Shopping & Prices
Spanish Basic Conversation 1
Chapter 9 · Shopping & Prices
🛒 Shopping & Prices — De compras
This chapter covers asking whether a shop has something, asking the price, saying amounts and prices in euros and cents, buying bread and fruit, clothes shopping, and the words for sales and markets. The tables give the respelling, and a Hard words box helps with the trickiest words.
① At the Bakery (formal) — Una barra de pan
A:
Buenos días. ¿Qué desea?
Good morning. What would you like?
B:
Una barra de pan, por favor.
A loaf of bread, please.
A:
Aquí tiene. Son un euro con veinte.
Here you are. That's 1 euro 20.
B:
Tenga. Gracias, adiós.
Here you are. Thank you, goodbye.
② Fruit by the Kilo — Un kilo de naranjas
A:
¿Cuánto cuestan las naranjas?
How much are the oranges?
B:
Dos euros el kilo.
Two euros a kilo.
A:
Pues, un kilo y medio de naranjas, por favor.
Well, a kilo and a half of oranges, please.
B:
¿Algo más? ¿Manzanas, plátanos?
Anything else? Apples, bananas?
③ At the Market — En el mercado
A:
Buenas tardes. ¿Tiene tomates?
Good afternoon. Do you have tomatoes?
B:
Sí, tengo tomates muy buenos.
Yes, I have very good tomatoes.
A:
Medio kilo, por favor. ¿Cuánto es?
Half a kilo, please. How much is it?
B:
Son tres euros con cincuenta.
That's 3 euros 50.
④ A Shirt (formal) — Me lo llevo
A:
Perdone, ¿cuánto cuesta esta camisa?
Excuse me, how much does this shirt cost?
B:
Cuesta veinticinco euros.
It costs 25 euros.
A:
¿Tiene una talla más grande?
Do you have a bigger size?
B:
Sí. Aquí tiene.
Yes. Here you are.
⑤ In the Sales (informal) — Las rebajas
A:
¿Están de rebajas?
Are you having a sale?
B:
Sí. Los zapatos están a cuarenta euros.
Yes. The shoes are 40 euros.
A:
¡Qué barato! Me los llevo.
How cheap! I'll take them.
B:
¿Va a pagar con tarjeta o en efectivo?
Are you paying by card or in cash?
⑥ Too Expensive — Es muy caro
A:
¿Cuánto cuesta este bolso?
How much does this bag cost?
B:
Cuesta setenta y cinco euros.
It costs 75 euros.
A:
Es muy caro. No lo quiero, gracias.
It's very expensive. I don't want it, thank you.
B:
De nada. Hasta luego.
You're welcome. See you later.
🗣️ Key Phrases — Frases clave
| English | Formal (usted) | Informal (tú) |
|---|---|---|
| Do you have…? | ¿Tiene…? TYEH-neh | ¿Tienes…? TYEH-nehs |
| How much is it? (one thing) | ¿Cuánto cuesta? / ¿Cuánto es? KWAHN-toh KWEHS-tah / KWAHN-toh EHS | |
| How much are they? (several) | ¿Cuánto cuestan? KWAHN-toh KWEHS-tahn | |
| I'll take it. | Me lo llevo. (a masculine thing) / Me la llevo. (a feminine thing) meh loh YEH-boh / meh lah YEH-boh | |
| It's too expensive. | Es muy caro. ehs mwee KAH-roh | |
| I'm just looking. | Solo estoy mirando. SOH-loh ehs-TOY mee-RAHN-doh | |
Me lo llevo: A Ready-Made Phrase
Llevarse means "to take (away)". In the shop the phrase is me lo llevo (masculine singular), me la llevo (feminine singular), me los llevo and me las llevo (plurals). The little word lo / la / los / las means "it / them" and matches the gender and number of the thing. For now learn it as a phrase; Spanish Grammar 2 9 explains these pronouns.
💶 Money and Amounts — Euros y céntimos
| Spanish | Say it | English |
|---|---|---|
| un euro | oon eh-OO-roh | 1 euro |
| dos euros con cincuenta | dohs eh-OO-rohs kohn theen-KWEHN-tah | 2 euros 50 (€2.50) |
| noventa y cinco céntimos | noh-BEHN-tah ee THEEN-koh THEHN-tee-mohs | 95 cents |
| un kilo de manzanas | oon KEE-loh deh mahn-THAH-nahs | a kilo of apples |
| medio kilo de tomates | MEH-dyoh KEE-loh deh toh-MAH-tehs | half a kilo of tomatoes |
| una barra de pan | OO-nah BAH-rrah deh PAHN | a loaf of bread (long) |
How to Say Prices
Use the numbers from Chapter 3. Say the euros, then con ("with") and the cents: tres euros con cincuenta (€3.50). When the price is for the whole bill use Son… (Son tres euros con cincuenta); for one thing use Cuesta…. In writing, Spanish often puts the euro sign after the figure and uses a comma for the decimals: 3,50 €. Medio is "half": medio kilo, un kilo y medio ("one and a half kilos").
