Useful Phrases and Some simple Spanish numbers & tips

Useful Phrases and Some simple Spanish numbers & tips
27 nov 2013

GREETINGS

Hello / Hi!

¡Hóla!

Good day

Buenos diás

Good evening

Buenos tardes

Good night

Buenos noches

Good bye

Adiós

See you soon

Hasta luego

GENERAL RESPONSES

Yes

No

No

That depends

Depende

I don't know

No lo sé

I don't think so

Creo que no

I think so

Creo que sí

It doesn't matter

No importa

I don't mind

No me molesta

Of course!

¡Claro!

True

Es verdad

With pleasure

Con gusto

QUESTION WORDS

Where?

¿Dónde?

When?

¿Cuándo?

Why?

¿Por qué?

What?

¿Qué?

Who?

¿Quién?

How?

¿Cómo?

How much/many?

¿Cuántos / cuánto?

Is/are there?

¿Hay?

SPECIAL OCCASIONS

Congratulations!

¡Felicitaciones!

Happy Birthday!

¡Felíz cumpleaños!

Happy Christmas!

¡Felices Navidades!

Happy New Year!

¡Felíz año nuevo!

Happy Easter!

¡Felíz Pascua!

Good Luck!

¡Que tengas suerte!

Enjoy the meal!

¡Comer con gusto!

Have a safe journey!

¡Buen viaje!

Have a good holiday!

¡Buenas vacaciones!

Take Care!

¡Cuidados!

ETIQUETTE

Please

Por favor

Thank you (very much)

(Muchas) Gracias

Excuse me

¡Perdone!

I'm sorry, but...

Lo siento, pero...

That's a shame

Es una lástima

May I... ?

¿Puedo...?

0 TO 19

0

cero

1

uno / una

2

dos

3

tres

4

cuatro

5

cinco

6

seis

7

siete

8

ocho

9

nueve

10

diez

11

once

12

doce

13

trece

14

catorce

15

quince

16

dieciséis

17

diecisiete

18

dieciocho

19

diecinueve

20 TO 39

20

veinte

21

veintiuno

22

veintidós

23

veintitrés

24

veinticuatro

25

veinticinco

26

veintiséis

27

veintisiete

28

veintiocho

29

veintinueve

30

treinta

31

treinta y uno

32

treinta y dos

33

treinta y tres

34

treinta y cuatro

35

treinta y cinco

36

treinta y seis

37

treinta y siete

38

treinta y ocho

39

treinta y nueve

The numbers up to 29 are irregular special cases and need to be learnt.
The numbers above 30 are of the form tens y units (y means and), e.g. 42 is cuarenta y dos.

TENS

10

diez

20

veinte

30

treinta

40

cuarenta

50

cincuenta

60

sesenta

70

setenta

80

ochenta

90

noventa

Uno drops the -o before masculine nouns, e.g. un libro, and when in compound numerals, e.g. treinta y un niños . Note that veintiuno is not a compound numeral.

100 is a special case. 100 itself is cien, but to form any number 101-199 it becomes ciento. Take the stem ciento and follow it with the relevant number from 1 and 99. So for example 152 is written ciento cinquenta y dos. Note that ciento is not merged with the number following it.

Hundreds agree with the noun that follows them, e.g. doscientas pesetas (two hundred pesetas), excepting numbers 100-200.

One thousand is mil. Two thousand, etc are formed by preceding this with the number of thousands, e.g. tres mil (3,000).

The millions are somewhat different. Millón becomes plural in two million, etc and therefore loses its accent: e.g. cuatro milliones (4,000,000).

Ordinals are irregular in Spanish and need to be learnt. Primero and tercero (1st and 3rd) shorten before masculine nouns to become primer and tercer respectively.

Ordinals agree with their subject. Ordinals above 10 are very rarely used, generally being replaced by cardinals which follow the noun.

LARGER NUMBERS

100

cien

152

ciento cinquenta y dos

1,000

mil

3,139

tres mil ciento treinta y nueve

1,000,000

un millón

ORDINALS

first (1st)

primero/a (1O)

second (2nd)

segundo/a (2O)

third (3rd)

tercero/a (3O)

fourth (4th)

cuarto/a (4O)

fifth (5th)

quinto/a (5O)

sixth (6th)

sexto/a (6O)

seventh (7th)

séptimo/a (7O)

eighth (8th)

octavo/a (8O)

ninth (9th)

noveno/a (9O)

tenth (10th)

décimo/a (10O)

TELLING THE DOCTOR

I feel unwell.

No me siento bien.

I feel ill.

Me siento mal.

I have a headache.

Me duele la cabeza.

I have stomach ache.

Me duele el estomago.

Can you give me something for the pain?

¿Puede-usted me da algo para el dolor?

I have a temperature.

Tengo fiebre.

I feel dizzy.

Me mareo.

I have been sick.

Vomité.

I've been stung by a bee/wasp.

Una abeja/una avispa me picó.

She's allergic to...

Tiene alegia a...

His thumb is swollen.

Tiene el pulgar hinchado.

I have toothache.

Tengo dolor de muelas.

It is not serious.

No es de gravedad

PHRASES TO FACILITATE UNDERSTANDING

I don't understand.

No comprendo.

Please speak slower.

Hablad más lentamente, por favor.

Would you write that down please.

Puede usted escribirlo, por favor.

Could you explain that please.

Puede-usted explicarlo, por favor.

How is that pronounced?

¿Cómo le pronuncia?

I have forgotten the word for...

No me recuerdo la palabra por...

How do you say that in French/English?

¿Cómo se lo dice en Español/Inglés?

What does that mean?

¿Qué quiere decirlo?

Can you repeat that please.

Puede-usted repetirlo, por favor.

EXPLAINING

It's a bit like...

Es un poco como...

