The Supermarket Challenge: Foods in Spanish

The last time you went to the supermarket, what did you get? Did you pick up some arroz and pollo, or maybe some manzanas and zanahorias? A great way to practice Spanish in your daily life is to see what words you know in Spanish as you go about your daily life. Fortunately, many stores will have signs in Spanish as well as English! Even if they don’t, you can still take the Supermarket Challenge by seeing how many of these foods you remember in Spanish next time you get groceries.

It’s important to keep in mind that since food words are cultural, different regions and different countries might have different words for the same thing. For example, what some places call fresa, other places call frutilla. Therefore, don’t feel discouraged if you hear a word that you didn’t recognize. It doesn’t mean that anyone is “wrong”, just that you use different words. It happens all the time in English too; what some people call an elevator, some people call a lift. Now, check out these common foods in Spanish!

Las frutas – fruits

1. La manzana – apple
2. La banana / el plátano – banana
3. Las uvas – grapes
4. El durazno – peach
5. La sandía – watermelon
6. La naranja – orange

Las verduras – vegetables

1. La lechuga – lettuce
2. Las espinacas – spinach
3. La zanahoria – carrot
4. El tomate – tomato
5. El pepino – cucumber
6. La cebolla – onion

Las carnes – meats

1. El jamón – ham
2. La carne de res – beef
3. El pescado – fish
4. El puerco – pork
5. El pollo – chicken
6. El tocino – bacon

Más comidas – more foods

1. El arroz – rice
2. La sal – salt
3. La pimienta – pepper
4. La sopa – soup
5. El pan – bread
6. La mantequilla – butter

What other food words do you want to learn? Let us know in the comments! And remember, next time you go to the supermarket, test yourself. Seeing how many words you remember while checking out is a great way to integrate Spanish into your daily life.