A Vocabulary Guide to Money and Finance in Spanish
Learning new vocabulary about money and finance in Spanish is an excellent investment of your time. You’ll surely need it at some point in the future if you continue with your Spanish learning efforts.
For that reason, in this post I’ll explain why it’s so important for you to study this basic vocabulary guide about finance in Spanish. I’ll also introduce you to essential money terms, money-related slang words, and even a couple of popular phrases about money in Spanish. You’ll also learn all the currencies from Spanish-speaking countries, plus important bank and credit card vocabulary and useful terms for investors.
Why Learn About Money and Finance in Spanish?
There are several reasons to learn vocabulary about money and finance in Spanish, starting with the fact that if you ever visit or move to a Spanish-speaking country, few things are more useful than knowing a thing or two about money.
Besides, on your path of learning Spanish, you need to cover as many different areas of life as possible, learn their vocabulary and keep growing your mastery of the language. If you start by learning about math, sports, or music, one day you’ll have amassed an impressive Spanish vocabulary that spreads across all kinds of topics.
Today, that topic is money and finance in Spanish.
Money and Finance in Spanish
Money is a world in itself, and I’ve divided this lesson into different categories to make it easier for you to absorb the information and technical terms about finance in Spanish.
Money
Let’s start with the most basic terms about money in Spanish, some money-related slang words, and a couple of popular phrases regarding money.
| el dinero | money |
| el billete | banknote |
| la moneda | coin |
| el cambio | change |
| el cheque | check |
| el cheque de viajero | traveller check |
| el efectivo | cash |
| la lana (Mexican slang) | money |
| la plata (Argentinian slang) | money |
| la pasta (Spanish slang) | money |
| el pisto (Guatemalan slang) | money |
| el palo (Panamanian slang) | dollar |
| el pago | payment |
| el precio | price |
| la caja | checkout counter |
| la cartera, la billetera | wallet (for men) |
| el monedero | wallet (for women) |
| la bolsa, el bolso | purse |
Now, a couple of popular phrases in Spanish about money which I find quite interesting and with great cultural value.
Poderoso caballero Don Dinero.
He’s a powerful gentleman that Mr. Money.
This phrase makes a reference to the power that money has.
Con dinero baila el perro.
With money the dog dances.
This one is a bit more vulgar. It’s an expression that means to say that with money everything is possible, even making a dog dance.
Currencies
This is an important subject that seems to get less attention than it deserves. If you’re traveling to a Spanish-speaking country, one of the first things you need to know is the currency of the place and the exchange rate.
The Spanish term for “currency” is divisa, but sometimes moneda is also used in that sense. “Exchange rate” is tipo de cambio, and a “currency exchange” office is la casa de cambio.
Here you have a list of Spanish-speaking countries’ currencies.
| el Peso argentino (ARS) | Argentinian peso |
| el Boliviano (BOB) | Bolivian |
| el Peso chileno (CLP) | Chilean Peso |
| el Peso colombiano (COP) | Colombian Peso |
| el Guaraní (PYG) | Paraguayan Guarani |
| el Sol (PEN) | Peruvian Sol |
| el Peso uruguayo (UYU) | Uruguayan Peso |
| el Bolívar (VES) | Venezuelan Bolivar |
| el Peso mexicano (MXN) | Mexican Peso |
| el Quetzal (GTQ) | Guatemalan Quetzal |
| el Colón (CRC) | Costa Rican Colon |
| el Lempira (HNL) | Honduran Lempira |
| el Córdoba (NIO) | Nicaraguan Cordoba |
| el Balboa (PAB) | Panamanian Balboa |
| el Peso cubano (CUP) | Cuban Peso |
| el Peso dominicano (DOP) | Dominican Peso |
| el Euro (EUR) (Spain uses the Euro, the shared currency of 19 countries of the European Union) | Euro |
| el dólar americano (USD) (Ecuador and El Salvador use the US dollar as their currency) | American dollar |
Banks and Credit Cards
When talking about money and finance in Spanish, you’ll inevitably have to deal with banks and credit cards. Let’s learn some vocabulary about them.
| el banco | bank |
| la cuenta bancaria | bank account |
| el saldo | account balance |
| el depósito | deposit |
| la transferencia bancaria | bank transfer |
| el giro de dinero | money order |
| la banca electrónica | electronic banking |
| la transacción | transaction |
| el depósito en garantía | escrow |
| el fideicomiso | trust |
| el crédito | credit |
| la tarjeta de crédito | credit card |
| credit history | historial crediticio |
| la tarjeta de débito | debit card |
| la hipoteca | mortgage |
| el préstamo | loan |
| el préstamo sobre la plusvalía | home equity loan |
| la tasa de interés | interest rate |
| la tasa fija | fixed rate |
| el pago inicial | down payment |
| el seguro | insurance |
| el seguro de vida | life insurance |
| la prima del seguro | insurance premium |
| la cobertura del seguro | insurance coverage |
| la tasa, la cuota | fee |
| la sucursal bancaria | bank branch |
For Investors
An important part of finance in Spanish are the series of specific terms that would come in handy to an investor. However, you don’t need to be a Wall Street broker to appreciate the importance of mastering some of these words:
| la bolsa de valores | stock market |
| la acción | share |
| el accionista | shareholder |
| el bono | bond |
| el fondo de inversión | investment fund |
| el mercado | market |
| la oferta | supply |
| la demanda | demand |
| la quiebra, la bancarrota | bankruptcy |
| la garantía | collateral |
| las hipotecas de alto riesgo | subprime mortgages |
| el capital | capital |
| el derivado financiero | derivative |
| el activo | asset |
| el pasivo | liability |
| la ganancia | profit |
| la inflación | inflation |
| el inversionista | investor |
| el corredor de bolsa | broker |
Money-related Verbs
Finally, I want to include some important verbs related to money and finance in Spanish.
| pagar | to pay |
| comprar | to buy |
| vender | to sell |
| invertir | to invest |
| prestar | to lend |
| transferir | to transfer |
| depositar | to deposit |
| hipotecar | to mortgage |
| quebrar | to bankrupt |
| diversificar | to diversify |
| ganar | to earn |
| perder | to lose |
| rentar | to rent |
Show Me the Money!
Now that you’ve learned this useful vocabulary about finance in Spanish, you also can say as Cuba Gooding Jr. made Tom Cruise say in the classic sports film Jerry Maguire, “Show me the money!”—¡muéstrame el dinero!
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