PRONUNCIATION GUIDE Pronunciation of words in Spanish is entirely phonetic, which makes it easy to hear and
easy to learn. Vowels in particular are always simple, clean, invariant sounds, pronounced
within strict limits. In English, a word such as “help” or “hill” could be said in various accents,
some shorter, some longer, and the vowel sounds could drift considerably (try this aloud for
yourself and hear the variations possible)—but this is not so for words in Spanish. Below
are the rules for pronouncing different letters; you will need to practice these sounds until
you can reliably produce them.
Vowels
a as in father, but shorter (example: “la papa” = the potato)
e as in hen (“el ejemplo” = the example)
i as in machine (“mi vida” = my life)
o as in phone (“dos ojos” = two eyes)
u as in rule; if it follows q, it is silent (“su mula” = your mule; “queque” = cake)
all vowels are sounded, thus “siete” (seven) has 3 syllables, as does “viuda” (widow),or
“miedo” (fear)
Consonants
c as in cat; if it is before e or i, sounds like s (“camino” [hard c]= road; “ciego” [soft c]= blind)
g as in get; if it is before e or i, sounds like h (“gato” [hard g]=cat; “gente” [soft g]=people
h always silent (“hola”=hello)
j sounds like h as in hotel (“bajo”=low)
ll like y in yes (“pollo”=chicken)
ñ like the ni in onion (“piña”=pineapple)
rr trilled r (“perro”=dog; “barro”=mud)
y similar to English, but with slight j sound; when y stands alone it sounds like e in me
(“yo”=I; “ayer’=yesterday; “Benito y José”=Benno and José)
z like s in song (“paz”=peace)
..... and all other letters sound the same as in English...
VOCABULARY Números / Numbers
0 cero
11 once
1 uno
12 doce
2 dos
13 trece
3 tres
14 catorce
4 cuatro
15 quince
5 cinco
16 dieciséis
6 seis
17 diecisiete
7 siete
18 dieciocho
8 ocho
19 diecinueve
9 nueve
20 veinte
10 diez
21 veintiuno
30 treinta
40 cuarenta
50 cincuenta
60 sesenta
70 setenta
80 ochenta
90 noventa
100 cien
200 doscientos
500 quinientos
1000 mil
1100 mil cien
1500 mil quinientos
1975 mil novecientos setenta y cinco
1984 mil novecientos ochenta y cuatro
2000 dos mil
2003 dos mil tres
5000 cinco mil
10000 diez mil
12000 doce mil
35000 treinta y cinco mil
100000 cien mil
Días de la semana / Days of the week, starting with Sunday
domingo, lunes, martes, miércoles, jueves, viernes, sábado
Tiempo / Time
Qué hora es? / What time is it?
las tres / Three o’clock
las ocho y treinta (or media) / eight thirty
las cinco de la mañana / five a.m.
hoy / today
mañana / tomorrow; the morning
ayer / yesterday
anoche / last night
Cuándo? / When?
las ocho de la noche / eight p.m.
las seis y quince / six fifteen.
día / day
semana / week
mes / month
año / year
Saludos, vocabulario general / Greetings and general conversational vocabulary
hola / hello
¿Cómo está? / How are you?
buenos dias / good morning
buenas tardes / good afternoon
¿Cómo amaneció? / How are you this morning?
buenas noches / good night
Upe! (short for “disculpe”) / call as you approach someone’s house
pase adelante / come in
con permiso / if I may / with permission (used upon entering a room or house, sitting down
at the table, getting up from the table, interrupting a conversation, walking between
people, etc.)
the response to “con permiso” is always: propio (the permission is yours, or it’s to be
expected)
¿Cómo se llama? / What is your name?
Soy Susan / I am Susan
Mucho gusto / Pleased to meet you
¿De dónde es? / Where are you from?
