Basic Spanish Phrases to Know: Simple Phrases for Real Conversations

Spanish is one of the most rewarding languages to learn for the simple reason that a small set of phrases - learned well - already buys you a huge amount of communicative power. This guide is the short, practical list: the basic Spanish phrases every beginner should know, grouped by the situations where you actually need them. Not a textbook chapter, not a grammar reference - just the phrases you will reach for when you are standing in a café, a station, or a conversation.

The five phrases that change every interaction

Before any list, five phrases. If you only learn five things in Spanish before your first conversation, learn these, and learn them well enough to say without thinking:

• Hola - "Hello." Use it entering any shop, restaurant, or interaction. Universal across the Spanish-speaking world.
• Gracias - "Thank you." Say it constantly. Spanish-speaking cultures value politeness highly and "gracias" with a smile is the cheapest upgrade you can make to your trip or conversation.
• Por favor - "Please." Pair it with every request.
• Perdón - "Sorry / Excuse me." Use it to apologise, get attention, or squeeze past someone.
• No entiendo - "I don't understand." The single most useful phrase when conversation gets fast. Pair it with "más despacio, por favor" ("slower, please") and you can survive almost any exchange.

Greetings and meeting people

• Buenos días - Good morning
• Buenas tardes - Good afternoon
• Buenas noches - Good evening / Good night
• Adiós - Goodbye
• Hasta luego - See you later
• Hasta mañana - See you tomorrow
• ¿Cómo está? - How are you? (formal)
• ¿Cómo estás? - How are you? (informal)
• Muy bien, gracias - Very well, thank you
• ¿Y usted? / ¿Y tú? - And you? (formal / informal)
• ¿Cómo se llama? / ¿Cómo te llamas? - What's your name? (formal/informal)
• Me llamo... - My name is...
• Mucho gusto - Nice to meet you
• Soy de... - I am from...
• ¿De dónde es? / ¿De dónde eres? - Where are you from? (formal/informal)

Asking for help and clarification

• ¿Habla inglés? - Do you speak English? (formal)
• Hablo un poco de español - I speak a little Spanish
• No entiendo - I don't understand
• Más despacio, por favor - Slower, please
• ¿Puede repetir, por favor? - Can you repeat that, please?
• ¿Cómo se dice... en español? - How do you say ... in Spanish?
• ¿Qué significa...? - What does ... mean?
• No sé - I don't know
• No hay problema - No problem
• Está bien - It's fine / OK

In restaurants and cafés

• Una mesa para dos, por favor - A table for two, please
• La carta, por favor - The menu, please
• ¿Qué recomienda? - What do you recommend?
• Quisiera... - I would like... (polite)
• Lo mismo, por favor - The same, please
• Para mí... - For me...
• Sin... - Without...
• Con... - With...
• Soy vegetariano / vegetariana - I'm vegetarian (m/f)
• ¿Tiene opciones sin gluten? - Do you have gluten-free options?
• Está delicioso - It's delicious
• La cuenta, por favor - The bill, please
• ¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta? - Can I pay by card?
• El cambio - The change

Directions and transport

• ¿Dónde está...? - Where is...?
• ¿Cómo llego a...? - How do I get to...?
• A la derecha - To the right
• A la izquierda - To the left
• Recto / Derecho - Straight ahead
• Cerca - Near
• Lejos - Far
• La estación - The station
• El aeropuerto - The airport
• La parada - The (bus) stop
• Un billete a... - A ticket to...
• Ida - One-way
• Ida y vuelta - Return / round-trip
• ¿A qué hora? - At what time?
• Un taxi, por favor - A taxi, please
• ¿Cuánto cuesta hasta...? - How much to...?

Shopping and money

• ¿Cuánto cuesta? - How much does it cost?
• ¿Cuánto es? - How much is it?
• Es muy caro - It's very expensive
• Es barato - It's cheap
• Sólo estoy mirando - I'm just looking
• Me lo llevo - I'll take it
• ¿Tiene esto en otra talla? - Do you have this in another size?
• ¿Puedo probármelo? - Can I try it on?
• ¿Acepta tarjeta? - Do you accept card?
• En efectivo - In cash
• Abierto - Open
• Cerrado - Closed
• Rebajas - Sale

Emergencies

• ¡Ayuda! - Help!
• Necesito un médico - I need a doctor
• Llame a la policía - Call the police
• Llame a una ambulancia - Call an ambulance
• Estoy perdido / perdida - I'm lost (m/f)
• Me han robado - I've been robbed
• He perdido mi pasaporte - I've lost my passport
• Una farmacia - A pharmacy
• Un hospital - A hospital
• ¿Puedo usar su teléfono? - Can I use your phone?

How to memorise all of this

Reading a list once does almost nothing. The phrases that stick are the ones you retrieve from memory at increasing intervals - tomorrow, then a week, then two weeks. This is spaced repetition, and it is the single most powerful technique in vocabulary learning. The mistake most beginners make is treating a list like this as something to read; instead, treat it as something to test yourself on. Cover the Spanish column, see the English, try to produce the phrase before you peek. Get it wrong, look it up, and trust the schedule to bring it back to you tomorrow.

A note on tú versus usted

Spanish has two ways to say "you": tú (informal) and usted (formal). When in doubt, use usted with anyone you do not know - waiters, taxi drivers, shop staff, anyone older than you. In Spain, "tú" is used more freely between strangers; in much of Latin America (especially Mexico and Colombia) usted is the safer default. You will rarely offend anyone by being too polite. The verb conjugations are easy to learn because usted uses the same form as él/ella.

“A few words in the local language are worth more than a guidebook full of facts. They tell people you came for them, not just for the sights.”