Spanish Phrases: Getting around town in Spanish

This page lists the Spanish names of common shops and buildings. On the next page, we gives some essential Spanish phrases for asking directions.

Places and buildings

Monuments and culture

la catedral	-	the cathedral
la estatua	-	the statue
una/la iglesia	-	a/the church
un/el museo	-	a/the museum
el museo de arte	-	the art gallery
el palacio	-	the palace
la plaza	-	the square
la Plaza de España	-	(in some Spanish cities) =the "Plaza de España", monumental square
el zócalo	-	(in Mexico) the Main Sqaure

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Eating and drinking

un bar	-	a bar
un café	-	a café, coffee shop
una cantina	-	(esp Latin America) a bar, snack bar
un restaurante	-	a restaurant
una taquería	-	(Mexico) a taco bar, snack bar
una tienda de comida para llevar	-	a takeaway

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Entertainment

una alberca	-	(Mexico) swimming pool, swimming baths
un boliche	-	a bowling alley
el cine	-	the cinema
el casino	-	the casino
el estadio	-	the stadium
la piscina	-	swimming pool
la pista de hielo	-	the ice rink
la plaza de toros	-	the bullring
el teatro	-	the theatre

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Shops/stores

un almacén	-	a shop, store
el centro comercial	-	the shops, the shopping centre
una librería	-	a bookshop, bookstore
el mercado	-	the market
el super(mercado)	-	the supermarket
una tienda	-	a shop, store
una tienda de comestibles	-	a grocer's
una tienda departamental	-	a department store
una tienda de deportes	-	a sports shop
una tienda de periódicos	-	a newsagent's
una tienda de regalos	-	a gift shop
una tienda de ropa	-	a clothes shop

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Utility buildings and places

un banco	-	a bank
una caja de cambio	-	a bureau de change
un cajero automático	-	a cash machine, ATM
la estación de autobuses	-	the bus station, coach station
la estación de camiones	-	(Mexico) the bus station, coach station
la estación de metro (más cercana)	-	the (nearest) metro station
la estación de tren	-	the train station
el hospital	-	the hospital
el hotel ...	-	hotel ...
la oficina de turismo	-	the tourist information office

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Directions

On the next page, we give some useful phrases for asking for directions in Spanish.