English Grammar and Vocabulary Guide for Spanish Speakers
Numbers
Cardinal Numbers
Spanish: 1.350
English: 1,350 or 1350
Spanish: 1.258.321
English: 1,258,321 or 1258321
Teens
- 13: thirteen
- 14: fourteen
- 15: fifteen
- 16: sixteen
- 17: seventeen
Tens
- 20: twenty
- 30: thirty
- 40: forty
- 50: fifty
- 60: sixty
Compound Numbers
- 21: twenty-one
- 33: thirty-three
- 97: ninety-seven
Hundreds and Thousands
- 100: one hundred
- 200: two hundred
- 1,000: one thousand
- 3,000: three thousand
- 10,000: ten thousand
- 1,000,000: one million
- 4,000,000: four million
Example:
153: one hundred fifty-three
857,112: eight hundred fifty-seven thousand one hundred twelve
Decimal Numbers
Spanish: 4,5
English: 4.5
Spanish: 0,250
English: 0.250
Ordinal Numbers
- 1st: first
- 2nd: second
- 3rd: third
- 4th: fourth
- 5th: fifth
- 6th: sixth
- 7th: seventh
- 20th: twentieth
- 40th: fortieth
- 21st: twenty-first
- 52nd: fifty-second
- 73rd: seventy-third
Fractions
- 1/2: one-half
- 1/4: one-quarter or one-fourth
- 3/4: three-fourths
- 9/7: nine-sevenths
- 9/9: nine-ninths
- 19/90: nineteen-ninetieths
- 16/60: sixteen-sixtieths
Abbreviations
- e.g.: for example
- i.e.: that is to say
- cf.: compare with
- p.: page
- pp.: pages
- ch.: chapter
- fig.: figure
- op. cit.: in the work cited
- vide: see
- vide supra: see above
- vide infra: see below
- T: temperature
- Vol.: Volume
- wt.: weight
Common Words
- certain: cierta(o), ciertas(os)
- every: cada
- each: cada
- all: todo(s), toda(s)
- no: ninguno, ninguna
- many: muchos, muchas (countable)
- much: mucho, mucha (uncountable)
- a lot of: mucho(s), mucha(s)
- some: alguno(s), alguna(s)
- several: varios, varias
- a few: pocos, pocas
- a little: poco, poca
Demonstrative Adjectives
Near
- Singular: this (este, esta, esto)
- Plural: these (estos, estas)
Far
- Singular: that (ese, esa, eso, aquel, aquella, aquello)
- Plural: those (esos, esas, aquellos, aquellas)
Verb “To Be”
- I: am
- He, She, It: is
- We, You, They: are
Contractions
- I’m
- He’s
- She’s
- It’s
- We’re
- You’re
- They’re
Negative Contractions
- isn’t
- aren’t
Pronouns
Nominative Pronouns
- I: yo
- You: tú, usted
- He: él
- She: ella
- It: eso, esa
- We: nosotros
- You: ustedes
- They: ellos, ellas
Possessives
Possessive Adjectives
- My: mi(s)
- Your: tu(s), su(s)
- His: su(s)
- Her: su(s)
- Its: su(s)
- Our: nuestro(a), nuestros(as)
- Your: vuestro(a), vuestros(as), su(s)
- Their: su(s)
Possessive Pronouns
- Mine: mío
- Yours: tuyo
- His: suyo (de él)
- Hers: suyo (de ella)
- Ours: nuestro
- Yours: suyo (de ustedes)
- Theirs: suyo (de ellos)
Question Words
- Where: dónde
- Why: por qué
- Who: quién
- What: qué
- Which: cuál
- How long: cuánto tiempo
- How often: con qué frecuencia
- Whose: de quién
- How many/much: cuántos, cuántas
- How old: qué edad
- How: cómo
Examples
Spanish: Algunos edificios altos
English: Some tall buildings
Spanish: Ningún ladrillo roto
English: No broken brick
Spanish: Aquellos materiales peligrosos
English: Those dangerous materials
Spanish: Sus computadoras no funcionan (de ustedes)
English: Your computers don’t work.
Spanish: Su diccionario (de ellos)
English: Their dictionary
Spanish: Su universidad (de ella)
English: Her university
Spanish: Esos documentos son de él
English: Those documents are his.
Spanish: Sus problemas son terribles (de ellos)
English: Their problems are terrible.
Spanish: Sus materiales son firmes (de un edificio)
English: Its materials are firm.
Spanish: Varias lámparas eléctricas son de nosotros
English: Several electric lamps are ours.
Spanish: Nuestras lámparas eléctricas
English: Our electric lamps
Examples with “To Be”
Spanish: Estos materiales nuevos están listos
English: These new materials are ready.
Spanish: Este material nuevo es listo
English: This new material is ready.
Spanish: El diccionario de su compañero
English: His/Her classmate’s dictionary
Spanish: Los materiales del constructor
English: The constructor’s materials
Spanish: El diseño de los expertos
English: The experts’ design
Question: Is your name Manuel?
Answer: Yes, it is. / No, it isn’t.
Question: What is your name?
Answer: My name is [Name].
Question: How old are you?
Answer: I’m nineteen years old.
Question: How old is Brian?
Answer: He is nineteen years old.