Below are 100 common mistakes that Spanish speakers make in English. Find and correct the mistakes. The answers to the activity are at the bottom of the page.
Before trying this exercise, please see this guide to mistakes Spanish speakers make in English.
Correct the “Spanglish” Mistakes
1. I don’t know how much money my coworkers win.
2. Stacy and Carl have three years together.
3. United States is a big country with about four hundred million residents.
4. Jane filled the form and gave it to the government official.
5. Last night, I dreamt with being an astronaut and going to Mars.
6. We were so excited when we met Times Square.
7. I have six years knowing him.
8. Maintaining a family can be very difficult, especially if only one of the parents works.
9. I try not to lose too much time on Facebook.
10. I don’t use a watch because I don’t like the way it feels on my wrist.
11. Each time he goes to the movies he gets a large popcorn.
12. I don’t know if I can go with you on Sunday. It depends of the time.
13. Always, I drink coffee in the morning.
14. Students can fail the course if they do not attend to class regularly.
15. Right now I’m busy, but I help you as soon as I’m done.
16. Chris was driving drunk, and he crashed with a parked car.
17. All of the members of their family are similar than each other.
18. Some people buy expensive things despite of not having much money.
19. I have to wake up early because I don’t live near to the office.
20. Because of his disease, he has to drink pills every day.
21. She cares her four children while her husband is at work.
22. Mozart had four years when he started composing music.
23. I have a doubt about what I should do in this situation.
24. I’m going to call to my friend and ask to him what he is doing right now. (two mistakes)
25. I knew divorce was common, but I didn’t know that the 40% of marriages end in divorce.
26. When I was a kid I liked more Christmas than Thanksgiving.
27. Do you think that he’s the right person for the job? I think yes.
28. We couldn’t finish watching the movie because we had too much fear.
29. The magician disappeared the rabbit.
30. He seemed really happy after the job interview and confident that they would contract him.
31. I practice basketball with my friends on Sunday mornings.
32. Could you pass me my purse so I can go to the counter and cancel?
33. I have a headache.
Oh, I’m going to get you an Aspirin, then.
