False friends that cost you at work
False friends are the words that look like a gift and are not. Most lists collect the funny ones; this one starts with the ones that change what you have agreed to, moves on to the ones that get numbers wrong, and only then gets to the classics.
If you work between English and Spanish, the first two groups are worth ten minutes of your attention.
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The ones that change your meaning
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actually / actualmente
actually = en realidad · actualmente = currently
"Actually, we finished" means in fact. If you mean right now, say currently in English; if you mean "actually", use en realidad in Spanish.
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eventually / eventualmente
eventually = finalmente, con el tiempo · eventualmente = possibly, occasionally
English eventually promises it will happen. Spanish eventualmente suggests it might. A contract is not the place to confuse them.
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compromise / compromiso
compromise = acuerdo, concesión · compromiso = commitment
"We reached a compromise" is a concession. Un compromiso is an obligation you have taken on. In a negotiation these are opposite signals.
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discuss / discutir
discuss = hablar de, tratar · discutir = to argue
Saying you want to discutir the proposal sounds like you want a fight. Use comentar or tratar.
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pretend / pretender
pretend = fingir · pretender = to intend, to aim
"Pretendemos ampliar el equipo" means we intend to. In English that would be a claim of faking it.
The ones that cost money
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billion / billón
English billion = mil millones (10⁹) · Spanish billón = 10¹²
A thousandfold error hiding in one word. In finance, write the digits.
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estimate vs budget
estimate = estimación · budget = presupuesto
Spanish presupuesto covers both a quote and an internal budget. In English a quote is binding in a way an estimate is not — worth spelling out.
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decimals and thousands
1,500 in English = 1.500 in Spanish
English uses the comma for thousands, Spanish the point. On an invoice this is not a small detail.
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dates
03/04 = 3 April in the UK and Spain, 4 March in the US
Write the month as a word in international emails. Every trainer says this; people still lose days to it.
The ones that make you sound odd
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assist / asistir
assist = ayudar · asistir a = to attend
"I will assist the meeting" is a common one from Spanish speakers. You attend a meeting.
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realize / realizar
realize = darse cuenta · realizar = to carry out
"We realized the project" sounds like you suddenly understood it.
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support / soportar
support = apoyar · soportar = to put up with
"I support my colleagues" is warm. Soporto a mis compañeros means you tolerate them.
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sensible / sensible
sensible (EN) = sensato · sensible (ES) = sensitive
"That's a sensible decision" is praise. Calling a decision sensible in Spanish says it is delicate.
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introduce / introducir
introduce a person = presentar · introducir = to insert
"Let me introduce my colleague" is presentar. Introducir belongs to cables and data.
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notice / noticia
notice = aviso, darse cuenta · noticia = news item
"I gave notice" means resignation or warning, not that you shared news.
The ones people enjoy getting wrong
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embarrassed / embarazada
embarrassed = avergonzado · embarazada = pregnant
The most famous one in the language. It has been said in real meetings, more than once.
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constipated / constipado
constipated = estreñido · constipado = having a cold
Explaining your absence needs care in both directions.
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large / largo
large = grande · largo = long
"Un informe largo" is a long report, not a big one.
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career / carrera
career = trayectoria profesional · carrera = degree, or a race
"Mi carrera" usually means what you studied. English career is the whole working life.
These come up constantly in real documents. We can go through yours.
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