Learning a new language is all about trial and error. This can happen a lot with new vocabulary. You might see a word and think that it means something, but it actually means another thing. Think about false cognates. How confusing!
We know that this can be discouraged. But you have to keep trying and learning. You’ll get to the point where many words won’t be as confusing anymore.
If it helps, if you know English or Spanish, you’re already a step ahead. Because just like there are many different words between these two languages, there are also many near-perfect cognates.
So, to make your vocabulary learning journey a bit easier, here are some near-perfect cognates in English and Spanish.
What Are Near-Perfect Cognates?
Near-perfect cognates are words from two different languages, like English and Spanish, that are written similarly, the pronunciation also sounds similar, and the meaning is the same.
So, there’s less space for confusion. If you think one word in your target language means the same as one in your native language because it’s spelled similarly, you’re probably right. Of course, this only happens when talking about near-perfect (or perfect) cognates.
For example: Victory and victoria.
20 English and Spanish Cognates
Here are 12 common cognates in English and Spanish you must know for everyday conversation. We’ve added the pronunciations according to the “Span¡sh D!ctionary”.
1. Dentist – Dentista
These two words mean the same: The person that cures and helps keep your teeth healthy. As you can see, there’s only one letter of difference between the two words, the “a”.
In English, it’s pronounced as “dehn tihst”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “dehn tees tah”.
For example: The dentist fixed my two cavities – El dentista me arregló dos caries.
2. Hamburger – Hamburguesa
This means the delicious dish that consists of a rounded meat between two pieces of bread, with lettuce, ketchup, and tomato. There are just a few letters of difference between the two words, and, of course, the pronunciation.
In English, it’s pronounced as “hahm buhr guhr”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “ahm boor geh sah”.
For example: This hamburger tastes bad – Esta hamburguesa sabe mal.
3. Dictionary – Diccionario
This refers to the book that has thousands of words in one language, their translations to another language, and their meanings. It’s used to learn new vocabulary and it’s often used in schools.
There are quite a few differences between the English and the Spanish words, but you can still see the similarities. The pronunciation also sounds different.
In English, it’s pronounced as “dihk shih neh ri”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “deek syoh nah ryoh”.
For example: I use the dictionary to learn new words in Spanish – Uso el diccionario para aprender nuevas palabras en español.
4. Information – Información
This is the piece or pieces of facts about someone or something. Did you notice that there are only two spelling differences here? The “t” in English is changed to a “c” in Spanish, and you must add an accent mark on the last “o”.
In English, it’s pronounced as “ihn fuhr mey shuhn”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “eem fohr mah syohn”.
For example: Here’s all the information you need to apply for the scholarship – Aquí está toda la información que necesitas para aplicar a la beca.
5. Victory – Victoria
This refers to when someone wins something and defeats somebody else. In those cases you achieve a victory. Here you must take out the last “y” on victory and add two letters for the Spanish translation.
In English, it’s pronounced as “vihk duh ri”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “beek toh ryah”.
For example: The victory is mine! – ¡La victoria es mía!
6. Car – Carro
This refers to the vehicle with four wheels that an individual person can own. For the Spanish version, you just must add two letters to the English version, an “r” and an “o”. The pronunciation can be tricky for some English speakers, as the “rr” sound it’s not easy.
In English, it’s pronounced as “kar”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “kah rroh”.
For example: Wow, your car is very fast! – ¡Wow, tu carro es muy rápido!
7. Restaurant – Restaurante
This is the place where you go out to eat. There are many around one city or place and they can have themes. They also sell different types of food, like Mexican, Italian, French, Chinese food, and more. It’s not very hard to learn its spelling, as you just have to add an “e” at the end of it for the Spanish word.
In English, it’s pronounced as “rehs tuh rant”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “rrehs tow rahn teh”.
For example: I’m going to take my mom to her favorite restaurant for Mother’s Day – Voy a llevar a mi mamá a su restaurante favorito por el Día de las Madres.
8. Art – Arte
This is a form of expressions and work that can be done in different ways, like acting, dancing, painting, and more. Can you spot the only difference between the two words? That’s right! The letter “e” at the end of the word in Spanish.
In English, it’s pronounced as “art”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “ahr teh”.
For example: My favorite form of art is sculpture – Mi forma de arte favorita es la escultura.
9. Photo – Foto
This is the printed or digitized image that cameras take. There are a few differences in the written form. But overall, the spelling in one of these languages can really let you know what it means in the other language. It’s not too confusing.
In English, it’s pronounced as “fo do”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as foh toh”.
For example: I found this photo of you from when you were a baby – Encontré esta foto de ti de cuando eras bebé.
10. Bank – Banco
This means the place where they manage money, and you can open an account, get a credit card, withdraw money, and more. Pay close attention to the context so you don’t get confused, because in Spanish “banco” can also mean “bench”.
For these two words, you just have to get rid of the “k” in the English word and change it for a “c” and add an “o” for the Spanish translation.
In English, it’s pronounced as “beyngk”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “bahng koh”.
For example: I’m going to the bank – Voy al banco.
