Chores Vocabulary in Spanish

If you share a house, an apartment, or even a family kitchen, chores are where language gets real fast. Nobody cares how charming your Spanish is when the trash is overflowing and someone has to wash the dishes. Suddenly, words like barrer, lavar los platos, and sacar la basura become very important. Very quickly.

For the broader learning path, visit our parent guide.

This guide teaches practical Mexican Spanish for everyday chores, cleaning, and “please do your part” situations. The Spanish is natural, modern, and useful in real life, not the kind of vocabulary that lives forever in a dusty workbook and never sees a broom.

Need a quick reference for broader everyday vocabulary too? You can also compare related household words in Furniture Vocabulary in Spanish and pair this with Actions and Gestures in Spanish for extra everyday fluency.

Small truth: many Spanish learners know how to order tacos long before they know how to say “I already took out the trash.” Life is unfair, but fixable.

Useful Chores Phrases For Real Life

Below are the phrases you will actually hear in homes, apartments, and group chats. Mexican Spanish is the focus here, but most of these are widely understood across Latin America.

Spanish	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
hacer el quehacer	ah-SEH-rehl keh-ah-SEHR	to do the chores / household work	Hoy me toca hacer el quehacer.	Today it’s my turn to do the chores.	Very natural in Mexico. Quehacer is a common word for household chores.
limpiar	leem-PYAHR	to clean	Tengo que limpiar mi cuarto.	I have to clean my room.	Super common and useful. Works for rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, and more.
ordenar	or-deh-NAHR	to tidy up / put in order	Voy a ordenar la sala.	I’m going to tidy up the living room.	In Mexico, ordenar often means “tidy,” not “to order” like in restaurants.
barrer	bah-REHR	to sweep	Mi hermano barre la cocina.	My brother sweeps the kitchen.	The double r is rolled or tapped strongly, depending on speed and accent.
trapear	trah-peh-AHR	to mop	Voy a trapear el piso.	I’m going to mop the floor.	Very Mexican. In other places, people may say fregar el piso or pasar la mopa.
sacudir	sah-koo-DEER	to dust / shake off	Hay que sacudir los muebles.	The furniture needs dusting.	Can mean “dust” in cleaning contexts and “shake” in other contexts.
sacar la basura	sah-KAHR lah bah-SOO-rah	to take out the trash	No olvides sacar la basura.	Don’t forget to take out the trash.	Classic roommate sentence. Survival-level vocabulary.
lavar los platos	lah-VAHR lohs PLAH-tohs	to wash the dishes	Yo lavo los platos después de cenar.	I wash the dishes after dinner.	Also common: lavar la vajilla for “wash the dishes/dishware.”
poner la mesa	poh-NEHR lah MEH-sah	to set the table	¿Me ayudas a poner la mesa?	Can you help me set the table?	Polite and very everyday.
desocupar la mesa	deh-soh-koo-PAHR lah MEH-sah	to clear the table	Primero hay que desocupar la mesa.	First we need to clear the table.	Common in Mexico and parts of Latin America. Also recoger la mesa.
lavar la ropa	lah-VAHR lah ROH-pah	to do the laundry	Hoy me toca lavar la ropa.	Today it’s my turn to do the laundry.	Use for the whole laundry task, not just “wash clothes” literally.
tender la ropa	ten-DEHR lah ROH-pah	to hang the laundry to dry	Después de lavar, hay que tender la ropa.	After washing, the clothes need to be hung up to dry.	Very practical if your clothesline is doing all the heavy lifting.
doblar la ropa	doh-BLAHR lah ROH-pah	to fold the clothes	Siempre dejo de doblar la ropa al final.	I always leave folding the clothes for last.	Relatable. Painfully relatable.
cambiar las sábanas	kam-BYAHR lahs SAH-bah-nahs	to change the sheets	Hay que cambiar las sábanas hoy.	The sheets need to be changed today.	Sábanas = bed sheets.
hacer la cama	ah-SEHR lah KAH-mah	to make the bed	Antes de salir, haz la cama.	Before leaving, make the bed.	Very common in homes, hotels, and family advice.
limpiar el baño	leem-PYAHR ehl BAH-nyoh	to clean the bathroom	Hoy toca limpiar el baño.	Today it’s time to clean the bathroom.	Baño can mean bathroom or bath depending on context.
aspirar	ahs-pee-RAHR	to vacuum	Voy a aspirar la sala.	I’m going to vacuum the living room.	Common in Latin America and Spain, though some regions prefer different everyday wording.
sacudir el polvo	sah-koo-DEER ehl POHL-boh	to dust off the dust	Hay que sacudir el polvo de los estantes.	The dust needs to be wiped off the shelves.	Useful if you want to be a little more specific than just limpiar.
lavar los trastes	lah-VAHR lohs TRAHS-tehs	to wash the dishes	¿Quién va a lavar los trastes?	Who is going to wash the dishes?	Very Mexican. Trastes = dishes, pots, and kitchenware.
colgar la ropa	kohl-GAHR lah ROH-pah	to hang up the clothes	Voy a colgar la ropa en el balcón.	I’m going to hang the clothes on the balcony.	Useful with laundry, closets, and hangers.

Illustrated chart of common household chores in Spanish and English

Chores Vocabulary You’ll Hear Around The House

Here are more words that show up constantly in home life. Some are nouns, some are verbs, and some are the kind of words you hear during a very pointed conversation about “shared responsibilities.”

