Spanish Research Collocations and Cautious Academic Claims

In this lesson, you will use common Spanish research collocations for data collection, analysis, findings, associations, and hypotheses. You will choose cautious verbs that match the strength of the evidence and the scope of the sample, and you will avoid literal academic translations from English that sound unnatural or overstate the result.

Collect data

— to collect data.

— to compile / collect data.

— to obtain data.

— The team collected data for six months.

Analyze data

— to analyze the data.

— to carry out an analysis.

— The analysis was carried out after the period for collecting data closed.

Find a relationship

— to observe a relationship.

— to identify an association.

— to find a difference.

— An association was observed between the two variables in the studied sample.

Support a hypothesis

— to support a hypothesis.

— to be consistent with a hypothesis.

— The results are consistent with the initial hypothesis, although they do not demonstrate it definitively.

Reject or fail to support

— The data do not support the hypothesis of a difference between the groups.

This is often more precise than saying the hypothesis is “false” in every possible context.

Demostrar

— to demonstrate / prove.

This verb makes a strong claim.

Appropriate when the evidence genuinely establishes the point:

— The calculation demonstrates that 15 is greater than 12.

In empirical research, may be too strong when the design supports only an association or limited inference.

Indicar

— to indicate.

— The results indicate a difference between the groups during the period analyzed.

This is a moderate research verb.

Sugerir

— to suggest.

— The data suggest that the intervention may have contributed to the change.

This leaves more room for uncertainty and alternative explanations.

Compare claim strength

Strong:

— The study proves that the intervention causes the change.

Moderate:

— The study indicates that the intervention is associated with the change.

Cautious:

— The results suggest a possible relationship between the intervention and the change.

Limit by sample

Too broad:

— Consumers prefer option A.

Research-appropriate:

— In the analyzed sample, option A was preferred by 58% of participants.

Limit by design

Observational study:

— The observational study identifies an association, but does not by itself allow causality to be attributed.

Useful result collocations

— the results show...
— the results indicate...
— the results suggest...
— a difference was observed...
— sufficient evidence was not found...
— the findings are consistent with...

Avoid literal English academic phrasing

Awkward calque:

— literally “make sense of the data.”

Natural options:

— to interpret the data.

— to make sense of the results.

Another common issue:

— incorrect calque from “conduct a study.”

Natural:

— to conduct a study.

Model research paragraph

— The team conducted a study with 180 participants and collected data for eight weeks. An association was observed between frequent use of the tool and higher satisfaction in the analyzed sample. However, the observational design does not allow a causal relationship to be established. Therefore, the results suggest a possible relationship that should be evaluated with an experimental design.

A practical research-language method

Use standard collocations for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data.
Choose only when the evidence supports a very strong conclusion.
Use for moderate evidence and for more cautious inference.
Limit claims to the sample, period, and design actually studied.
Separate association from causation.
Prefer natural Spanish research collocations over literal English calques.
Read the final sentence and ask whether the verb is stronger than the evidence.

From Research Claims to Source Paraphrasing

You can now report research findings with natural collocations and appropriate caution. The next lesson is Paraphrasing Spanish Sources While Preserving Meaning and Attribution.