[:es]
Because Spanish and English share a lot of words with Latin roots, it’s easy to understand Spanish sentences like, “Seattle aprobó un salario mínimo de $15 la hora.” But sometimes words with the same origin take a separate path in each language, or words with different origins resemble each other by coincidence. That can mean trouble.
by Judith B Herman, mental floss.com
You might want to tell someone you don’t want to embarrass her and wind up saying, “I don’t want to get you pregnant.” For your protection, here’s a list of Spanish-English “false friends.”
The Spanish words in the first column resemble the English ones in the third column, but have different meanings.
| SPANISH word | English translation | ENGLISH word | Spanish translation |
| ACTUAL | current, present-day | ACTUAL | real, efectivo |
| AMERICANO | person from North or South America | AMERICAN | estadounidense |
| ASISTIR | to attend, be present at OR to assist | ASSIST | ayudar |
| BILLóN | (US) trillion, (UK) billion | BILLION (US) | mil millones |
| BIZARRO | dashing, brave, gallant | BIZARRE | extraño |
| BOMBERO | firefighter | BOMBER | bombardero |
| CARPETA | folder | CARPET | alfombra |
| CASUALIDAD | coincidence, chance | CASUALTY | víctima |
| CHOCAR | strike, collide | CHOKE | ahogar |
| CODO | elbow | CODE | código |
| COLEGIO | high school | COLLEGE | universidad |
| COMPROMISO | obligation, commitment | COMPROMISE | componenda |
| CONDESCENDER | to comply, agree | CONDESCEND | dignarse |
| CONSTIPADO (n.) | a cold | CONSTIPATED | constipado (adj.) |
| CONTESTAR | to answer | CONTEST (v.) | contender |
| CORRIENTEMENTE | fluently, plainly, flatly | CURRENTLY | actualmente |
| DELITO | crime | DELIGHT | delicia, deleite |
| DESGRACIA | mistake, misfortune | DISGRACE | vergüenza |
| DISGUSTO | annoyance, worry | DISGUST | asco, repugnancia |
| DESTITUIDO | fired, deprived | DESTITUTE | indigente |
| DORMITORIO | bedroom | DORMITORY | residencia universitaria |
| EMBARAZADA | pregnant | EMBARRASSED | avergonzada |
| EMPRESA | business enterprise, company | EMPRESS | emperatríz |
| ENVIAR | send | ENVY (v.) | envidiar |
| ESTRECHAR | to narrow, bring closer together | STRETCH | estirar, alargar |
| ESTIMADO | esteemed | ESTIMATE | estimacíon, presupuesto |
| ÉXITO | success, hit | EXIT | salida |
| FÁBRICA | factory | FABRIC | tela |
| GROSERÍA | grossness, crudeness | GROCERY | abarrotería, tienda de comestibles |
| INTRODUCIR | insert | INTRODUCE (someone) | presentar |
| LARGO | long | LARGE | grande |
| LECTURA | reading | LECTURE | conferencia |
| LIBRERÍA | bookstore | LIBRARY | biblioteca |
| MANTEL | tablecloth | MANTEL | manto, mesilla |
| MOLESTAR | bother | MOLEST | abusar (sexualmente) |
| NUDO | knot | NUDE | desnudo |
| PARADA | stop, e.g. bus stop | PARADE | desfile |
| PARIENTE | relative | PARENT | padre |
| PRETENDER | to attempt, to woo | PRETEND | fingir |
| PREOCUPADO | worried | PREOCCUPIED | distraído |
| REALIZAR | to come true | REALIZE | darse cuenta |
| RECORDAR | to remember, remind | RECORD | grabar |
| ROPA | clothes | ROPE | cuerda |
| SANO | healthy | SANE | cuerdo |
| SOPA | soup | SOAP | jabón |
| SOPORTAR | tolerate, put up with | SUPPORT | apoyar |
| SUCESO | event | SUCCESS | éxito |
| TUNA | prickly pear | TUNA | atún |
| ÚLTIMAMENTE | recently | ULTIMATELY | al final |
| VASO | drinking glass | VASE | jarrón, florero |
by Judith B Herman, mental floss.com[:en]
Because Spanish and English share a lot of words with Latin roots, it’s easy to understand Spanish sentences like, “Seattle aprobó un salario mínimo de $15 la hora.” But sometimes words with the same origin take a separate path in each language, or words with different origins resemble each other by coincidence. That can mean trouble.
by Judith B Herman, mental floss.com
You might want to tell someone you don’t want to embarrass her and wind up saying, “I don’t want to get you pregnant.” For your protection, here’s a list of Spanish-English “false friends.”
