{"id":134837,"date":"2023-11-07T02:42:05","date_gmt":"2023-11-07T07:42:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/common-spanish-mistakes\/"},"modified":"2025-03-11T14:58:14","modified_gmt":"2025-03-11T18:58:14","slug":"common-spanish-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/spanish\/common-spanish-mistakes\/","title":{"rendered":"22 Common Spanish Mistakes and How to Avoid Them"},"content":{"rendered":"

We all make mistakes when learning a new language.\u00a0Chances are you’ve made some of the ones on this list.\u00a0But instead of letting a few mistakes ruin your confidence, you can use them as a learning opportunity.<\/p>\n

By learning 22 of the most common Spanish mistakes and how to avoid them, you can speak with more confidence, ease and accuracy.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]
\n<\/p>\n

1. Using ser<\/em> when talking about age\u00a0\u00a0<\/h2>\n

In English we use the verb “to be” when talking about age: \u201cI’m 25 years old.\u201d But in Spanish, the verb tener <\/em>(to have) is used with age.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To say that you’re 25 years old, you’d say “Tengo 25 a\u00f1os”<\/em><\/strong> (I’m 25). This translates literally to “I have 25 years,” hence the common mistake.<\/p>\n

There are quite a few other Spanish phrases that use the verb tener <\/em>while their English counterparts use \u201cto be.\u201d Here are some common ones:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Spanish phrase<\/th>English translation<\/th>Example<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
tener calor<\/i> <\/td>to be hot<\/td>\u00bfPuedes subir el aire? \u00a1Tengo calor!<\/b><\/i> (Can you turn up the air? I'm hot!)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener fr\u00edo<\/i> <\/td>to be cold<\/td>Puedo cerrar la ventana si tienes fr\u00edo<\/b>.<\/i> (I can close the window if you're cold.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener hambre<\/i> <\/td>to be hungry<\/td>Desayun\u00e9 mucho as\u00ed que no tengo mucha hambre<\/b>.<\/i> (I had a big breakfast so I'm not very hungry.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener sed<\/i> <\/td>to be thirsty<\/td>Despu\u00e9s de correr, siempre tengo mucha sed<\/b>.<\/i> (After running, I'm always really thirsty.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener sue\u00f1o<\/i> <\/td>to be sleepy<\/td>No puedo concentrarme en mi tarea cuando tengo sue\u00f1o<\/b>.<\/i> (I can't focus on my homework when I'm sleepy.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener cuidado<\/i> <\/td>to be careful<\/td>Cuando camines por la calle, debes tener cuidado<\/b> con los carros.<\/i> (When you walk on the street, you should be careful with the cars.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener miedo<\/i> <\/td>to be afraid<\/td>Tengo miedo<\/b> de los perros.<\/i> (I'm afraid of dogs.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener prisa<\/i> <\/td>to be in a hurry<\/td>Vamos a llegar tarde a la cita, as\u00ed que tenemos prisa<\/b>.<\/i> (We're going to be late for the appointment, so we're in a hurry.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener raz\u00f3n<\/i> <\/td>to be right<\/td>En esta discusi\u00f3n, creo que tienes raz\u00f3n<\/b>.<\/i> (In this argument, I think you're right.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener suerte<\/i> <\/td>to be lucky<\/td>Tenemos suerte<\/b> de vivir cerca de la playa.<\/i> (We're lucky to live near the beach.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

2. Mixing up ser<\/em> and estar<\/em>\u00a0<\/h2>\n

This is a very important one because it can really change the meaning of what you say. For example, the Spanish adjective<\/a> aburrido<\/em> can mean “bored” or “boring” depending on the context.<\/p>\n

If you say “Soy aburrido,”<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>it means that you’re a boring person in general. But if you say “Estoy aburrido,”<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>it means that you feel bored at the moment\u00a0<\/p>\n

Remember that ser<\/em> and estar<\/em> both mean “to be,”<\/a> but ser<\/em> is generally used for more permanent things while estar<\/em> is for temporary states or conditions<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The confusing exception is when talking about the location of a certain place (estar)<\/em> or where an event takes place (ser)<\/em>. In these cases, it’s the opposite of what you might think:<\/p>\n

\u00bfD\u00f3nde est\u00e1<\/strong> el hospital?<\/em> (Where’s the hospital?)
\nEl concierto es<\/strong> en el estadio.<\/em> (The concert is at the stadium.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

3. Not changing the ending on adjectives<\/h2>\n

Another common mistake is forgetting to change the ending of an adjective depending on the gender of who\/what you’re talking about and if it’s singular or plural.<\/p>\n