🔤 Verbs — Costar, comprar, llevar
Costar ("to cost") changes o → ue in every form except nosotros and vosotros, but you will mostly use only cuesta and cuestan. Comprar ("to buy") and llevar ("to take, to carry, to wear") are regular -ar verbs (Chapter 6).
| costar (to cost) | comprar (to buy) | llevar (to take) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo (I) | cuesto KWEHS-toh | compro KOHM-proh | llevo YEH-boh |
| tú (you, informal) | cuestas KWEHS-tahs | compras KOHM-prahs | llevas YEH-bahs |
| él, ella, usted | cuesta KWEHS-tah | compra KOHM-prah | lleva YEH-bah |
| nosotros (we) | costamos kohs-TAH-mohs | compramos kohm-PRAH-mohs | llevamos yeh-BAH-mohs |
| vosotros (Spain) | costáis kohs-TAHYS | compráis kohm-PRAHYS | lleváis yeh-BAHYS |
| ellos, ellas, ustedes | cuestan KWEHS-tahn | compran KOHM-prahn | llevan YEH-bahn |
This, that: pointing at things
| Spanish | Say it | English |
|---|---|---|
| este bolso / esta camisa | EHS-teh BOHL-soh / EHS-tah kah-MEE-sah | this bag / this shirt |
| estos zapatos / estas naranjas | EHS-tohs thah-PAH-tohs / EHS-tahs nah-RAHN-khahs | these shoes / these oranges |
| ¿Cuánto cuesta esto? | KWAHN-toh KWEHS-tah EHS-toh | How much is this? (unknown thing) |
Use este / esta / estos / estas before the noun, matching its gender and number; esto is for "this thing" when you don't name it. The full set (including ese and aquel) is in Spanish Grammar 1 7.
📖 Vocabulary — Vocabulario
20 key words. Read the Spanish first, then check the respelling (CAPITALS = the stressed syllable).
| # | Spanish | Say it | English | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | la tienda | lah TYEHN-dah | shop | noun |
| 2 | el mercado | ehl mehr-KAH-doh | market | noun |
| 3 | las rebajas | lahs reh-BAH-khahs | the sales | noun |
| 4 | el precio | ehl PREH-thyoh | price | noun |
| 5 | el dinero | ehl dee-NEH-roh | money | noun |
| 6 | el euro | ehl eh-OO-roh | euro | noun |
| 7 | el céntimo | ehl THEHN-tee-moh | cent | noun |
| 8 | el pan | ehl PAHN | bread | noun |
| 9 | la fruta | lah FROO-tah | fruit | noun |
| 10 | la naranja | lah nah-RAHN-khah | orange | noun |
| 11 | la manzana | lah mahn-THAH-nah | apple | noun |
| 12 | el kilo | ehl KEE-loh | kilo | noun |
| 13 | la talla | lah TAH-yah | size (clothes) | noun |
| 14 | la tarjeta | lah tar-KHEH-tah | card | noun |
| 15 | en efectivo | ehn eh-fehk-TEE-boh | in cash | phrase |
| 16 | caro / barato | KAH-roh / bah-RAH-toh | expensive / cheap | adj |
| 17 | grande / pequeño | GRAHN-deh / peh-KEH-nyoh | big / small | adj |
| 18 | comprar | kohm-PRAR | to buy | verb |
| 19 | costar | kohs-TAR | to cost | verb |
| 20 | llevar | yeh-BAR | to take; to carry | verb |
Hard Words
rebajas = reh-BAH-khahs (j = throaty "kh") · céntimo = THEHN-tee-moh (stress on CEN, Spain c = "th") · euro = eh-OO-roh (three syllables) · efectivo = eh-fehk-TEE-boh (v = soft "b") · naranja = nah-RAHN-khah · manzana = mahn-THAH-nah · talla = TAH-yah (ll like English "y"). In the dialogs plátanos = PLAH-tah-nohs and zapatos = thah-PAH-tohs. Phrases for now: ¿Están de rebajas? = ehs-TAHN deh reh-BAH-khahs and Solo estoy mirando (forms of estar, "to be", come in Chapter 10), and Aquí tiene / Tenga = "Here you are".
Sales and Markets
Las rebajas are the sales, and the big seasons are generally around January and July, though dates vary by region and by shop. Most towns have a mercado, an indoor food market. Big-city shops may stay open through the day, while in some smaller towns shops close for a few hours in the afternoon, and on Sundays many are closed. Small shops and kiosks may take only cash, so it is worth carrying some.
Latin America Note
Latin American countries use many different currencies, so euro is for Spain only; the verbs and the phrases ¿Cuánto cuesta? and ¿Tiene…? work everywhere. Some words differ: zapatos and naranjas are universal, but "bag" may be bolso (Spain) or cartera / bolsa elsewhere, and "banana" is plátano in Spain but banana or guineo in some countries. Decimal commas and points also vary by country.
Grammar Pointer
Demonstratives (este, ese, aquel) are explained in Spanish Grammar 1 7, stem-changing verbs such as costar in Spanish Grammar 2 5, and object pronouns (me lo llevo) in Spanish Grammar 2 9. Use them as a reference after this chapter.
✍️ Try It Yourself — Ejercicios
Say each answer out loud first, then click to check.
1. Say these prices: €1.20, €3.50, €12, €0.95.
Show answer
un euro con veinte · tres euros con cincuenta · doce euros · noventa y cinco céntimos.
2. Ask the price of one shirt, then of some oranges.
Show answer
¿Cuánto cuesta la camisa? ¿Cuánto cuestan las naranjas?
3. Buy half a kilo of tomatoes and a loaf of bread.
Show answer
Medio kilo de tomates y una barra de pan, por favor.
4. Complete: "Yo ___ una camisa." (comprar) · "La camisa ___ veinte euros." (costar) · "Nosotros ___ el pan." (llevar)
Show answer
compro · cuesta · llevamos.
5. You like a shirt (la camisa) and decide to buy it. What do you say? And if it is too expensive?
Show answer
Me la llevo. · Es muy caro.
6. Ask in a shop: "Do you have a bigger size?" and "Can I pay by card?" (a phrase for now).
Show answer
¿Tiene una talla más grande? · ¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta?
Coming Up in Chapter 10
Getting around town: ¿Dónde está…?, todo recto, a la derecha, a la izquierda, la esquina, el semáforo, cerca / lejos, and landmarks.