🎢 Theme Parks

⏱ 17 min read

In this lesson you will learn useful everyday English vocabulary and expressions for talking about theme parks, amusement parks, rides, attractions, tickets, games, and spending a fun day at the park. Each English word or phrase includes a simple meaning plus translations in several languages.

🟢 Basic Theme Park Vocabulary

🎢 Theme park
a large park with rides and shows
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Parque temático
🇫🇷 French: Parc à thème
🇩🇪 German: Themenpark
🇮🇹 Italian: Parco a tema
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Parque temático
🎟️ Ticket
a pass that lets you enter the park
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Entrada / Boleto
🇫🇷 French: Billet / Entrée
🇩🇪 German: Ticket / Eintrittskarte
🇮🇹 Italian: Biglietto
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Bilhete / Entrada
🎡 Ferris wheel
a giant wheel with seats high above the park
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Noria / Rueda de la fortuna
🇫🇷 French: Grande roue
🇩🇪 German: Riesenrad
🇮🇹 Italian: Ruota panoramica
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Roda-gigante
🎠 Carousel
a ride that turns in a circle with painted horses
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Carrusel
🇫🇷 French: Carrousel / Manège
🇩🇪 German: Karussell
🇮🇹 Italian: Giostra
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Carrossel
🎮 Game
an activity you play to win a prize
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Juego
🇫🇷 French: Jeu
🇩🇪 German: Spiel
🇮🇹 Italian: Gioco
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Jogo
🍿 Snack
a small amount of food you eat between meals
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Aperitivo / Bocadillo
🇫🇷 French: Encas / Snack
🇩🇪 German: Snack
🇮🇹 Italian: Spuntino
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Lanche / Petisco

🟡 Rides & Attractions Vocabulary

🎢 Roller coaster
a fast ride that goes up, down, and around
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Montaña rusa
🇫🇷 French: Montagnes russes
🇩🇪 German: Achterbahn
🇮🇹 Italian: Montagne russe
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Montanha-russa
🎡 Ride / Attraction
something you sit on or enter for fun
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Atracción
🇫🇷 French: Attraction
🇩🇪 German: Attraktion / Fahrgeschäft
🇮🇹 Italian: Attrazione
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Atração
🎯 Prize
something you win at a game
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Premio
🇫🇷 French: Prix / Récompense
🇩🇪 German: Preis
🇮🇹 Italian: Premio
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Prémio
📸 Photo
a picture you take at the park
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Foto
🇫🇷 French: Photo
🇩🇪 German: Foto
🇮🇹 Italian: Foto
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Foto
⏳ Line / Queue
people standing and waiting their turn
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Fila / Cola
🇫🇷 French: File d'attente
🇩🇪 German: Schlange / Warteschlange
🇮🇹 Italian: Coda / Fila
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Fila
😊 Fun
enjoyment and good times
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Diversión
🇫🇷 French: Amusement
🇩🇪 German: Spaß
🇮🇹 Italian: Divertimento
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Diversão

🔵 Theme Park Activities & Actions

🎢 To go on a ride
to get on an attraction
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Subirse a una atracción
🇫🇷 French: Monter dans une attraction
🇩🇪 German: Eine Attraktion fahren
🇮🇹 Italian: Salire su un'attrazione
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Andar numa atração
🎟️ To buy tickets
to pay for park entry
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Comprar entradas
🇫🇷 French: Acheter des billets
🇩🇪 German: Tickets kaufen
🇮🇹 Italian: Comprare biglietti
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Comprar bilhetes
⏳ To wait in line
to stand and wait your turn
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Hacer fila / Hacer cola
🇫🇷 French: Faire la queue
🇩🇪 German: Anstehen / Schlange stehen
🇮🇹 Italian: Fare la coda
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Fazer fila
🎯 To win a prize
to get a gift after a game
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Ganar un premio
🇫🇷 French: Gagner un prix
🇩🇪 German: Einen Preis gewinnen
🇮🇹 Italian: Vincere un premio
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Ganhar um prémio
📸 To take photos
to make pictures with a camera or phone
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Tomar fotos / Sacar fotos
🇫🇷 French: Prendre des photos
🇩🇪 German: Fotos machen
🇮🇹 Italian: Scattare foto
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Tirar fotos
🎮 To play a game
to try a park game for a prize
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Jugar a un juego
🇫🇷 French: Jouer à un jeu
🇩🇪 German: Ein Spiel spielen
🇮🇹 Italian: Giocare a un gioco
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Jogar um jogo