The Spanish words in the first column resemble the English ones in the third column, but have different meanings.
| SPANISH word | English translation | ENGLISH word | Spanish translation |
| ACTUAL | current, present-day | ACTUAL | real, efectivo |
| AMERICANO | person from North or South America | AMERICAN | estadounidense |
| ASISTIR | to attend, be present at OR to assist | ASSIST | ayudar |
| BILLóN | (US) trillion, (UK) billion | BILLION (US) | mil millones |
| BIZARRO | dashing, brave, gallant | BIZARRE | extraño |
| BOMBERO | firefighter | BOMBER | bombardero |
| CARPETA | folder | CARPET | alfombra |
| CASUALIDAD | coincidence, chance | CASUALTY | víctima |
| CHOCAR | strike, collide | CHOKE | ahogar |
| CODO | elbow | CODE | código |
| COLEGIO | high school | COLLEGE | universidad |
| COMPROMISO | obligation, commitment | COMPROMISE | componenda |
| CONDESCENDER | to comply, agree | CONDESCEND | dignarse |
| CONSTIPADO (n.) | a cold | CONSTIPATED | constipado (adj.) |
| CONTESTAR | to answer | CONTEST (v.) | contender |
| CORRIENTEMENTE | fluently, plainly, flatly | CURRENTLY | actualmente |
| DELITO | crime | DELIGHT | delicia, deleite |
| DESGRACIA | mistake, misfortune | DISGRACE | vergüenza |
| DISGUSTO | annoyance, worry | DISGUST | asco, repugnancia |
| DESTITUIDO | fired, deprived | DESTITUTE | indigente |
| DORMITORIO | bedroom | DORMITORY | residencia universitaria |
| EMBARAZADA | pregnant | EMBARRASSED | avergonzada |
| EMPRESA | business enterprise, company | EMPRESS | emperatríz |
| ENVIAR | send | ENVY (v.) | envidiar |
| ESTRECHAR | to narrow, bring closer together | STRETCH | estirar, alargar |
| ESTIMADO | esteemed | ESTIMATE | estimacíon, presupuesto |
| ÉXITO | success, hit | EXIT | salida |
| FÁBRICA | factory | FABRIC | tela |
| GROSERÍA | grossness, crudeness | GROCERY | abarrotería, tienda de comestibles |
| INTRODUCIR | insert | INTRODUCE (someone) | presentar |
| LARGO | long | LARGE | grande |
| LECTURA | reading | LECTURE | conferencia |
| LIBRERÍA | bookstore | LIBRARY | biblioteca |
| MANTEL | tablecloth | MANTEL | manto, mesilla |
| MOLESTAR | bother | MOLEST | abusar (sexualmente) |
| NUDO | knot | NUDE | desnudo |
| PARADA | stop, e.g. bus stop | PARADE | desfile |
| PARIENTE | relative | PARENT | padre |
| PRETENDER | to attempt, to woo | PRETEND | fingir |
| PREOCUPADO | worried | PREOCCUPIED | distraído |
| REALIZAR | to come true | REALIZE | darse cuenta |
| RECORDAR | to remember, remind | RECORD | grabar |
| ROPA | clothes | ROPE | cuerda |
| SANO | healthy | SANE | cuerdo |
| SOPA | soup | SOAP | jabón |
| SOPORTAR | tolerate, put up with | SUPPORT | apoyar |
| SUCESO | event | SUCCESS | éxito |
| TUNA | prickly pear | TUNA | atún |
| ÚLTIMAMENTE | recently | ULTIMATELY | al final |
| VASO | drinking glass | VASE | jarrón, florero |
by Judith B Herman, mental floss.com[:fr]
Because Spanish and English share a lot of words with Latin roots, it’s easy to understand Spanish sentences like, “Seattle aprobó un salario mínimo de $15 la hora.” But sometimes words with the same origin take a separate path in each language, or words with different origins resemble each other by coincidence. That can mean trouble.
by Judith B Herman, mental floss.com
You might want to tell someone you don’t want to embarrass her and wind up saying, “I don’t want to get you pregnant.” For your protection, here’s a list of Spanish-English “false friends.”
