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39 Spanish word patterns that unlock thousands of words

Verbamor's free Spanish word patterns list puts 39 rules on one page. Each rule works on a whole group of words, so together they cover thousands. The page and the PDF give you 310 examples to start with. The first 4 are open below. Leave your email to open the other 35 and get the printable PDF.

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-tion → -ción

information in English is información in Spanish.

39 patterns
310 example words
7 groups
Free PDF

Words you already know 22

English shares thousands of words with Spanish. Learn one ending and you get the whole group.

-tion-ciónFeminine, la Nation, station, information -tion becomes -ción

English words that end in -tion end in -ción in Spanish. These words are feminine. Say la nación. The stress mark sits on the ó.

la naciónnation
la informacióninformation
la educacióneducation
la estaciónstation
la conversaciónconversation
la atenciónattention
la celebracióncelebration
la situaciónsituation

-sion-siónFeminine, la Television, decision, version -sion becomes -sión

English words that end in -sion end in -sión. These words are feminine. Say la decisión.

la televisióntelevision
la decisióndecision
la versiónversion
la ocasiónoccasion
la pasiónpassion
la tensióntension
la confusiónconfusion
la explosiónexplosion

-ty-dadFeminine, la University, city, identity -ty becomes -dad

English words that end in -ty end in -dad. These words are feminine. Say la ciudad.

la universidaduniversity
la ciudadcity
la identidadidentity
la sociedadsociety
la realidadreality
la calidadquality
la actividadactivity
la posibilidadpossibility

-ly-mente Finally, normally, probably -ly becomes -mente

English adverbs that end in -ly end in -mente. Take the feminine adjective. Add -mente. Rápida becomes rápidamente.

finalmentefinally
normalmentenormally
probablementeprobably
generalmentegenerally
exactamenteexactly
rápidamenterapidly
completamentecompletely
especialmenteespecially

-ous-oso Famous, delicious, curious -ous becomes -oso

English adjectives that end in -ous end in -oso. Use -osa with a feminine noun. Un hombre famoso. Una mujer famosa.

famosofamous
deliciosodelicious
curiosocurious
nerviosonervous
generosogenerous
peligrosodangerous
preciosoprecious
misteriosomysterious

-ic-ico Fantastic, romantic, electric -ic becomes -ico

English adjectives that end in -ic or -ical end in -ico. Use -ica with a feminine noun. The stress mark goes on the vowel before -ico.

fantásticofantastic
románticoromantic
eléctricoelectric
públicopublic
típicotypical
políticopolitical
clásicoclassic
económicoeconomic

-al stays -al Animal, hospital, natural -al stays -al

Many English words that end in -al are the same in Spanish. The spelling does not change. The sound does. Say the a like the a in father.

animalanimal
hospitalhospital
naturalnatural
finalfinal
normalnormal
totaltotal
personalpersonal
capitalcapital

-ist-ista Artist, tourist, dentist -ist becomes -ista

English words for people that end in -ist end in -ista. The word is the same for men and women. Only the article changes. El artista. La artista.

artistaartist
turistatourist
dentistadentist
pianistapianist
optimistaoptimist
especialistaspecialist
novelistanovelist
realistarealist

-ism-ismoMasculine, el Tourism, optimism, realism -ism becomes -ismo

English words that end in -ism end in -ismo. These words are masculine. Say el turismo.

el turismotourism
el optimismooptimism
el capitalismocapitalism
el realismorealism
el organismoorganism
el mecanismomechanism
el socialismosocialism
el idealismoidealism

-ble stays -ble Possible, terrible, flexible -ble stays -ble

English adjectives that end in -ble end in -ble. Double letters become one letter. Possible is posible. The word is the same for masculine and feminine.

posiblepossible
terribleterrible
responsableresponsible
horriblehorrible
probableprobable
flexibleflexible
visiblevisible
increíbleincredible

-ent / -ant-ente / -ante Important, different, student -ent / -ant becomes -ente / -ante

English words that end in -ent or -ant add an e. Important is importante. Different is diferente. The word is the same for masculine and feminine.

importanteimportant
diferentedifferent
presidentepresident
estudiantestudent
elefanteelephant
restauranterestaurant
inteligenteintelligent
excelenteexcellent

-ance / -ence-ancia / -enciaFeminine, la Distance, experience, science -ance / -ence becomes -ancia / -encia

