30 Spanish words you already know!

Let me introduce you to your new friends in your Spanish / English language learning journey: Cognates

Cognates are words that share similar meanings, spellings, and pronunciations across languages due to shared roots. They make understanding vocabulary easier and boost confidence.

Here’s a list of 30 English-Spanish cognates (from the letter A to the letter M) that look the same in both languages, along with examples.

1. Actor – The actor performed brilliantly. / El actor actuó de maravilla.
2. Agenda – What’s on the agenda for today? / ¿Qué hay en la agenda para hoy?
3. Animal – The lion is a majestic animal. / El león es un animal majestuoso.
4. Area – This area is reserved for VIP guests. / Esta área está reservada para invitados VIP.
5. Artificial – The flowers look artificial. / Las flores parecen artificiales.
6. Artist – She’s a talented artist. / Ella es una artista talentosa.
7. Banana – A banana is a healthy snack. / Una banana es una merienda saludable.
8. Base – The company’s base is in New York. / La base de la compañía está en Nueva York.
9. Cancer – Research on cancer is progressing. / La investigación sobre el cáncer está avanzando.
10. Capital – Paris is the capital of France. / París es la capital de Francia.
11. Central – The station is central to the city. / La estación es central en la ciudad.
12. Chocolate – Chocolate is my favorite dessert. / El chocolate es mi postre favorito.
13. Color – Her dress has a beautiful color. / Su vestido tiene un hermoso color.
14. Company – The company hired new staff. / La compañía contrató nuevo personal.
15. Control – He has good control over his emotions. / Tiene buen control sobre sus emociones.
16. Crisis – The country is in a financial crisis. / El país está en una crisis financiera.
17. Doctor – She visited the doctor yesterday. / Ella visitó al doctor ayer.
18. Electric – The electric car is eco-friendly. / El coche eléctrico es ecológico.
19. Element – Water is an essential element. / El agua es un elemento esencial.
20. Error – There was an error in the report. / Hubo un error en el informe.
21. Family – She loves spending time with her family. / A ella le encanta pasar tiempo con su familia.
22. Fatal – The accident had fatal consequences. / El accidente tuvo consecuencias fatales.
23. Hospital – He was taken to the hospital. / Lo llevaron al hospital.
24. Hotel – We booked a room at a nice hotel. / Reservamos una habitación en un buen hotel.
25. Idea – That’s a brilliant idea! / ¡Esa es una idea brillante!
26. Individual – Each individual has unique qualities. / Cada individuo tiene cualidades únicas.
27. Industrial – It’s an industrial zone. / Es una zona industrial.
28. Instrument – He plays an instrument in the band. / Toca un instrumento en la banda.
29. Material – This dress is made of soft material. / Este vestido está hecho de un material suave.
30. Motor – The car’s motor is very powerful. / El motor del coche es muy potente.

Now you have 30 words that you don’t have to learn! Just be careful with the pronunciation, which is not necessarily the same. Look at the word “INStrument”, the stress falls on one the first syllable in English and in the third syllable in Spanish, “instruMENto”.

The second part of this lesson (from letter N to Z) coming soon!