For many of us, romance and relationships go hand-in-hand. We can’t imagine not being able to develop a relationship without having the romance component and we might not even want to be in a relationship if romance is not a part of it.

Romance is not just an act, such as a candlelight dinner or flowers or poetry, it is also the things that you say to someone to make them feel special and to let them know how you feel about them.

If you are in a romantic relationship with someone who speaks Spanish (or want to be in one) than knowing romantic Spanish phrases is essential to letting that special someone know how you feel about them.

There are two basic ways of expressing romance: through compliments and through sentiments.

Complimenting someone through romantic Spanish phrases includes anything from talking about how pretty they are:

You are pretty.
Eres muy linda.
EH-rehs moo-ee LEEN-dah.

To complimenting their features:

You have such beautiful eyes.
Tienes ojos tan hermosos.
tee-YEHN-ehs OH-johs than ehr-MOH-sohs.

To complimenting how they look:

You look like an angel.
Pareces como una angelita.
pah-REH-cehs COH-moh OOH-nah ahn-jeh-LEE-tah.

Everybody, man and woman alike, wants to know that they look good, that they are attractive. What makes you feel good about yourself or how do you let the one you care about know how you are attracted to them?

Sentiments are romantic Spanish phrases that express the depth of how you feel which often goes beyond the surface compliments. These would include expressions such as:

You will always have a place in my heart.
Siempre te llevaré dentro de mi corazón.
see-YEHM-preh teh yeh-vah-REH DEHN-troh deh mee coh-rah-SOHN.

My life started the day we met.
Mi vida empezó el día que nos conocímos.
mee VEE-dah ehm-peh-SOH ehl DEE-ah keh nohs coh-noh-CEE-mohs.

What are phrases you use to keep the romance alive?

Spanish has a few different ways to say you like someone. The two most common verbs for liking someone are gustar and caer. When gustar is used in reference to a particular person it has sexual connotations. It means you like this person in a romantic/sexual way. Caer has no sexual connotations. It means you like this individual as a person.

When using gustar and caer also note that unlike English the person you say that you like is the person creating the action of the verb. In English when you say “I like this person," you are the one creating the action, “the liking.”

With gustar and caer the person you like is the one creating the verb action. Instead of saying ”I like this person” it’s more like saying “This person pleases me.” The other person is creating the action of the verb.

Here’s how to tell someone you like them using both gustar and caer:

I like you. (in a romantic/sexual way)
Me gustas.
meh gooss-tahs.

I like you. (as a person, no romantic/sexual connotations)
Me caes bien.
meh kah-ehs bee-ehn.

Using caer requires an adjective to express whether your opinion of this person is good or bad. The adjective bien in the example above means “fine” or “well.” By changing the adjective to a negative word like mal which means “bad” or “badly” you change it to “I don’t like you.”

I don’t like you.
Me caes mal.
meh kah-ehs mahl.

If you have any tips or something to add related to this post just mention it below.

When people are learning Spanish and want to ask someone if they have a boyfriend or a girlfriend they normally translate it literally from English.
 
In English we say "Do you have a boyfriend (or girlfriend)?"
 
The problem is in Spanish they don't use the indefinite article (the "a" that comes before "boyfriend" or "girlfriend.")
 
In Spanish they just say "Do you have boyfriend?" or "Do you have girlfriend?"
 
So here are the correct translations:

Do you have a boyfriend?
¿Tienes novio? (The indefinite article "un" is not used before "novio.")
Phonetics:
¿tee-ehn-ehs noh-vee-oh?
 
Do you have a girlfriend?
¿Tienes novia? (The indefinite article "una" is not used before "novia.")
Phonetics:
¿tee-ehn-ehs noh-vee-ah?
 
Here's how to respond if someone asks you:
 
I (don't) have a boyfriend.
(No) tengo novio. (No "un" is used. Don't say "Tengo un novio.")
Phonetics:
(noh) tehn-goh noh-vee-oh.
 
I (don't) have a girlfriend.
(No) tengo novia. (No "una" is used. Don't say "Tengo una novia.")
Phonetics:
(noh) tehn-goh noh-vee-ah.

By using the words in parenthesis you negate the sentence and state you don't have a boyfriend or girlfriend.

If you have any tips or something to add related to this post just mention it below.

Here are a few openers you can use in ANY bar or club in a Spanish speaking country. These are casual conversation starters you can use to get some small talk going. They work well for someone you are attracted to or if you just want to hang out with some locals.

What's the best national beer from this country?
¿Cual es la mejor cerveza nacional de este país?
¿kwahl ehs lah meh-hohr sehr-veh-sah nah-see-oh-nahl deh ehs-teh pah-EEs?

What are the local drinks from this country?
¿Cuales son los tragos nativos de este país?
¿kwah-lehs sohn lohs trah-gohs nah-tee-vohs deh ehs-teh pah-EEs?

What kind of drinks are popular here?
¿Qué tipo de tragos son populares aquí?
¿kEH tee-poh deh trah-gohs sohn poh-poo-lah-rehs ah-kEE?

These are good ways to start a conversation since you're showing interest in their country and what makes it different from others. Most people enjoy talking about things that are unique from their country.

Though these are ideal for bars and clubs you can use them anywhere to strike up a conversation.

To get the most out of your time spent traveling in other countries you want to mix with the locals. If you've met some cool people or have met someone you're attracted to and want to hang out with them you can ask them to get a drink with you:

Let's have a drink.
Vamos a tomar un trago.
vah-mohs ah toh-mahr oo-n trah-goh.

If you have any tips or something to add related to this post just mention it below.

We've just brought our Hook Up Spanish Dictionary online. This is the only English-Spanish dictionary focused on hooking up, romance, dating, love and sex. Check it out and if there's any words or terms you would like to add to the dictionary just mention them at the bottom of any page of the dictionary.

We've made some big changes. We will be adding new content to Hook Up Spanish on a continual basis. One of the first implementations will be a blog. Stay tuned...