Spanish Words That Start With E (30 Everyday Words)
🇪🇸 Spanish · 30 cards · A2 · by Lucía Herrera
The letter E is home to a lot of the verbs you need every day: empezar, entender, encontrar, elegir. Most of them change their stem in the present tense, and that is exactly where my students stumble, so I have flagged the change on every card.
Then come the nouns that keep turning up in real conversations — entrada, esquina, examen, estómago — with their gender, plus five adjectives and one very useful adverb.
Say the example out loud before you flip the card. Once No encuentro las llaves comes out without you thinking about it, the irregular form is yours.
Flip through the cards, then switch to Quiz. Tap the play button on any row to hear it. The full table below is there to read, print or copy into your own flashcard app.
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All 30 cards
| # | Spanish | English | Example | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | escuchar Regular. No 'to' in Spanish: escuchar música. Add a only with people: escucha a tu madre. | to listen, to listen to | Escucha, tengo algo que contarte. Listen, I have something to tell you. | |
| 2 | esperar One verb for all three meanings. Esperar que + subjunctive = to hope that: espero que vengas. | to wait, to hope, to expect | Espérame cinco minutos, por favor. Wait five minutes for me, please. | |
| 3 | empezar Stem change e→ie: empiezo, empiezas. Spelling z→c in the preterite: empecé. Empezar a + infinitive: empezó a llover. | to start, to begin | La película empieza a las ocho. The film starts at eight. | |
| 4 | estudiar Regular. For a degree subject no article: estudia medicina. | to study | Estudio español dos veces por semana. I study Spanish twice a week. | |
| 5 | escribir Irregular past participle: escrito. Escribir a alguien = to write to someone. | to write | No me gusta escribir a mano. I don't like writing by hand. | |
| 6 | entender Stem change e→ie: entiendo, entiendes. Comprender is a slightly more formal synonym. | to understand | No entiendo nada de lo que dice. I don't understand a thing he's saying. | |
| 7 | entrar Regular. Entrar en (Spain) or entrar a (Latin America) + place. Never 'entrar la casa'. | to go in, to come in, to enter | Entra, la puerta está abierta. Come in, the door is open. | |
| 8 | encontrar Stem change o→ue: encuentro, encuentras. Encontrarse con alguien = to run into someone. | to find | No encuentro las llaves. I can't find my keys. | |
| 9 | enseñar Both meanings are everyday: enséñame la foto = show me the photo. Enseñar a + infinitive. | to teach, to show | Mi tía me enseñó a cocinar. My aunt taught me how to cook. | |
| 10 | explicar Regular, but spelling c→qu in the preterite: expliqué. | to explain | ¿Me lo puedes explicar otra vez? Can you explain it to me again? | |
| 11 | elegir Stem change e→i: elijo, eliges. Note the j before o and a. Escoger is a common synonym. | to choose, to pick | Elige tú, a mí me da igual. You choose, I don't mind. | |
| 12 | echar Very versatile in set phrases: echar de menos = to miss someone; echar una mano = to lend a hand. | to pour, to throw in, to add | Échale un poco de sal a la sopa. Add a bit of salt to the soup. | |
| 13 | escuela Feminine: la escuela. Standard in Mexico; in Spain colegio is more usual for primary school. | school | Los niños salen de la escuela a las dos. The kids get out of school at two. | |
| 14 | edad Feminine: la edad. To give your age use tener: tengo treinta años, not soy treinta. | age | ¿Qué edad tienen tus hijos? How old are your children? | |
| 15 | ejemplo Masculine: el ejemplo. Por ejemplo is one of the most frequent connectors in speech. | example | Por ejemplo, este plato lleva chile. For example, this dish has chilli in it. | |
| 16 | entrada Feminine. Ticket for a show or match (in Mexico boleto is just as common); on a menu, la entrada is the starter. | ticket, entrance | Compré dos entradas para el concierto. I bought two tickets for the concert. | |
| 17 | empresa Feminine: la empresa. Compañía is also used, especially in company names. | company, business, firm | Trabaja en una empresa de transporte. She works for a transport company. | |