34. According Karen, she’s never had a drop of alcohol in her entire life.
35. Worrying for money is very common.
36. I liked Hamlet, but I don’t like most plays written for William Shakespeare.
37. I’ve never been in London, but I would really like to go.
38. The novel has place in Brooklyn in the 1910’s.
39. Maybe they’re going to Russia to visit his family at the end of the year.
40. Put your wallet away. I invite you.
41. Kim wants to change her car.
42. The restaurant is open since 11 a.m. to midnight.
43. I don’t know if I believe you because you have a reputation for not saying the truth.
44. Put the music and let’s dance.
45. She didn’t answer right away because she wanted to think in it.
46. For me the idea is okay.
47. There was a fly in my soup, so they didn’t make us pay our meal.
48. Many writers have written about what the heaven might be like.
49. I’m going to contact with Kevin later today.
50. They’re a lot of fun to be around because they’re in a good mood always.
51. Who is Tom going with in the game tonight between the Yankees and Red Sox?
52. Karla insisted in that she pay for lunch.
53. I think that the kangaroos are the best animal in the world.
54. Mike usually goes to the church on Sunday.
55. The lecture was boring and it was obvious that no one was putting attention.
56. The hotel manager told me to follow her and conducted me to my room.
57. Meg wants to make a party to celebrate Colin’s retirement.
58. Our math homework was really difficult and I couldn’t figure out the number six.
59. I’m hungry. I’m going to cook a dinner.
60. When Kate was child, she used to suck her thumb.
61. Working in sales can be difficult because it’s hard to share a lot of time with your family.
62. I visited Walmart on the way home from work.
63. I’m really good at saving secrets, so my friends tell me a lot of things.
64. Mom, I’d like to present you to my new friend, Sara.
65. They’re looking for someone who knows to use Microsoft Excel.
66. I’m going to start my diet the next week.
67. When Kate knocked on the door, John told her to pass.
68. She can’t go to the movies with us because she studies right now.
69. We weren’t sure what to do because the both options sounded good.
70. Listen your mother and do what she tells you to do.
71. Assembling furniture is something that I’ve never been good in.
72. The cost of living is getting each time more expensive.
73. I wish everyone would leave me in peace.
74. We are eight in my family, so I’m used to sharing things and living with other people.
75. With reason he was selected for the position –- his father-in-law is the CEO.
76. He’s engineer, so he must be good at math.
77. When I found out that we had the same last name, I wondered if I was related with him.
78. Shirley arrived in the bank at nine o’clock in the morning.
79. The good about being bilingual is having more job opportunities.
80. I’m going to try to be more healthy. Since now, I’m going to stop smoking and start exercising.
81. They have a really good marriage and they know that they can trust in each other.
82. Hi, Mike. Welcome to the party. They are my friends, Mike and Sally.
83. Washing your teeth after every meal helps prevent cavities.
84. When I’m in the job, I try to focus on my work and not get distracted.
85.The police knocked the neighbors’ doors to find out if they knew anything about the crime..
86. After watching the movie, David and Susan decided to go to home and get some sleep.
87. What they showed us was the exact opposite to what we were expecting.
88. Many people would prefer to do business in person and not talk for the phone.
89. Can you believe that there are only six days more until Christmas?
90. Some people think that you shouldn’t marry with someone until you have lived with that person.
91. My son broke one of our dishes, but he didn’t do it to purpose so we weren’t mad at him.
92. Your purse is the same to mine.
93. My job is stressful for the long hours.
94. The psychology has always fascinated me, which is why I took a psychology course in college.
95. When they were kids, they used to watch the baseball on TV almost every day.
96. I don’t have an idea who she is.
97. I go once in awhile to the movies.
98. We can’t leave yet because we are still waiting John and Mike to get here.
99. I thought he was being serious until he smiled to me and laughed.
100. The students asked for more time to do their essay, but the teacher told them that no.
Answers
For explanations, please see this guide to mistakes Spanish speakers make in English.
1. I don’t know how much money my coworkers win make.
2. Stacy and Carl have three years together have been together for three years.
3. The United States is a big country with about four hundred million residents.
4. Jane filled out the form (or filled the form out) and gave it to the government official.
5. Last night, I dreamt with about being an astronaut and going to Mars.
6. We were so excited when we met went to Times Square for the first time.
7. I have six years knowing him known him for six years.
8. Maintaining Supporting a family can be very difficult, especially if only one of the parents works.
9. I try not to lose waste too much time on Facebook.
10. I don’t use wear a watch because I don’t like the way it feels on my wrist.
11. Each Every time he goes to the movies he gets a large popcorn.
12. I don’t know if I can go with you on Sunday. It depends of on the time.
13. Always, I always drink coffee in the morning.
14. Students can fail the course if they do not attend to class regularly.
15. Right now I’m busy, but I’ll help you (or I can help you) as soon as I’m done.
16. Chris was driving drunk, and he crashed with into a parked car.
17. All of the members of their family are similar than to each other.
18. Some people buy expensive things despite of not having much money (or even though/although they don’t have much money).
19. I have to wake up early because I don’t live near to (or close to) the office.
20. Because of his disease, he has to drink take pills every day.
21. She cares takes care of/looks after her four children while her husband is at work.
22. Mozart had four years was four years old (or was four) when he started composing music.
23. I have a doubt about I’m not sure what I should do in this situation.
24. I’m going to call to my friend and ask to him what he is doing right now. (two mistakes)
25. I knew divorce was common, but I didn’t know that the 40% of marriages end in divorce.
26. When I was a kid I liked more Christmas more than Thanksgiving.
27. Do you think that he’s the right person for the job? I think yes he is.
28. We couldn’t finish watching the movie because we had too much fear were too scared.
29. The magician disappeared the rabbit made the rabbit disappear.
30. He seemed really happy after the job interview and confident that they would contract hire him.
31. I practice play basketball with my friends on Sunday mornings.
32. Could you pass me my purse so I can go to the counter and cancel pay?
33. I have a headache.
Oh, I’m going to I’ll get you an Aspirin, then.
