Learn Spanish — from Zero to Conversational

Complete A1 to B1.2 Curriculum

Spanish is the second most spoken language in the world, with over 500 million native speakers across 20 countries. It's one of the most rewarding languages to learn — and one of the most accessible for English speakers.

🗣️ 500 million native speakers — official language in 20 countries across 4 continents.
📊 Spanish is considered one of the easiest languages for English speakers. The pronunciation is phonetic, the grammar is logical, and thousands of words are similar to English.

Why learn Spanish?

What you get

Grammar you'll master

Presente de Indicativo

The Spanish present tense covers regular and irregular verbs across three conjugation groups (-ar, -er, -ir). Master ser, estar, tener and ir from day one.

Hablo español todos los días. / ¿Tienes hambre? / Somos estudiantes.

Pretérito Perfecto

The present perfect links past actions to the present. Used with time markers like hoy, esta semana, alguna vez.

He comido paella hoy. / ¿Has visitado alguna vez España? / Nunca he visto esa película.

Por vs Para

One of the most common challenges for English speakers. POR expresses cause, duration and exchange. PARA expresses purpose, recipient and deadline.

Estudié por dos horas. / Compré flores para mi madre.

Ser vs Estar

Both mean 'to be' — SER for identity and permanent traits, ESTAR for states, locations and temporary conditions.

Soy médico. / Estoy cansado hoy.

Presente de Subjuntivo

The subjunctive mood expresses wishes, doubts and emotions. Triggered by verbs like querer que, esperar que, es importante que.

Espero que llegues pronto. / Es importante que estudies cada día.

El Condicional

The conditional (would) is used for polite requests, hypothetical situations and advice con debería.

¿Podría traerme la cuenta? / Yo en tu lugar, estudiaría más. / Deberías descansar.

A taste of the curriculum

¿Has estado alguna vez en México?

Have you ever been to Mexico? — Present Perfect for life experience.

Sí, fui el año pasado. ¡Me encantó la comida!

Yes, I went last year. I loved the food! — Past tense + opinion.

¿Qué harías si pudieras volver?

What would you do if you could go back? — Conditional + subjunctive.

Volvería para aprender a cocinar mole. Es importante que uno pruebe la cocina local.

I'd go back to learn to make mole. It's important that one tries the local food.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to reach B1 in Spanish?

Spanish is considered one of the easiest languages for English speakers. With 20–30 minutes of daily practice, most learners reach B1 conversational level in 6–9 months using LingoNibble's structured curriculum.

What makes Spanish grammar challenging?

The biggest challenges are verb conjugations (Spanish has more forms than English), the subjunctive mood, the distinction between ser and estar, and knowing when to use por vs para. LingoNibble covers all of these with dedicated units.

Do I need to know the alphabet first?

Spanish uses the Latin alphabet with a few extras (ñ, ü) — if you can read English, you can read Spanish. Unit 1 covers pronunciation from scratch.

What's the difference between Spain Spanish and Latin American Spanish?

The main differences are pronunciation (the 'c/z' sound) and the vosotros pronoun used in Spain. LingoNibble teaches a neutral international Spanish understood everywhere.

Is Spanish useful beyond Spain and Latin America?

Spanish is the world's second most spoken native language with over 500 million speakers. It's the official language of 21 countries and increasingly valuable in the United States, Europe and global business.

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Sample Vocabulary

Hello

Hola

Good morning

Buenos días

Good afternoon

Buenas tardes

Good night / evening

Buenas noches

Curriculum Overview (40 Units)

1

Unit 1: Personal ID

Greetings, names, origin, ser/estar/tener, hay, numbers 0-20.

2

Unit 2: Family & Friends

Family, physical traits, colors, calendar, regular -ar/-er/-ir verbs, numbers 21-101.

3

Unit 3: Occupations & Time

Workplaces, professions, salaries, telling time, dates, big numbers, hacer, possessives (long forms), hay que.

4

Unit 4: Home & Housing

Rooms, furniture, chores, ir + ir a + infinitive, tener que, comparisons (más/menos que), prepositions a/de and contractions al/del.

5

Unit 5: Food & Dining

Foods, drinks, table settings, restaurant phrases, gustar/encantar, querer, polite quisiera, partitive 'de'.

