First Conversation in Spanish

You have already learned how to greet someone, introduce yourself, give basic personal information, spell your name, share your phone number and ask for help when you do not understand.

Now it is time to put everything together. In this lesson, you will practise your first complete conversation in Spanish and check whether you can communicate without reading every answer.

Basic Grammar Applied to This Lesson

Bring the First Six Lessons Together

Today you are not learning a completely new set of phrases. You are going to reuse the Spanish from Lessons 1–6 in a longer and more realistic conversation.

By the end of this review, you should be able to:

greet someone politely;
say your name;
ask another person’s name;
say where you are from;
say where you live;
mention the languages you speak;
give and check your phone number;
spell your name or email address;
ask someone to repeat or speak more slowly;
finish the conversation politely.

Do not worry if you need to pause. The objective is not to speak perfectly. The objective is to keep communicating.

Part 1 — Your Essential Spanish

Listen and repeat each expression three times. Then try to say it once without reading.

1. Hello

Hola. 🔊

Meaning: Hello.

Use hola at almost any time of day. It is suitable for both informal and many everyday formal situations.

Listen, repeat and look at the other person naturally.

2. Good morning

Buenos días. 🔊

Meaning: Good morning.

Use it from the morning until around lunchtime. It is polite and useful in shops, workplaces, appointments and offices.

3. My name is…

Me llamo… 🔊

Meaning: My name is…

Use this to introduce yourself.

Example:

Me llamo Ana. 🔊

The example name can be replaced with your own name.

4. What is your name?

¿Cómo te llamas? 🔊

Meaning: What is your name?

Use this with someone you speak to informally.

For a more formal situation, use:

¿Cómo se llama usted? 🔊

Meaning: What is your name?

This form is useful with an employer, an older person, an official or someone you do not know well.

5. I am from the Philippines

Soy de Filipinas. 🔊

Meaning: I am from the Philippines.

Use soy de to say your country of origin.

Alternative example:

Soy de Inglaterra. 🔊

6. I live in Madrid

Vivo en Madrid. 🔊

Meaning: I live in Madrid.

Use vivo en followed by the city or place where you currently live.

7. I speak a little Spanish

Hablo un poco de español. 🔊

Meaning: I speak a little Spanish.

This is useful when you want the other person to know that you can communicate, but you may still need help.

You can also say:

Estoy aprendiendo español. 🔊

Meaning: I am learning Spanish.

8. My number is…

Mi número es… 🔊

Meaning: My number is…

Say the digits slowly and separately.

Example:

Mi número es seis, uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho. 🔊

Do not copy this number as your personal number. Practise with your own number.

9. How do you spell it?

¿Cómo se escribe? 🔊

Meaning: How do you spell it? / How is it written?

Use this when you need to know how a name, surname or word is written.

You may also hear:

¿Puede deletrearlo? 🔊

Meaning: Can you spell it?

10. I don’t understand

No entiendo. 🔊

Meaning: I don’t understand.

This is one of the most important survival expressions in Spanish.

You can continue with:

Más despacio, por favor. 🔊

Meaning: More slowly, please.

Or:

¿Puede repetir? 🔊

Meaning: Can you repeat?

11. Thank you very much

Muchas gracias. 🔊

Meaning: Thank you very much.

Use it when someone helps you, repeats information or waits while you speak.

A common reply is:

De nada. 🔊

Meaning: You’re welcome.

Part 2 — Build Your Personal Introduction

Complete the information with your real details.

Read the model first:

Hola. Buenos días. Me llamo ________________. Soy de ________________. Vivo en ________________. Hablo ________________ y estoy aprendiendo español.

Now prepare your own version.

Step 1 — Say it while reading

Read your complete introduction slowly.

Step 2 — Say it with only these prompts

greeting;
name;
country;
city;
languages;
learning Spanish.

Step 3 — Say it without looking

Try to give your complete introduction from memory.

It is acceptable to pause for a few seconds. Avoid returning to English immediately. Use one of your survival phrases if you become confused.

For example:

Un momento, por favor.