| 18 | equipo Masculine: el equipo. Also gear or kit: equipo de música, equipo de buceo. | team, equipment | Nuestro equipo ganó el domingo. Our team won on Sunday. | |
| 19 | examen Masculine: el examen. The plural adds a written accent: exámenes. | exam, test | Mañana tengo examen de matemáticas. Tomorrow I have a maths exam. | |
| 20 | esquina Feminine. Esquina is an outside corner; the inside corner of a room is el rincón. | corner (street corner) | La farmacia está en la esquina. The pharmacy is on the corner. | |
| 21 | escalera Feminine, often plural: las escaleras. Escalera mecánica = escalator. | stairs, staircase, ladder | Subí por la escalera porque el ascensor no funcionaba. I took the stairs because the lift wasn't working. | |
| 22 | espejo Masculine: el espejo. | mirror | Se mira en el espejo todo el tiempo. He looks at himself in the mirror all the time. | |
| 23 | estrella Feminine: la estrella. Also for celebrities and hotel ratings: un hotel de cuatro estrellas. | star | Anoche se veían muchas estrellas. Last night you could see lots of stars. | |
| 24 | estómago Masculine, stressed on the second syllable. With body parts Spanish uses the article, not the possessive. | stomach | Me duele el estómago desde ayer. My stomach has been hurting since yesterday. | |
| 25 | enfermo Use estar enfermo for being ill now; ser enfermizo = sickly. As a noun, un enfermo = a patient. | ill, sick | Mi hermana está enferma, tiene fiebre. My sister is ill, she has a temperature. | |
| 26 | enorme Same form for masculine and feminine; plural enormes. | huge, enormous | Viven en una casa enorme. They live in a huge house. | |
| 27 | estrecho For clothes and shoes it means tight: estos zapatos me quedan estrechos. | narrow, tight | Esta calle es muy estrecha. This street is very narrow. | |
| 28 | encantado Agrees with the speaker: a man says encantado, a woman encantada. | pleased to meet you, delighted | Encantada, soy la nueva vecina. Nice to meet you, I'm the new neighbour. | |
| 29 | estupendo Very common in Spain; in Mexico you'll hear buenísimo or padrísimo instead. | great, wonderful | Tu idea me parece estupenda. I think your idea is great. | |
| 30 | enseguida Adverb. Also written en seguida; the one-word spelling is now preferred. | right away, in a moment | Enseguida vuelvo, no te vayas. I'll be right back, don't go. |
Native Spanish speaker from Valencia, now in Mexico City. I tutor Spanish online and keep a notebook of the words my students trip over. Every deck here comes from that notebook.
Questions about this deck
- Why do verbs like empezar, entender and encontrar change their stem?
- Because the stem vowel is stressed in those forms. A stressed e becomes ie (empiezo, entiendo) and a stressed o becomes ue (encuentro). When the stress moves to the ending, the original vowel comes back, so nosotros and vosotros are regular: empezamos, entendemos, encontramos. Elegir belongs to a different group and changes e to i: elijo, eliges, elige, but elegimos.
- Does esperar mean 'to wait' or 'to hope'?
- Both, and the structure tells you which. With a person or thing it means to wait for: te espero en la puerta. With que + subjunctive it means to hope: espero que puedas venir. It can also mean to expect: está esperando un bebé. There is no separate everyday verb for 'to hope' in Spanish.
- What's the difference between esquina and rincón?
- Esquina is an outside corner, the one you turn: la tienda está en la esquina, gira en la esquina. Rincón is an inside corner or a cosy nook: el sofá está en el rincón del salón. Both are used daily and swapping them sounds odd, so learn them as a pair.
- Is it escuela or colegio for 'school'?
- Escuela is understood everywhere and is the usual word in Mexico and most of Latin America. In Spain, colegio is more common for primary and secondary school, while escuela often means a specialised school: escuela de idiomas, escuela de música. Instituto is Spanish state secondary school, and la facultad is a university faculty.
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