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Spanish vocabulary

4,450 words from real stories, organized by topic and frequency. Every word has a picture, pronunciation and an example sentence, and you can practice any list for free, without an account.

4,450words to discover
7,196meanings in context
258stories to explore

Spanish vocabulary lists by topic

Choose a topic to see its words and their meanings. Listen to any word, then practice the whole list.

At the table

Order a coffee, explore the market, and talk about food.

FlashcardsMeaning quiz
  • buenogood
  • aguawater
  • comereat
  • cafécafé
  • pedirask
  • comidafood
  • cocinakitchen
  • fríocold
  • panbread
  • calientehot
  • dulcesweets
  • platoplate
  • quesocheese
  • salsalt
  • cuentaawareness
  • beberdrink
  • naranjaorange
  • restauranterestaurant
  • frescocool
  • saborflavor
  • tomatetomato
  • cocinarcook
  • azúcarsugar
  • tazacup
  • botellabottle
  • chocolatechocolate
  • limónlemon
  • patatapotatoes
  • cenadinner
  • vinowine
  • pescadofish
  • frutafruit
  • arrozrice
  • heladofreezing
  • manzanaapple
  • vasodrinking glass
  • lechemilk
  • hambrehunger
  • camarerowaiter
  • carnemeat
  • tétea
  • menúmenu
  • aceiteoil
  • pollochicken
  • desayunobreakfast
  • cucharaspoon
  • sedthirst
  • cuchilloknife
  • galletacookie
  • huevoegg
  • pastapaste
  • verduravegetables

The 100 most common Spanish words

Ranked by how often each word appears across 258 Spanish stories. Start here: these words make up a large share of everything you read.

  1. 1elthe
  2. 2lafeminine singular definite article
  3. 3deof
  4. 4unoa
  5. 5serbe
  6. 6yand
  7. 7enin/at/on
  8. 8quethat
  9. 9apersonal direct-object marker
  10. 10nonot
  11. 11estarbe
  12. 12muchovery
  13. 13élit
  14. 14suhis/her/their
  15. 15lasthe
  16. 16conwith
  17. 17sepronominal-verb marker
  18. 18porfor
  19. 19perobut
  20. 20decirsay
  21. 21tenerhave
  22. 22irwas
  23. 23parain order to
  24. 24míomy
  25. 25haberauxiliary verb used to form perfect tenses
  26. 26todoeverything
  27. 27omasculine singular noun ending
  28. 28mirarlook at
  29. 29habíahad
  30. 30versee
  31. 31másmore
  32. 32poderbe able to
  33. 33leto him/her
  34. 34saberknow
  35. 35meto me
  36. 36quéwhat
  37. 37hacerdo
  38. 38yoI
  39. 39ellashe
  40. 40sustheir
  41. 41veztime
  42. 42soloonly
  43. 43tambiénalso
  44. 44otroother/another
  45. 45síyes
  46. 46quererwant
  47. 47díaday
  48. 48dostwo
  49. 49comolike
  50. 50hablarspeak
  51. 51pequeñosmall
  52. 52estethis/these
  53. 53siif
  54. 54esethat
  55. 55sinwithout
  56. 56abuelagrandmother
  57. 57despuésafterwards
  58. 58ahoranow
  59. 59cuandowhen
  60. 60grandelarge
  61. 61llamarbe called
  62. 62nochenight
  63. 63teto you
  64. 64llegararrive
  65. 65sobreon
  66. 66algosomething
  67. 67mañanamorning
  68. 68hombreman
  69. 69ésethat
  70. 70primerofirst
  71. 71casahouse/home
  72. 72añoyear
  73. 73yaalready
  74. 74preguntarask
  75. 75túyou
  76. 76pocoslightly
  77. 77pensarbelieve
  78. 78tuyoyour
  79. 79encontrarfound
  80. 80personaperson
  81. 81necesitarneed
  82. 82escucharlisten
  83. 83siemprealways
  84. 84buenogood
  85. 85pasarhappen
  86. 86antesbefore
  87. 87llevarcarry/take
  88. 88nuevonew
  89. 89sonreírsmile
  90. 90hoytoday
  91. 91mujerwoman
  92. 92bienokay
  93. 93buscarlook for
  94. 94duranteduring
  95. 95desdefrom
  96. 96claroClara
  97. 97parecerseem
  98. 98seguirremain
  99. 99vozvoice
  100. 100aguawater
A few minutes is enough

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Five ways to turn a word you recognize into a word you remember. No account needed.

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Search in Spanish or your translation language. Open a word for its meanings and story examples.

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4,450 words · Illustrated discoveries

Illustration for uno

a · a/an · one

257 stories

be · belong · be possible or be the case

257 stories
Illustration for estar

be · be located

230 stories
Illustration for mucho

very · much · many

229 stories
Illustration for tener

have · have to · have something in a particular state

204 stories
Illustration for por

for · because of; for · for (to ask the reason)

197 stories

in order to · for

183 stories
Illustration for ir

was · go · to serve as an auxiliary for a planned or imminent future

182 stories
Illustration for decir

say · tell · reveal

177 stories
Illustration for mirar

look at · look · Miro

164 stories
Illustration for ver

see · understand · Go

157 stories
Illustration for todo

everything · all · whole

153 stories
Illustration for pequeño

small · young · minor

138 stories
Illustration for día

day · morning · up to date

125 stories
Illustration for más

more · most

124 stories
Illustration for solo

only · alone · single

124 stories
Illustration for grande

large · major · great

119 stories
Illustration for hacer

do · ago; it has/had been · make

118 stories
Illustration for querer

want · love someone · I do

116 stories
Illustration for poder

be able to · could · can be

112 stories
Illustration for después

afterwards · after

111 stories
Illustration for llamar

be called · call someone · to call or name

108 stories
Illustration for vez

time · again · sometimes

107 stories
Illustration for como

like · as if · as

104 stories
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From a word to a whole world

You’ve met the words.
Now follow the story.

Every example in this library comes from an Inklingo story. Read at your level, listen to the narration, and tap a word whenever you need its meaning.

  1. Pick a story that interests you.
  2. Tap unfamiliar words as you read.
  3. Save the ones you want to remember.

More ways to explore Spanish vocabulary

A little guidance before you start

What are the most common Spanish words?

The most common Spanish words are short, everyday words such as el, la, de, uno, ser, y, en, que. The list above ranks them by how often they appear in our stories. Learn the first 100 and you will recognize a large share of the words in any text. The 100 most common Spanish words

How many Spanish words do I need to know?

A few hundred frequent words are enough to follow simple texts and conversations. Around 1,000 to 2,000 cover most everyday reading, and the rest comes naturally as you read. Learn frequent words first, then the topic words for the situations you care about.

What’s the best way to learn Spanish vocabulary?

Start with a small set of useful words. Recall their meanings in an exercise, then read their story examples. Save words you want to revisit and return to them over several short sessions.

Can I practice without an account?

Yes. Browse the library and use all five exercises freely. Create a free account when you want to keep a word in your Word Bank and review it later on the web or in the app.

Why does a word have several meanings?

The right translation depends on the sentence. Open any word to compare its meanings, pictures, and original examples instead of memorizing a single translation.

Are these words for beginners?

You can filter by the reading level of the stories where each word appears, starting at A0 or A1. That tells you about the story’s difficulty; it is not a certified level for the word itself.

Learn the meaning, not just the translation.
A word can express different ideas in different stories. This library brings its meanings, images, and examples together. The level filter refers to the source story’s reading level, not a certified level for the word. Translations are available in 26 languages. Free practice progress stays in this browser. Save words to your account to keep them in your Word Bank.