Lesson 18 · 5 min read
Spanish Emotions and How You Feel
Talking about how you feel mostly uses "estar" plus an adjective, but Spanish also has a group of feelings expressed with "tener" that don't translate word-for-word from English — those are the ones worth learning carefully.
1. Feelings with estar
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| feliz | happy |
| triste | sad |
| cansado | tired |
| nervioso | nervous |
| enojado | angry |
| emocionado | excited |
| aburrido | bored |
| sorprendido | surprised |
2. Feelings with tener
These use "tener" (to have) instead of "to be" — a common mistake for English speakers is reaching for "estar" here.
| Spanish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| tener miedo | to be afraid | Tengo miedo de las alturas. — I am afraid of heights. |
| tener hambre | to be hungry | |
| tener sueño | to be sleepy | |
| tener prisa | to be in a hurry | |
| tener celos | to be jealous |
3. Asking how someone feels
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Cómo te sientes? | How do you feel? |
| Me siento feliz. | I feel happy. |
| ¿Qué te pasa? | What's wrong? |