Spanish False Friends: 30+ Tricky Cognates in Spanish and English Explained
Last updated: February 2, 2026
You walk into a Spanish conversation feeling confident, ready to tell someone you're embarrassed about something. "Estoy embarazada," you say proudly. Except you just told them you're pregnant. Oops.🫠 This happens to literally every English speaker learning Spanish at some point, and it's the perfect example of why false friends can absolutely wreck your conversations if you're not careful. These sneaky words look or sound similar in both languages but mean completely different things, and they're waiting to trip you up at the worst possible moments.
What are Spanish false friends anyway
A false friend (or false cognate) is a word in one language that looks or sounds similar to a word in another language but has a different meaning.
The technical term is "falsos cognados " in Spanish, which is pretty fitting since they pretend to be your friends but totally betray you mid-sentence.
Here's the thing: true cognates are awesome. Words like "hospital " (Hospital), "chocolate " (Chocolate), and "actor " (Actor) mean basically the same thing in Spanish and English. They make learning easier because you already know hundreds of words without studying. But false friends? They're the evil twins. They look trustworthy, you use them confidently, and then you realize you just said something completely wrong.
The reason these exist comes down to language evolution. Spanish and English both borrowed heavily from Latin and French over centuries, but the words shifted meanings differently in each language. Sometimes a word kept its original meaning in one language but evolved to mean something else in the other. Other times, pure coincidence made two unrelated words sound similar.
The most embarrassing Spanish false cognates
Let's start with the classics, the ones that have caused the most awkward moments in Spanish conversations worldwide.
Embarazada
This is the queen of all Spanish false friends. "Embarazada " means pregnant, not embarrassed. If you want to say you're embarrassed in Spanish, you'd use "avergonzado " or "me da vergüenza. " I've heard this mistake so many times from English speakers, and it never stops being funny (unless you're the one saying it).
Constipado
You might think this means constipated, right? Nope. "Constipado " means having a cold or being congested. If you tell your Spanish host family you're constipado, they'll offer you tissues and cold medicine, not fiber supplements. The actual word for constipated is "estreñido. "
Éxito
This looks like "exit" but it actually means success. "La película fue un éxito " means the movie was a success. The word for exit in Spanish is "salida. " Pretty different, and definitely important to know when you're trying to leave a building versus complimenting someone's achievement.
Sopa
Doesn't mean soap. It means soup. Soap is "jabón " in Spanish. Asking for sopa in the bathroom will get you some confused looks.
Carpeta
This one tricks people constantly. "Carpeta " means folder (like a file folder), not carpet. Carpet is "alfombra " in Spanish. So if you're looking for something to cover your floor, don't ask for a carpeta.
Lectura
Looks like "lecture" but means reading. A lecture (like a formal talk) would be "conferencia " or "charla ." "Tengo mucha lectura " means I have a lot of reading to do.
Molestar
This is a sneaky one. "Molestar " means to bother or annoy, not to molest (which has a much more serious meaning in English). "No me molestes " just means don't bother me. The confusion here can get really uncomfortable if you're not aware of the different meaning.
Realizar
Means to carry out or accomplish, not to realize (as in becoming aware of something). "Realizó su sueño " means he accomplished his dream. To say you realized something, you'd use "darse cuenta de. "
Actual
Means current or present, not actual (as in real). "El presidente actual " means the current president. For actual/real, Spanish uses "real " or "verdadero. "
Sensible
Means sensitive, not sensible (as in reasonable). "Es una persona muy sensible " means they're a sensitive person. For sensible/reasonable, you'd say "sensato " or "razonable. "
Common false friends that sound almost identical in Spanish and English
These Spanish words sound so close to English words that your brain automatically wants to use them the same way. Resist that urge.
- "Atender " sounds like attend, but it means to assist or pay attention to. Attending an event would be "asistir a. "
- "Contestar " means to answer, not to contest. "Contestó la pregunta " means they answered the question.
- "Disgusto " means upset or displeasure, not disgust. Being disgusted is "dar asco " or "repugnar. "
- "Fábrica " means factory, not fabric. Fabric is "tela " in Spanish.
- "Largo " means long, not large. Large is "grande. " This mistake can mess up your shopping trips pretty badly.
- "Librería " is a bookstore, not a library. Library is "biblioteca. "
- "Parientes " means relatives, not parents. Parents are "padres. "
- "Pretender " means to intend or attempt, not to pretend. Pretending is "fingir. "
- "Recordar " means to remember, not to record. Recording is "grabar. "
- "Sano " means healthy, not sane. Sane would be "cuerdo. "
False Spanish cognates organized by topic
Sometimes it helps to group these tricky words by category so you can remember them better.
Food and dining words
- "Bizcocho " in some Spanish regions means cake or sponge cake, nothing to do with biscuits. Regional variations make this even trickier since in other areas it might mean something different.
- "Salsa " means sauce (Okay, this one actually works in both languages for the condiment, but in Spanish it just means any sauce, not specifically the Latin dance or the spicy dip).
Clothing and appearance words of different meanings
- "Ropa " means clothing in general, not rope. Rope is "cuerda. "
- "Sombrero " is any hat, not just the wide-brimmed Mexican style that English speakers picture.
School and work
- "Asistir " means to attend, while "atender " means to help or serve someone.
- "Éxito " (Success) versus exit has already messed up many business presentations.
- "Lectura " (Reading) when you meant to talk about a lecture can confuse your study plans.
Emotions and states
Beyond "embarazada, " there's "disgusto " (Upset), "sensible " (Sensitive), and "constipado " (Having a cold). These are the ones that really get you in personal conversations.
How to avoid these mistakes and confusions
The best way to dodge false friend errors? Exposure and practice.
- Reading Spanish content, watching shows, and having real conversations will help you see these words used correctly in context. Your brain will eventually stop making the automatic English connection.
- When you encounter a Spanish word that looks familiar, pause for a second. Look it up even if you think you know what it means. I've been learning languages for years and I still do this because false friends exist in pretty much every language pair.
- Make a personal list of the ones that trip you up most often. Everyone has different trouble spots depending on which words they use frequently in English. If you talk about being embarrassed a lot, you'll probably catch yourself before saying "embarazada." But if you rarely use that word, it might slip through.
- Start with the common ones everyone messes up: embarazada, constipado, éxito, actual, and realizar.
- Once you've got those down, add words you personally encounter in your Spanish learning with translation. If you're reading news articles, you'll run into "actual" and "realizar" constantly. If you're watching telenovelas, emotional words like "sensible" and "disgusto" will pop up.
- Use them in sentences. The more you actively use the correct meaning, the less likely you'll slip back into the English false friend.
Anyway, if you want to catch these false friends in real Spanish content before they catch you, Migaku's browser extension and app let you look up any word instantly while watching shows or reading articles. You'll see how native speakers actually use these tricky words in context. There's a 10-day free trial if you want to check it out.
FAQs
That sounds like heavy dictionary work...
To know these false friends, just be cautious and look them up in a dictionary when you see a word that looks a lot like one in English. Every Spanish learner deals with them, and you'll get better at catching them as you get more exposure to the language. The key is staying aware that just because a Spanish word looks like an English word doesn't mean it means the same thing, especially when you are consuming media.
If you consume media in Spanish, and you understand at least some of the messages and sentences within that media, you will make progress. Period.
Don't let false friends scare you away from Spanish learning entirely.