The Spanish words in the first column resemble the English ones in the third column, but have different meanings.
| SPANISH word | English translation | ENGLISH word | Spanish translation |
| ACTUAL | current, present-day | ACTUAL | real, efectivo |
| AMERICANO | person from North or South America | AMERICAN | estadounidense |
| ASISTIR | to attend, be present at OR to assist | ASSIST | ayudar |
| BILLóN | (US) trillion, (UK) billion | BILLION (US) | mil millones |
| BIZARRO | dashing, brave, gallant | BIZARRE | extraño |
| BOMBERO | firefighter | BOMBER | bombardero |
| CARPETA | folder | CARPET | alfombra |
| CASUALIDAD | coincidence, chance | CASUALTY | víctima |
| CHOCAR | strike, collide | CHOKE | ahogar |
| CODO | elbow | CODE | código |
| COLEGIO | high school | COLLEGE | universidad |
| COMPROMISO | obligation, commitment | COMPROMISE | componenda |
| CONDESCENDER | to comply, agree | CONDESCEND | dignarse |
| CONSTIPADO (n.) | a cold | CONSTIPATED | constipado (adj.) |
| CONTESTAR | to answer | CONTEST (v.) | contender |
| CORRIENTEMENTE | fluently, plainly, flatly | CURRENTLY | actualmente |
| DELITO | crime | DELIGHT | delicia, deleite |
| DESGRACIA | mistake, misfortune | DISGRACE | vergüenza |
| DISGUSTO | annoyance, worry | DISGUST | asco, repugnancia |
| DESTITUIDO | fired, deprived | DESTITUTE | indigente |
| DORMITORIO | bedroom | DORMITORY | residencia universitaria |
| EMBARAZADA | pregnant | EMBARRASSED | avergonzada |
| EMPRESA | business enterprise, company | EMPRESS | emperatríz |
| ENVIAR | send | ENVY (v.) | envidiar |
| ESTRECHAR | to narrow, bring closer together | STRETCH | estirar, alargar |
| ESTIMADO | esteemed | ESTIMATE | estimacíon, presupuesto |
| ÉXITO | success, hit | EXIT | salida |
| FÁBRICA | factory | FABRIC | tela |
| GROSERÍA | grossness, crudeness | GROCERY | abarrotería, tienda de comestibles |
| INTRODUCIR | insert | INTRODUCE (someone) | presentar |
| LARGO | long | LARGE | grande |
| LECTURA | reading | LECTURE | conferencia |
| LIBRERÍA | bookstore | LIBRARY | biblioteca |
| MANTEL | tablecloth | MANTEL | manto, mesilla |
| MOLESTAR | bother | MOLEST | abusar (sexualmente) |
| NUDO | knot | NUDE | desnudo |
| PARADA | stop, e.g. bus stop | PARADE | desfile |
| PARIENTE | relative | PARENT | padre |
| PRETENDER | to attempt, to woo | PRETEND | fingir |
| PREOCUPADO | worried | PREOCCUPIED | distraído |
| REALIZAR | to come true | REALIZE | darse cuenta |
| RECORDAR | to remember, remind | RECORD | grabar |
| ROPA | clothes | ROPE | cuerda |
| SANO | healthy | SANE | cuerdo |
| SOPA | soup | SOAP | jabón |
| SOPORTAR | tolerate, put up with | SUPPORT | apoyar |
| SUCESO | event | SUCCESS | éxito |
| TUNA | prickly pear | TUNA | atún |
| ÚLTIMAMENTE | recently | ULTIMATELY | al final |
| VASO | drinking glass | VASE | jarrón, florero |
by Judith B Herman, mental floss.com[:]
50 Spanish-English False Friend Words