Talk About Skills in Spanish

Quick Answer

¡Hola!Learn how to talk about skills in Spanish! Specifically, learn how to do the following in Spanish:

• talk about things you know how to do

• talk about things you don't know how to do

Vocabulary

Let's start off with the vocab words in these lessons!

Spanish	English
la bicicleta	bicycle
el ceviche	ceviche
el flan	flan
la guitarra	guitar
el inglés	English (language)
el piano	piano
el taco	taco

Capitalization Tip

Remember that languages are not capitalized in Spanish.

Hablo inglés.(I speak English.)

Hablo Inglés.

¿Hablas español?(Do you speak Spanish?)

¿Hablas Español?

examples
Sé montar en bicicleta. I know how to ride a bike.
¿Tocas la guitarra? Do you play the guitar?
Sabemos preparar flan. We know how to prepare flan.
Sabemos preparar tacos. We know how to prepare tacos.
Sé preparar ceviche. I know how to prepare ceviche.
¿Sabes tocar el piano? Do you know how to play the piano?

Verbs

Here are all the verbs you learn in these lessons!

Caminar

Caminaris a regular -ar verb that means to walk.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	camino	I walk
tú	caminas	you walk	informal singular you
vos	caminás	you walk	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	camina	he, she walks
usted	camina	you walk	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	caminamos	we walk
vosotros, vosotras	camináis	you walk	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	caminan	they walk
ustedes	caminan	you walk	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

examples
Mi hija camina. My daughter walks.
Mi hijo no sabe caminar. My son doesn't know how to walk.

Cantar

Cantaris a regular -ar verb that means to sing.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	canto	I sing
tú	cantas	you sing	informal singular you
vos	cantás	you sing	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	canta	he, she sings
usted	canta	you sing	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	cantamos	we sing
vosotros, vosotras	cantáis	you sing	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	cantan	they sing
ustedes	cantan	you sing	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

examples
Mi primo sabe cantar. My cousin knows how to sing.
Yo no canto. I don't sing.

Contar

Contaris a stem-changing verb that means to count. Its "stem," co, changes to cue in all forms except for the vos, nosotros/nosotras, and vosotros/vosotras forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	cuento	I count
tú	cuentas	you count	informal singular you
vos	contás	you count	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	cuenta	he, she counts
usted	cuenta	you count	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	contamos	we count
vosotros, vosotras	contáis	you count	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	cuentan	they count
ustedes	cuentan	you count	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

examples
Sé contar en español. I know how to count in Spanish.
Cuento hasta diez. I count to ten.

Hablar

Hablaris a regular -ar verb that means to speak or to talk.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	hablo	I speak
tú	hablas	you speak	informal singular you
vos	hablás	you speak	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	habla	he, she speaks
usted	habla	you speak	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	hablamos	we speak
vosotros, vosotras	habláis	you speak	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	hablan	they speak
ustedes	hablan	you speak	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

examples
¿Hablas español? Do you speak Spanish?
Hablo inglés. I speak English.

Montar

Montaris a regular -ar verb that means to ride.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	monto	I ride
tú	montas	you ride	informal singular you
vos	montás	you ride	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	monta	he, she rides
usted	monta	you ride	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	montamos	we ride
vosotros, vosotras	montáis	you ride	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	montan	they ride
ustedes	montan	you ride	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Montar is used with en and the word bicicleta to say to ride a bike.

examples

Sé montar en bicicleta.

I know how to ride a bike.

Preparar

Prepararis a regular -ar verb that means to prepare or to make.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	preparo	I prepare
tú	preparas	you prepare	informal singular you
vos	preparás	you prepare	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	prepara	he, she prepares
usted	prepara	you prepare	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	preparamos	we prepare
vosotros, vosotras	preparáis	you prepare	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	preparan	they prepare
ustedes	preparan	you prepare	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

examples
¿Qué sabes preparar? What do you know how to prepare?
Sabemos preparar flan. We know how to prepare flan.
Preparo tacos en la tarde. I make tacos in the afternoon.
Mi abuelo prepara ceviche los sábados. My grandfather makes ceviche on Saturdays.

Saber

Saberis a regular -er verb except for the yo form, which is irregular. Saber means to know or to know how to and is used to talk about skills or general knowledge.

In the Know with Saber

Remember that saber has an irregular yo form!

Yo sé.(I know.)

Yo sabo.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	sé	I know
tú	sabes	you know	informal singular you
vos	sabés	you know	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	sabe	he, she knows
usted	sabe	you know	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	sabemos	we know
vosotros, vosotras	sabéis	you know	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	saben	they know
ustedes	saben	you know	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

examples
Sé hablar inglés. I know how to speak English.
Sabes bailar. You know how to dance.
No sabes montar en bicicleta. You don't know how to ride a bike.
Sabe jugar tenis. He knows how to play tennis.
Sabemos hablar español. We know how to speak Spanish.
¿Saben jugar béisbol? Do you know how to play baseball?
No saben jugar fútbol. They don't know how to play soccer.

Saber + Infinitive

Saber is often followed by a verb in the infinitive (an unconjugated verb).

examples
Sé tocar la guitarra. I know how to play the guitar.
¿Sabes cocinar? Do you know how to cook?

examples

Sé tocar la guitarra.

I know how to play the guitar.

¿Sabes cocinar?

Do you know how to cook?

Tocar

Tocaris a regular -ar verb that means to play when used with a musical instrument.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	toco	I play
tú	tocas	you play	informal singular you
vos	tocás	you play	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	toca	he, she plays
usted	toca	you play	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	tocamos	we play
vosotros, vosotras	tocáis	you play	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	tocan	they play
ustedes	tocan	you play	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

examples
¿Tocas la guitarra? Do you play the guitar?
Toco el piano. I play the piano.

Two Ways to Play

You know two verbs that mean to play, but they're not used in the same contexts!

Jugar (to play) is used to talk about playing sports.

Tocar (to play) is used to talk about playing musical instruments.

Juego fútbol.(I play soccer.)

Toco fútbol.

Toco el piano.(I play the piano.)

Juego el piano.

Culture

In this lesson, you learn words for three delicious foods you'll find in the Spanish-speaking world: ceviche, flan, and tacos!

You're probably familiar with tacos, but you may not be as familiar with ceviche or flan. Let's take a look at the basics of these two yummy foods!

Ceviche

Ceviche is made with raw fish, shrimp, or other seafood that is normally marinated in lime or lemon juice with onions, peppers, and seasonings. Exactly how it's prepared can vary from place to place (and from chef to chef!), but it's a staple of coastal cities all over the Spanish-speaking world.

ceviche