Discovering Words You Already Know in Spanish

By Lingobi, Published on 01/23/2025

Learning Spanish doesn’t have to feel like starting from scratch. Did you know that English and Spanish share thousands of words that are spelled almost identically? These are called cognates, and they make the process of learning vocabulary much easier and faster.

Below are some common English-Spanish cognates. Notice how similar they look and how their meanings are the same:

English Spanish
Animal Animal
Color Color
Doctor Doctor
Actor Actor
Family Familia
Idea Idea
Festival Festival
Hospital Hospital
Intelligent Inteligente
Minute Minuto
Music Música
Person Persona
Radio Radio
Secret Secreto
Society Sociedad
Television Televisión
Tourist Turista
University Universidad
Vacation Vacación
Visit Visita

These similarities show that learning Spanish isn’t as daunting as it may seem. By starting with cognates, you can quickly build a robust vocabulary and gain the confidence to tackle more complex grammar and syntax.

Make the Most of Cognates with Lingobi

On Lingobi, you can practice these words and many more through engaging activities and connect with a community of learners. Use these shared words as a bridge to immerse yourself in the language and build fluency faster. Ready to begin?