🧠 Talking About Theme Parks

💡 Use go on to talk about getting on or going on a ride or attraction.
I want to go on the roller coaster.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Quiero subirme a la montaña rusa.
🇫🇷 Je veux monter dans les montagnes russes.
🇩🇪 Ich möchte mit der Achterbahn fahren.
🇮🇹 Voglio salire sulle montagne russe.
🇵🇹 Quero andar na montanha-russa.
We went on several rides during the day.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Nos subimos a varias atracciones durante el día.
🇫🇷 Nous sommes montés dans plusieurs attractions pendant la journée.
🇩🇪 Wir sind tagsüber mit mehreren Attraktionen gefahren.
🇮🇹 Siamo saliti su diverse attrazioni durante il giorno.
🇵🇹 Andámos em várias atrações durante o dia.
💡 Use there is / there are to talk about the rides, attractions, and other things available at a theme park.
There are many attractions for the whole family.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Hay muchas atracciones para toda la familia.
🇫🇷 Il y a beaucoup d'attractions pour toute la famille.
🇩🇪 Es gibt viele Attraktionen für die ganze Familie.
🇮🇹 Ci sono molte attrazioni per tutta la famiglia.
🇵🇹 Há muitas atrações para toda a família.
There is a fairly long line for the roller coaster.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Hay una fila bastante larga para la montaña rusa.
🇫🇷 Il y a une file d'attente assez longue pour les montagnes russes.
🇩🇪 Es gibt eine ziemlich lange Schlange für die Achterbahn.
🇮🇹 C'è una coda piuttosto lunga per le montagne russe.
🇵🇹 Há uma fila bastante longa para a montanha-russa.
💡 Use want to + verb to say what you want to do at the park.
I want to try the new ride.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Quiero probar la nueva atracción.
🇫🇷 Je veux essayer la nouvelle attraction.
🇩🇪 Ich möchte die neue Attraktion ausprobieren.
🇮🇹 Voglio provare la nuova attrazione.
🇵🇹 Quero experimentar a nova atração.
We want to see the show before we leave.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Queremos ver el espectáculo antes de irnos.
🇫🇷 Nous voulons voir le spectacle avant de partir.
🇩🇪 Wir wollen die Show sehen, bevor wir gehen.
🇮🇹 Vogliamo vedere lo spettacolo prima di andare via.
🇵🇹 Queremos ver o espetáculo antes de ir embora.

❓ Useful Theme Park Questions

🎟️ Where can we buy the tickets?
asking where to pay for entry
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: ¿Dónde podemos comprar las entradas?
🇫🇷 French: Où pouvons-nous acheter les billets ?
🇩🇪 German: Wo können wir die Tickets kaufen?
🇮🇹 Italian: Dove possiamo comprare i biglietti?
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Onde podemos comprar os bilhetes?
🎢 How long do we have to wait to go on this ride?
asking how long the line is
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: ¿Cuánto hay que esperar para subir a esta atracción?
🇫🇷 French: Combien de temps faut-il attendre pour monter dans cette attraction ?
🇩🇪 German: Wie lange müssen wir warten, um mit dieser Attraktion zu fahren?
🇮🇹 Italian: Quanto bisogna aspettare per salire su questa attrazione?
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Quanto tempo é preciso esperar para andar nesta atração?
🗺️ Where is the roller coaster?
asking how to find the fast ride
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: ¿Dónde está la montaña rusa?
🇫🇷 French: Où sont les montagnes russes ?
🇩🇪 German: Wo ist die Achterbahn?
🇮🇹 Italian: Dove sono le montagne russe?
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Onde fica a montanha-russa?
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Are there rides for young children?
asking if kids can enjoy attractions too
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: ¿Hay atracciones para niños pequeños?
🇫🇷 French: Y a-t-il des attractions pour les jeunes enfants ?
🇩🇪 German: Gibt es Attraktionen für kleine Kinder?
🇮🇹 Italian: Ci sono attrazioni per bambini piccoli?
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Há atrações para crianças pequenas?

