Foundations of Spanish/Phrases

Vocabulary List

• adiós: goodbye
• días: days
• disculpe: excuse me
• español: Spanish
• favor: please (see below)
• gracias: thank you
• gusto: enjoyment
• hablo: (I) speak
• hablas: (you) speak
• hola: hello
• ingles: English
• nada: nothing
• no: no, or not
• noches: nights
• perdón: pardon
• sí: yes
• siento: (I) feel

Extra Vocabulary

• poco: little

Now that you know hablo and español, you might want to say hablo español. But, you still have a good deal left to learn, so in the interest of accuracy, try saying hablo español un poco for now.

Vocabulary-Grammar Connections

Favor

The word favor is difficult to translate, because it is mainly used in phrases like por favor and favor de which express the idea of politely requesting something, like "please" in English, but if you replace it word for word with "please" the phrasing does not come out sounding right. For example, if a mother tells her child Favor de beber tú leche and we translate this word for word into "Please of drink your milk," it sounds weird. Try to learn the phrases that contain favor, rather than translating word for word.

Suggested Writing Practice

• Write a script for a scene in which two people meet and introduce themselves, using words you have learned in Spanish so far.
• Write an expanded version of a script for the same scene, using English words as placeholders for words you haven't learned yet. Research the right way to say what you want to say.