Write Card Messages in Spanish | Part I

Do you want to write a greeting card message in Spanish even though you don't know the language? Well, don't fret. You don't have to be fluent, to write a greeting card message in Spanish. To skip the grammar and get to the phrases, click here!

This post is the first of a series on how to write greeting card messages in Spanish. In this lesson, we will only deal with the pronouns "I" and "you" since greeting cards are typically "from me" and "to you".

Me, Myself, and I
Words that refer to the first person pronoun “I” include:
I=yo
(To) Me=a mí
My=mi (singular), mis (plural)
Mine=mío/mía (singular), míos/mías (plural)

You, Yourself, and You
Spanish has two forms of the pronoun “you” (tú and usted). Right now, we’re only going to talk about tú, the informal form of “you”.

For you grammar fans, “[tú] is the form used in Spain and in ample zones of America for informal treatment; [tú] implies closeness to the speaker and is used in familiar, casual or trusting contexts.”

So basically, you would use tú with your intimate partner, your close friends, your family, and your contemporaries (people your age).

Words that refer to the second person pronoun "you" include:
You=tú
(To) You=a tí
Your=tu (singular), tus (plural)
Yours=tuyo/tuya (singular), tuyos/tuyas (plural)


What’s up with that "mío/mía" thing?
Spanish articles, adjectives, and nouns are gendered masculine or feminine, unlike English words, which are gender neutral.

What does that mean?
That means masculine Spanish articles, adjectives, and nouns typically end with -o, while feminine Spanish articles, adjectives, and nouns end with -a.

Ok, give me an example.
the (singular masculine)=el
the (singular feminine)=la
the (plural masculine)=los
the (plural feminine)=las

a (singular masculine)=un
a (singular feminine)=una
a (plural masculine)=unos
a (plural feminine)=unas

uncle (masculine)=tío
uncles (masculine)=tíos
aunt (feminine)=tía
aunts (feminine)=tías

cousin (masculine)=primo
cousins (masculine)=primos
cousin(feminine)=prima
cousin(feminine)=primas

All that grammar is boring, just give me some phrases to use.
Just wanted you to understand some basics. Here goes:

Salutations
Dear (masculine)
Querido

Dear (feminine)
Querida

Feelings
How are you?
¿Cómo estás?

What’s up?
¿Qué pasa?

How’s it going?
¿Qué tal?

What’s new?
¿Qué hay de Nuevo?

I hope you are well when you receive this card.
Espero que estés bien cuando recibes esta tarjeta.

I am…
Yo estoy…

Well
Bien

Happy
Feliz

Content
Contento (masculine)
Contenta (feminine)

Excited
Emocionado (masculine)
Emocionada (feminine)

Holidays
Happy Birthday
Feliz Cumpleaños

Happy Day of the Dead
Feliz Día de los Muertos

Happy Easter
Felices Pascuas

Happy Fathers’ Day
Feliz Día de los Padres

Happy Halloween
Feliz Víspera del Día de los Santos

Happy Mothers’ Day
Feliz Día de las Madres

Happy Thanksgiving
Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias

Happy Valentine’s Day
Feliz Día de San Valentín

Merry Christmas
Feliz Navidad

Closings
With love
Con amor

Sincerely
Atentamente

I love you
Yo te quiero

I miss you
Yo te extraño

Thinking of you
Pensando en ti

With affection
Con cariño

I hope the phrases above will help you get your first Spanish greeting card message down on paper. Good luck and if you have any questions, comments, or corrections, feel free to contact me or leave a comment below.

How I Started Writing Greeting Cards in Spanish

You don't have to be fluent to write personalized Spanish greeting card messages. Although Spanish is my second language, I express myself with personalized Spanish greetings and you can, too.

I've studied Spanish since 2001 with native Spanish speakers. I learned Spanish best by writing letters and translating my favorite Spanish songs while hunched over my Cassell's Spanish-English dictionary. Now, armed with my copy of Real Academia Española: Diccionario del Estudiante and a wonderful group of native Spanish-speaking friends, writing personalized greeting card messages in Spanish is easy. And with less hunching.

Not being able to find Spanish-language cards, I launched Janay Green's Greeting Cards where I create greeting cards in Spanish. I enjoy writing and designing greeting cards in Spanish to communicate my thoughts and feelings to my ESL friends.

Follow this blog and you, too, will learn how to write your own Spanish greeting card messages in no time.