Diplomacy
Spanish for diplomats in Madrid: register, forms of address and social life
How to adjust your register in Spanish on a mission in Madrid: forms of address, correspondence, receptions and working lunches.
You arrive in Madrid for a posting of several years. At the chancery, people may work in English or French. But invitations, public events and much of your dealings with Spanish institutions take place in Spanish.
The difficulty rarely lies in the grammar. It lies in the register: when to use “usted”, how to open a letter or how to leave a conversation without being abrupt. This guide brings together what we work on most in class with diplomatic staff.
Three registers in the same week
A diplomat in Madrid switches register several times a day. It is worth working on them separately, because each one has its own pitfalls.
| Situation | Register | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Letter or note to an institution | Formal written | “Le saluda atentamente” (Yours sincerely) |
| Speech or remarks at an event | Institutional spoken | “Señora alcaldesa, señoras y señores” (Madam Mayor, ladies and gentlemen) |
| Reception, lunch or dinner | Cordial social | “Encantado de saludarle, embajador” (Delighted to meet you, Ambassador) |
Many professionals have mastered one of the three. The challenge is to move from one to another without the change showing.
Forms of address: what is written and what is said
In writing, the full form of address is the norm. A letter to an ambassador might begin like this: “Excelentísimo señor embajador:”. Note the colon. In Spanish, the greeting in a formal letter does not take a comma, unlike in English.
The closing is restrained too. “Le saluda atentamente” and your signature are enough in most cases. Translating the English “Dear” as “Querido” comes across as too familiar in a first institutional letter. “Estimado” or the full form of address are safer options.
In speech, the form of address gets shorter. In conversation, “excelentísimo” is hardly used: you say “embajador” or “señor embajador”. And today “la embajadora” is the woman who holds the post, not the ambassador’s wife.
Usted, with the verb in the third person
“Usted” takes the verb in the third person: “¿Usted viene a la recepción?” (Are you coming to the reception?), not “¿Usted vienes?”. It is a common mistake even at advanced levels, and in a formal setting it stands out.
The tuteo — switching to tú — on the other hand, comes sooner than many people expect. A Spanish counterpart will often suggest “¿Nos tuteamos?” (Shall we use tú?). You can accept naturally. If in doubt, let the other person take the first step.
Institutional correspondence
The note verbale is drafted in the third person, with set opening and closing formulas. The most common ones look like this:
- Opening: “La Embajada de [país] saluda atentamente al Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y tiene el honor de comunicarle que…” (The Embassy of [country] presents its compliments to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and has the honour to inform it that…).
- Closing: “La Embajada de [país] aprovecha la ocasión para reiterar al Ministerio el testimonio de su más alta consideración” (The Embassy of [country] avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Ministry the assurances of its highest consideration).
Email is less rigid, but it keeps the register. “Quedo a su disposición para cualquier aclaración” (I remain at your disposal for any clarification) works in almost every case. Save diminutives and jokes for when you already know the person you are writing to.
The conversation that is not on the agenda
Much of diplomatic work happens at receptions, lunches and dinners. There, Spanish changes tone: more cordial, quicker and with turns that overlap. In Spain, two people talking at the same time is not usually taken as bad manners.
Some useful codes in Madrid:
- Mealtimes. Lunch is between 14:00 and 15:00, and dinner around 21:00. In an official invitation, “almuerzo” is the midday meal.
- Sobremesa. After dessert, the conversation carries on. It is often then that the important matters are discussed. Getting up straight away can be read as being in a hurry.
- Introductions. “Permítame que le presente a la consejera de Cultura de nuestra embajada” (Allow me to introduce our embassy’s Cultural Counsellor).
- Exits. “Si me disculpa, voy a saludar al embajador de Chile” (If you will excuse me, I am going to greet the Ambassador of Chile). This way you can move around the room without being abrupt.
The Institute’s tip. Before your first reception in Madrid, prepare three sentences to introduce yourself and two to take your leave. Practise them aloud until they come out on their own. At a standing reception, the people you talk to change every few minutes. Knowing how to close with “Ha sido un placer. Seguimos en contacto” (It has been a pleasure. Let’s keep in touch) is as useful as knowing how to begin.
If your mother tongue is Arabic
Arabic speakers tend to stumble over predictable difficulties. Arabic has three vowels; Spanish has five. That is why e is often confused with i, and o with u. The same happens with p and b, because Standard Arabic has no /p/ sound.
In the formal register, the difference is one of style. Arabic courtesy formulas tend to be longer. Translated word for word, they can sound excessive in Spanish. Spanish correspondence prefers restraint.
The Institute’s teachers know both languages from the inside. They are bilingual native Spaniards of Arab origin, philologists who specialise in Spanish as a foreign language. They use contrastive linguistics to anticipate these mistakes. We explain this in Spanish for Arabic speakers.
How the programme is organised
The Spanish programme for diplomats includes 20 hours of one-to-one lessons. It is complemented by two conversation lunches or dinners with your teacher in Madrid restaurants, with the meal included for both of you. The price is €2,350.
Lessons take place at Gran Vía 40 or at the embassy itself. Within the Madrid area, there is no travel charge. Confidentiality is set out in writing, and you can reschedule a session with 24 hours’ notice. The first step is a free 30-minute level test. You will find the details in the Spanish programme for diplomats.