34. According to Karen, she’s never had a drop of alcohol in her entire life.
35. Worrying for about money is very common.
36. I liked Hamlet, but I don’t like most plays written for by William Shakespeare.
37. I’ve never been in to London, but I would really like to go.
38. The novel has place takes place in Brooklyn in the 1910’s.
39. Maybe they’re going They might go to Russia to visit his family at the end of the year.
40. Put your wallet away. I invite you I’m buying/I got it/It’s on me.
41. Kim wants to change her car get a new car.
42. The restaurant is open since from 11 a.m. to midnight.
43. I don’t know if I believe you because you have a reputation for not saying telling the truth.
44. Put the music on (or Put on the music) and let’s dance.
45. She didn’t answer right away because she wanted to think in about it.
46. For me I think the idea is okay.
47. There was a fly in my soup, so they didn’t make us pay for our meal.
48. Many writers have written about what the heaven might be like.
49. I’m going to contact with Kevin later today.
50. They’re a lot of fun to be around because they’re always in a good mood always.
51. Who is Tom going with rooting for (or Who does Tim want to win) in the game tonight between the Yankees and Red Sox?
52. Karla insisted in (that) she pay for lunch. (“that” is optional in this sentence)
53. I think (that) the kangaroos are the best animal in the world. (“that” is optional in this sentence)
54. Mike usually goes to the church on Sunday.
55. The lecture was boring and it was obvious that no one was putting attention paying attention.
56. The hotel manager told me to follow her and conducted led me to my room.
57. Meg wants to make have/throw a party to celebrate Colin’s retirement.
58. Our math homework was really difficult and I couldn’t figure out the number six.
59. I’m hungry. I’m going to cook a dinner.
60. When Kate was a child, she used to suck her thumb.
61. Working in sales can be difficult because it’s hard to share spend a lot of time with your family.
62. I visited went to/stopped at Walmart on the way home from work.
63. I’m really good at saving keeping secrets, so my friends tell me a lot of things.
64. Mom, I’d like to present introduce you to my new friend, Sara.
65. They’re looking for someone who knows how to use Microsoft Excel,
66. I’m going to start my diet the next week.
67. When Kate knocked on the door, John told her to pass come in,
68. She can’t go to the movies with us because she studies is studying right now.
69. We weren’t sure what to do because the both options sounded good.
70. Listen to your mother and do what she tells you to do.
71. Assembling furniture is something that I’ve never been good in at.
72. The cost of living is getting each time more expensive more and more expensive.
73. I wish everyone would leave me in peace alone.
74. We are eight in my family, There are eight of us in my family, so I’m used to sharing things and living with other people.
75. With reason No wonder he was selected for the position –- his father-in-law is the CEO.
76. He’s an engineer, so he must be good at math.
77. When I found out that we had the same last name, I wondered if I was related with to him.
78. Shirley arrived in at (or got to) the bank at nine o’clock in the morning.
79. The good thing/part about being bilingual is having more job opportunities.
80. I’m going to try to be more healthy. Since now, From now on/Starting now, I’m going to stop smoking and start exercising.
81. They have a really good marriage and they know that they can trust in each other.
82. Hi, Mike. Welcome to the party. They These are my friends, Mike and Sally.
83. Washing Brushing your teeth after every meal helps prevent cavities.
84. When I’m in the job at work, I try to focus on my work and not get distracted.
85. The police knocked on the neighbors’ doors to find out if they knew anything about the crime.
86. After watching the movie, David and Susan decided to go to home and get some sleep.
87. What they showed us was the exact opposite to of what we were expecting.
88. Many people would prefer to do business in person and not talk for on the phone.
89. Can you believe that there are only six days more six more days until Christmas?
90. Some people think that you shouldn’t marry with someone until you have lived with that person.
91. My son broke one of our dishes, but he didn’t do it to on purpose so we weren’t mad at him.
92. Your purse is the same to as mine.
93. My job is stressful for because of/due to the long hours.
94. The Psychology has always fascinated me, which is why I took a psychology course in college.
95. When they were kids, they used to watch the baseball on TV almost every day.
96. I don’t have an I have no idea who she is.
97. I go once in awhile to the movies once in awhile.
98. We can’t leave yet because we are still waiting for John and Mike to get here.
99. I thought he was being serious until he smiled to at me and laughed.
100. The students asked for more time to do their essay, but the teacher told them that no.
For more error correction exercises, see:
Spanish to English False Friends
Exercise 1 (beginner)
Exercise 2A (intermediate)
Exercise 2B (intermediate)
Exercise 2C (intermediate)
Exercise 3A (advanced)
Common Mistakes in Emails
Common Mistakes in Emails 2