How Do You Say Practice and Practical in Spanish is the topic of today’s blog post?In a previous email, I told you about an American who was visiting here in Medellin, Colombia. During his stay, he visited the “academia” (academy/school) where I practice an “artes marciales” (martial arts) called “jiu-jitsu brasileño” (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu).

I noticed four (4) mistakes that he made while speaking Spanish. In previous blog posts I told you about 2 of his mistakes. Today, I will tell you about another mistake that he made. Let’s say his name is “Sam” (not his real name to protect his privacy).

How Do You Say Practice and Practical in Spanish?

One night when Sam was leaving the jiu-jitsu academy, I heard him ask one of the new students ¿Usted viene al práctico mañana?

That is not how you ask someone, “Are you coming to the practice tomorrow.”

The Spanish word “práctico” which ends with the letter o- means “practical.”

Of course, if you are using the Spanish word for practical to modify a feminine noun, “práctico” becomes “práctica.” For example:

• Esta técnica de defensa personal es muy práctica. (This self-defense technique is very practical.)

On the other hand, the Spanish noun “práctica” which ends with the letter a- means “practice” as in a repeated performance or a systematic exercise.

Be sure that you do not confuse the conjugated first-person verb “practico” with the adjective “práctico” or the noun “práctica.” The conjugated verb “practico” – with the stress on the next to last syllable – means “I practice.” This concludes today’s lesson on the subject  of How Do You Say Practice and Practical in Spanish?