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Spanish 1000 most common word vocabulary: 1000 words

The 1000 most common everyday words, ranked by real-world usage — core vocabulary for real conversations (English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese). This page lists 40 of them with their Spanish translations, then lets you practise the full set in either direction with spaced repetition.

English to Spanish: the first 40 words

EnglishSpanishNotes
likegustarTo find something pleasurable or agreeable, not to compare.
timetiempoThe ongoing passage of hours and days, as measured by clocks.
newnuevoRecently made or only just come into existence, the opposite of old.
peoplegenteHuman beings in general, thought of as a group.
goodbuenoOf high quality or morally right, the opposite of bad.
firstprimeroComing before all the others in order.
knowsaberTo be aware of a fact or have information, not to be acquainted with a person.
seeverTo perceive something with your eyes.
makehacerTo create or produce something.
thinkpensarTo turn ideas over in your mind.
wantquererTo wish to have or do something.
waymaneraThe manner or method in which something is done.
rightcorrectoCorrect or accurate, not the direction or a legal entitlement.
worktrabajoEffort spent at a job, usually to earn money.
yearañoA period of twelve months.
daydíaA twenty-four hour period, or the bright hours between two nights.
taketomarTo grasp something and carry it away with you.
manymuchosA large number of countable things.
lifevidaThe state of being alive, from birth until death.
saydecirTo speak words aloud to someone.
worldmundoThe Earth and everything and everyone on it.
greatgrandeVery large in size or importance.
lastúltimoFinal in sequence or duration, not to endure.
bestmejorBetter than all the others.
loveamarTo feel deep affection for someone or something.
manhombreAn adult male human being, not a woman.
homecasaThe place where you live and feel you belong.
longlargoMeasuring a lot from one end to the other, not short.
lookmirarTo direct your eyes deliberately, not to appear.
useusarTo employ a tool or object for some purpose.
comevenirTo move toward the speaker or arrive somewhere.
partparteA piece or section of a larger whole.
stateestadoA condition or circumstance, not to say something.
threetresThe number after two and before four.
bettermejorOf higher quality or more suitable than something else.
findencontrarTo discover or locate something you were looking for.
helpayudarTo make someone's task easier by doing something for them.
highaltoReaching far up from the ground.
littlepequeñoSmall in size or amount.
oldviejoHaving lived or existed for a long time. Not new.

960 more words in the full “1000 Most Common Words” library, each aligned across seven languages and scheduled for you by spaced repetition. Add it to your account and start drilling English to Spanish in one click.

What to watch out for in Spanish

  • 252 of these 1000 words are near-identical in English and Spanish (25%) — real, base, área. Those are free; the value of drilling is in the rest.
  • Accents count. Answers are graded accent-sensitively, so you need á é í ó ú ü ñ ¿ ¡ — LinguaSwap shows a one-tap keypad for them while you type.
  • 1000 words carry a usage note in the full library, for the cases where a direct translation would mislead you.

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