Spanish for your cell phone: Conversational phrases and vocabulary you should know

In today’s world cell phones have become a routine part of daily conversation.   In this post you’re going to learn some basic vocabulary and phrases surrounding cell phones, so let’s get to it.

To start with, to make a call is hacer una llamada.

Tengo que hacer una llamada, ya regreso
I have to make a call, I’ll be right back

Siempre mando mensajes, casi nunca hago llamadas
I always send messages, I almost never make calls

To say you’re going to call someone or someplace specifically is to llamar a alguien.

Tengo que llamar a mi hija
I have to call my daughter

¿Llamaste al hotel como te pedí?
Did you call the hotel like I asked you?

And just so you know, both of those phrases will apply to a télefono fijo (land line) as well.

Now, we all know as awesome as cell phones are, they have their issues.   Like the connection isn’t always the greatest.   Let’s talk about how to tell someone you have a bad connection.

La conexión está mal
The connection is bad

Tenemos una mala conexión
We have a bad connection

And we all know a bad connection means you can’t hear things clearly.

Se te escucha cortado
You’re breaking up

Te oigo muy mal
You sound bad

You could also use the verb escuchar.

Te escucho muy mal
You sound bad

This is when you start trying to improve your connection, and you start asking:

¿Me escuchas ahora?
Can you hear me now?

If the connection doesn’t get better, it’s best to give them a heads up.

Si se corta la llamada, te vuelvo a llamar
If the call drops, I’ll call you back

And when you call them back because the call dropped, you can say:

Se cortó la llamada
The call dropped

And sometimes you want to make a call and but just don’t have reception.

No tengo señal
I don’t have a signal

No tengo recepción
I don’t have reception

Let’s move on to another challenge with cell phones.   Keeping them charged.

Necesito cargar mi celular
I need to charge my cell phone

Mi celular no tiene carga
My phone isn’t charged

Mi celular casi no tiene carga
My phone is barely charged

Mi celular esta descargada
My phone is dead

¿Tienes cargador?
Do you have a charger?

¿Tienes cargador de iPhone?
Do you have an iPhone charger?

¿Tienes cargador de Android?
Do you have an Android charger?

¿Me prestas tu cargador?
Can I borrow your charger?

Now let’s talk about WiFi.

If you’re wondering how it’s pronounced, Spanish speakers say it in one of two ways.

The first way is to say it just like we do.   Others say it with a Spanish pronunciation, which would sound like “We-Fee”.   There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to choose one over the other.   I suspect it simply comes down to regional differences or how much exposure that person has had to English.

Let’s move on.

To find out if there’s WiFi available, you can ask:

¿Hay wifi?
Do you have WiFi?

¿Tienen wifi?
Do you have WiFi?

These are good options when you’re in a public place like a restaurant or hotel.   If you were asking a friend, or an individual then use:

¿Tienes wifi?
Do you have WiFi?

If you want to connect to the Wi-Fi at your friends house you can ask:

¿Me puedo conectar a tu wifi?
Can I connect to your WiFi?

if you need the password to the WiFi, here’s how you ask.

¿Cuál es la contraseña del WiFi?
What’s the Wif-Fi password?

The word clave is also sometimes used for password instead of contraseña.

When you have problems connecting you can say:

Mi celular no se conecta al wifi
It won’t connect to the WiFi

You can also say:

Mi celular no agarra wifi
My phone won’t connect to the WiFi

And that’s it.   While this wasn’t an exhaustive treatment on the subject, it should be enough to help you get by.

And if you have a hard time remembering these phrases, then you can also get them on your Android phone with the My Spanish Phrasebook app.

Developed by me, it has 1800+ useful phrases for expats, travelers and Spanish learners for everyday situations.   It can be hard to remember all that Spanish floating around in your head, so this is the perfect tool to help you remember those Spanish phrases when you need them the most.

¡Ojála que les sirva!