frases comunes
/fɾases komunes/from spelling rules
The English phrase "common phrases" is translated into Spanish as frases comunes.
The term frases comunes refers to common phrases. Other useful phrases include Hola (Hello), Gracias (Thank you) and Por favor (Please). Greetings vary by time of day: use Buenos días (Good morning) until noon, Buenas tardes (Good afternoon) from noon until evening and Buenas noches (Good evening/night) to greet someone in the evening or night. To express apologies or requests, you can use Lo siento (I'm sorry), Perdón (Excuse me) or Disculpe (Excuse me). If you need assistance, ¿Puede ayudarme? is a polite way to ask "Can you help me?" For navigation or communication, ¿Dónde está…? means "Where is…?", Estoy perdido/a means "I'm lost" and ¿Habla inglés? means "Do you speak English?" To engage in conversation, you might use ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?), Me llamo… (My name is…), Encantado/a de conocerte (Nice to meet you), ¿A qué te dedicas? (What do you do?) or Me gusta… (I like…). Other social expressions include Lo entiendo (I understand), De nada (You're welcome), ¡Salud! (Bless you!/Cheers!), ¡Feliz cumpleaños! (Happy birthday!), ¡Buen provecho! (Enjoy your meal!) and ¡Buena suerte! (Good luck!).
What does it mean word for word?
The term frases comunes breaks down into frases, meaning "phrases" and comunes, meaning "common".
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
When asking for a name, use ¿Cómo te llamas? for an informal approach and ¿Cómo se llama? for a formal approach. To ask about someone's well-being, ¿Qué tal? is an informal way to say "How's it going?" To get someone's attention or apologize, Disculpe is a formal way to say "Excuse me".
How does it change in a sentence?
Both the noun frase and the adjective común must be pluralized to frases comunes to agree in number. To refer to a single common phrase, use the singular form frase común.
Did you know?
- In some Spanish-speaking cultures, saying ¡Buen provecho! is so common that it is often said to strangers as you walk past their table in a restaurant.
- A frase hecha is a specific type of common phrase that translates to a 'made phrase', which is the Spanish term for an 'idiom'.
- The word salud literally translates to 'health', which is why it is used both as a toast for drinks and as a response when someone sneezes.
Examples in context
- Estoy aprendiendo algunas frases comunes.I am learning some common phrases.
- ¿Puedes enseñarme frases comunes en español?Can you teach me common phrases in Spanish?
- Este libro tiene muchas frases comunes.This book has many common phrases.
Example conversation
Lucía and Alejandro are studying together in a cafe.
- LucíaAlejandro, ¿conoces algunas frases comunes de este país?Alejandro, do you know some common phrases from this country?
- AlejandroSí, puedo ayudarte con esas frases comunes.Yes, I can help you with those common phrases.
- Lucía¡Qué amable eres!You are so kind!
- AlejandroDe nada, Lucía.You're welcome, Lucía.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