6

Unit 6: Shopping & Clothing

Clothing, professional uniforms, sizes, prices, stem-changing verbs (o→ue, e→ie), poder/querer/necesitar + infinitive, por vs para, the number uno.

7

Unit 7: Health & The Body

Body parts, illnesses, pharmacy, doler (like gustar), sentirse, ser vs estar for health, reflexive pronouns.

8

Unit 8: Travel & Transportation

Transport, airports, directions, weather, saber vs conocer, present progressive (estar + -ando/-iendo), prepositions of movement.

9

Unit 9: Errands & Daily Life

Public services, local shops, errands, the informal imperative (tú), and 'para' to express purpose.

10

Unit 10: Travel & Leisure

Vacations, hotels, attractions, hobbies, weather. Review: ir a + inf, gustar/encantar, present progressive, large numbers.

11

Unit 11: Past Experiences

Talk about completed past actions. Pretérito Indefinido: regular -AR endings. hablar → hablé, hablaste, habló, hablamos, hablasteis, hablaron.

12

Unit 12: Trips and Adventures

Pretérito Indefinido: -ER and -IR endings. Key irregulars: ir/ser (fui), hacer (hice), tener (tuve), ver (vi).

13

Unit 13: Childhood Memories

Describe past habits and states. Pretérito Imperfecto: -AR (-aba/-abas/-aba), -ER/-IR (-ía/-ías/-ía). Only 3 irregulars: ser/ir/ver.

14

Unit 14: Making Comparisons

Compare people, places and things. más/menos + adj + que (superiority/inferiority). tan + adj + como (equality). el/la más + adj + de (superlative). Irregulars: mejor/peor.

15

Unit 15: Future Plans

Talk about near-future plans. IR + A + infinitive: voy a estudiar, vas a viajar. Future time expressions: mañana, la semana que viene, el año que viene.

16

Unit 16: Wants, Abilities and Obligations

Querer (e→ie: quiero/quieres/quiere) + infinitive. Poder (o→ue: puedo/puedes/puede) + infinitive. Tener que + infinitive (obligation). Saber + infinitive (skill).

17

Unit 17: Getting Around the City

Give and follow directions. Imperative (tú): dobla, gira, sigue, cruza, toma. Prepositions of place: enfrente de, al lado de, detrás de.

18

Unit 18: Health and Wellbeing

Describe health problems. DOLER (to hurt) works like GUSTAR: me duele / me duelen. LLEVAR + gerundio for duration. Body parts and common ailments.

19

Unit 19: Shopping for Clothes

Shop for clothes in Spanish. Demonstratives: este/esta/estos/estas (this/these). ¿Cuánto cuesta(n)? ¿Me lo/la puedo probar? Me lo/la llevo.

20

Unit 20: Opinions & A2 Graduation

Express opinions and preferences, and complete the A2 Capstone Exam.

21

Unit 21: Recent Past & Experience

Master the Pretérito Perfecto (haber + participio). Use it for recent events, life experiences, and contrast it with the Indefinido. Irregular participles: hecho, dicho, visto, puesto, vuelto, escrito, abierto, roto.

22

Unit 22: Por and Para

Master the key contrast between POR and PARA. PARA = purpose, destination, deadline, opinion. POR = cause/reason, duration, exchange, means, on behalf of. Essential for fluent intermediate Spanish.

23

Unit 23: Reflexive Verbs: Feelings & Routines

Extend reflexive verbs beyond daily routines. SENTIRSE (to feel), PONERSE (to become emotionally), QUEDARSE (to remain/end up), LLEVARSE (to get along). Understand change-of-state reflexives vs non-reflexive counterparts.

24

Unit 24: Ser vs Estar: Advanced Contrast

Go beyond basic SER/ESTAR rules. Master adjectives that CHANGE MEANING depending on which verb they follow: aburrido, listo, malo, rico, seguro, vivo, muerto, bueno, libre. Understand SER for events/locations of events, ESTAR for locations of people/things.

25

Unit 25: The Subjunctive: Wishes & Emotions

Introduce the Present Subjunctive (Presente de Subjuntivo). Formation: -AR → -e stem, -ER/-IR → -a stem. Use after: QUERER QUE, ESPERAR QUE, RECOMENDAR QUE, ALEGRARSE DE QUE, SENTIR QUE. Key irregulars: ser→sea, estar→esté, ir→vaya, tener→tenga, poder→pueda.

