👨‍⚕️ Jobs & Professions 

In this lesson you'll learn common English jobs and professions, useful workplace vocabulary, and everyday words you can use when talking about work. Each English word includes translations in Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Portuguese.

🟢 Common Jobs & Professions

👨‍🏫 Teacher

🇪🇸 Spanish: Profesor / Profesora
🇫🇷 French: Professeur
🇩🇪 German: Lehrer / Lehrerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Insegnante
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Professor / Professora
👨‍⚕️ Doctor

🇪🇸 Spanish: Médico / Médica
🇫🇷 French: Médecin
🇩🇪 German: Arzt / Ärztin
🇮🇹 Italian: Medico / Medica
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Médico / Médica
👩‍⚕️ Nurse

🇪🇸 Spanish: Enfermero / Enfermera
🇫🇷 French: Infirmier / Infirmière
🇩🇪 German: Krankenpfleger / Krankenschwester
🇮🇹 Italian: Infermiere
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Enfermeiro / Enfermeira
👮 Police officer

🇪🇸 Spanish: Policía
🇫🇷 French: Policier / Policière
🇩🇪 German: Polizist / Polizistin
🇮🇹 Italian: Poliziotto / Poliziotta
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Policial
👨‍🍳 Cook / Chef

🇪🇸 Spanish: Cocinero / Cocinera
🇫🇷 French: Cuisinier / Chef
🇩🇪 German: Koch / Köchin
🇮🇹 Italian: Cuoco / Cuoca
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Cozinheiro / Cozinheira
💻 Programmer

🇪🇸 Spanish: Programador / Programadora
🇫🇷 French: Programmeur / Programmeuse
🇩🇪 German: Programmierer / Programmiererin
🇮🇹 Italian: Programmatore / Programmatrice
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Programador / Programadora
🚗 Driver

🇪🇸 Spanish: Conductor / Conductora
🇫🇷 French: Conducteur / Conductrice
🇩🇪 German: Fahrer / Fahrerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Autista
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Motorista
👷 Engineer

🇪🇸 Spanish: Ingeniero / Ingeniera
🇫🇷 French: Ingénieur / Ingénieure
🇩🇪 German: Ingenieur / Ingenieurin
🇮🇹 Italian: Ingegnere
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Engenheiro / Engenheira
🚒 Firefighter

🇪🇸 Spanish: Bombero / Bombera
🇫🇷 French: Pompier / Pompière
🇩🇪 German: Feuerwehrmann / Feuerwehrfrau
🇮🇹 Italian: Pompiere
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Bombeiro / Bombeira
⚖️ Lawyer

🇪🇸 Spanish: Abogado / Abogada
🇫🇷 French: Avocat / Avocate
🇩🇪 German: Anwalt / Anwältin
🇮🇹 Italian: Avvocato / Avvocata
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Advogado / Advogada
🦷 Dentist

🇪🇸 Spanish: Dentista
🇫🇷 French: Dentiste
🇩🇪 German: Zahnarzt / Zahnärztin
🇮🇹 Italian: Dentista
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Dentista
📷 Photographer

🇪🇸 Spanish: Fotógrafo / Fotógrafa
🇫🇷 French: Photographe
🇩🇪 German: Fotograf / Fotografin
🇮🇹 Italian: Fotografo / Fotografa
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Fotógrafo / Fotógrafa

🟡 More Jobs & Professions

🔬 Scientist

🇪🇸 Spanish: Científico / Científica
🇫🇷 French: Scientifique
🇩🇪 German: Wissenschaftler / Wissenschaftlerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Scienziato / Scienziata
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Cientista
🎨 Artist

🇪🇸 Spanish: Artista
🇫🇷 French: Artiste
🇩🇪 German: Künstler / Künstlerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Artista
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Artista
🎵 Musician

🇪🇸 Spanish: Músico / Música
🇫🇷 French: Musicien / Musicienne
🇩🇪 German: Musiker / Musikerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Musicista
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Músico / Música
📰 Journalist

🇪🇸 Spanish: Periodista
🇫🇷 French: Journaliste
🇩🇪 German: Journalist / Journalistin
🇮🇹 Italian: Giornalista
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Jornalista
✍️ Writer

🇪🇸 Spanish: Escritor / Escritora
🇫🇷 French: Écrivain / Écrivaine
🇩🇪 German: Schriftsteller / Schriftstellerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Scrittore / Scrittrice
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Escritor / Escritora
🏗️ Architect

🇪🇸 Spanish: Arquitecto / Arquitecta
🇫🇷 French: Architecte
🇩🇪 German: Architekt / Architektin
🇮🇹 Italian: Architetto / Architetta
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Arquiteto / Arquiteta
🔧 Mechanic

🇪🇸 Spanish: Mecánico / Mecánica
🇫🇷 French: Mécanicien / Mécanicienne
🇩🇪 German: Mechaniker / Mechanikerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Meccanico / Meccanica
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Mecânico / Mecânica
💼 Accountant

