50 of the Most Common Words in Spoken Spanish

Spanish is one of the most commonly spoken languages in the world and is the second most common language spoken in the United States after the English language. Among Americans, Spanish also holds the distinct honor of being the most studied language in both primary and secondary learning establishments.

To get a jump start in any language, a trick used by experts is first to memorize the most common spoken words. Memorizing the most commonly spoken languages first is called the 80/20 rule, whereby 20 percent of the language is worth more than 80 percent. If you have a limited amount of time to learn a new language, your efforts are best placed in learning the words you will use most often. Below is listed 50 of the most common words in spoken Spanish, to help language learners figure out where to best place their efforts.

1. que	that, who
2. de	of, from
3. no	no, not
4. a	to
5. la	the (singular feminine nouns)
6. el	the (singular masculine nouns)
7. es	he is, she is, it is
8. y	and
9. en	in, on, at
10. lo	it, him (direct-object pronoun)
11. los	the (plural masculine nouns)
12. las	the (plural feminine nouns)
13. del	of the, from the
14. una/uno	a, an, one
15. al	to the, at the
16. dos	two
17. cada	each
18. tres	three
19. o	or
20. como	as, like
21. pero	bu
22. si	if
23. porque	because
24. donde	where
25. aunque	although, even though
26. sino	but, except
27. mientras	while
28. por	through, for, along, by
29. ni	nor, neither
30. cuando	when
31. con	with
32. sin	without
33. sobre	around, above, on top of
34. entre	among, between
35. hasta	until
36. desde	from, since
37. durante	during, for
38. contra	against
39. hacia	towards
40. yo	I
41. hoy	today
42. hora	hour
43. bien	good, well
44. poder	can
45. usar	to use
46. hacer	do, to do, did, make
47. ir	go
48. venir	come
49. ayuda	help
50. ahora	now

The 50 words listed above are among the most common in spoken Spanish. If there is a limited amount of time before you need to learn your new language, these words will be the most useful. In addition to these words, a good practice is to use useful phrases like greetings and common questions next. Learning language apps are an easy way to learn on-the-go.

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About the Author

Chelsea Falin is a dedicated professional with 10+ years experience working as a freelance writer, and 5+ years as a freelance marketer. Studied at ASU for Bachelors in English with minor in Media Analysis, and obtained certification in inbound and content marketing via HubSpot Academy. Experience in multiple forms of digital content.