanish Words That are Useful in EcuadorThere are a number of invaluable Spanish phrases that will help you navigate your way around Ecuador more easily, as well as numerous Spanish words that you can quickly pick up because they are so similar to English. The official language of Ecuador is Spanish, although most of the indigenous Indians speak Quechua or Quichua as their first language and Spanish second. Spanish phrases are easy to learn and there are numerous Ecuador Spanish schools where you can take lessons, some that include immersion with local families so that you become more fluent more quickly. Learn Spanish in Ecuador because immersion is the fastest way to learn and you will soon be speaking Spanish phrases like a native! Choose from among the following topics of Spanish phrases: Spanish Pronunciation Accents Days of the Week Months of the Year Directions Other Directions Time Numbers Useful Spanish Words and Spanish Sayings Introductions, Niceties and Greetings Other Useful Spanish Words More Spanish Words Gender Some Helpful Verbs Pronouns Communication Transportation Shopping Hotels and Accommodations Ecuadorian Edibles The Kitchen Stores There are plenty of rules to help assist your learning experience. Spanish is a logical language and the words are pronounced exactly as they look, letter by letter. Many Spanish sounds are similar to those in English, but there are 3 letters in Spanish that don’t occur in English. The “ch” came after “c,” the “ll” followed “l” and “n” with an accent over it, as in “nino,” came after “n” in the alphabet. They were abolished in the 1990’s, but newer Spanish dictionaries list them. If you can’t find a “ch” name in the phone book, look under the “c’s.” Vowels are the same letters as in English: a, e, i, o, u, but all are pronounced differently than in English, except for the “o,” which is pronounced the same. If you memorize the pronunciation of each vowel you will move ahead greatly in your proficiency, because they always pronounce exactly the same sound. A = ah, as in “nada” E = ey, as in “padre” I = ee, as in “peanut” O= oh, as in “como” U= oo, as in “mucho gusto” Accents are important in Spanish. Changing where the stress occurs in a word can change the entire meaning of the word. There are 3 ways to identify the correct way to emphasize a syllable:
Monday el lunes Tuesday el martes Wednesday el miercoles Thursday el jueves Friday el viernes Saturday el sabado Sunday el domingo Days of the week are not capitalized and usually start with “el”, which translates as “on.” January enero February febrero March marzo April abril May mayo June junio July julio August agosto September septiembre October octubre November noviembre December diciembre North norte South sur East este West oeste To the right a la derecha To the left a la izquierda Straight derecho In front of en frente de In back of atras de Under abajo de Above arriba de On top of encima de Between entre Inside of dentro de Near cerca de Far lejos What time is it? Que hora es? (h is silent) Son las. . . It is. . . Tres three o’clock Ocho y diez ten past eight. Dos y media half past two This morning esta mañana In the afternoon en la tarde In the evening en la noche Today hoy Yesterday ayer Tomorrow mañana Tomorrow morning mañana en la mañana 1 uno 2 dos 3 tres 4 cuatro 5 cinco 6 seis 7 siete 8 ocho 9 nueve 10 diez 11 once 12 doce 13 trece 14 catorce 15 quince 16 dieciseis 17 ciecisiete 18 dieciocho 19 diecinueve 20 veinte, veintiuno, veintidos . . . 30 treinta, treinta y uno. . . 40 cuarenta, cuarenta y uno . . . 50 cincuenta, cincuenta y uno . . . 60 sesenta, sesenta y uno . . . 70 setenta, setenta y uno . . . 80 ochenta, ochenta y uno. . . 90 noventa, noventa y uno . . . 100 cien 101 ciento uno 150 ciento cincuenta 200 doscientos 300 trescientos 400 cuatrocientos 500 quinientos 600 seiscientos 700 setecientos 800 ochocientos 900 novecientos 1000 mil Introductions, Niceties and Greetings Good morning (before noon) Buenos dias Good afternoon (before sunset) Buenas tardes Good evening/night (after sunset) Buenas noches Hello Hola (h is silent, becomes ola) Goodbye Chao Please Por favor Thank you Gracias You’re welcome De nada Congratulations Felicidades I’m sorry Lo siento Excuse me Disculpe/perdon Excuse me, when pushing past Permiso/con permiso Come in Adelante What is your name? ¿Como se llama? My name is ___ Me llamo . . . (I call myself…..) I don’t know. No se Pleased to meet you Mucho gusto How are you? ¿Como esta? Very well Muy bien See you later Hasta luego I don’t understand No entiendo Please repeat Repita, (ray-peeta) por favor To your health Salud Enjoy your meal Buen provecho (this is also said to other diners in a restaurant as you pass their table) Can you help me? ¿Puede atenderme? How do you say. . .? ¿Como se dice. . .? Yes si And y No no Or o With con But pero Without sin Because porque Before antes Of, from de After despues de In, on, at en Here aqui On, about sobre There alli or alla A little of Un poco (de) Mas more Enough suficiente Menos less Too much demasiado Now ahora Open abierto/a Right now ahorita Closed cerrado/a Soon pronto I don’t like it. No me gusta. They took my money. Se me llevaron el dinero They took my passport. Se me llevaron el pasaporte. I have been robbed. Me han robado. Robber. Ladron. Help me. Ayudeme. Police policia Hospital hospital I do not feel well Me siento mal. I have fever. Tengo fiebre. Please write that down. Por favor escribado. In Spanish, nouns are either feminine or masculine, so a book is referred to as a ‘he’ and a table is a ‘she.’ Most of the time you can tell whether a word is feminine or masculine by looking at its ending. Nouns that end with ‘o,’ ‘e,’ ‘ma,’ ‘el,’ ‘al,’ ‘ente,’ ‘ador,’ or ‘or’ are usually masculine while those ending with ‘a,’ ‘ion,’ ‘tad,’ ‘tud,’ ‘umbre’ or ‘dad’ are usually feminine. Masculine- Feminine- El melon La leccion (lesson) El sombrero La tortilla Ayudar to help Bailar to dance Cambiar to change, as money Caminar to walk Cerrar to close Cocinar to cook Comprar to buy Dar to give Escuchar to listen to Estar to be (temporary, location) Estudiar to study Fumar to smoke Gastar to spend, waste Hablar to speak Invitar to invite Lavar to wash Mandar to mail Necesitar to need Ordenar to order Olvidar to forget Pagar to pay Pensar to think Platicar to chat Preguntar to ask, question Preparar to prepare Presentar to introduce Recomendar to recommend Recordar to remember Regresar to return Terminar to end Tomar to drink Trabajar to work Usar to use Viajar to travel Visitar to visit I = yo Nosotros = we You(personal) = tu He = el Ellos = they (m) She = ella Ellas = they (f) You(formal) = usted Ustedes = you all In Spanish these pronouns are often left out because the verb endings indicate the subject. The personal you, ‘tu,’ is used with: People you know well, who are on equal terms with you, younger than you or share a level of intimacy with you. The formal you, ‘usted,’ is used with: People you don’t know well, who have authority over you, who are older than you or with whom you have no level of intimacy. You probably won’t offend people in Ecuador if you use the wrong Spanish word for ‘you.’ Ecuadorians usually appreciate the fact that you are attempting to speak their language! Use ‘usted,’ in business to be safe and to show respect. Women should not use the personal ‘tu,’ with a man until she knows him well because a man in Ecuador might misinterpret the informal use of you as an invitation to become intimate! Mr. = Senor Mrs. = Senora Miss = Senorita I don’t speak Spanish No hablo espanol. I understand. Entiendo. I don’t understand. No entiendo. Do you understand? ¿Entiende usted? What did you say? ¿Mande? Please speak more slowly. Por favor hable mas despacio. What does it mean? ¿Que significa? Do you speak English? ¿Habla ingles? Where? ¿Donde? When? ¿Cuando? What? ¿Que? Which? ¿Cual? Who? ¿Quien? Why? ¿Por que? How much? ¿Cuanto? How many? ¿Cuantos? Plane avion Train tren Bus bus/ autobus/camioneta Small bus collective Ship barco Boat lancha Car carro/auto Taxi taxi Truck camion Pickup truck camioneta Bicycle bicicleta Motorcycle motocicleta Trolley trole Airport aeropuerto Bus stop parade Bus terminal terminal de buses/terminal terrestre Train station estacion de ferrocarril City cuidad Town pueblo Village pueblo Freeway autopista Tourist office oficina de turismo Gas station bomba de gasoline Police station estacion de policia Embassy embajada Consulate consulada Bank banco Public toilet bano publico/servicio higienico Men’s toilet hombres, caballeros, varones Women’s toilet senoras, damas, mujeres Shop almacen/tienda Shopping center centro commercial Price precio Coin moneda Money dinero/plata Cash efectivo Credit card tarjeta de credito Check cheque Small pequeno Large grande Discount descuento Inexpensive barato Expensive caro Post office correo Letter carta Postcard postal Airmail correo aereo Parcel paquete Stamps estampillas Email correo electronico Public telephone telefono publico Telephone number nunero telefonico Phonecard tarjeta telefonica International call llamada internacional Busy ocupado Don’t hang up No cuelgue. May I see the room? Puedo ver la habitacion? What does it cost? Cuanto cuesta? Is breakfast included? Incluye el desayuno? Hotel hotel/ hospedaje Room habitacion Single room habitacion sencilla Double room habitacion doble Bed cama Double bed cama matrimonial Shower ducha Toilet/bath bano Sink lavabo Per night por noche Air conditioning aire acondicionado The bill la cuenta Key llave Soap jabon Sheets sabanas Pillow almohada Blanket cobija Towel toalla Toilet paper papel higienico Cold frio Hot caliente Clean limpio Dirty sucio Quiet tranquilo Juice jugo Meat carne Vegetables vegetales/legubres Bread pan Cheese queso Water agua Pure water agua purificada Coffee café Tea te Beer cerveza Seafood mariscos Fish pescado Apple manzana Banana banana Blackberry mora Strawberry fresa Chicken pollo Cantalope melon Carrot zanahoria Corn maiz Cucumber pepino Lettuce lechuga Orange naranja Pineapple pina Potato papa Tomato tomate Watermelon sandia Butter mantequilla Honey mile Cream crema Egg huevo Salt sal Pepper pimiento Sugar azucar Ice cream helado Milk leche Ice hielo Wine vino Cake pastel Breakfast desayuno Lunch almuerzo Dinner cena Dessert postre Oven horno Refrigerator refrigerador Plate plato Glass vaso Cup taza Fork tenedor Knife cuchillo Spoon cuchara Bakery panaderia Bookstore libreria Hardware ferreteria Gallery galleria Jewelry joyeria Laundry lavaderia Market mercado Pharmacy farmacia Restaurant restaurante Shoe store zapateria Workshop taller Store tienda Cinema cine House casa School escuela |
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