Spanish vocabulary · Beginner
Cold in Spanish: Frío, Resfriado, and Catarro Explained
Frío · adjective / noun (masculine) · FREE-oh
Cold in Spanish splits into two meanings: frío for temperature (adjective and noun) and resfriado or catarro for the common cold illness. Knowing when to use each is essential.
FREE-oh. Two syllables. The accent mark on the í breaks the diphthong, so frí-o has two separate vowel sounds rather than one glide.
Hace mucho frío hoy, lleva un abrigo.
It's very cold today — wear a coat.
Cold in Spanish: Quick Reference
Below are the most common Spanish words for cold, with pronunciation and regional usage notes.
| Spanish | English | Pronunciation | Region / Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| frío | cold | FREE-oh | Default, widely understood |
| resfriado | cold | common cold (illness), widely understood | |
| catarro | cold | common cold (illness), Spain and some Latin American countries |
How Native Speakers Use Frío
Real example sentences across three contexts you'll actually run into.
Describing the weather
En invierno hace frío en las montañas.
In winter it's cold in the mountains.
Hace frío is the impersonal expression for cold weather. Never say es frío for weather.
Feeling cold (person)
Tengo frío, ¿puedes cerrar la ventana?
I'm cold — can you close the window?
Spanish uses tener frío (to have cold), not ser/estar frío, for a person feeling cold.
Having a cold (illness)
Mi hijo tiene un resfriado y no fue a la escuela.
My son has a cold and didn't go to school.
Resfriado (or catarro in Spain) is the word for the common cold as a sickness.
Avoid These Mistakes When Using Frío
Saying estoy frío to mean I feel cold
Incorrect: Estoy frío.
Correct: Tengo frío.
Estoy frío means 'I am cold to the touch' or figuratively 'I am emotionally cold.' To express feeling cold, use tener frío.
Using frío for the illness
Incorrect: Tengo un frío y me duele la garganta.
Correct: Tengo un resfriado y me duele la garganta.
Frío is temperature. The illness (common cold) is resfriado or catarro. Mixing them is a direct translation from English that does not work in Spanish.
Lock in Cold Vocabulary with the Parrot Method
Why word lists alone don't stick
Memorizing a translation feels productive, but most learners forget 70% of what they studied within 48 hours. Vocabulary needs spaced repetition AND real-world exposure to transfer to long-term memory.
See Frío used by native speakers
Parrot's short-form videos feature native speakers using frío in real situations. Context-based exposure beats flashcards, you hear Hace mucho frío hoy, lleva un abrigo. while watching someone live the moment, connecting meaning, sound, and rhythm at once.
Save, review, repeat, stay consistent
Tap any word to save it. Parrot's spaced-repetition system surfaces it right before you'd forget, no manual flashcard creation. The watch, parrot back, save, review cycle turns recognition into fluency at 2.7x the speed of traditional study.
Common Questions About Cold in Spanish
- How do you say cold in Spanish?
- For temperature: frío (FREE-oh). Hace frío (it's cold outside) or tengo frío (I'm cold). For the illness: resfriado or catarro. Tengo un resfriado (I have a cold).
- What is the difference between resfriado and catarro?
- Both mean the common cold. Resfriado is understood everywhere. Catarro is preferred in Spain and parts of the Caribbean. In some regions catarro can also imply a more mucus-heavy cold.
- Why do you say tengo frío instead of estoy frío?
- Spanish treats cold as something you 'have,' not something you 'are.' Tener frío = feeling cold. Estar frío = being cold to the touch. Soy frío = being an emotionally cold person. Each construction has a different meaning.