5 Most Common Intermediate Spanish Mistakes

If you've been learning Spanish for a while, chances are you're making these most common intermediate Spanish mistakes and they're holding you back from fluency.

It's different when you're a beginner… Every single concept makes a huge difference so you see tangible results almost immediately. Learning just 10 new words opens up so many more options in conversations. Every new thing is exciting and you see real progress.

And then?

You hit a roadblock
Progress slows down
You get frustrated

Does this sound familiar?

This phenomenon is known as the “intermediate plateau” and happens to just about every student of a new language. After the first burst of knowledge, progress slows way down and you don't see major improvements at the rate you did early on.

If you've hit this point in your learning, don't quit now! Instead, to get past the intermediate plateau, think of it this way:

“What got you here won't get you there”

It's time to change how you go about learning and practising Spanish. In this post, you'll learn the 5 most common intermediate Spanish mistakes and how to avoid them in your quest to even better fluency. With these tips, you'll break through the intermediate plateau in no time.

Table of Contents

Pro Tip

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1. You've Stopped Learning New Spanish Words

break the Spanish intermediate plateau by reading

The first of the 5 most common intermediate Spanish mistakes is all about words.

You already know all the words and tenses you need for everyday conversation because you hear them all the time when you speak Spanish.

Despite that knowledge, you lack the deeper vocabulary and technical jargon to talk about politics or history. You have standard greetings, specialised vocabulary for your profession, etc. But you can't seem to get past that.

Why does this happen? It comes down to frequency.

What you need to learn next requires more of you, because you're not going to hear it as often.

You know the basic words, and now it's time to learn the ones that give you a fluency and smoothness to your speech. They're harder to remember and it's harder to know exactly when to use them.

You might go months between using words like el huerto (orchard), but without them, you'll struggle to get to the advanced fluency you desire.

Action Steps To Boost Your Spanish Vocabulary

Make a word list with both the complex words you want to remember and the ones you come across in your studies
Don't just write down a word with the definition, but also include examples, to go for a real depth in understanding
Expand your everyday vocabulary to fit a wider variety of words
Then, make an intentional effort to practise using these words often! Describe the things you see in detail, using as many synonyms as you can

You'll never get the frequency needed to remember these words if you don't make the effort yourself. They just aren't used enough to day-to-day speech for you to learn them organically.

If you want to get started on boosting your vocab, check out my list of 67 intermediate Spanish phrases.

2. You Aren't Reading And Writing Enough In Spanish

break through Spanish intermediate plateau by writing

And just where are those more advanced words going to come from? Most of them will come from reading. That's why reading is the foundation of the StoryLearning® method.

Reading Spanish will give you exposure to authentic language that is also more specialised than casual conversation.

You may hear the verbs comer (to eat), hablar (to speak), and beber (to drink) on the street, but you will find verbs like apoderar (to empower), colarse (to sneak), and contemplar (contemplate) in the articles and books you read.

Writing in Spanish will also force you to create that same complex language and help push you past your current plateau. This is yet another situation where you will need to change your approach. As a beginner, quantity is more important than quality.

Now, you need to reverse that.

Instead of just trying to get as much exposure to Spanish as possible, focus on getting a lot more challenging input in order to discover deeper nuances and more complex language.

Action Steps To Read And Write More In Spanish

If you aren't already, you should be reading in Spanish every single day
If you are already reading daily, reevaluate what you are reading and pick more challenging books and articles
Whereas in the past, you may have read a magazine article quickly to get the gist, now you need to go through the article with a fine-toothed comb. Make sure you understand it in detail
Notice the tenses and vocabulary and make a conscious effort to try them out yourself
And if you've ever lamented that you understand so much better than you speak, write more! Being forced to produce Spanish in a new way will propel you past the intermediate plateau.

3. You're Trying To Do It Alone

break the Spanish intermediate plateau with help

In general, I reject the notion that you can't teach yourself a new language.

Most of my languages have been self-taught with a combination of a high-quality textbook or course and plenty of opportunities to converse with native speakers.

By the time you're struggling to move from intermediate to advanced fluency, however, you'll benefit from more traditional instruction.

That way, there is someone to point out the intricacies and nuances.

You've likely reached the point where you need someone to point out minor mistakes and help you understand the subtle nuances of Spanish that are obvious to native speakers and hard for Spanish learners to grasp alone.