This expression has not been a main phrase in the previous lessons, so you do not need to memorise it for today’s assessment. You may simply pause and continue.

Part 3 — Quick Review Practice

Choose or complete the correct answer

1. You meet someone in the morning. What do you say?

a) Buenas noches.
b) Buenos días.
c) De nada.

2. Complete the introduction:

Me __________ Elena.

a) llamo
b) vivo
c) hablo

3. You want to ask someone’s name informally.

a) ¿Cómo te llamas?
b) ¿Dónde vives?
c) ¿Cuál es tu número?

4. Complete the sentence:

Soy __________ Filipinas.

a) en
b) de
c) un

5. Complete the sentence:

Vivo __________ Madrid.

a) de
b) a
c) en

6. Someone speaks too quickly. What do you say?

a) Más despacio, por favor.
b) Mi número es…
c) Mucho gusto.

7. You did not hear the information clearly.

a) ¿Puede repetir?
b) ¿Cómo te llamas?
c) No pasa nada.

8. Someone asks for your telephone number. Complete the answer:

Mi __________ es seis, uno, dos…

a) nombre
b) número
c) país

9. Someone asks how your surname is written. What can you do?

a) Say the letters one by one.
b) Give your nationality.
c) Say “Buenas noches”.

10. Someone helps you. What do you say?

a) Muchas gracias.
b) No entiendo.
c) ¿Qué significa?

H5P activity

(H5P — Quiz aquí)

Recommended activity: Question Set.

Settings:

allow the learner to retry;
show the correct answer after each attempt;
include the ten questions above;
randomise the answer order when possible.

Answers — Quick Review Practice

Buenos días.
Me llamo Elena.
¿Cómo te llamas?
Soy de Filipinas.
Vivo en Madrid.
Más despacio, por favor.
¿Puede repetir?
Mi número es…
Say the letters one by one.
Muchas gracias.

Part 4 — Listening and Your First Complete Dialogue

This dialogue brings together the main skills from the first week.

Before reading

First, listen to the complete conversation without looking at the text.

Try to identify:

the greeting;
the two names;
the country;
the city;
the telephone number;
the moment when one person does not understand.

Complete dialogue

A: Buenos días. 🔊

B: Hola, buenos días. 🔊

A: Me llamo Carlos. ¿Cómo te llamas? 🔊

B: Me llamo Maria. Mucho gusto. 🔊

A: Mucho gusto. ¿De dónde eres? 🔊

B: Soy de Filipinas. 🔊

A: ¿Vives en Madrid? 🔊

B: Sí, vivo en Madrid. 🔊

A: ¿Hablas español? 🔊

B: Hablo un poco de español. Estoy aprendiendo español. 🔊

A: Muy bien. ¿Cuál es tu número de teléfono? 🔊

B: Mi número es seis, uno, cuatro, dos, cinco, tres, ocho, nueve, cero. 🔊

A: Perdón, no entiendo. ¿Puede repetir? 🔊

B: Sí. Seis, uno, cuatro, dos, cinco, tres, ocho, nueve, cero. 🔊

A: Gracias. ¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre? 🔊

B: Se escribe eme, a, erre, i, a. 🔊

A: Muchas gracias. 🔊

B: De nada. 🔊

Listening sequence

Listen once without reading.
Listen again while following the text.
Read the part of person B aloud.
Read both parts, changing your voice slightly.
Replace the information with your own details.

Comprehension questions

1. Where is person B from?

2. Where does person B live?

3. Does person B speak perfect Spanish?

4. Why does person A ask for the number again?

5. What information does person B spell?

Comprehension answers

Person B is from the Philippines.
Person B lives in Madrid.
No. Person B speaks a little Spanish and is learning.
Person A does not understand the number clearly.
Person B spells their name.

Part 5 — Guided Conversation With a Support Person

Ask a friend, relative or support person to practise with you.

The support person should ask the questions naturally. They should not correct every small mistake while you are speaking. First, allow the conversation to continue. Corrections can come after the activity.

