habla inglés
/abla inɡles/from spelling rules
To speak English in Spanish is habla inglés.
This phrase is used to describe the ability to communicate using the English language.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form of the verb changes depending on the subject. Use hablo inglés for 'I speak English' and hablan inglés for 'They speak English'. To express the infinitive 'to speak English', use hablar inglés. This form is typically used when the phrase follows another verb, such as 'can' or 'want'.
What mistakes should you avoid?
In Spanish, the name of the language inglés should not be capitalized unless it is at the beginning of a sentence.
Did you know?
- The Spanish word habla comes from the Latin fābula, which means 'discourse' or 'story'. In Spanish, the word fábula still exists but now specifically refers to a 'fable'.
- Spanish has several ways to describe fluency that go beyond just hablar inglés, such as dominar el inglés, which literally means 'to dominate' or 'master' the language.
- While inglés refers to the language or a person from England, the word hablar is used for speaking languages but not for 'talking' in the sense of chatting, where platicar is common in Mexico.
Examples in context
- Ella no habla inglés.She doesn't speak English.This sentence shows how to use habla inglés in a negative statement about a third person.Tatoeba #1785100 by Shishir, translation #1785091 by Amastan
- Mi madre no habla inglés.My mother does not speak English.Tatoeba #546940 by Shishir, translation #251834 by CN
- ¿Alguien habla inglés aquí?Does anyone here speak English?This sentence shows how to use habla inglés to ask if anyone in a location speaks the language.Tatoeba #613998 by Leono, translation #434638 by lukaszpp
- 25 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Sofía are at a tourist information center.
- DanielHola, ¿tu hermano habla inglés?Hello, does your brother speak English?
- SofíaSí, él habla inglés muy bien.Yes, he speaks English very well.
- DanielPerfecto, necesito ayuda con este mapa.Perfect, I need help with this map.
- SofíaDéjame llamarlo ahora mismo.Let me call him right now.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries habla, inglés, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
