In my experience when translating from Spanish to English one cannot translate word for word or the meaning of the text may change completely. One must translate a whole sentence, paragraph, or idea at one time to try and parallel the meaning. Translators may put a little of their own style into their work as they transform the text into another language. Spanish is very much a language of style. An accent mark on a word can change its entire meaning and pronunciation just by its placement.
Tenses are also very important in Spanish.
A word changes depending on whom you are talking to. Rather than using a pronoun, the word itself changes for. For example, in English we say, she works , but in Spanish they say just one word, trabaja . There is also a special form for someone of authority. Not only must one be able to write each of these different forms, but also the different tenses which follow a different pattern.