💬 Common Theme Park Phrases

🎟️ We bought the tickets online so we wouldn't waste time at the park entrance.
buying tickets ahead of time saved waiting
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Compramos las entradas por internet para no perder tiempo en la entrada del parque.
🇫🇷 French: Nous avons acheté les billets en ligne pour ne pas perdre de temps à l'entrée du parc.
🇩🇪 German: Wir haben die Tickets online gekauft, damit wir an der Parkeingang keine Zeit verlieren.
🇮🇹 Italian: Abbiamo comprato i biglietti online per non perdere tempo all'ingresso del parco.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Comprámos os bilhetes online para não perder tempo na entrada do parque.
🎢 The roller coaster looked scary from below, but we ended up loving it.
it looked frightening, but we enjoyed the ride
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: La montaña rusa parecía aterradora desde abajo, pero al final nos encantó.
🇫🇷 French: Les montagnes russes avaient l'air effrayantes d'en bas, mais on a fini par adorer.
🇩🇪 German: Die Achterbahn sah von unten beängstigend aus, aber am Ende hat sie uns begeistert.
🇮🇹 Italian: Le montagne russe sembravano spaventose dal basso, ma alla fine ci sono piaciute tantissimo.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: A montanha-russa parecia assustadora de baixo, mas no final adorámos.
📸 We took a photo in front of the park's most famous attraction.
we stood by the best-known ride for a picture
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Nos sacamos una foto delante de la atracción más famosa del parque.
🇫🇷 French: Nous avons pris une photo devant l'attraction la plus célèbre du parc.
🇩🇪 German: Wir haben ein Foto vor der berühmtesten Attraktion des Parks gemacht.
🇮🇹 Italian: Ci siamo fatti una foto davanti all'attrazione più famosa del parco.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Tiramos uma foto em frente à atração mais famosa do parque.
🎡 From the top of the Ferris wheel, you could see the entire park.
the high wheel showed the whole park
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Desde lo alto de la noria se podía ver todo el parque.
🇫🇷 French: Du haut de la grande roue, on pouvait voir tout le parc.
🇩🇪 German: Vom oberen Teil des Riesenrads aus konnte man den ganzen Park sehen.
🇮🇹 Italian: Dalla cima della ruota panoramica si poteva vedere tutto il parco.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Do alto da roda-gigante conseguia-se ver todo o parque.

💬 Everyday Conversations

Choosing the next ride
wanting the roller coaster but seeing a long line
A: Which ride do you want to go on now?
B: I want to try the roller coaster, but it looks like there's a long line.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 A: ¿A qué atracción quieres subirte ahora?
🇪🇸 B: Quiero probar la montaña rusa, pero parece que hay mucha fila.

🇫🇷 A: Dans quelle attraction veux-tu monter maintenant ?
🇫🇷 B: Je veux essayer les montagnes russes, mais il semble qu'il y ait une longue file.

🇩🇪 A: Mit welcher Attraktion möchtest du jetzt fahren?
🇩🇪 B: Ich möchte die Achterbahn ausprobieren, aber es sieht so aus, als gäbe es eine lange Schlange.

🇮🇹 A: Su quale attrazione vuoi salire adesso?
🇮🇹 B: Voglio provare le montagne russe, ma sembra che ci sia una lunga coda.

🇵🇹 A: Em que atração queres andar agora?
🇵🇹 B: Quero experimentar a montanha-russa, mas parece que há muita fila.
Playing a park game
trying to win a large prize
A: Look! If you get it right three times, you can win one of those prizes.
B: I'm going to try. I want to win the big prize.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 A: ¡Mira! Si aciertas tres veces, puedes ganar uno de esos premios.
🇪🇸 B: Voy a intentarlo. Quiero ganar el premio grande.

🇫🇷 A: Regarde ! Si tu réussis trois fois, tu peux gagner un de ces prix.
🇫🇷 B: Je vais essayer. Je veux gagner le grand prix.

🇩🇪 A: Schau! Wenn du dreimal richtig triffst, kannst du einen dieser Preise gewinnen.
🇩🇪 B: Ich werde es versuchen. Ich will den großen Preis gewinnen.

🇮🇹 A: Guarda! Se indovini tre volte, puoi vincere uno di quei premi.
🇮🇹 B: Ci proverò. Voglio vincere il premio grande.

🇵🇹 A: Olha! Se acertares três vezes, podes ganhar um desses prémios.
🇵🇹 B: Vou tentar. Quero ganhar o prémio grande.