Spanish	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
el quehacer	ehl keh-ah-SEHR	chores, housework	Mis quehaceres no son tantos hoy.	My chores aren’t that many today.	Quehaceres is the plural. Very handy for “the chores.”
la limpieza	lah leem-PYEH-sah	cleaning, cleanliness	La limpieza de la casa es importante.	Cleaning the house is important.	Can mean the act of cleaning or the state of being clean.
el polvo	ehl POHL-boh	dust	Hay mucho polvo en el estante.	There is a lot of dust on the shelf.	Good to know for homes, allergies, and general annoyance.
la basura	lah bah-SOO-rah	trash, garbage	La basura ya huele mal.	The trash already smells bad.	Basura is feminine. Yes, Spanish gender likes to keep you alert.
el balde	ehl BAHL-deh	bucket	Necesito un balde con agua.	I need a bucket with water.	Common in Latin America. In some places, people may also say cubo.
la escoba	lah ehs-KOH-bah	broom	La escoba está detrás de la puerta.	The broom is behind the door.	Useful household noun. Gender note: la escoba, not el escoba.
el trapeador	ehl trah-peh-ah-DOHR	mop	El trapeador está en el patio.	The mop is in the patio.	Very common in Mexico. Related to trapear.
el jabón	ehl hah-BOHN	soap	Se acabó el jabón para trastes.	The dish soap ran out.	Accent mark matters: jabón, not jabon.
el detergente	ehl deh-tehr-HEN-teh	detergent, cleaner	Compré detergente para la ropa.	I bought laundry detergent.	Used for laundry detergent or cleaning products more broadly.
el recogedor	ehl reh-koh-geh-DOHR	dustpan	Pásame el recogedor, por favor.	Pass me the dustpan, please.	Handy when sweeping. Also a good “adulting” word.
el cubo de basura	ehl KOO-boh deh bah-SOO-rah	trash bin	El cubo de basura está lleno.	The trash bin is full.	Very clear and practical.
el tendedero	ehl ten-deh-DEH-roh	clothesline, drying rack area	La ropa está en el tendedero.	The clothes are on the clothesline.	Useful in homes where clothes air-dry. Very common in everyday life.
la fregona	lah freh-GOH-nah	mop	En España dicen fregona con más frecuencia.	In Spain, they say fregona more often.	Regional note: in Mexico, trapeador is usually more common.
el estropajo	ehl ehs-troh-PAH-hoh	scrubbing sponge	Necesito un estropajo nuevo.	I need a new scrubbing sponge.	Very useful in the kitchen. The word may be new, but the mess is familiar.
la cubeta	lah koo-BEH-tah	bucket / pail	Pon agua en la cubeta.	Put water in the bucket.	Common in Mexico, especially in home and cleaning contexts.
la servilleta	lah sehr-bee-YEH-tah	napkin	Necesito servilletas para la mesa.	I need napkins for the table.	Helpful for setting the table and after meals.
el paño	ehl PAH-nyoh	cloth, rag, cleaning cloth	Usa un paño húmedo para limpiar la mesa.	Use a damp cloth to clean the table.	The ñ sound is like the ny in “canyon.”
el mandil	ehl mahn-DEEL	apron	Me pongo el mandil para cocinar y limpiar.	I put on the apron to cook and clean.	Common in Mexico. Helpful if chores include kitchen work.
recoger	reh-koh-HEHR	to pick up, tidy away	Recoge tus cosas del sofá.	Pick up your things from the sofa.	Very useful for cleanup and for sounding mildly impatient.
lavarse	lah-VAHR-seh	to wash oneself	Antes de comer, me lavo las manos.	Before eating, I wash my hands.	Reflexive form. Great for daily routines too.

Verbs And Commands For Getting Things Done

When people talk about chores, they often use commands or casual requests. In Spanish, that means verbs like haz, lava, barre, and pon. Tiny words, huge emotional weight.

Spanish	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
haz	ahs	do / make	Haz tu parte, por favor.	Do your part, please.	Command form of hacer with tú.
lava	LAH-vah	wash	Lava los platos cuando termines.	Wash the dishes when you finish.	Friendly, direct, and very household-real.
barre	BAH-reh	sweep	Barre la cocina antes de salir.	Sweep the kitchen before leaving.	Short command. Easy to hear in homes.
trapea	trah-PEH-ah	mop	Trapea el piso, por favor.	Mop the floor, please.	Mexican everyday command.
ordena	or-DEH-nah	tidy up	Ordena tu cuarto antes de dormir.	Tidy your room before sleeping.	Simple and common. Great for family and roommates.
recoge	reh-KOH-heh	pick up, put away	Recoge la ropa del piso.	Pick up the clothes from the floor.	Not to be confused with recolectar, which is more “collect.”
saca la basura	SAH-kah lah bah-SOO-rah	take out the trash	Saca la basura antes de que llegue el camión.	Take out the trash before the truck arrives.	Very common as a household instruction.
dobla	DOH-blah	fold	Dobla las toallas, por favor.	Fold the towels, please.	Useful for laundry day and laundry-based bargaining.
tiende	TYEN-deh	hang up to dry	Tiende la ropa al sol.	Hang the clothes in the sun.	Common in laundry contexts. The “ie” sound is quick.
pasa el trapo	PAH-sah ehl TRAH-poh	wipe with a cloth	Pasa el trapo por la mesa.	Wipe the table with a cloth.	Very natural in spoken Mexican Spanish.
pone	POH-neh	put, place	Pone los platos en la mesa.	Put the plates on the table.	Wait — if you are giving a command to tú, it should be pon. Pone is for usted or third person. Spanish likes to test your attention span.
limpia	LEEM-pyah	clean	Limpia tu escritorio, por favor.	Clean your desk, please.	Works for surfaces, rooms, and general mess.

For a neat little pronunciation reminder, the letter h

Useful Chores Phrases For Real Life

Chores Vocabulary You’ll Hear Around The House

Verbs And Commands For Getting Things Done

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