English words that end in -ance or -ence end in -ancia or -encia. These words are feminine. Say la experiencia.

la distanciadistance
la importanciaimportance
la experienciaexperience
la diferenciadifference
la pacienciapatience
la cienciascience
la presenciapresence
la eleganciaelegance

-age-ajeMasculine, el Message, garage, percentage -age becomes -aje

English words that end in -age often end in -aje in Spanish. These words are masculine. Say el mensaje. The j sounds like a strong English h.

el mensajemessage
el garajegarage
el porcentajepercentage
el lenguajelanguage (speech, wording)
el masajemassage
el pasajepassage
el corajecourage
el sabotajesabotage

-or stays -orMasculine, el Color, error, motor -or stays -or

Many English words that end in -or are the same in Spanish. These words are masculine. Say el color. The stress is on the last part. Two common words are feminine. Say la flor and la labor.

el colorcolor
el errorerror
el motormotor
el favorfavor
el humorhumor
el honorhonor
el horrorhorror
el terrorterror

-ate-ar Celebrate, create, participate -ate becomes -ar

English verbs that end in -ate often end in -ar in Spanish. Remove -ate. Add -ar. These verbs are regular. Say yo celebro.

celebrarto celebrate
crearto create
participarto participate
comunicarto communicate
decorarto decorate
separarto separate
educarto educate
calcularto calculate

-ize / -ify-izar / -ificar Organize, authorize, identify -ize / -ify becomes -izar / -ificar

English verbs that end in -ize end in -izar. English verbs that end in -ify end in -ificar. Organize is organizar. Identify is identificar.

organizarto organize
utilizarto utilize
autorizarto authorize
modernizarto modernize
identificarto identify
modificarto modify
simplificarto simplify
verificarto verify

s-es- School, special, space S- becomes es-

Spanish words do not start with s + consonant. They add an e first. School is escuela. Special is especial. Remove the e to find the English word.

escuelaschool
especialspecial
espaciospace
estilostyle
estadostate
estrésstress
escenascene
esqueletoskeleton

-ology-ologíaFeminine, la Biology, technology, psychology -ology becomes -ología

English words that end in -ology end in -ología in Spanish. These words are feminine. Say la biología. The stress mark sits on the í.

la biologíabiology
la psicologíapsychology
la tecnologíatechnology
la ecologíaecology
la sociologíasociology
la arqueologíaarchaeology
la mitologíamythology
la ideologíaideology

-ary-ario Necessary, vocabulary, salary -ary becomes -ario

English words that end in -ary often end in -ario. Most are masculine nouns. Say el diccionario. A few are adjectives. Necessary is necesario. Use -aria with a feminine noun. Say una cosa necesaria.

necesarionecessary
vocabulariovocabulary
salariosalary
aniversarioanniversary
diccionariodictionary
contrariocontrary
itinerarioitinerary
comentariocommentary

-ive-ivo Active, positive, creative -ive becomes -ivo

English adjectives that end in -ive end in -ivo. Use -iva with a feminine noun. Un hombre activo. Una mujer activa.

activoactive
positivopositive
negativonegative
creativocreative
efectivoeffective
exclusivoexclusive
agresivoaggressive
nativonative

-ure-uraFeminine, la Culture, temperature, adventure -ure becomes -ura

English words that end in -ure often end in -ura. These words are feminine. Say la cultura.

la culturaculture
la temperaturatemperature
la estructurastructure
la figurafigure
la literaturaliterature
la arquitecturaarchitecture
la aventuraadventure
la agriculturaagriculture

phf Telephone, pharmacy, philosophy Ph becomes f

Spanish has no ph. It writes f. Telephone is teléfono. Spanish also has no th. It writes t. Theater is teatro.

filosofíaphilosophy
teléfonotelephone
farmaciapharmacy
fotografíaphotography
frasephrase
físicaphysics
alfabetoalphabet
geografíageography

Gender and articles 6

The ending or the meaning of a word often gives its gender. Learn the group, not each word.