To say that a male is bored, you’d use\u00a0aburrido<\/strong>.<\/i> When talking about a female, you’d use aburrida.<\/em><\/strong> For more than one female, you’d use aburridas<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>and for more than one male or a mixed-gender group, you’d use aburridos.<\/em><\/strong> \u00a0<\/p>\n

This is also true for many professions, such as abogado<\/strong><\/em> (male lawyer) and abogada<\/strong><\/em> (female lawyer) or professor<\/strong><\/em> (male teacher) and profesora<\/em><\/strong> (female teacher).<\/p>\n

4. Putting indefinite articles before occupations<\/h2>\n

If you try to translate directly from English to Spanish, “I’m a teacher” would be “Soy un professor.” <\/em>But this is incorrect and shows why direct translation is not always a good idea.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When stating occupations in Spanish, don’t use the indefinite article (un\/una)<\/em>. Rather, just use the verb ser<\/em> (to be)\u00a0plus the occupation<\/strong>. For example:<\/p>\n

Soy profesora<\/em>. (I’m a teacher.)
\nEres artista<\/em>. (You’re an artist.)
\n\u00c9l es ingeniero<\/em>. (He’s an engineer.)<\/p>\n

6. Avoiding double negatives<\/h2>\n

Double negatives in the English language often make us cringe because they\u2019re simply poor grammar. But in Spanish, double negatives thrive<\/a>!<\/p>\n

For example, take the phrase \u201cI didn\u2019t write anything.\u201d In Spanish, you’d say \u201cNo escrib\u00ed nada<\/em>\u201d<\/strong> (Literally: “I didn’t write nothing”).<\/p>\n

As a general rule, Spanish phrases don’t mix positive and negative words<\/strong>. So if you have a “no”<\/em> before your verb, you’ll only ever see a negative word after the verb. With positive verbs, you’ll use the positive equivalencies:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Positive words<\/th>Negative words<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
alguien<\/i> \u2014 somebody <\/td>nadie<\/i> \u2014 nobody<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
algo<\/i> \u2014 something<\/td>nada<\/i> \u2014 nothing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
alg\u00fan<\/i>\/alguna<\/i>\u00a0\u2014 some\/something<\/td>ning\u00fan<\/i>\/ninguna<\/i> \u2014 no\/none<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/i>siempre \u2014 always<\/td>nunca<\/i>\/jam\u00e1s<\/i> \u2014 never<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tambi\u00e9n<\/i> \u2014 also<\/td>tampoco<\/i> \u2014 neither<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

Take a closer look at these examples to get a better feel for the concept:<\/p>\n

No<\/strong> la he visto nunca<\/strong>.<\/em> (I’ve never seen her.)<\/p>\n

No<\/strong> hay nadie<\/strong> aqu\u00ed.<\/em> (There’s nobody here.)<\/p>\n

Nunca<\/strong> dice nada<\/strong> en clase<\/em>. (He never says anything in class.)<\/p>\n

Ella tampoco<\/strong> hizo nada<\/strong> ayer.<\/em> (She didn’t do anything yesterday either.)<\/p>\n

Personally, this was one of the grammar concepts that tripped me up the most even though it sounds pretty simple. But honestly, I’ve found that just listening to native content often helps this.<\/p>\n

Try adding (Spanish) subtitles to the content you listen to in Spanish, or watch dubbed versions of your favorite shows. For example, here’s video lesson using a Spanish-dubbed episode of SpongeBob:<\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n

7. Using the plural form with la gente<\/em> (people)<\/h2>\n

In English the word “people” is\u00a0a collective noun that must always be used with verbs in the third person plural: “People are good-hearted.”<\/p>\n

In Spanish, however, the word for “people” (la gente)<\/em> is singular<\/strong>. Yes, it’s a strange concept to get used to at first, but once you get the hang of it the word shouldn’t cause you any more trouble.<\/p>\n

Here are a few examples to get you more comfortable with the idea:<\/p>\n

La gente de Per\u00fa es<\/strong> muy amable<\/em>. (The people of Peru are very friendly.)<\/p>\n

La gente se divierte<\/strong> en el parque.<\/em> (People have fun in the park.)<\/p>\n

La gente mayor disfruta<\/strong> de la m\u00fasica cl\u00e1sica.<\/em> (Older people enjoy classical music.)<\/p>\n