It's a sort of...

Es una clase de...

It's as small / big as...

Es tan pequeño / grande como...

It's shorter / longer than...

Es más corto / longo que...

What is it?

¿Qué está?

The Alphabet
In Spanish the same 26 letters are used as in the English alphabet. In addition to the sounds found in spoken English, there are also the following: ch, ll, ñ and rr. See below for an explanation of how to pronounce these.

Accents
Acute(á, é, í, ó, ú) accents are used in Spanish to alter the stress on a word. If a word ends in a vowel, or in n or s, then the penultimate syllable is stressed, eg. Historia, palabra. Diaereses (ï, ü) are used above i and u to indicate that the letter should be pronounced.

Consonants (and combinations)

b

• starting a phrase, after ma, and after n - like b in boy
• otherwise - as above but lips should not meet

c

• before e or i - like th in thin
• otherwise - like k in kick

ch

• like ch in church

d

• starting a phrase, after l, and after n - like d in dog
• otherwise - like th in this

f

• like f in for

g

• before e or i - like ch in Scottish loch, strong and guttoral
• starting a phrase, after n - like g in g et

h

• always silent

j

• like ch in Scottish loch, strong and guttoral

k

• like k in kick

l

• like l in love

ll

• like ll in million

m

• like m in made

n

• before v - like m in made
• otherwise - like n in none

p

• at the end of a word - generally silent
• otherwise - like p in put

qu

• like k in kick

r

• rolled/trilled like r in Scottish (generally quieter at the end of a word)

rr

• as r, but rolled/trilled more strongly

s

• before d, g, l, m, n - like s in rose
• otherwise - like s in same

t

• like t in tame

v

• starting a phrase, after ma, and after n - like b in boy
• otherwise - as above but lips should not meet

x

• between vowels - like x in box
• otherwise - like s in same

y

• like y in yes

Vowels

a

• like a in pat, but longer

e

• in a syllable ending with a vowel - like e in they
• otherwise - short like e in set

i

• like ee in seek

o

• in a syllable ending with a vowel - like o in note
• otherwise - like o in pot, but very slightly longer

u

• either like u in rule or oo in food
• silent after q, and in the groups gue and gui (not güe, güi though)

y

• at the end of a word (incl. the word y) - like ee in seek

If this all seems a bit daunting then there is help at hand, there are Spanish classes for Expats in most towns. In Albatera there are two per week and you just need to be signed on the Padron. They are held at one of the junior schools, Cervantes on a Monday and Wednesday evening 7.10 until 8.10

Healthcare Entitlement

If you are registered to work in Spain and make national insurance contributions then you can get state-run health care on the same basis as a Spanish national. For further information, get in touch with your local TGSS office.

If you registered as a resident in Spain before 24 April 2012, have an annual income of less than €100,000 and are not covered for healthcare though any other means, speak to your local INSS office to register for healthcare in Spain as a resident.

If you are in receipt of a UK old age state pension or long term sickness benefit, obtain an S1 form (previously E121) from the International Pension Centre on +44 191 218 7777. Once issued, register the S1 form with your local INSS office, before you register with your local GP surgery and obtain a medical card.

If you are an early retiree and have recently made national insurance contributions in the UK, contact the Overseas Healthcare Team on +44 191 218 1999 to see if you have entitlement to a residual S1 form (previously E106) for a limited time. Once issued, register the S1 form with your local INSS office, before you register with your local GP surgery.

If you are a worker seconded to Spain, or the family member of a someone making UK national insurance contributions, contact HMRC to see if you have entitlement to an S1 form (previously and E106 or E109). Once issued, register the S1 form with your local INSS office, before you register with your local GP surgery.

If you are coming to study or are currently studying in Spain as part of a UK-recognised course, you may be entitled to healthcare paid for by the UK.

If you are not covered for state-run healthcare through other means, the Spanish government recently announced guidelines for regional health authorities to offer a new special scheme (convenio especial). This is a public health insurance scheme available nation-wide where you can pay a monthly quota to access state-run healthcare.

The scheme will be managed by each autonomous region which will have the option of including different services over and above the basic package announced by the government. Policy holders, including children, will pay on an individual basis and be able to receive access to public healthcare, regardless of pre-existing conditions, anywhere in Spain.

The announced basic monthly fee is 60€ for the under 65s and 157€ for those aged 65 and above. However, prescriptions are not subsidised at this rate so you would pay 100% of prescription costs. We expect to receive news of the launch of the convenio in each autonomous community in the near future.

Visitors to Spain

The UK European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) is valid for holidaymakers and temporary visitors who need to use the state health system while in another EU country. If you are not normally a resident of the UK, and therefore do not have entitlement to a UK-issued EHIC, the Spanish authorities may decide to treat you as a private patient.

If you are a resident in the UK, you should apply for your EHIC before travelling to other European Union Member States. A UK EHIC is usually valid for three to five years – but if you stop being a UK resident, you need to return your EHIC to the Department of Health immediately.

If you are a UK state pensioner living in Spain and registered for healthcare with an S1, the UK is responsible for issuing your EHIC to use on a temporary stay in the UK and a third EU country. For more information, telephone the Overseas Healthcare Team on +44 191 218 1999.

The EHIC gives you access to medically necessary, state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in Spain.

When you show your EHIC, you will receive treatment under the same conditions and at the same cost as people insured in Spain.

Be aware that each country’s healthcare system is different. Services that cost you nothing at home might not be free in Spain (for example, prescriptions).

The EHIC is not an alternative to travel insurance. It does not cover any private healthcare or costs such as a return flight to your home country or lost/stolen property.

Planned Treatment

The EHIC does not cover your costs if you are travelling for the express purpose of obtaining medical treatment. If this is the case you must apply for form S2 from your local NHS Trust.