-maMasculine, el Problem, system, climate Greek words in -ma are masculine

Most words that end in -a are feminine. Words from Greek that end in -ma are masculine. Say el problema. Many are almost the same in English.

el problemaproblem
el sistemasystem
el tematopic
el climaclimate
el idiomalanguage (Spanish, Japanese)
el programaprogram
el poemapoem
el dramadrama

elFeminine, la Water, hunger, eagle Feminine words that take el

A feminine word that starts with a stressed a takes el. Say el agua. The word stays feminine. Say el agua fría. The plural takes las. Say las aguas.

el aguawater
el hambrehunger
el águilaeagle
el almasoul
el áreaarea
el aulaclassroom
el armaweapon
el hachaaxe

a → o Apple, orange, cherry The fruit is feminine, the tree is masculine

The fruit often ends in -a and is feminine. Change -a to -o for the tree. The tree is masculine. La manzana grows on el manzano.

la manzana · el manzanoapple
la naranja · el naranjoorange
la cereza · el cerezocherry
la ciruela · el cirueloplum
la almendra · el almendroalmond
la castaña · el castañochestnut
la avellana · el avellanohazelnut

la Head, arm, leg Body parts take the article, not my

Spanish uses the article with parts of the body. It does not use my or your. Say me duele la cabeza. Say me lavo las manos.

la cabezahead
el brazoarm
la piernaleg
el piefoot
el ojoeye
la bocamouth
la espaldaback
el estómagostomach

elMasculine, el Monday, Friday, Sunday El lunes means on Monday

Use el with a day to say on. El lunes means on Monday. Los lunes means on Mondays. The days from lunes to viernes do not change in the plural. Write days with a small letter.

el lunesMonday
el martesTuesday
el miércolesWednesday
el juevesThursday
el viernesFriday
el sábadoSaturday
el domingoSunday

en Mexico, Spain, Germany Countries take no article

Most countries take no article. Say vivo en México. Say soy de España. A few names keep the article. Say El Salvador, la India and el Reino Unido.

MéxicoMexico
EspañaSpain
FranciaFrance
AlemaniaGermany
ItaliaItaly
BrasilBrazil
JapónJapan
InglaterraEngland

Exceptions 2

These common words break the rules. Learn each set together.

≠ Hand, day, map Words that break the -o and -a rule

Words that end in -o are usually masculine. Words that end in -a are usually feminine. These common words break the rule. Foto and moto are short for fotografía and motocicleta.

la manohand
la fotophoto
la motomotorcycle
la radioradio
el díaday
el mapamap
el planetaplanet
el sofásofa

≈ Pregnant, current, success Words that look like English but are not

Most look-alike words mean the same in English. These do not. Embarazada means pregnant, not embarrassed. Learn the real meaning of each one.

embarazadapregnantnot embarrassed
actualcurrentnot actual
éxitosuccessnot exit
carpetafoldernot carpet
sopasoupnot soap
ropaclothesnot rope
largolongnot large
sensiblesensitivenot sensible

Plurals and other rules 2

One small rule changes many words.

z → ces Light, time, pencil The plural of -z is -ces

Words that end in -z change the z to c in the plural. Then add -es. Luz becomes luces. Spanish does not write z before e.

luz becomes luceslight
vez becomes vecestime (occasion)
lápiz becomes lápicespencil
pez becomes pecesfish
voz becomes vocesvoice
nariz becomes naricesnose
actriz becomes actricesactress
feliz becomes feliceshappy

¿? What, where, when Question words take a stress mark

Question words take a stress mark. Qué means what. Without the mark, que means that. The sound is the same. Write ¿ at the start of a question.

quéwhatque = that
cómohowcomo = like, as
dóndewheredonde = the place where
cuándowhencuando = at the time when
quiénwhoquien = the person who
cuálwhichel cual, la cual = which
cuántohow muchcuanto = as much as
por quéwhyporque = because

Word building 3

Add a small part to a word you know. You get a new word.

-eríaFeminine, la Bakery, bookshop, shoe shop Add -ería for the shop

Add -ería to a thing to name the shop that sells it. Zapato becomes zapatería. These words are feminine. Be careful with librería. It is a bookshop, not a library.

el pan becomes la panaderíabakery
el zapato becomes la zapateríashoe shop
el libro becomes la libreríabookshop
la carne becomes la carniceríabutcher shop
el pescado becomes la pescaderíafish shop
el helado becomes la heladeríaice cream shop
la fruta becomes la fruteríafruit shop
el pastel becomes la pasteleríapastry shop

-dorMasculine, el Worker, player, seller -dor names the person who does it

Take an -ar or -er verb. Remove the r. Add -dor for the person who does it. Trabajar becomes trabajador. Vender becomes vendedor. Add -a for a woman. Say la trabajadora.

