The short version
- Thinking in Spanish doesn't arrive all at once. It starts with single words and short phrases on topics you know well.
- Label things around you, then narrate what you're doing, in simple Spanish.
- When a word is missing, note it down and look it up later. Those notes become your most useful vocab list.
Right now, as you read this, there's a voice in your head, and it's speaking English. If you want to learn how to think in Spanish, the goal is to get that voice using Spanish for some of the day. Not all of it. Just more of it, a bit at a time.
It matters because the more Spanish runs through your head, the less you have to translate when you speak. And the less you translate, the faster the words come out.
What thinking in Spanish actually looks like
People imagine a moment when their brain flips over and everything's in Spanish. That isn't how it happens.
What actually happens is patchier. First, single words start turning up in Spanish: you look at the clock and think tarde. Then short phrases: vale, venga, ¿dónde he puesto las llaves? Then whole thoughts, but only on topics you've practised a lot. Your job, your neighbourhood, your daily routine.
It happens topic by topic. The conversations you've rehearsed are the ones your head switches first. That's good news, because it means you can choose where to start.
| Stage | What it's like |
|---|---|
| Words | Odd words pop up in Spanish: tarde, vale, calor |
| Phrases | Short set phrases: ¡Qué hambre!, Tengo que irme |
| Familiar topics | Whole thoughts, but only about things you've practised |
| Most of the time | Spanish on most topics, with English filling the gaps |
Start with the things around you
The easiest place to begin is naming things. As you move around the house, name what you see, in your head or under your breath: la taza, la nevera, el cargador, las llaves.
It sounds too simple to be useful, but it builds the habit of reaching for Spanish first. It also shows you straight away which everyday words you don't know yet. There are usually more than you'd expect.
Always name things with their article: la sartén, not just sartén. It costs you nothing now, and it saves a lot of hesitating later when you need to say la or el mid-sentence.
Narrate what you're doing
Once naming feels normal, move on to describing what you're doing, like a very boring sports commentator. Keep it simple. You're not writing a novel, you're getting Spanish running through your head.
A handful of structures cover nearly everything:
| Structure | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Ahora voy a… | Now I'm going to… | Ahora voy a hacer la compra. |
| Estoy + -ando / -iendo | I'm …ing | Estoy preparando la cena. |
| Tengo que… | I have to… | Tengo que llamar al banco. |
| Ya he… | I've already… | Ya he sacado la basura. |
| Luego… | Later… / Then… | Luego paso por la farmacia. |
| ¿Dónde he dejado…? | Where have I left…? | ¿Dónde he dejado el móvil? |
As it gets easier, start joining things together. Add a reason, a time or a "but":
- Voy a hacer café.I'm going to make coffee.
- Voy a hacer café y luego me ducho.I'm going to make coffee and then have a shower.
- Voy a hacer café y luego me ducho, porque a las nueve tengo una reunión.I'm going to make coffee and then have a shower, because I've got a meeting at nine.
A lot of daily routine narration uses reflexive verbs like me ducho and me visto. If those trip you up, reflexive verbs and your daily routine goes through them.
Thinking is silent, but where you can, mutter it out loud. In the kitchen, in the car, walking the dog. Saying it trains your mouth as well as your head, and that's what makes it come out faster in real conversations.
Keep a missing-words note
You'll hit gaps constantly. You go to think that you need to descale the kettle and realise you have no idea how to say "descale". That's not a failure. It's the most useful thing that can happen.
Make a note on your phone called Palabras que me faltan. Every time you're thinking in Spanish and hit a gap, add the English word and carry on. Don't look it up there and then. Once a day, look up everything on the list and say each word out loud in a short sentence. These are words you actually need, because your own life asked for them.
In the moment, don't let the gap stop the thought. Go round it with simpler Spanish, or drop the English word in and keep going. There's more on getting round missing words in how to stop translating in your head.
Rehearse tomorrow's conversations
This is the most practical version of thinking in Spanish. Before a conversation you know is coming, run it in your head in Spanish.
Calling the landlord tomorrow about the boiler? Think it through: Hola, te llamo por la caldera. No funciona desde el lunes. ¿Puedes mandar a alguien esta semana? Meeting a friend for lunch? Think about what you'll tell them about your week.
When the real conversation comes, you've already said half of it. And if you rehearse it out loud, even better. The same idea is behind practising speaking Spanish on your own.
Give it a fixed slot
Trying to think in Spanish all day is exhausting, and you'll give up by lunchtime. It works much better if you choose one or two moments a day for it and stick to them.
Good slots are things you do on autopilot:
- In the shower.
- Walking to the shop or the station.
- Cooking dinner.
- The last five minutes before you fall asleep, going back over your day: Hoy he ido al gimnasio, he comido con Marta…
Your inner Spanish will be full of mistakes, and nobody's checking. That's fine. The point is to get Spanish moving through your head more often. Correcting every sentence will slow you down and make you stop. Save the checking for the missing-words note.
Recap
- Thinking in Spanish builds up word by word and topic by topic.
- Start by naming things around you, with their el or la.
- Narrate what you're doing with simple structures, and mutter it out loud when you can.
- Note missing words and look them up once a day.
- Rehearse tomorrow's conversations, and give it a fixed daily slot.
The topics you rehearse most are the ones your head switches to Spanish first, which is why 100 Spanish Conversations works through one conversation theme a week. If you want to share your missing-words list or ask how to say something, post it in the community on Skool.
Leeroy studied Spanish for years before moving to Spain and finding he couldn't hold a conversation. He built Basically Spanish around the method that fixed it. Questions? leeroy@basicallyspanish.com