Soy de los Estados Unidos (Canada, Georgia)
I am from the US (Canada, Georgia)
Soy estudiante de ecología/genética/arquitectura/biología/español en la Universidad de Georgia
I study ecology/genetics/architecture/biology/Spanish at the University of Georgia
Palabras y frases / Words and phrases
siéntese / sit down
¿Tiene sueño? / Are you sleepy?
Sí, tengo sueño / Yes, I am sleepy
¿Tiene sed? / Are you thirsty?
Sí, tengo sed / Yes, I am thirsty
¿Tiene hambre? / Are you hungry?
Sí, tengo hambre / Yes, I am hungry
¿Tiene frio? / Are you cold?
¿Tiene miedo? / Are you frightened?
¿Tiene dolor? / Are you in pain?
muy bien / very well
¿Y Usted? / And you?
más ó menos / so-so
muchas gracias / thank you very much
muy amable / you’re very kind
de nada / you’re welcome; it’s nothing
por favor / please
con mucho gusto / with pleasure
sí / yes
adiós / good-bye
tal vez / maybe
no / no
lo siento / I’m sorry
no sé / I don’t know
mucho / lots
poquito / a little bit
menos / less
más / more
grande / big
pequeño (pequeña) / small
bueno (buena) / good
bien / well
malo (mala) / bad
rico, sabroso / delicious
precioso, lindo / beautiful
feo / ugly
gracioso / funny
fácil / easy
difícil / hard
rápido / fast
lento, despacio / slow
temprano / early
tarde / late
a tiempo / on time
ahora / now
ya / right now, already
pronto / soon
ahorita / very soon
peligroso / dangerous
seguro / safe
con cuidado / carefully
¡cuidado! / watch out!
¡corra! / run!
¡párese!; alto! / stop!
¡muévase! / move!
¡cállese! / be quiet!
¡escuche! / listen!
¡ponga atención! / pay attention!
¡no lo toque! / don’t touch it!
ayúdeme, ¡auxilio! / help me!
¡mire! / look!
está bien / it’s ok; it’s fine; OK
estoy bien / I’m OK; I’m fine
no me siento muy bien / I don’t feel well
me siento mal / I feel ill; bad
estoy muy cansado / I’m very tired
estoy feliz / I am happy
estoy perdido / I’m lost
…triste / sad
... tranquilo / not worried
...preocupado / worried
quisiera... / I would like…
¿podría darme… / could you give me…?
podría decirme… / could you tell me…
¿podría ayudarme? / could you help me?
¿Podría pasarme una servilleta? / Could you pass me a napkin?
¿Podría traerme un cafecito? / Could you bring me a coffee?
...un vaso de agua? / ...a glass of water?
¿Podría abrir la ventana? / Could you open the window?
¿Podría cerrar la puerta? / Could you close the door?
¿Podría cambiar dólares? / Could you exchange dollars?
¿Cuál es el tipo de cambio? / What is the exchange rate?
¿Cómo se dice… en español? / How do you say… in Spanish?
no entiendo / I don’t understand
¿Podría escribirlo? / Could you write it down?
¿Qué pasó? / What happened?
¿Cómo? / What did you say?
¿Qué? / What?
¿Dónde? / Where?
¿Cómo? / How?
¿Quién? / Who?
¿Cuándo? / When?
¿Cuántos? / How many?
¿Cuánto? / How much?
¿Hace cuánto tiempo? / How long ago?
¿Por qué? / Why?
servicio / toilet
baño / bathroom; shower
cocina / kitchen
cuarto / room
cama / bed
habitación / room
comedor / dining room
llave / key
candado / lock
cobija / blanket
almohada / pillow
sábanas / sheets
ventana / window
pared / wall
techo / roof
puerta / door
abanico, ventilador / fan
And, of course, Pura vida! / Great, super, “pure life”
National Nicknames / Apodos Nacionales
You will sometimes hear affectionate nicknames used in Latin America to describe people
according to their national origin. These are not normally meant to be offensive, but be
somewhat cautious and sensitive in how you use them, and to whom.
