10 Common Mistakes English Speakers Make in Spanish (and How to Fix Them)

Making mistakes is part of learning — but some are very common among English speakers and can make you sound unnatural. Here are the 10 most frequent ones with clear explanations and how to correct them.

1. Using "ser" instead of "estar" (and vice versa)

English only has one verb “to be”, but Spanish has two.
Wrong: Estoy profesor.
Correct: Soy profesor. (permanent characteristic)

Wrong: La manzana es verde (if it’s not ripe).
Correct: La manzana está verde.

2. Forgetting gender and number agreement

Wrong: El casa es grande.
Correct: La casa es grande.

Wrong: Los libro son nuevos.
Correct: Los libros son nuevos.

3. Using the wrong preposition with verbs

Wrong: Pienso en ti (when meaning “I miss you”).
Correct: Te extraño. / Te echo de menos.

Wrong: Dependo de ti (in some contexts).
Correct: Dependo de ti (this one is actually correct, but many confuse it with “I depend in you”).

4. Literal translations from English

Wrong: Tengo 20 años. → (correct, but common mistake is) Yo soy 20 años.
Wrong: Estoy emocionado para el viaje.
Correct: Estoy emocionado por el viaje.

5. Overusing the present continuous

English loves “I’m doing”, but Spanish prefers the simple present for habits and near future.

Wrong: Estoy estudiando español todos los días.
Correct: Estudio español todos los días.

6. Confusing “por” and “para”

Wrong: Estudio para la universidad (if meaning “because of”).
Correct: Estudio por la universidad / Estudio para entrar en la universidad.

7. Incorrect use of articles

Wrong: Me gusta el fútbol americano. (if talking in general)
Correct: Me gusta el fútbol americano. (actually correct, but)
Wrong: La vida es dura. (general) → La vida es dura (correct), but many say “Vida es dura”.

8. Wrong word order with adjectives

Wrong: Casa grande (when it should come after).
Correct: Una casa grande.

9. Using “yo” too much

Spanish drops the subject pronoun much more than English.

Wrong: Yo voy a la tienda. Yo compro pan. Yo vuelvo.
Correct: Voy a la tienda, compro pan y vuelvo.

10. Pronunciation mistakes (especially “b/v”, “ll”, and rolled “r”)

Many English speakers pronounce “v” like in English instead of like “b”, and struggle with the Spanish “r”.

Quick Fix Strategy

1. Be aware of these mistakes
2. Practice with spaced repetition (Bocabla)
3. Listen to native speakers daily
4. Speak from day one, even if you make errors

Fix these mistakes and thousands more with intelligent exercises in Bocabla →