trabajar becomes el trabajadorworker
jugar becomes el jugadorplayer
vender becomes el vendedorseller
entrenar becomes el entrenadorcoach
ganar becomes el ganadorwinner
nadar becomes el nadadorswimmer
pescar becomes el pescadorfisherman
diseñar becomes el diseñadordesigner

des- Undo, disappear, unknown Des- makes the opposite

Add des- to make the opposite. Hacer becomes deshacer. Aparecer becomes desaparecer. Desayuno is the meal that ends the ayuno, the fast.

hacer becomes deshacerto undo
aparecer becomes desaparecerto disappear
conocido becomes desconocidounknown
agradable becomes desagradableunpleasant
empleo becomes desempleounemployment
orden becomes desordendisorder
conectar becomes desconectarto disconnect
ayuno becomes desayunobreakfast

Verbs 3

Each set of verbs behaves in one way. Learn the set together.

me Like, love, hurt The thing you like is the subject

Gustar means to be pleasing. The thing you like is the subject. Say me gusta el café. Use gustan for many things. Say me gustan los libros. These verbs work the same way.

gustar becomes me gustato like
encantar becomes me encantato love (a thing)
doler becomes me dueleto hurt
faltar becomes me faltato lack
importar becomes me importato matter
interesar becomes me interesato interest
molestar becomes me molestato bother
parecer becomes me pareceto seem

yo -go Have, put, leave The yo form ends in -go

Some common verbs end in -go in the yo form. Tener becomes tengo. Only the yo form does this. Say yo salgo, but tú sales.

tener becomes tengoto have
venir becomes vengoto come
poner becomes pongoto put
salir becomes salgoto leave
hacer becomes hagoto do
decir becomes digoto say
traer becomes traigoto bring
oír becomes oigoto hear

he… Done, said, seen Past forms that break the rule

Most past forms end in -ado or -ido. Hablar becomes hablado. These common verbs break the rule. Hacer becomes hecho. Say he hecho for I have done.

hacer becomes hechodone
decir becomes dichosaid
ver becomes vistoseen
poner becomes puestoput
escribir becomes escritowritten
abrir becomes abiertoopened
volver becomes vueltoreturned
romper becomes rotobroken

Pronunciation 1

Some letters do not sound the way an English reader expects.

h Hello, hour, man The letter h is silent

The letter h is always silent in Spanish. Say OH-la for hola. The pair ch is different. It sounds like ch in cheese.

holahelloOH-la
horahourOH-ra
hombremanOM-breh
hijosonEE-kho
hoytodayoy
hotelhoteloh-TEL
hermanobrotherer-MA-no
huevoeggWEH-vo

C Colin Taylor Oct 22, 2026 · 8 min read Drafted with Claude (AI), reviewed and edited by Colin Taylor. How pieces are written

How to use these patterns

Read one pattern a day. Say the example words out loud. Then look for that pattern in what you read and hear that week. A pattern you notice three times in real Spanish stays with you.

Start with the first group, words you already know. Those 22 patterns turn English words you use every day into Spanish ones. The gender group comes next. It tells you el or la before you look the word up.

A pattern is a guide, and every guide has exceptions. The exceptions group lists the common ones, like la mano. When a word you made from a pattern sounds wrong, check it.

Patterns cover the words you can work out. For the words you can't, the cognate checker marks the false friends that look like English and mean something else.

Questions people ask

What is a Spanish word pattern?

A rule that changes many words at once. English words that end in -tion end in -ción in Spanish, and they are all feminine. When you know that rule, you know la nación, la estación and la información before anyone teaches them to you.

Do the patterns always work?

Most of the time, and each pattern says where it stops. The -or pattern gives masculine words, and it names the two common feminine ones, la flor and la labor. The false friends pattern lists words that look like English and mean something else, like embarazada, which means pregnant.

Is this the same as the Word patterns screen in Verbamor?

Yes. These are the same 39 Spanish patterns. In the app you can pick any example word and save it as a flashcard with a picture, an example sentence and audio.

What do I get by email?

A printable PDF with all 39 patterns and 310 example words, and my post-lesson debrief handbook. Then a few short emails. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Save a whole pattern as flashcards.

Open Word patterns in Verbamor, pick the words you want, and save them. Each card gets a picture, an example sentence and audio, and comes back just before you forget it.

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