Round 1 — With help

Your support person asks:

Hola. ¿Cómo te llamas?
¿De dónde eres?
¿Dónde vives?
¿Qué idiomas hablas?
¿Hablas español?
¿Cuál es tu número de teléfono?
¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre?

You answer using your own information.

During the conversation, your support person should deliberately say one question too quickly.

You must respond with one of these expressions:

No entiendo.
Más despacio, por favor.
¿Puede repetir?
Otra vez, por favor.

Round 2 — Less help

This time, your support person should change the order of the questions.

Do not read complete answers. Look only at these prompts:

greeting;
name;
country;
city;
languages;
Spanish level;
telephone;
spelling;
request for repetition;
thanks.

Round 3 — Without prompts

Try to complete the conversation without looking at the page.

The conversation does not need to be identical to the model. What matters is that the other person understands your essential information.

Part 6 — Spelling Check

Your support person asks:

¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre?

Spell your name using the Spanish names of the letters.

Then practise your surname.

After that, practise an email address.

Remember the essential words:

arroba — at sign;
punto — dot;
guion — hyphen;
mayúscula — capital letter;
minúscula — lowercase letter.

Example structure

Mi correo es ana punto lopez arroba ejemplo punto com.

The email above is only an example. Use your own information for personal practice.

Check understanding

After spelling, ask:

¿Está correcto?

This expression is useful, but it is not part of the compulsory assessment for this lesson. The essential skill is spelling the information clearly.

If the other person makes a mistake, use a phrase from Lesson 4:

Ese número no es correcto.

Or spell the information again more slowly.

Part 7 — Telephone Number Check

Say your telephone number digit by digit.

Your support person writes it down.

Then compare the written number with your real number.

If it is incorrect, use:

Ese número no es correcto. 🔊

Meaning: That number is not correct.

If one digit is missing, use:

Falta un número. 🔊

Meaning: One number is missing.

Then repeat the number slowly.

Second round

Your support person says a telephone number to you.

Write the digits you hear.

Ask for repetition when necessary:

¿Puede repetir?

Or:

Repítalo número por número.

Do not guess a number that you did not understand.

Part 8 — Real-Life Situation

Imagine that you are registering for an appointment, speaking with a receptionist or giving your information to a new employer.

The other person asks for:

your name;
your surname;
your country;
where you live;
your telephone number;
the spelling of your name or email address.

During the conversation, the person speaks quickly and you miss part of the telephone number question.

Your task

Respond naturally.

Do not read a complete script immediately. Try to use your own words and the phrases from this week.

Remember that you can say:

No entiendo.
Más despacio, por favor.
¿Puede repetir?
¿Qué significa?
¿Puede escribirlo?
Por favor.
Gracias.
Disculpe.

Possible response

Buenos días. Me llamo ________________. Soy de ________________ y vivo en ________________. Hablo ________________ y un poco de español. Disculpe, no entiendo. ¿Puede repetir más despacio, por favor? Mi número es ________________. Mi nombre se escribe ________________. Muchas gracias.

Your answer may be different. It is correct if the information is clear, polite and understandable.

Part 9 — Short Writing Practice

Write a brief personal introduction of four or five sentences.

Include:

your name;
your country;
where you live;
the languages you speak;
one sentence explaining that you are learning Spanish.

Model

Hola. Me llamo ________________. Soy de ________________. Vivo en ________________. Hablo ________________. Estoy aprendiendo español.

Now write your own version without copying the model word for word.

After writing, check:

Does every sentence begin with a capital letter?
Did you use de after soy?
Did you use en after vivo?
Did you write the names of languages in lowercase?
Did you finish each sentence with a full stop?

Part 10 — First Oral and Written Evaluation

This is a simple evaluation of what you can do after your first week.

It is not an official examination. It is a practical check to discover what you can already use and what you should practise again.

Oral evaluation

Complete the following tasks without reading complete answers.

Task 1 — Greet and introduce yourself

Say:

an appropriate greeting;
your name;
a polite expression after meeting someone.

Task 2 — Give personal information

Say:

your country;
your nationality, when you know the correct form;
where you live;
the languages you speak.

Task 3 — Give your phone number

Say your number digit by digit.