🇪🇸 Spanish: Contador / Contadora
🇫🇷 French: Comptable
🇩🇪 German: Buchhalter / Buchhalterin
🇮🇹 Italian: Contabile
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Contador / Contadora
🛍️ Salesperson

🇪🇸 Spanish: Vendedor / Vendedora
🇫🇷 French: Vendeur / Vendeuse
🇩🇪 German: Verkäufer / Verkäuferin
🇮🇹 Italian: Venditore / Venditrice
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Vendedor / Vendedora
🍽️ Waiter / Waitress

🇪🇸 Spanish: Camarero / Camarera
🇫🇷 French: Serveur / Serveuse
🇩🇪 German: Kellner / Kellnerin
🇮🇹 Italian: Cameriere / Cameriera
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Garçom / Garçonete
Regional terms such as mesero / mesera are also common in Spanish.
✈️ Pilot

🇪🇸 Spanish: Piloto / Pilota
🇫🇷 French: Pilote
🇩🇪 German: Pilot / Pilotin
🇮🇹 Italian: Pilota
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Piloto / Pilota
🌾 Farmer

🇪🇸 Spanish: Agricultor / Agricultora
🇫🇷 French: Agriculteur / Agricultrice
🇩🇪 German: Landwirt / Landwirtin
🇮🇹 Italian: Agricoltore / Agricoltrice
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Agricultor / Agricultora

💼 Workplace Vocabulary

💼 Job / Work

🇪🇸 Spanish: Trabajo
🇫🇷 French: Travail
🇩🇪 German: Arbeit
🇮🇹 Italian: Lavoro
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Trabalho
🏢 Office

🇪🇸 Spanish: Oficina
🇫🇷 French: Bureau
🇩🇪 German: Büro
🇮🇹 Italian: Ufficio
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Escritório
🏭 Company

🇪🇸 Spanish: Empresa
🇫🇷 French: Entreprise
🇩🇪 German: Unternehmen
🇮🇹 Italian: Azienda
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Empresa
💰 Salary

🇪🇸 Spanish: Salario
🇫🇷 French: Salaire
🇩🇪 German: Gehalt
🇮🇹 Italian: Stipendio
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Salário
📅 Schedule

🇪🇸 Spanish: Horario
🇫🇷 French: Horaire
🇩🇪 German: Zeitplan
🇮🇹 Italian: Orario
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Horário
🧑‍💼 Boss

🇪🇸 Spanish: Jefe / Jefa
🇫🇷 French: Patron / Patronne
🇩🇪 German: Chef / Chefin
🇮🇹 Italian: Capo
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Chefe
👥 Coworker

🇪🇸 Spanish: Compañero / Compañera de trabajo
🇫🇷 French: Collègue
🇩🇪 German: Kollege / Kollegin
🇮🇹 Italian: Collega
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Colega de trabalho
🛠️ Worker

🇪🇸 Spanish: Trabajador / Trabajadora
🇫🇷 French: Travailleur / Travailleuse
🇩🇪 German: Arbeiter / Arbeiterin
🇮🇹 Italian: Lavoratore / Lavoratrice
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Trabalhador / Trabalhadora
🤝 Client

🇪🇸 Spanish: Cliente
🇫🇷 French: Client
🇩🇪 German: Kunde / Kundin
🇮🇹 Italian: Cliente
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Cliente
📄 Contract

🇪🇸 Spanish: Contrato
🇫🇷 French: Contrat
🇩🇪 German: Vertrag
🇮🇹 Italian: Contratto
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Contrato
📊 Project

🇪🇸 Spanish: Proyecto
🇫🇷 French: Projet
🇩🇪 German: Projekt
🇮🇹 Italian: Progetto
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Projeto
📧 Email

🇪🇸 Spanish: Correo electrónico
🇫🇷 French: E-mail
🇩🇪 German: E-Mail
🇮🇹 Italian: Email
🇵🇹 Portuguese: E-mail

👕 Job Titles in English

English job titles usually do not change for men and women.

Teacher
Doctor
Engineer

The same job title is normally used regardless of gender.
Some English job titles were once gender-specific, but today neutral forms are preferred.

Police officer (not policeman / policewoman)
Firefighter (not fireman)
Server or Waiter / Waitress depending on the region.

🗣️ Talking About Your Job

💡 English uses the verb to be together with a / an before most singular professions.

I'm a teacher.
🇪🇸 Soy profesor.
🇫🇷 Je suis professeur.
🇩🇪 Ich bin Lehrer.
🇮🇹 Sono insegnante.
🇵🇹 Sou professor.
💡 Use an before professions beginning with a vowel sound.

I'm an engineer.
🇪🇸 Soy ingeniero / ingeniera.
🇫🇷 Je suis ingénieur.
🇩🇪 Ich bin Ingenieur.
🇮🇹 Sono ingegnere.
🇵🇹 Sou engenheiro.
🌎 Job titles can vary between English-speaking countries. For example, attorney and lawyer, or vacation and holiday, may differ depending on the region.

