Common Spanish Mistakes English Speakers Make

Hi, I'm Poly. Today we're talking about mistakes, and I promise it's a fun one.

Have you ever told someone you were embarazada when you meant "embarrassed"? (It means pregnant.) Then you already know English likes to play little tricks on you in Spanish. It happens to everyone!

The nice part is that these mistakes are surprisingly predictable. Once you know them, you start sidestepping them almost without thinking.

The big ones, and how to handle them

• Ser vs. estar: both mean "to be". Use ser for identity and lasting traits (soy profesora, es alto) and estar for states, feelings and location (estoy cansado, está en casa). Es aburrido means "he's boring"; está aburrido means "he's bored".
• False friends: besides embarazada, keep an eye on actualmente (currently, not "actually"), realizar (to carry out, not "to realize") and librería (bookstore, not "library", which is biblioteca).
• Gender and agreement: every noun has a gender, and adjectives follow it. Learn nouns with their article, el problema, la mano, so the gender sticks from the start.

A few more details

• Subject pronouns are optional: quiero, tengo is enough, no yo needed.
• "I am 20" is tengo 20 años, not soy 20.
• Gustar works backwards: me gustan los libros.

From rule to conversation

Here's the thing: knowing the rule is one thing; catching yourself mid-sentence is another. That's where it helps to have someone listening.

Tidying up the kitchen? Say out loud where each thing está and what it es like. Ser and estar start sorting themselves out.

A tutor spots your personal patterns, the three or four errors that keep coming back, and helps you fix them in real conversation. Honestly, each mistake becomes something you fix with a smile, and speaking feels a lot more relaxed.

Your next step

Browse Holapoly's Spanish tutors and choose the one you'd like to practice with.

Book a 55-minute trial class at 50% off from their profile and start turning your usual mistakes into progress. You'll love seeing the change!

I'm heading back to my branch, but here's a parrot tip: every mistake is a new feather. Don't hide it; show it off and smooth it out.

Poly