26

Unit 26: Relative Clauses: Connecting Ideas

Use relative clauses to connect ideas fluently. QUE (that/which/who — most common), QUIEN/QUIENES (who — after prepositions), DONDE (where — for places), LO QUE (what/the thing that — refers to ideas not nouns), CUYO/CUYA (whose — formal/written).

27

Unit 27: The Conditional: Would & Hypotheticals

Master the Condicional Simple (would). Regular: infinitive + -ía/-ías/-ía/-íamos/-íais/-ían. Irregular stems: querr-, podr-, tendr-, vendr-, saldr-, pondr-, sabr-, habr-, dir-, har-. Use for: polite requests, hypotheticals, advice with DEBERÍA, and Si clauses type 1 preview.

28

Unit 28: Impersonal Expressions & Subjunctive

Use impersonal expressions that always trigger the subjunctive: ES IMPORTANTE QUE, ES NECESARIO QUE, ES POSIBLE QUE, ES PROBABLE QUE, ES BUENO QUE, ES RARO QUE, ES NORMAL QUE, ES INCREÍBLE QUE. Contrast with expressions that take indicative. Master OJALÁ independently.

29

Unit 29: Double Object Pronouns

Combine direct and indirect object pronouns in one sentence: ME LO, TE LO, SE LO, NOS LO. The rule: indirect comes first, direct second. SE replaces LE/LES before LO/LA/LOS/LAS. Word order with infinitives and gerunds. Placement with imperatives.

30

Unit 30: Si Clauses & Real Conditions

Master Si clauses Type 1: real/possible conditions. SI + present indicative → future/imperative/present. Contrast with Type 2 preview (si + imperfect subjunctive → conditional — hypothetical). Common patterns: si tienes tiempo..., si llueve..., si puedes...

31

Unit 31: Dreams & Life Choices

Discuss aspirations, career goals, and regrets. Master Si Clauses Type 2 (Si + imperfect subjunctive → conditional) for hypothetical choices, and 'Ojalá' for wishes.

32

Unit 32: News & Crime

Read and discuss news, crime reports, and legal/social events. Master the Spanish passive voice (SER + past participle + por + agent) and the impersonal passive with SE.

33

Unit 33: Office & Workplace Communication

Discuss workplace tasks, meetings, and feedback. Master reported speech (estilo indirecto) converting direct statements, questions, and commands into indirect. Understand tense shifts (present→imperfect, future→conditional, preterite/perfect→pluperfect) and time/place shifts.

34

Unit 34: Environment & Sustainability

Discuss environmental issues, green policies, and sustainable actions. Master purpose clauses (para que + subjunctive vs. para + infinitive) and concession/condition clauses (aunque, a menos que, con tal de que, a pesar de).

35

Unit 35: Culture & Identity

Explore cultural diversity, traditions, and identity. Master impersonal and passive reporting structures (se cree que, se dice que, es sabido que, dicen que) to discuss widely held beliefs and traditions without specifying a source.

36

Unit 36: Science & Technology

Discuss scientific progress, research, patents, and artificial intelligence. Master modals of deduction in Spanish: DEBER DE + infinitive (certainty/must), NO PODER + infinitive (impossibility/can't), and PODER + infinitive or SUBJUNCTIVE (possibility/might) in present and past contexts.

37

Unit 37: Media & Critical Thinking

Analyze media bias, source credibility, and misinformation. Master cleft sentences (oraciones escindidas/enfáticas) in Spanish to highlight specific elements for emphasis and contrast (e.g. 'Fue la prensa la que...', 'Lo que más me preocupa es...').

38

Unit 38: Global Economy

Discuss global trade, economic policies, inflation, and inequality. Master Spanish verbal periphrases that change meaning (infinitive vs. gerund / preposition changes): dejar de (stop) vs. parar a (stop to do), tratar de (try) vs. probar a/gerund (test), acordarse de (remember to) vs. acordarse de haber (remember having done), lamentar (regret to) vs. arrepentirse de (regret having done).

39

Unit 39: Relationships & Communication

Discuss relationships, conflict, and boundaries. Master advanced relative clauses (cuyo, con quien, el cual) and reduced relatives (participles).

40

Unit 40: B1.2 Graduation 🎓

Review all B1.2 structures. Master lexical contrasts (afectar vs. efecto, subir vs. aumentar, sensato vs. sensible) and show your upper B1 proficiency.