8. Overusing capitalization\u00a0<\/h2>\n

Capitalization rules are very different between Spanish and English, with significantly less capitalization on the Spanish side. Words that are capitalized in Spanish include:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Names of people (Cristiano Ronaldo)
\n<\/em>\u2022 Names of places (Madrid, Espa\u00f1a)
\n\u2022 <\/em>Names of newspapers and magazines (El Pa\u00eds<\/a>)
\n\u2022 <\/em>The first word of titles of movies, books, articles, plays, etc.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Words that are not capitalized in Spanish:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Days of the week (lunes, martes, mi\u00e9rcoles<\/em>\u00a0– Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday)
\n\u2022 Months of the year (enero, febrero, marzo <\/em>– January, February, March)
\n\u2022 Words in titles, except the first (“Cien a\u00f1os de soledad”<\/em> \u2014 “100 Years of Solitude”)
\n\u2022 Languages (Estudio espa\u00f1ol<\/em>. \u2014 I study Spanish.)
\n\u2022 Religions (Mis padres son cat\u00f3licos<\/em>. \u2014 My parents are Catholic.)
\n\u2022 Nationality (Soy estadounidense<\/em>. \u2014 I’m American.)<\/p>\n

9. Saying “Gracias para…”<\/em><\/h2>\n

Mixing up por<\/em> and para<\/em> is a very common mistake for Spanish learners, as they both can mean “for.” In fact, they’re so commonly confused that we created a whole post about it<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One situation where they’re often mixed up is when saying thank you<\/a>. To thank someone for doing something for you or giving you something, we use por,<\/em> not para<\/em>.<\/em><\/strong> For example:<\/p>\n

\u00a1Gracias por<\/strong> invitarme a tu fiesta!<\/em> (Thanks for inviting me to your party!)<\/p>\n

Gracias por<\/strong> tu ayuda.<\/em> (Thanks for your help.)<\/p>\n

Gracias por<\/strong> el hermoso regalo.<\/em> (Thank you for the beautiful gift.)<\/p>\n

10. Confusing muy<\/em> and mucho<\/em><\/h2>\n

It’s very common for Spanish learners to mix up the words muy<\/em> and mucho. <\/em>Muy<\/em> is an adverb that means “very” or “really.”<\/strong> It goes in front of an adjective or adverb and never changes. For example:<\/p>\n

Hablas espa\u00f1ol muy<\/strong> bien.<\/em> (You speak Spanish very well.)
\nEstoy muy<\/strong> cansada.<\/em> (I’m really tired).
\nCamina muy<\/strong> r\u00e1pido.<\/em> (He walks really fast.)<\/p>\n

Mucho<\/em> can be used as an adjective that means “a lot,” “many” or “much.”<\/strong> In this case, it goes before a noun and changes form (mucho, muchos, mucha <\/em>or muchas) <\/em>depending on the gender and number of that noun:<\/p>\n

Tengo mucha<\/strong> hambre.<\/em> (I’m really hungry.)
\nTom\u00e9 mucho<\/strong> vino.<\/i> (I drank a lot of wine.)
\n\u00a1Muchas<\/strong> gracias por la cena!<\/em> (Thank you so much for dinner!)<\/p>\n

It can also be used as an adverb<\/strong> to modify verbs, in this case translating to “a lot” and going after the verb (without changing form). For example:<\/p>\n

Ella trabaja mucho<\/strong>.<\/em> (She works a lot.)<\/p>\n

Here’s a quick review of the difference between muy<\/em> and mucho:\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n

11. Falling for false friends<\/h2>\n

There are a lot of “false friends” between Spanish and English<\/a>. These are words that sound the same but have different meanings. Here are a few that often cause (quite embarrassing) mistakes:<\/p>\n

5. Misplacing adjectives<\/h2>\n

In English, our adjectives come before the noun: a big<\/strong> house, a blue<\/strong> shirt, a beautiful<\/strong>\u00a0smile. In Spanish, however, adjectives usually come after the noun: una<\/em> casa grande<\/strong>,<\/em> una camiseta azul<\/strong>,<\/em> una<\/em> sonrisa bonita<\/strong><\/em>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Be aware that there are certain instances<\/a> where the adjective does come before the noun in Spanish, and the position can actually change the meaning of the adjective. For example:<\/p>\n

Ellos tienen su propia<\/strong> casa.<\/em> (They have their own<\/strong> house.)
\nNo es el vestido propio<\/strong> para el evento.<\/em> (It’s not the right<\/strong> dress for the event.)<\/p>\n

Es la \u00fanica<\/strong> talla que tenemos.<\/em> (It’s the only<\/strong> size we have.)
\nValeria es una persona \u00fanica<\/strong>.<\/em> (Valeria is a unique<\/strong> person.)<\/p>\n

Es un\u00a0gran<\/strong> m\u00fasico.<\/em> (He’s a\u00a0great<\/strong> musician.)
\nRusia es un pa\u00eds grande<\/strong>.<\/em> (Russia is a big<\/strong> country.)<\/p>\n

You can learn more about Spanish adjective placement in this video:<\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n