As an added bonus, having a teacher will give you some accountability to keep working toward your goal.

Action Steps To Get Help With Your Spanish

Sign up for a course in Spanish. Not a Spanish course, but a writing course or literature course or another academic subject in Spanish. That will force you to read, write, and speak using more complex language than you would ever find at a restaurant or on the subway.
If a course in Spanish isn't an option where you live, hire a tutor. Make sure you're hiring a tutor that is skilled enough in the language and in teaching to meet your needs. Then, tell your tutor that you'd like to submit essays for revision and discuss assigned reading (like you would in a traditional classroom setting). Talk through why they've corrected anything they have until you intuitively understand how it should be done.

This may seem counterintuitive since so much of your learning up to this point has been in actual conversations. But again, it's time to change your approach to learning if you want to get past this natural roadblock.

4. You Avoid Complex Tenses Like The Subjunctive And Conditional

break the intermediate plateau with complex Spanish tenses

If you're anything like many Spanish students I know, you're a little bit afraid of the subjunctive, conditional, and other complex tenses.

Maybe you technically know how to conjugate the verbs, but you find yourself hesitating
You change the way you phrase things just to avoid needing to use the subjunctive
You rush through the conditional and hope no one notices any mistakes

This is normal, and again, comes back to frequency.

No matter how much you want to, you can't avoid the subjunctive and the conditional if you want to speak Spanish fluently.

For starters, the subjunctive is incredibly important (and common) in Spanish. It's way more common than in English.

Besides that, you want to speak Spanish without pauses and hesitation. Your goal should be to speak without trying to compose the perfect sentence in your mind before you open your mouth.

Action Steps To Incorporate Complex Structures Into Your Spanish

First, revise the subjunctive and conditional to remind yourself of anything you may have forgotten since learning them the first time
Find a Spanish short story featuring the subjunctive and grammar summary of the subjunctive here. You can use my Spanish short stories for intermediate learners to get exposure to these structures in a fun way
Once you've refreshed your memory of both tenses, it's up to you to use them

Even if you have to start with sentences you've composed ahead of time, start incorporating the subjunctive and conditional in as much of your speech as you can.

Remember, your goal is frequency!

5. You Can't Tell Or Understand Jokes And Innuendo In Spanish

break the Spanish intermediate plateau through humour

You probably use more formal Spanish language than native speakers because that's what you learn in school.

Depending on how you learned Spanish originally, you may still sound like you're reciting sentences from a textbook at this point. Have you ever learned a swear word in Spanish and noticed it just doesn't feel like swearing in your native language?

Instead of “feeling” it, you're trying to memorise innuendo and intent intellectually.

Right now, your vocabulary is probably made up of “surface” language – simple tenses for communicating your needs—but not the nuanced additions that push your communication to the next level.

Subtle nuances, innuendo, and humour are incredibly difficult in a new language, especially if you don't have a lot of exposure to native speakers.

Action Steps To Improve Your Sense Of Humour In Spanish

Can you guess what I'm going to say yet? To improve your sense of humour and understanding of innuendo in Spanish, you need to consciously increase your exposure.

Ingest more authentic Spanish, especially in places that you would expect to find humour: comedians, humorous podcasts, or this list of Spanish meme sites
Also, as you expand your vocabulary (see point #1), be sure to include slang, turns of phrases, or words that are used locally

Most Common Intermediate Spanish Mistakes FAQs

What Are The 5 Most Common Intermediate Spanish Mistakes?

1. You've Stopped Learning New Spanish Words
2. You Aren't Reading And Writing Enough In Spanish
3. You're Trying To Do It Alone
4. You Avoid Complex Tenses Like The Spanish Subjunctive And Spanish Conditional Tense
5. You Can't Tell Or Understand Jokes And Innuendo In Spanish

How Is Learning Intermediate Spanish Different From Being A Beginner?

Learning intermediate Spanish builds upon the foundational knowledge gained as a beginner, focusing on more complex grammar structures and expanding vocabulary. Intermediate learners engage with authentic materials like news articles and literature, and practise more nuanced communication skills. At this level, students typically work on refining their speaking fluency, understanding context-specific language use, and developing a deeper appreciation for cultural nuances in Spanish-speaking countries.