Costa Ricans refer to themselves (and are referred to by others) as ‘ticos” (men) and ‘ticas”
(women). People from the US or Canada are “gringos” (men) or “gringas” (women).
Elsewhere in Central America, Salvadoreños (from central EI Salvador) are known as
“cuscatlecos”, while Hondureños (from Honduras) are known as “catrachos”, the
Nicaraguënses (from Nicaragua, both men and women), are called “nicas”, and people from
Panama (especially from the Canal Zone) are called “canaleros”. For South Americans,
people from Argentina are “ches”, people from Uruguay are “charrúas”, and Brazilians from
Rio are “cariocas”.
COSTA RICAN MENU GLOSSARY Bebidas / Drinks
agua / water
agua del tubo; agua del chorro / tap water
agua dulce / hot sugarcane drink
café con leche, azúcar / coffee with milk,
sugar
café negro / black coffee
chocolate / hot chocolate
gaseosa / soft drink
coca, pepsi / coke, pepsi
fresca, fanta / fresca, fanta
gin, esquirt, esprite / ginger ale, squirt, sprite
hielo / ice
jugo / juice
leche / milk
refrescos naturales / fruit drinks (served
en leche / in milk, or en agua / in water)
banano / banana
cas / cas (guava family)
chan / chan
fresa / strawberry
guanabana / soursop
maracuyá / passion fruit
guayaba / guava
mango / mango
manzana / apple
melón / cantaloupe
mixto de frutas / mixed fruits
mora / blackberry
naranja / orange
papaya / papaya
piña / pineapple
ponche de frutas / fruit punch
sandía / watermelon
tamarindo / tamarind
uva / grape
ron, cerveza / rum, beer
té negro / black tea (hot)
té de manzanilla / chamomile tea
té de menta / mint tea
Comidas / Food
a la plancha / grilled
ahumado / smoked
al ajillo / in garlic
almejas, mejillones / clams, mussels
arroz / rice
atún / tuna
ayote / squash, pumpkin
calamares, pulpo / squid, octopus
caliente / hot (temperature)
camarones / shrimp
cambute / conch
camote / sweet potato
carne / beef, meat
casado corriente / regular meal
especial /special, large
medio / half-portion
cebolla / onion
cerdo, jamón / pork, ham
ceviche / marinated fish
chuleta / pork chop
cono / cone
empanizado / breaded
emparedado / sandwich
encebollada / in onions
ensalada / salad
espagueti / spaghetti
flan / flan, custard
frijoles / beans
frío / cold
frito / fried
galleta / cookie, cracker
gallo / snack on a tortilla
gallo pinto / rice and beans cooked together
hamburguesa / hamburger
helado / ice cream
huevos / eggs
fritos / fried
picados, revueltos / scrambled
omeleta / omelette
langosta / lobster
lechuga / lettuce
lengua / tongue
mantequilla / butter
margarina (Numar) / margarine
mariscos / seafood
natilla / sour cream
nieve / sherbet
palmito / heart of palm
pan / bread
integral / whole grain
papas / potatoes
pepino / cucumber
pescado / fish
pargo / snapper
corvina / seabass
dorado / mahi mahi
picadillo / chopped cooked veggies
picante / hot, spicy
pimienta / black pepper
pizza / pizza
plátanos / plantains
pollo / chicken
postre / dessert
queque, pastel / cake, pie
queso / cheese
blanco / white
amarillo / yellow
crema / cream cheese
quesoburguesa / cheeseburger
repollo / cabbage
sal / salt
salchichón / sausage
salsa / sauce
sandwich / sandwich
sopa / soup
sopa negra / black bean soup
tamales / steamed cornmeal wrapped in
banana leaves, with meat and vegetables
tocino, tocineta / bacon
tomate / tomato
tortillas / tortillas
de maiz / corn flour
de harina / wheat flour
tostada / toasted; toast