Medical Spanish Mistakes: Top 10 Errors for Beginners

Top 10 Beginner Medical Spanish Mistakes

Top 10 Medical Spanish Mistakes

Medical Spanish Mistakes: Avoid these common Errors!

Everyone makes mistakes, especially when learning a new language!Hopefully your Spanish mistakes have given you and your pacientes a few laughs.Here are the ones we hear most frequently with our Beginning Medical Spanish students:

1. Me llamo es John.

Me llamo es John. = I call myself is John.
Should be:
Me llamo John. = My name is John (literally, I call myself John.)


2. Hola, yo soy enferma Andrea.

Hola, yo soy enferma Andrea. = Hello, I am sick Andrea.
Should be:
Hola, yo soy enfermera Andrea. = Hello, I am nurse Andrea.

3. Yo soy Colorado.

Yo soy Colorado. = I am Colorado.
Should be:
Yo soy de Colorado. = I am from Colorado.

4. Le duele es mucho.

Le duelees mucho. = It hurts is a lot.
Should be:
Le duele mucho. = It hurts a lot.

Don’t forget:
El dolor = Pain
Le duele = (It) hurts

5. Greeting: Buenas tardes.
Response: Bien.

Buenas tardes = Good afternoon
Bien = Well

Respond to Buenas tardes with: Buenas tardes!

6. ¿Cómo estás usted?

¿Cómo estás usted? = How are you (informal), you (formal)?
Should be:
¿Cómo está usted? = How are you (formal)?

*The usted form is most appropriate for a professional setting.

7. ¿Cómo te llamas usted?

¿Cómote llamas usted? = How do you (formal), call yourself (informal)?
Should be :
¿Cómo se llama usted? = How do you call yourself (formal)?/What’s your name?

*The usted form is most appropriate for a professional setting.

8. Él es enfermero de cardiólogo.

Él es enfermero de cardiólogo. = He is a nurse of cardiologist.
Should be:
Él es enferemero de cardiología. = He is a nurse of cardology (cardiology nurse).

Remember:
-ólogo/a = -ologist
-ología = -ology

9. Ella tiene hinchado en el pie.

Ella tiene hinchado en el pie = She has swollen on the foot.
Should be:
Ella tiene hinchazón en el pie. = She has swelling on the foot.
OR
Ella tiene el pie hinchado. = She has a swollen foot.
OR
El pie está hinchado. = The foot is swollen.

10. Ella es joven, bonita, y corta.

Ella es joven, bonita, y corta. = She is young, pretty , and short (not long).
Should be:

Ella es joven, bonita, y baja. = She is young, pretty, and short (not tall).

Remember:
Corto/a = short in terms of length
Bajo/a = short in terms of height

Might you believe there are more beginning medical Spanish errors? Check out Part 2!

If you’re working on learning Spanish for your healthcare career, we have the medical Spanish you need!

4 thoughts on “Top 10 Beginner Medical Spanish Mistakes”

  1. Pingback: 10 Common Medical Spanish Mistakes | Common Ground International Language Services

  2. Pingback: Medical Spanish Errors Part 2: Common Mistakes to Avoid

  3. Pingback: Medical Spanish Words ¿Cómo se dice?

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Shopping Cart
Browse Store
Close
Learning Medical Spanish Facebook Group

Most Fridays Rory publishes a free medical Spanish video lesson to help you speak better Spanish. Would you like us to notify you?

Message and data rates may apply. We’ll keep message frequency to a minimum. Reply HELP for help. Reply STOP to unsubscribe from SMS messages. View Terms and Privacy Policy

Success!

Keep an eye out for weekly messages from Rory Foster [email protected] with your free weekly lessons! Ps. We don't share your email with anyone.

Make sure you're on the Crash Course list for updates!

We're happy to keep you posted!

Message and data rates may apply. We’ll keep message frequency to a minimum. Reply HELP for help. Reply STOP to unsubscribe from SMS messages. View Terms and Privacy Policy

Scroll to Top