This deep dive covers Estructuras clave — Key Structures to Know within Translation into Spanish (Foundation 35 words / Higher 50 words) for GCSE Spanish. Revise Translation into Spanish (Foundation 35 words / Higher 50 words) in Writing + Translation (EN→ES) for GCSE Spanish with 16 exam-style questions and 12 flashcards. Use this page as part of a wider topic revision path rather than treating it as an isolated fact. It is section 2 of 4 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
🔍 Estructuras clave — Key Structures to Know
English and Spanish express the same ideas very differently. These are the translation traps that appear most often in AQA Paper 4 — memorise the Spanish structure, not just the word.
| English | Literal (WRONG) | Spanish (CORRECT) |
|---|---|---|
| I am tired | Soy cansado | Estoy cansado/a |
| I like music | Me gusta música | Me gusta la música |
| It is hot | Es caliente | Hace calor |
| There are many parks | Son muchos parques | Hay muchos parques |
| I went abroad | Fui al extranjero en | Fui al extranjero |
| I have to study | Tengo que estudiar ✓ | Tengo que estudiar |
| Spanish is spoken | Él habla español | Se habla español |
| If I had more time, I'd travel | Si tendría más tiempo, viajaría | Si tuviera más tiempo, viajaría |
⭐ Never translate word-for-word
Spanish thinks differently. "It is cold" → NOT Es frío → YES Hace frío. "I am hungry" → NOT Soy hambriento → YES Tengo hambre.
Check any phrase with "to be" — it probably uses hacer, tener, or estar rather than ser. These three are the most-tested translation traps at GCSE.
Practice questions for Translation into Spanish (Foundation 35 words / Higher 50 words)
Translate this sentence into Spanish: **I like football because it is exciting and I play every weekend.**