Spanish Words That Start With I
🇪🇸 Spanish · 30 cards · A2 · by Lucía Herrera
I keep a notebook of the words my students stumble over, and these thirty I- words are the ones that come back lesson after lesson. Some are everyday workhorses — ir, idea, igual, información — and some are the traps: idioma is masculine even though it ends in -a, imagen is feminine and moves its accent in the plural (imágenes), incluso ("even") is not incluido ("included"), and ilusión almost never means "illusion". Learn each card with its sentence rather than the bare translation: the sentence shows you the preposition or the mood the word pulls after it (insistir en, impedir que + subjunctive).
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 | ir Highly irregular: voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van. 'Ir a + infinitive' expresses the near future. | to go | Mañana voy al médico. Tomorrow I'm going to the doctor. | |
| 2 | idea Feminine: una buena idea. 'No tengo ni idea' is the everyday way to say you don't know. | idea | No tengo ni idea de dónde está. I have no idea where it is. | |
| 3 | igual 'Igual que' = the same as. 'Me da igual' = I don't care. In Spain, colloquial 'igual' can also mean 'maybe': Igual llego tarde. | the same, equal | Me da igual, elige tú. I don't mind, you choose. | |
| 4 | importante Same form for masculine and feminine; plural importantes. | important | Es importante dormir bien. It's important to sleep well. | |
| 5 | información Feminine and normally uncountable: 'mucha información', not 'muchas informaciones' in everyday speech. | information | ¿Dónde puedo pedir más información? Where can I ask for more information? | |
| 6 | imagen Feminine despite the -en ending: la imagen, plural las imágenes (accent added). | image, picture | Esta imagen no se ve bien. This picture doesn't look good. | |
| 7 | isla Feminine: la isla. 'On the island' is 'en la isla', never 'sobre'. | island | Pasamos una semana en la isla. We spent a week on the island. | |
| 8 | invierno Masculine. 'En invierno' without an article is the usual form; 'en el invierno' is also heard. | winter | En invierno aquí hace mucho frío. In winter it's very cold here. | |
| 9 | iglesia Feminine. The building and the institution: la iglesia del barrio, la Iglesia católica (capitalised). | church | La iglesia del pueblo es muy antigua. The village church is very old. | |
| 10 | inglés Masculine as a noun: el inglés. Languages and nationalities are lowercase in Spanish; feminine form inglesa. | English (language); English (person) | Mi hermana estudia inglés por las tardes. My sister studies English in the afternoons. | |
| 11 | idioma Masculine even though it ends in -a: el idioma, un idioma difícil. | language | ¿Cuántos idiomas hablas? How many languages do you speak? | |
| 12 | izquierda Noun, feminine: a la izquierda. The adjective is izquierdo/izquierda: la mano izquierda. | left (side) | Gira a la izquierda en el semáforo. Turn left at the traffic light. | |
| 13 | imaginar Very often reflexive (imaginarse) when you picture something for yourself: me imagino que sí. | to imagine | No me imagino la vida sin música. I can't imagine life without music. | |
| 14 | intentar Followed directly by the infinitive: intentar hacer algo (no preposition). | to try, to attempt | Voy a intentar llamarla otra vez. I'm going to try to call her again. | |
| 15 | interesante Same form for both genders. 'I'm interested' is 'me interesa' or 'estoy interesado/a en', never 'estoy interesante'. | interesting | El documental estuvo muy interesante. The documentary was very interesting. | |
| 16 | inteligente Same form for both genders; plural inteligentes. | intelligent, smart | Mi sobrina es muy inteligente. My niece is very smart. | |
| 17 | incluso Adverb, invariable. Don't confuse it with 'incluido' (included in a price or list). | even | Vino todo el mundo, incluso mi jefe. Everybody came, even my boss. | |
| 18 | incluir Spelling change to 'y': incluyo, incluyes, incluye, incluyen; past incluyó. | to include | El precio incluye el desayuno. The price includes breakfast. | |
| 19 | insistir Takes 'en': insistir en algo; insistir en que + subjunctive. | to insist | No insistas, ya te dije que no. Don't insist, I already told you no. | |
| 20 | increíble The accent on the í splits the vowels, so it has four syllables: in-cre-Í-ble. | incredible, amazing | El concierto fue increíble. The concert was amazing. | |
| 21 | impresionante Used for anything striking, good or bad: un golpe impresionante. | impressive, stunning | La vista desde arriba es impresionante. The view from up there is stunning. | |
| 22 | imprimir Two participles: 'impreso' is the usual one ('imprimido' is accepted but much rarer). | to print | ¿Me puedes imprimir este documento? Can you print this document for me? | |
| 23 | impuesto Masculine, often used in the plural. In Spain the sales tax is el IVA; in Mexico, also el IVA. | tax | Este año hemos pagado muchos impuestos. We've paid a lot of tax this year. | |
| 24 | incómodo Works for objects and situations: un silencio incómodo. Feminine incómoda. | uncomfortable, awkward | Esta silla es muy incómoda. This chair is very uncomfortable. | |
| 25 | injusto 'Es/me parece injusto que' is followed by the subjunctive. Feminine injusta. | unfair, unjust | Me parece injusto que él no ayude. I think it's unfair that he doesn't help. | |
| 26 | ilusión Feminine. False friend: in daily speech it means happy anticipation. 'Hacer ilusión' is especially common in Spain. | excitement, hope; illusion | Me hace mucha ilusión verte. I'm really looking forward to seeing you. | |
| 27 | imprescindible Long but very frequent, same form for both genders. Stress on -di-: im-pres-cin-DI-ble. | essential, indispensable | Es imprescindible traer el pasaporte. Bringing your passport is essential. | |
| 28 | ingenuo Mildly critical, not an insult. Feminine: ingenua. | naive, gullible | No seas ingenuo, te está mintiendo. Don't be naive, he's lying to you. | |
| 29 | impedir Stem change e > i like pedir: impide, impidió. 'Impedir que' + subjunctive. | to prevent, to stop | La lluvia nos impidió salir. The rain stopped us from going out. | |
| 30 | infancia Feminine. 'Niñez' is a synonym; infancia is the more common word. | childhood | Pasé mi infancia en el campo. I spent my childhood in the countryside. |
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 is 'idioma' masculine if it ends in -a?
- Because it entered Spanish from Greek, like problema, tema, sistema and programa, and that group of nouns is masculine: el idioma, un idioma nuevo, los idiomas europeos. The usual '-a means feminine' rule does not apply to them, so treat them as a small list to memorise.
- What is the difference between 'incluso' and 'incluido'?
- 'Incluso' is an invariable adverb meaning "even": Vino todo el mundo, incluso mi jefe. 'Incluido' is a participle/adjective meaning "included" and agrees with its noun: desayuno incluido, bebidas incluidas, IVA incluido. If "even" works in English, use incluso.
- Does 'ilusión' mean illusion?
- Only in technical or fixed uses, such as una ilusión óptica. In everyday Spanish it means happy anticipation or a cherished hope: Me hace ilusión el viaje = I'm excited about the trip. For English "illusion" in the sense of something false, say engaño or falsa impresión.
- How do I conjugate 'ir' in the present tense?
- Voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van. 'Vais' is the vosotros form used in Spain; in Latin America you use ustedes van. Learn two structures with it: 'ir a + infinitive' for the near future (voy a llamarte) and reflexive 'irse' meaning to leave (me voy ya).
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