📝 Example Sentences

🎠 The children wanted to ride the carousel again before continuing around the park.
the kids asked for one more carousel ride
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Los niños quisieron subir al carrusel otra vez antes de continuar recorriendo el parque.
🇫🇷 French: Les enfants ont voulu remonter sur le carrousel avant de continuer à parcourir le parc.
🇩🇪 German: Die Kinder wollten noch einmal mit dem Karussell fahren, bevor sie weiter durch den Park gingen.
🇮🇹 Italian: I bambini hanno voluto salire di nuovo sulla giostra prima di continuare a girare il parco.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: As crianças quiseram andar no carrossel outra vez antes de continuar a percorrer o parque.
🎯 After several attempts, I managed to win a prize at one of the games.
I kept trying until I won something
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Después de varios intentos, conseguí ganar un premio en uno de los juegos.
🇫🇷 French: Après plusieurs tentatives, j'ai réussi à gagner un prix à l'un des jeux.
🇩🇪 German: Nach mehreren Versuchen habe ich es geschafft, bei einem der Spiele einen Preis zu gewinnen.
🇮🇹 Italian: Dopo diversi tentativi, sono riuscito a vincere un premio in uno dei giochi.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Depois de várias tentativas, consegui ganhar um prémio num dos jogos.
⏳ We decided to try another ride because the line for the roller coaster was too long.
we skipped the long wait and chose a different ride
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Decidimos probar otra atracción porque la fila para la montaña rusa era demasiado larga.
🇫🇷 French: Nous avons décidé d'essayer une autre attraction parce que la file pour les montagnes russes était trop longue.
🇩🇪 German: Wir haben beschlossen, eine andere Attraktion auszuprobieren, weil die Schlange für die Achterbahn zu lang war.
🇮🇹 Italian: Abbiamo deciso di provare un'altra attrazione perché la coda per le montagne russe era troppo lunga.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Decidimos experimentar outra atração porque a fila para a montanha-russa era demasiado longa.
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 We spent the whole day exploring the park and looking for rides we could enjoy together.
we looked for attractions the whole group liked
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Pasamos todo el día recorriendo el parque y buscando atracciones que pudiéramos disfrutar juntos.
🇫🇷 French: Nous avons passé toute la journée à parcourir le parc et à chercher des attractions que nous pourrions apprécier ensemble.
🇩🇪 German: Wir haben den ganzen Tag damit verbracht, den Park zu erkunden und nach Attraktionen zu suchen, die wir zusammen genießen konnten.
🇮🇹 Italian: Abbiamo passato tutto il giorno a girare il parco e a cercare attrazioni che potessimo godere insieme.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Passámos o dia todo a percorrer o parque e a procurar atrações que pudéssemos desfrutar juntos.
🎡 We waited until sunset to ride the Ferris wheel and see the park lights from above.
we rode the wheel at night to see the lights
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Esperamos hasta el atardecer para subir a la noria y contemplar las luces del parque desde arriba.
🇫🇷 French: Nous avons attendu le coucher du soleil pour monter dans la grande roue et contempler les lumières du parc d'en haut.
🇩🇪 German: Wir haben bis zum Sonnenuntergang gewartet, um mit dem Riesenrad zu fahren und die Parklichter von oben zu sehen.
🇮🇹 Italian: Abbiamo aspettato fino al tramonto per salire sulla ruota panoramica e contemplare le luci del parco dall'alto.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Esperámos até ao pôr do sol para andar na roda-gigante e contemplar as luzes do parque de cima.
🍿 We stopped to buy something to eat before continuing to visit the attractions.
we bought a snack, then went back to the rides
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Paramos a comprar algo de comer antes de continuar visitando las atracciones.
🇫🇷 French: Nous nous sommes arrêtés pour acheter quelque chose à manger avant de continuer à visiter les attractions.
🇩🇪 German: Wir sind stehen geblieben, um etwas zu essen zu kaufen, bevor wir die Attraktionen weiter besucht haben.
🇮🇹 Italian: Ci siamo fermati a comprare qualcosa da mangiare prima di continuare a visitare le attrazioni.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Parámos para comprar alguma coisa para comer antes de continuar a visitar as atrações.

🏆 Final Practice

English in the Real World:

Read the situation. Choose the best word or phrase from the lesson.
Question 1 of 8
✅ Correct: 0
❓ Questions: 0
🎯 Accuracy: 0%