Spanish words by topic

Sports in Spanish

This is a list of 25 common words for talking about sports in Spanish, each with IPA, audio, a translation and an example sentence. Play any word to hear it, check yourself in the quiz and download the list for Anki or Quizlet.

Quick answer

Sports in Spanish: el fútbol, el baloncesto, el tenis, el voleibol, el béisbol, el golf, la natación. The table below gives all 25 words with IPA, audio, a translation and an example sentence. A quiz of 10 questions checks what you remember, and the list can be downloaded for a spreadsheet, Quizlet or Anki.

Word Translation Example
el fútbol /futβol/ football Juego al fútbol con mis amigos los sábados. I play football with my friends on Saturdays.
el baloncesto /balonθesto/ basketball Mi hermana juega al baloncesto en el colegio. My sister plays basketball at school.
el tenis /tenis/ tennis Practico el tenis los martes por la tarde. I play tennis on Tuesday afternoons.
el voleibol /boleɪβol/ volleyball Jugamos al voleibol en la playa este verano. We are playing volleyball at the beach this summer.
el béisbol /beisβol/ baseball Mi primo juega al béisbol en Estados Unidos. My cousin plays baseball in the United States.
el golf /ɡolf/ golf Mi padre juega al golf los domingos. My father plays golf on Sundays.
la natación /nataθjon/ swimming Hago natación en la piscina municipal. I go swimming at the municipal pool.
correr /koreɾ/ running Salgo a correr por el parque cada mañana. I go running in the park every morning.
el ciclismo /θiklismo/ cycling Me gusta el ciclismo por las montañas. I like cycling in the mountains.
el esquí /eski/ skiing Vamos a hacer esquí en los Pirineos. We are going skiing in the Pyrenees.
el boxeo /bokseo/ boxing Mi hermano practica boxeo tres veces por semana. My brother practices boxing three times a week.
el hockey sobre hielo /okeɪ soβɾe jelo/ ice hockey El hockey sobre hielo es popular en Canadá. Ice hockey is popular in Canada.
el rugby /ruɡβi/ rugby Vemos rugby juntos los domingos por la televisión. We watch rugby together on television on Sundays.
el balonmano /balonmano/ handball El equipo juega al balonmano esta tarde. The team plays handball this afternoon.
el tenis de mesa /tenis ðe mesa/ table tennis Juego al tenis de mesa con mi padre. I play table tennis with my father.
el bádminton /badminton/ badminton Jugamos al bádminton en el polideportivo municipal. We play badminton at the municipal sports center.
la gimnasia /ximnasja/ gymnastics Mi hija hace gimnasia después de clase. My daughter does gymnastics after class.
el atletismo /atletismo/ athletics El atletismo incluye carreras, saltos y lanzamientos. Athletics includes running, jumping, and throwing events.
el surf /suɾf/ surfing Practico surf en la costa norte. I practice surfing on the north coast.
el patinaje sobre hielo /patinaxe soβɾe jelo/ ice skating Hacemos patinaje sobre hielo en invierno. We go ice skating in winter.
el snowboard /snowβoaɾd/ snowboarding Mi amigo practica snowboard en Sierra Nevada. My friend practices snowboarding in Sierra Nevada.
la lucha libre /lutʃa liβɾe/ wrestling La lucha libre es muy popular en México. Wrestling is very popular in Mexico.
el kárate /kaɾate/ karate Mi hijo aprende kárate los miércoles. My son learns karate on Wednesdays.
la vela /bela/ sailing Practicamos vela durante las vacaciones de verano. We go sailing during summer vacation.
la equitación /ekitaθjon/ horse riding Mi hermana practica equitación cerca de casa. My sister practices horse riding near home.

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Spanish words by topic

Frequently asked questions

How do you say sports in Spanish?

The list on this page has 25 words. The first ones are el fútbol (football), el baloncesto (basketball), el tenis (tennis). Each comes with IPA, audio, a translation and an example sentence.

How can I practice these words?

Take the quiz on this page, then download the list for Anki or Quizlet and review a few words every day. In Lingo7 you can read books in Spanish with a translation under every sentence and meet the same words in context.

How are these words pronounced?

Press the play button next to a word or an example sentence to hear it. The IPA under each word shows the sounds too: correr is pronounced /koreɾ/.