Repeat it when asked.

Correct one digit if the listener writes it incorrectly.

Task 4 — Spell your information

Spell:

your first name;
your surname;
one part of your email address.

Task 5 — Solve a communication problem

Imagine that the other person speaks too quickly.

Use at least two survival expressions.

For example:

No entiendo. Más despacio, por favor.

Task 6 — Finish politely

Thank the other person and respond appropriately if they thank you.

Written evaluation

Complete the following tasks.

Task 1

Write a greeting and introduce yourself.

Task 2

Write where you are from and where you live.

Task 3

Write the languages you speak.

Task 4

Write your telephone number in digits.

Then write the first three digits in Spanish words.

Task 5

Write two expressions you can use when you do not understand.

Task 6

Write one polite request and one expression of thanks.

Self-check

You are ready to continue when you can do most of these tasks with only a little help.

You do not need perfect pronunciation or perfect spelling yet.

Practise again if:

you cannot remember how to introduce yourself;
you confuse soy de and vivo en;
you cannot say your phone number clearly;
you do not remember the Spanish names of the letters in your name;
you remain silent when you do not understand;
you forget to use polite expressions.

Return to the relevant lesson, practise the difficult part and then try this evaluation again.

Part 11 — Final Challenge

Answer without looking at the earlier sections.

Situation 1

You enter an office at 10:00 in the morning.

What greeting do you use?

Situation 2

Someone asks:

¿Cómo se llama usted?

Give a complete answer.

Situation 3

Someone asks:

¿De dónde eres?

Answer with your country.

Situation 4

Someone asks for your telephone number.

Give it slowly and digit by digit.

Situation 5

Someone does not know how to write your name.

Explain how it is spelled.

Situation 6

A person says something quickly and you do not understand.

Ask the person to repeat and speak more slowly.

Possible answers

Situation 1

Buenos días.

Situation 2

Me llamo ________________.

You may also say:

Soy ________________.

Situation 3

Soy de ________________.

Situation 4

Mi número es ________________.

Say every digit separately.

Situation 5

Se escribe ________________.

Use the Spanish names of the letters.

Situation 6

Disculpe, no entiendo. ¿Puede repetir más despacio, por favor?

Other combinations using the survival phrases from Lesson 1 are also correct.

Basic Grammar — Applied to This Lesson

This section reviews the main grammar that helps you build your first complete conversation. The grammar comes after the practical work because its purpose is to explain patterns you have already used.

1. Choosing Between soy, vivo and hablo

These three verbs communicate different types of personal information.

Use soy for identity and origin

Soy Ana.

I am Ana.

Soy filipina / filipino.

I am Filipino.

Soy de Filipinas.

I am from the Philippines.

Here, soy comes from the verb ser. It is used for identity, origin and nationality.

Notice the two different structures:

Soy de Filipinas.

Country of origin.

Soy filipina / filipino.

Nationality.

Do not say:

Soy en Madrid.

That would incorrectly use ser for your current place of residence.

Use vivo for where you live

Vivo en Madrid.

I live in Madrid.

Vivo en España.

I live in Spain.

The structure is:

Vivo en + place

Use en, not de, after vivo when you say where you live.

Compare:

Soy de Filipinas.
I am from the Philippines.

Vivo en Madrid.
I live in Madrid.

The first sentence describes origin. The second describes your present residence.

Use hablo for languages

Hablo tagalo.

I speak Tagalog.

Hablo inglés y un poco de español.

I speak English and a little Spanish.

The structure is:

Hablo + language

Spanish normally does not use an article before the language in this type of sentence.

Say:

Hablo español.

Not usually:

Hablo el español.

Also remember that language names are normally written with lowercase letters in Spanish:

español
inglés
tagalo
cebuano

2. Me llamo and soy for Giving Your Name

Spanish has two common ways to say your name.

Me llamo…

Me llamo Elena.

This literally follows the idea of “I call myself Elena,” but the natural English meaning is “My name is Elena.”

Use it when introducing yourself or answering:

¿Cómo te llamas?

or:

¿Cómo se llama usted?

