| accept | aceptar | close/shut | cerrar |
| allow | permitir/dejar | organize | organizar |
| ask | preguntar | pay | pagar |
| believe | creer | play | jugar |
| borrow | prestar | put | poner |
| break | romper | rain | llover |
| bring | traer | read | leer |
| buy | comprar | reply | responder |
| can/be able | poder | run | correr |
| cancel | cancelar | say | decir |
| change | cambiar | see | ver |
| clean | limpiar | sell | vender |
| comb | peinar | send | enviar |
| complain | quejarse | sign | firmar |
| cough | toser | sing | cantar |
| count | contar | sit | sentarse |
| cut | cortar | sleep | dormir |
| dance | bailar | smoke | fumar |
| draw | dibujar | speak | hablar |
| drink | beber | spell | deletrear |
| drive | conducir | spend | gastar |
| eat | comer | stand | ponerse de pie |
| explain | explicar | start/begin | comenzar |
| fall | caerse | study | estudiar |
| fill | llenar | succeed | tener exito |
| find | encontrar | swim | nadar |
| finish | terminar | take | * tomar |
| fit | caber | talk | hablar |
| fix | reparar | teach | enseñar |
| fly | volar | tell | decir |
| forget | olvidar | think | pensar |
| give | dar | translate | traducir |
| go | ir | travel | viajar |
| have | tener | try | intentar |
| hear | oir | turn off | apagar |
| hurt | dañar, herir | turn on | encender |
| know | saber/conocer | type | escribir a máquina |
| learn | aprender | understand | entender |
| leave | salir/marcharse | use | utilizar/usar |
| listen | escuchar | wait | esperar |
| live | vivir | wake up | despertar |
| look | mirar | want | querer/desear |
| lose | perder | watch | mirar |
| make/do | hacer | work | trabajar |
| need | necesitar | worry | preocuparse |
| open | abrir | write | escribir |
Some Questions asked by our students:
1. Uses o “por” and “para”:
How does one say “for” in Spanish?
Simple question, huh?
Not really. In fact, understanding the answer to that seemingly simple question is one of the more difficult problems facing many Spanish students.
Por and para, frequently are used for the English word “for.” Here are the basic rules for por and para uses:
Uses for por:
Indicating means of transportation: Viajo por avión. I travel by plane.
Introducing the agent of an action after a passive verb: Leo un libro escrito escrito por Dr. Oz
Expressing movement along, through, around, by or about: Decido caminar por el parque. I decide to walk through the park.
Denoting a time or duration when something occurs. Camine por dos horas. I walked for 2 hours.
Expressing the cause (like “due to”, or “because of”, not the purpose) of an action:Me caí por la nieve. I fell down because (due to) of the snow.
Meaning per: Perdi Diez por ciento de mi peso. I lost 10 percent of by weight.
Meaning supporting or in favor of: Trabajamos por los derechos humanos. We work for human rights.
Used in numerous expressions: Por ejemplo. For example. Por favor. Please.
Uses for para:
Meaning for the purpose of or in order to: Para bailar la bamba, se necesita una poca de gracia. In order to dance the bamba you need a little grace.
With a noun or pronoun as object, meaning for the benefit of or directed to: Es para usted. It’s for you.
Meaning to or in the direction of when referring to a specific place: Voy para Europa. I’m heading to Europe.
Meaning by or for when referring to a specific time: Necesito el regalo para mañana. I need the gift for tomorrow. Vamos a la casa de mi madre para el fin de semana. We’re going to my mother’s for the weekend.
Some ideas to make it easier to remember words:
1. English words ending in “tion”, like construction, imagination, nation, relation, solution,, etc… would be ending in “cion” in Spanish. For example, Construccion, imaginacion, nacion, relacion, and they are always female words (isn’t it nice to have an “always” rule in Spanish? 
) So: La construccion, la inaginacion, la nacion, relacion, la solucion.
We are always looking for creative ways to help our students remember what they learn. If you have any creative suggestions, share with the rest of the class! e-mail us at spahishabq@gmail.com