💬 Useful Work & Job Phrases

💼 What do you do for a living?

🇪🇸 Spanish: ¿A qué te dedicas?
🇫🇷 French: Que faites-vous dans la vie ?
🇩🇪 German: Was machen Sie beruflich?
🇮🇹 Italian: Che lavoro fai?
🇵🇹 Portuguese: O que você faz da vida?
🏢 Where do you work?

🇪🇸 Spanish: ¿Dónde trabajas?
🇫🇷 French: Où travaillez-vous ?
🇩🇪 German: Wo arbeiten Sie?
🇮🇹 Italian: Dove lavori?
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Onde você trabalha?
💻 I work from home.

🇪🇸 Spanish: Trabajo desde casa.
🇫🇷 French: Je travaille à domicile.
🇩🇪 German: Ich arbeite von zu Hause aus.
🇮🇹 Italian: Lavoro da casa.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Trabalho de casa.
📅 I have an important meeting today.

🇪🇸 Spanish: Hoy tengo una reunión importante.
🇫🇷 French: J'ai une réunion importante aujourd'hui.
🇩🇪 German: Ich habe heute ein wichtiges Meeting.
🇮🇹 Italian: Oggi ho una riunione importante.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Tenho uma reunião importante hoje.

💬 Everyday Work Conversations

Meeting someone new

A: What do you do for a living?
🇪🇸 ¿A qué te dedicas?
🇫🇷 Que faites-vous dans la vie ?
🇩🇪 Was machen Sie beruflich?
🇮🇹 Che lavoro fai?
🇵🇹 O que você faz da vida?


B: I'm an architect. I design houses and buildings.
🇪🇸 Soy arquitecta. Diseño casas y edificios.
🇫🇷 Je suis architecte. Je conçois des maisons et des bâtiments.
🇩🇪 Ich bin Architekt. Ich entwerfe Häuser und Gebäude.
🇮🇹 Sono architetto. Progetto case ed edifici.
🇵🇹 Sou arquiteto. Projeto casas e edifícios.
Talking about the workplace

A: Do you work in an office?
🇪🇸 ¿Trabajas en una oficina?
🇫🇷 Travaillez-vous dans un bureau ?
🇩🇪 Arbeiten Sie in einem Büro?
🇮🇹 Lavori in un ufficio?
🇵🇹 Você trabalha em um escritório?


B: No, I work from home three days a week.
🇪🇸 No, trabajo desde casa tres días a la semana.
🇫🇷 Non, je travaille à domicile trois jours par semaine.
🇩🇪 Nein, ich arbeite drei Tage pro Woche von zu Hause aus.
🇮🇹 No, lavoro da casa tre giorni alla settimana.
🇵🇹 Não, trabalho de casa três dias por semana.

📝 Example Sentences

🔬 My neighbor is a scientist and works in a laboratory.

🇪🇸 Spanish: Mi vecina es científica y trabaja en un laboratorio.
🇫🇷 French: Ma voisine est scientifique et travaille dans un laboratoire.
🇩🇪 German: Meine Nachbarin ist Wissenschaftlerin und arbeitet in einem Labor.
🇮🇹 Italian: La mia vicina è una scienziata e lavora in un laboratorio.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Minha vizinha é cientista e trabalha em um laboratório.
📷 The photographer travels around the city looking for interesting places.

🇪🇸 Spanish: El fotógrafo viaja por la ciudad buscando lugares interesantes.
🇫🇷 French: Le photographe parcourt la ville à la recherche d'endroits intéressants.
🇩🇪 German: Der Fotograf reist durch die Stadt und sucht interessante Orte.
🇮🇹 Italian: Il fotografo gira per la città cercando luoghi interessanti.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: O fotógrafo percorre a cidade procurando lugares interessantes.
🔧 The mechanic is repairing my brother's car.

🇪🇸 Spanish: La mecánica está reparando el coche de mi hermano.
🇫🇷 French: La mécanicienne répare la voiture de mon frère.
🇩🇪 German: Die Mechanikerin repariert das Auto meines Bruders.
🇮🇹 Italian: La meccanica sta riparando l'auto di mio fratello.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: A mecânica está consertando o carro do meu irmão.
✍️ My grandfather was a writer and still keeps his old notebooks.

🇪🇸 Spanish: Mi abuelo fue escritor y todavía guarda sus viejos cuadernos.
🇫🇷 French: Mon grand-père était écrivain et garde encore ses vieux carnets.
🇩🇪 German: Mein Großvater war Schriftsteller und bewahrt noch immer seine alten Notizbücher auf.
🇮🇹 Italian: Mio nonno era uno scrittore e conserva ancora i suoi vecchi quaderni.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Meu avô foi escritor e ainda guarda seus cadernos antigos.

🏆 Final Practice

Try saying each English phrase before pressing play.

  • What do you do for a living?
  • I'm an engineer.
  • I work from home.
  • My brother is a photographer.
  • I have an important meeting today.
  • Where do you work?