Soy…

Soy Elena.

This means “I am Elena.”

It is also natural, especially in a short introduction or when identifying yourself.

Compare:

Hola, me llamo Elena.

A clear introduction.

Hola, soy Elena.

A natural and slightly more direct introduction.

Both are correct.

However, do not combine them like this:

Me llamo soy Elena.

Choose one structure:

Me llamo Elena.

or:

Soy Elena.

Informal and formal questions

¿Cómo te llamas?

Use this with someone you address informally as tú.

¿Cómo se llama usted?

Use this with someone you address formally as usted.

The formal question is useful in workplaces, offices, appointments and conversations with unfamiliar adults.

You do not always need to use tú or usted explicitly. The verb form already helps show which relationship is being used.

3. Making Polite Requests

Several expressions from this week help you turn a direct instruction into a polite request.

Compare:

Repite.

Repeat.

This is direct and may sound too strong in some situations.

¿Puede repetir?

Can you repeat?

This is more polite and appropriate with an unfamiliar person, an employer, a receptionist or an official.

Adding por favor makes the request softer:

¿Puede repetir, por favor?

Más despacio, por favor.

The role of puede

In these questions, puede means “can you” or “are you able to.”

Examples:

¿Puede repetir?

Can you repeat?

¿Puede escribirlo?

Can you write it?

¿Puede deletrearlo?

Can you spell it?

These expressions use the formal usted form, although usted is not written in the sentence.

The full idea is:

¿Puede usted repetir?

But in natural Spanish, the pronoun is usually unnecessary.

Question marks in Spanish

Spanish questions use two question marks:

¿Puede repetir?

The opening mark ¿ shows where the question begins.

Do not write only:

Puede repetir?

That may be understood in an informal message, but it is not correct standard punctuation.

4. Using no Before the Verb

To make a simple negative sentence in Spanish, place no before the verb.

Entiendo.

I understand.

No entiendo.

I do not understand.

The basic pattern is:

no + verb

Other examples:

No hablo mucho español.

I do not speak much Spanish.

No vivo en Barcelona.

I do not live in Barcelona.

Spanish does not need an extra word equivalent to English “do” or “does.”

English:

I do not understand.

Spanish:

No entiendo.

Not:

No hago entiendo.

5. Asking Questions With the Correct Expression

This week you have used several question expressions.

¿Cómo…?

Use cómo to ask how something is done or how someone is called.

¿Cómo te llamas?

What is your name?

¿Cómo se escribe?

How is it written?

¿Dónde…?

Use dónde to ask about a place.

¿Dónde vives?

Where do you live?

¿De dónde…?

Use de dónde to ask about origin.

¿De dónde eres?

Where are you from?

The preposition de is important because the answer also uses de:

¿De dónde eres?

Soy de Filipinas.

¿Cuál…?

Use cuál when asking for specific information such as a phone number.

¿Cuál es tu número?

What is your number?

A formal version is:

¿Cuál es su número?

What is your number?

Here, tu is informal and su is formal.

6. Final Grammar Check

Complete the sentences.

__________ de Filipinas.
__________ en Madrid.
__________ inglés y un poco de español.
Me __________ Laura.
No __________.
¿Puede __________?
¿De __________ eres?
¿Cómo se __________ tu nombre?
Mi número __________ seis, uno, dos…
Más despacio, __________ favor.

Answers

Soy de Filipinas.
Vivo en Madrid.
Hablo inglés y un poco de español.
Me llamo Laura.
No entiendo.
¿Puede repetir?
¿De dónde eres?
¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre?
Mi número es seis, uno, dos…
Más despacio, por favor.

You Have Completed Your First Week

You can now combine several essential skills in one conversation:

greeting someone;
introducing yourself;
giving personal information;
saying where you are from and where you live;
mentioning your languages;
giving a telephone number;
spelling your name;
asking for repetition;
speaking politely.

You do not need to speak quickly. Clear, simple Spanish is more useful than a long answer that the other person cannot understand.

Practise the complete conversation again without reading. When you can give your information, solve a misunderstanding and finish politely, you are ready to continue.