11. Telephone – Teléfono
This is the device people use to call someone else long distance. There are some differences in the words, but you can still figure out that “telephone” means “teléfono”. There’s also a tiny detail that is very important, the accent mark.
In English, it’s pronounced as “teh luh fon”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “teh leh foh noh”.
For example: This is an old telephone; it doesn’t work anymore – Este es un teléfono viejo, ya no funciona.
12. Perfect – Perfecto
This means when something or someone is excellent and has no wrong things or faults. This is quite easy, as for the spelling there’s only one letter of difference, the “o”. The pronunciation is not that different or hard either.
In English, it’s pronounced as “puhr fihkt”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “pehr fehk toh”.
For example: My dog is perfect – Mi perro es perfecto.
13. Formality – Formalidad
This means to be formal or serious. To behave correctly following the rules of someone or as it’s expected somewhere. The biggest differences are in the last letters of the word; the beginning is the same in English and Spanish. But you can still imagine that “formality” means “formalidad” and vice versa.
In English, it’s pronounced as “for mah lih di”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “fohr mah lee dahd”.
For example: We’re going to the opera, you must act with formality – Vamos a ir a la ópera, deben actuar con formalidad.
14. Commentary – Comentario
These are the ideas, thoughts, opinions, stories, explanations that people say or write somewhere. There are differences in different letters but pay close attention to the letter “m”. There’s a double “m” on the English word.
In English, it’s pronounced as “ka mihn teh ri”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “koh mehn tah ryoh”.
For example: Sarah left a commentary on my last post on Instagram – Sarah dejó un comentario en mi última publicación en Instagram.
15. Magic – Mágico / Magia
This means something out of this world and mysterious that seems like it has no explanation. It also works to explain something very beautiful and incredible. It’s easy to decipher the meaning in both languages, because they’re very similar!
In English, it’s pronounced as “mah jihk”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “mah hee koh”.
For example:
- Our date was magic – Nuestra cita fue mágica.
- I like doing magic tricks – Me gusta hacer trucos de magia.
16. Organism – Organismo
This refers to any living thing, from humans and animals to tiny bacteria. It’s super easy to imagine the meaning between the two languages, because you only have to add an “o” to the Spanish version. They’re not that different!
In English, it’s pronounced as “or guh nih zuhm”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “ohr gah nees moh”.
For example: Our biology teacher explained to us that there are different types of organisms. — Nuestra maestra de biología nos explicó que hay diferentes tipos de organismos.
17. Music – Música
This is the art form that has to do with sounds, notes and harmonies. It can be produced through one instrument, a mix of them, or a singing voice. Many people love this art form!
Good news is there’s only an “a” and an accent mark of difference in the Spanish word from the English word.
In English, it’s pronounced as “myu zihk”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “moo see kah”.
For example: I always listen to music while working – Siempre escucho música mientras trabajo.
18. Basic – Básico
This can mean something that is essential. Or it can mean something that is at a beginner level or stage.
You just have to add an accent mark to the “a” and an “o” at the end for the Spanish version. That’s it! That’s why it’s not hard to figure out the meaning is the same from one language to the other.
In English, it’s pronounced as “bey sihk”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “bah see koh”.
For example: My Spanish level is still basic, but I’m working on it so I can achieve fluency as soon as possible – My nivel de español aún es básico, pero estoy trabajando en ello para poder lograr fluidez lo antes posible.
19. Precious – Precioso
This means something that has a high value, it’s often very expensive and it’s very dear. But I can also be used as something incredibly beautiful. You just have to change the “us” at the end of the English word for a “so” in the Spanish word.
In English, it’s pronounced as “preh shihs”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “preh syoh soh”.
For example: The diamond on my engagement ring is precious – El diamante en mi anillo de compromiso es precioso.
20. Class – Clase
This is a synonym of “lesson”. So, it’s the moment when people are taught different things. Like how we teach Spanish at TruFluency.
It can also be used to refer to people that are divided according to different standards from the society they live in.
Do you see the spelling differences? Remember to delete the last “s” from the English word and add an “e” for the Spanish word.
In English, it’s pronounced as “klahs”.
In Spanish, it’s pronounced as “klah seh”.
For example:
- I like my TruFluency Spanish class a lot! – ¡Me gusta mucho mi clase de español de TruFluency!
- Patrick and Louisa are in love, but their families disagree with that because they’re from different social classes – Patrick y Louisa están enamorados, pero sus familias no están de acuerdo con eso, porque son de diferentes clases sociales.
Master Spanish and English Vocabulary with TruFluency
Mastering the Spanish and English vocabulary is one step forward towards speaking better. But that’s not all you need to become fluent.
If you want to keep learning vocabulary in Spanish or English and getting better and better at these languages, we can help you! Here at TruFluency we offer language classes with native teachers!
The best of all is that our classes are personalized to your language needs and goals. So don’t be afraid to tell us what you need; we’ll create a plan to help YOU.
Each lesson is based on our Bellieu Method, created by our founder and language expert, Micah Bellieu. It consists of encouraging students to speak in their target language using all they’ve learned. This way, they’ll achieve language fluency!
Take two trial classes of one hour each. They’re completely online and we have flexible schedules. See for yourself how committed we are to your language journey.
