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Spanish · Vocabulary · A1 to B1

Spanish home vocabulary, room by room

Un piso · a flat · tap a room
la puerta (the door) →
Red names take la, dark ones take el. Each room's furniture appears on the right.
In this room el salón sah-LON · living room
Vemoswe-watchla telethe TVeninel salón.the living-room
BEH-mos lah TEH-leh en el sah-LON“We watch TV in the living room.”

Short answer: Spaniards mostly live in un piso (a flat). La casa is a house, but en casa means “at home” whatever you live in. Learn every room and object with its el or la, say where things are with estar plus a place word, and talk about chores with a handful of verbs whose “I” form is irregular.

Which word

Casa, piso, hogar: three words for home

KAH-sah · house; homeA house, or “home” in general. En casa = at home; a casa = (going) home.
PEE-soh · flat (Spain); floor, storeyWhat most Spaniards live in. Latin America says el departamento or el apartamento.
oh-GAR · home (warm, formal)The idea of home and family: written Spanish, adverts, sayings. Not for everyday “I’m at home”.
EstoyI-amenatcasa.home
es-TOY en KAH-sah“I’m at home.”Why: No article: en casa always means your own home, flat or house.
VivoI-liveeninunapisoflatpequeño.small
BEE-boh en oon PEE-soh peh-KEH-nyoh“I live in a small flat.”Why: The adjective pequeño follows the noun, as most Spanish adjectives do.
Position

Where is the cat? Place words with estar

A preposition is a small word that shows position: on, under, next to. These Spanish ones end in de, which joins with el to make del (al lado del sofá). Location always uses estar, the verb “to be” for where and how things are. Pick a place word and watch the cat move.

la caja · the box
el gato
El gatothe catestáisencima deon top ofla caja.the box
el GAH-toh es-TAH en-THEE-mah deh lah KAH-hah“The cat is on top of the box.”Why: Encima de means resting on the top.
Chores

Housework, and the irregular “I” form

To say what you do, change the verb's ending for “I” (yo). Many chore verbs change more than the ending: fregar becomes friego, hacer becomes hago. Learn the “I” form with each chore.

ChoreMeaningI do itWhat changes
to cleanregular: -ar becomes -o
to sweepregular: -er becomes -o
to wash the dishese becomes ie
to make the bedc becomes g
to put a wash onadds g
to hang out the washinge becomes ie
to ironregular
to take out the rubbishregular
Renting a flat

Alquilar un piso

Price
¿Cuánto eshow-much isel alquiler?the rent
KWAN-toh es el al-kee-LEHR · “How much is the rent?”el alquiler = rent; alquilar = to rent.
Bills
¿Los gastosthe costsestán incluidos?are included
lohs GAS-tohs es-TAN een-kloo-EE-dohs · “Are bills included?”los gastos = utilities and service charges.
Deposit
Hay queone-mustpagarpayuna fianza.a deposit
AY keh pah-GAR OO-nah FYAN-thah · “You have to pay a deposit.”In Spain, usually one or two months’ rent.
Viewing
¿Puedocan-Iverseeel piso?the flat
PWEH-doh BEHR el PEE-soh · “Can I see the flat?”el piso = flat (Spain); el departamento in much of Latin America.
When something breaks

Se ha roto la lavadora

Spanish uses se + verb for things that break by themselves: se ha roto, “it has broken”, as if nobody did it.

Related guides

Keep building

Ser and estar →Why “where” always takes estar.Las llaves están en la mesa.Family vocabulary →Who lives in the house.Vivo con mis padres.Numbers →Prices, floors and square metres.cuarto piso · 85 m²Spanish hub →The full course from A1 to C2.Every topic in one map