English vocabulary professions

Before we learn vocabulary related to professions in English, let’s review a little grammar.

The big secret that almost everyone forgets: A or An

In Spanish, we say “I am a doctor” or “She is an engineer.” We go directly from the verb to the profession. However, in English there is one golden rule you can’t ignore: you must always use an article (a or an) before a profession when talking about one person.

A is used when the profession begins with a consonant sound.

An is used when the profession begins with a vowel sound.

Look at the difference in these examples:

If you say “I am a teacher,” a native speaker will understand you perfectly, but it will sound a little incomplete, as if a piece of the puzzle were missing.

Common professions and how to use them

Now let’s move on to vocabulary. I’ve prepared a selection of common professions. Pay attention not only to the translation but also to how pronunciation or nuance can change in the examples on the right:

Profession in English	Spanish translation
Doctor	Médico / Médica
Nurse	Enfermero / Enfermera
Lawyer	Abogado / Abogada
Accountant	Contador / Contable
Chef	Cocinero/a profesional
Waiter / Waitress	Camarero / Camarera
Graphic Designer	Diseñador/a gráfico
Teacher	Profesor / Profesora
Engineer	Ingeniero / Ingeniera
Police Officer	Policía
Firefighter	Bombero / Bombera
Pilot	Piloto
Mechanic	Mecánico / Mecánica
Architect	Arquitecto / Arquitecta
Photographer	Fotógrafo / Fotógrafa
Journalist	Periodista
Programmer	Programador / Programadora
Translator	Traductor / Traductora
Veterinarian	Veterinario / Veterinaria
Receptionist	Recepcionista
Electrician	Electricista
Plumber	Fontanero / Fontanera

A small curiosity about gender
Have you noticed waiter (male server) and waitress (female server)? A few years ago, English used gender-specific terms for many professions (such as actor/actress or policeman/policewoman). Today, the trend is to use gender-neutral words to avoid making distinctions. That’s why it’s increasingly common to hear flight attendant instead of stewardess, or police officer instead of policeman. Language evolves along with society!

How do you ask someone what they do for a living?

If you’re getting to know someone in a social or work setting, the classic question in Spanish is “¿De qué trabajas?” or “¿A qué te dedicas?”. In English, there are two main ways to ask this:

What do you do?
This is the most natural and common way to ask. Literally, it means “What do you do?”, but in 99% of contexts it’s understood as “What do you do for a living?” or “What’s your profession?”.

What is your job? / What do you do for a living?
The second expression (for a living) is especially nice because it specifically means “What do you do to earn a living?”. It’s very common in casual conversations.

Let’s put it into practice: a real conversation

Imagine you’re in a café chatting with a new colleague. The conversation might flow very much like this:

Notice one detail in Sarah’s dialogue: she says “I work as a…” (Trabajo como…). That’s another fantastic structure you can use if you don’t want to say directly “I am a…”.

Resources

English vocabulary professions exercises

Fill in the blank with the correct profession

Listen to the following audio clip between Jake and Emma and find out what careers they’ve had over the years

Transcription

Emma: Hi Jake! We’ve both changed jobs so many times over the years.
Jake: That’s true, Emma. My first job was in a noisy garage. People brought me their cars when something was wrong with the engine or the brakes, and I spent all day with tools and greasy hands.
Emma: That sounds difficult. Did you like it?
Jake: At first, yes. But later I wanted something more exciting. So I started working on planes. I welcomed passengers, checked boarding passes, and traveled to different countries every week.
Emma: That’s a huge change! You’ve had interesting jobs.
Jake: Definitely. And now I spend most of my time in front of a computer. I create websites, write code, and fix technical problems for companies.
Emma: Very different from my experience! My first serious job was at a hospital. I worked long shifts helping patients, checking temperatures, and assisting people when they felt sick.
Jake: That must have been stressful.
Emma: Sometimes, yes. But now my life is much more creative. I travel to weddings and events with my camera, taking pictures and editing them later on my computer.
Jake: That sounds much more relaxing than hospitals!