Home / Guides / Desk and office words in Spanish

Desk and office words in Spanish: 40 words to know

Last updated July 7, 2026 · 7 min read

Phrases you can actually say

1. Mi laptop está en el escritorio. — My laptop is on the desk.
2. ¿Tienes un lapicero? — Do you have a pen?
3. Necesito imprimir este documento. — I need to print this document.
4. La reunión está en mi calendario. — The meeting is on my calendar.
5. ¿Dónde dejé mi cuaderno? — Where did I leave my notebook?
6. Voy a guardar esto en la carpeta. — I'm going to save this in the folder.
7. Mis audífonos están cargando. — My headphones are charging.
8. Pásame la grapadora, por favor. — Pass me the stapler, please.

Catch them instead of memorizing them

A vocabulary table is a fine reference, but the desk that actually teaches you Spanish is the one you're sitting at right now. Photograph your keyboard, your notebook, your stapler, and CatchFrase names each one in Spanish, reads it aloud, and builds an example sentence around it — so the word attaches to the object under your hand, not to a row in a list.

Every catch becomes a collectible card with the word, a phrase, audio, and a place in your review queue. Smart review (CatchFrase's spaced-repetition system) brings each word back just before you'd forget it, so the vocabulary from your workspace keeps compounding instead of fading after one read-through.

Being honest about the free tier: it's 10 catches a day, so a full desk — computer, keyboard, mouse, notebook, pens, stapler, folder, printer, and the rest — takes about 4 days at that pace. That's a realistic week to build real desk vocabulary without paying for anything, and there's no account required to start.

Common questions

Is "computadora" or "ordenador" the right word for computer?

Both are correct — la computadora is standard across Latin America, while el ordenador is standard in Spain. The same split applies to mouse (el mouse vs. el ratón) and pen (el lapicero vs. el bolígrafo). Learn the one that matches the Spanish you're aiming for.

Will this help me use Spanish at work, not just in a classroom?

That's the point of learning object names tied to your actual desk rather than a generic list — the words you catch are the ones sitting in front of you, so they transfer directly to describing your real workspace in Spanish.

Is CatchFrase free to use for this?

Yes. The free tier includes 10 catches a day, a 75-card collection, and daily review — enough to work through your entire desk over a few days. CatchFrase Plus adds unlimited catches and deeper practice.