Even when right this moment is your first day studying Spanish, you already know loads of Spanish phrases.
Actor, animal, bar, colour, management… You realize them in English, however they’re in italics right here as a result of they’re all Spanish cognates!
Spanish and English have many such “twins,” and making the most of them will velocity up your Spanish studying significantly.
Let’s take a look at some extra phrases that look precisely (or nearly) the identical in English and Spanish.
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What Are Spanish Cognates?
Cognates are phrases that look an identical or comparable in two languages and have the identical that means.
English and Spanish have borrowed many phrases from one another. That is useful for English-speaking learners of Spanish (and vice versa)!
Cognates are the simplest strategy to increase your vocabulary. Only a fast take a look at the phrase, and you realize its that means.
However though they appear comparable, there are sometimes some variations in stress and pronunciation.
Watch out for false cognates, although!
Typically referred to as “false buddies,” these are phrases that seem like cognates however aren’t. Now we have a full submit explaining these right here which you can take a look at after studying this one.
Most Widespread Spanish Cognates
Excellent Spanish Cognates
These phrases are spelled precisely the identical means in English and Spanish. And since they’re cognates, they imply precisely the identical factor too.
The one distinction you might even see in excellent Spanish cognates is the inclusion of an accent mark.
And bear in mind to pay attention for modifications in pronunciation!
Close to-perfect Spanish Cognates
These near-perfect cognates have very comparable spelling in each English and Spanish, although they’re not precise matches.
You possibly can in all probability nonetheless guess the that means of the phrase simply by trying on the Spanish type!
Spanish Verb Cognates
The Spanish verb cognates beneath even have very comparable spelling to their English counterparts.
Verb cognates are significantly invaluable to study as a result of they’re so versatile. They’ll even turn into adjectives by utilizing the previous participle type (take away the -ir, -er or –ar and add an -ido or -ado).
Studying Spanish verb cognates vastly expands your purposeful vocabulary.
Guidelines and Patterns for Spanish Cognates
Understanding the patterns cognates observe makes it a lot simpler to take an informed guess while you’re unsure of a phrase!
For instance, in case you aren’t 100% positive methods to say “skilled” in Spanish throughout a dialog, you would possibly say profesional as a result of you realize the Spanish cognate patterns—and on this case, you’d be right.
Listed below are the most typical patterns for Spanish cognates that you must decide to reminiscence:
| English Ending | Spanish Ending | English → Spanish |
|---|---|---|
| -ant | -ante | Vital → importante |
| -al | -al | Skilled → profesional |
| -ar | -ar | Widespread → common |
| -ary | -ario | Abnormal → ordinario |
| -ate | -ar | Activate → activar |
| -ble | -ble | Unimaginable → increíble |
| -ct | -cto | Excellent → perfecto |
| -ic | -ico | Unbelievable → fantástico |
| -id | -ido | Speedy → rápido |
| -ify (verbs) | -ificar | Simplify → simplificar |
| -ile | -il | Fragile → frágil |
| -ism | -ismo | Organism → organismo |
| -ist | -ista | Vacationer → turista |
| -ity | -idad | Curiosity → curiosidad |
| -ive | -ivo | Efficient → efectivo |
| -ly | -mente | Precisely → exactamente |
| -ment | -mento | Doc → documento |
| -nce | -ncia | Expertise → experiencia |
| -nt | -nte | Clever → inteligente |
| -or | -or | Writer → autor |
| -ous | -oso | Scrumptious → delicioso |
| -sion | -sión | Choice → decisión |
| -tion | -ción | Exception → excepción |
| -ony | -onia or -onio | Ceremony → ceremonia, or matrimony → matrimonio |
| -ory | -io | Laboratory → laboratorio |
| -um | -o | Museum → museo |
| -us | -o | Radius → radio |
Studying cognates is usually a cool means of bettering your Spanish vocabulary with little effort.
And now you’re 94 phrases nearer to turning into a proficient speaker of Spanish!
You can even see these phrases in use and uncover much more Spanish cognates with applications like FluentU. The interactive subtitles allow you to double-check the that means of every phrase in each video you watch, so that you don’t have to fret about “false buddies.”
As at all times, glad learning!
Obtain:
This weblog submit is out there as a handy and moveable PDF that you just
can take wherever.
Click on right here to get a duplicate. (Obtain)
