English-Spanish Cognates Reference Sheet

What Are Cognates? / Que son los cognados?

Cognates are words that look and sound similar in both English and Spanish because they share a common origin. As a Spanish speaker, you already know many English words! When you see a new English word, check if it looks like a Spanish word you know. This is especially helpful for the complex vocabulary you'll encounter in Grade 8.

Los cognados son palabras que se parecen y suenan similar en ingles y espanol porque tienen un origen comun. Como hablante de espanol, ya conoces muchas palabras en ingles! Cuando veas una palabra nueva en ingles, verifica si se parece a una palabra en espanol que conoces. Esto es especialmente util para el vocabulario complejo que encontraras en 8vo grado.

How to Use This Resource / Como usar este recurso:

1. Look at the English word on the left
2. Compare it to the Spanish word on the right
3. Notice how similar they look and sound
4. Use your Spanish knowledge to understand the English meaning!

Cognate Patterns to Remember / Patrones de cognados

-tion → -cion

equation → ecuacion

-ty → -dad

probability → probabilidad

-ent → -ente

coefficient → coeficiente

-al → -al

irrational → irracional

-ble → -ble

variable → variable

-ic → -ico

rhetoric → retorica

Math Cognates: Algebra & Equations20 words

Cognados de Matematicas: Algebra y Ecuaciones

equation ↔ ecuacion

linear ↔ lineal

function ↔ funcion

variable ↔ variable

coefficient ↔ coeficiente

constant ↔ constante

system ↔ sistema

elimination ↔ eliminacion

substitution ↔ sustitucion

solution ↔ solucion

exponent ↔ exponente

expression ↔ expresion

integer ↔ entero

rational ↔ racional

irrational ↔ irracional

real ↔ real

scientific notation ↔ notacion cientifica

absolute ↔ absoluto

positive ↔ positivo

negative ↔ negativo

△

Math Cognates: Geometry & Transformations22 words

Cognados de Matematicas: Geometria y Transformaciones

transformation ↔ transformacion

translation ↔ traslacion

rotation ↔ rotacion

reflection ↔ reflexion

dilation ↔ dilatacion

congruent ↔ congruente

similar ↔ similar / semejante

triangle ↔ triangulo

cylinder ↔ cilindro

cone ↔ cono

sphere ↔ esfera

volume ↔ volumen

radius ↔ radio

diameter ↔ diametro

parallel ↔ paralelo

perpendicular ↔ perpendicular

hypotenuse ↔ hipotenusa

theorem ↔ teorema

angle ↔ angulo

coordinate ↔ coordenada

origin ↔ origen

proportion ↔ proporcion

●

Math Cognates: Statistics & Data12 words

Cognados de Matematicas: Estadisticas y Datos

correlation ↔ correlacion

data ↔ datos

dispersion ↔ dispersion

distribution ↔ distribucion

frequency ↔ frecuencia

probability ↔ probabilidad

statistics ↔ estadisticas

association ↔ asociacion

tendency ↔ tendencia

variation ↔ variacion

represent ↔ representar

interpret ↔ interpretar

📖

ELA Cognates: Literary Terms24 words

Cognados de Lectura: Terminos Literarios

theme ↔ tema

narrative ↔ narrativa

protagonist ↔ protagonista

antagonist ↔ antagonista

conflict ↔ conflicto

resolution ↔ resolucion

dialogue ↔ dialogo

monologue ↔ monologo

irony ↔ ironia

symbolism ↔ simbolismo

metaphor ↔ metafora

analogy ↔ analogia

allusion ↔ alusion

fiction ↔ ficcion

genre ↔ genero

tragedy ↔ tragedia

drama ↔ drama

poet ↔ poeta

stanza ↔ estrofa

verse ↔ verso

context ↔ contexto

tone ↔ tono

perspective ↔ perspectiva

narrator ↔ narrador

💬

ELA Cognates: Rhetoric & Argument20 words

Cognados de Lectura: Retorica y Argumento

rhetoric ↔ retorica

argument ↔ argumento

persuasion ↔ persuasion

evidence ↔ evidencia

credible ↔ credible

relevant ↔ relevante

sufficient ↔ suficiente

logic ↔ logica

fallacy ↔ falacia

valid ↔ valido

conclusion ↔ conclusion

opinion ↔ opinion

objective ↔ objetivo

subjective ↔ subjetivo

connotation ↔ connotacion

denotation ↔ denotacion

synthesize ↔ sintetizar

integrate ↔ integrar

corroborate ↔ corroborar

contradict ↔ contradecir

✍

Academic Cognates: Test Directions18 words

Cognados Academicos: Instrucciones de Examenes

analyze ↔ analizar

compare ↔ comparar

contrast ↔ contrastar

describe ↔ describir

evaluate ↔ evaluar

explain ↔ explicar

identify ↔ identificar

determine ↔ determinar

justify ↔ justificar

demonstrate ↔ demostrar

select ↔ seleccionar

indicate ↔ indicar

organize ↔ organizar

verify ↔ verificar

calculate ↔ calcular

complete ↔ completar

formulate ↔ formular

construct ↔ construir

⚠

False Cognates / Cognados Falsos

Be careful! These words look similar but have different meanings

Cuidado!

actual ≠ actual

English "actual" means:

real, true (verdadero)

Spanish "actual" means:

current, present (corriente)

sensible ≠ sensible

English "sensible" means:

reasonable, practical (razonable)

Spanish "sensible" means:

sensitive (sensitivo)

realize ≠ realizar

English "realize" means:

to understand, become aware (darse cuenta)

Spanish "realizar" means:

to accomplish, carry out (hacer)

eventually ≠ eventualmente

English "eventually" means:

finally, in the end (finalmente)

Spanish "eventualmente" means:

possibly, by chance (posiblemente)

argument ≠ argumento (sometimes)

English "argument" means:

a reasoned claim OR a disagreement

Spanish "argumento" means:

the plot of a story OR a reasoned claim

embarrassed ≠ embarazada

English "embarrassed" means:

ashamed, feeling awkward (avergonzado)

Spanish "embarazada" means:

pregnant (encinta)

Tips for Using Cognates / Consejos para usar cognados

1 When you see a new English word, ask yourself: "Does this look like a Spanish word I know?"
2 Look for familiar endings: -tion, -sion, -al, -ble, -ent, -ic often have Spanish cognates
3 Be careful with false cognates - always check context to make sure the meaning fits
4 Keep a personal cognate list as you discover new word pairs in your reading
5 Practice saying cognates out loud - the sounds are often similar too!
6 Use cognates as "anchor words" to help you understand complex sentences on the FAST test