Based on several sources I've listed in previous posts on English word frequency, here is my short list of the words that every student of English for speakers of other languages should learn first.
Numbers:- (n)one
- two
- three
- four
- five
- six
- seven
- eight
- nine
- ten
- me / myself / I
- my / mine
- us / ourselves / we
- our(s)
- you(rself) / yourselves
- your(s)
- him(self) / he
- his
- her(self) / she
- her(s)
- it(self)
- its
- them(selves) / they
- their(s)
- air
- answer
- apple
- arm
- back
- ball
- bank
- bear
- bed
- bird
- body / bodies
- book
- box(es)
- boy
- bread
- brother
- building
- case
- cause
- child(ren)
- church(es)
- city / cities
- cold
- color
- company / companies
- corn
- country / countries
- course
- cover
- cut
- day
- door
- dress(es)
- drink
- ear
- earth
- east
- egg
- end
- eye
- face
- fact
- fall
- family / families
- father
- field
- fire
- floor
- flower
- fly / flies
- food
- foot / feet
- form
- friend
- front
- garden
- girl
- god
- gold
- ground
- group
- guy
- hair
- half / halves
- hand
- head
- heart
- hill
- home
- horse
- house
- hundred
- kind
- king
- land
- left
- letter
- life / lives
- light
- line
- man / men
- mark
- matter
- mile
- milk
- mind
- money
- month
- morning
- mother
- mountain
- name
- nation
- night
- north
- number
- order
- paper
- part
- person / people
- picture
- piece
- place
- plan
- plant
- problem
- program
- rain
- reason
- rest
- right
- river
- road
- rock
- roll
- room
- school
- sea
- second
- ship
- side
- silver
- sister
- soldier
- sound
- south
- spring
- state
- step
- stone
- story
- street
- summer
- sun
- system
- table
- thing
- thousand
- time
- tire
- top
- town
- train
- tree
- wall
- war
- water
- way
- week
- west
- wind
- window
- winter
- woman
- wood
- word
- world
- year
- a(n)
- all
- any
- both
- each
- (n)either
- every
- few
- many
- more
- most
- Mr. / Ms. / Mrs. / Miss
- much
- (an)other
- same
- several
- some
- somebody / nobody / anybody / everybody
- someone / no one / anyone / everyone
- something / nothing / anything / everything
- such
- that / those
- the
- this / these
- what
- which
- who(m)
- answer
- ask
- be / am / are / is / was / were / been
- become / became
- begin / began / begun
- believe
- blow / blew / blown
- bring / brought
- build / built
- burn
- buy / bought
- call
- care
- carry / carries / carried
- cause
- change
- clear
- close
- come / came
- consider
- cover
- cross(es)
- cut
- develop
- die
- do(es) / did / done
- draw / drew / drawn
- dress(es)
- drink / drank / drunk
- drive / drove / driven
- drop
- eat / ate / eaten
- fall / fell / fallen
- feel / felt
- fill
- find / found
- fly / flew / flown
- follow
- force
- form
- get / got(ten)
- give / gave / given
- go(es) / went / gone
- govern
- grow / grew / grown
- have / has / had
- hear / heard
- help
- hold / held
- hope
- increase
- interest
- keep / kept
- kill
- know / knew / known
- land
- laugh
- lay / laid
- lead / led
- learn
- leave / left
- let
- like
- live
- look
- lose / lost
- love
- make / made
- mark
- matter
- mean / meant
- measure
- meet / met
- mind
- miss(es)
- move
- need
- open
- order
- own
- pass(es)
- pay
- plan / planned
- plant
- play
- point
- present
- put
- rain
- reach(es)
- read
- remember
- ride / rode / ridden
- roll
- run / ran
- save
- say(s) / said
- see / saw / seen
- seem
- send / sent
- serve
- set
- show / shown
- sing / sang / sung
- sit / sat
- sleep / slept
- speak / spoke(n)
- stand / stood
- start
- state
- stay
- step
- stop
- take / took / taken
- talk
- tell / told
- thank
- think / thought
- tire
- train
- try / tried
- turn
- use
- visit
- wait
- walk
- want
- watch(es)
- wish(es)
- work
- write / wrote / written
- can
- could
- may
- might
- must
- should
- will
- would
- (good)bye
- hello / hi
- hey
- huh
- no
- oh
- please
- uh / um
- well
- yes / yeah
- afraid
- alone
- bad(ly) / worse / worst
- beautiful(ly)
- big / bigger / biggest
- black / blacker / blackest
- blue / bluer / bluest
- clear(ly) / clearer / clearest
- cold / colder / coldest
- dark / darker / darkest
- dead
- dear
- deep(ly) / deeper / deepest
- early / earlier / earliest
- even(ly)
- fair(ly)
- far / farther / farthest
- fast / faster / fastest
- final(ly)
- fine(ly) / finer / finest
- first(ly)
- fresh / fresher / freshest
- full(y) / fuller / fullest
- general(ly)
- glad(ly) / gladder / gladdest
- good / well / better / best
- great(ly) / greater / greatest
- green / greener / greenest
- happy / happily / happier / happiest
- hard(ly) / harder / hardest
- heavy / heavily / heavier / heaviest
- high(ly) / higher / highest
- hot(ly) / hotter / hottest
- kind / kinder / kindest
- large(ly) / larger / largest
- last
- late(ly) / later / latest
- little / littler / littlest
- long / longer / longest
- low / lower / lowest
- near(ly) / nearer / nearest
- new(ly) / newer / newest
- next
- normal(ly)
- OK
- old / older / oldest
- plain(ly) / plainer / plainest
- poor(ly) / poorer / poorest
- possible / possibly
- pretty / prettier / prettiest
- probable / probably
- public(ly)
- quick(ly) / quicker / quickest
- ready / readily
- real(ly)
- red / redder / reddest
- rich(ly) / richer / richest
- right(ly)
- round / rounder / roundest
- second(ly)
- short(ly) / shorter / shortest
- small / smaller / smallest
- soft(ly) / softer / softest
- sorry / sorrier / sorriest
- strong(ly) / stronger / strongest
- sure(ly) / surer / surest
- sweet(ly) / sweeter / sweetest
- true / truly / truer / truest
- usual(ly)
- warm(ly) / warmer / warmest
- white / whiter / whitest
- whole / wholly
- wide(ly) / wider / widest
- young / younger / youngest
- about
- above
- across
- after
- again
- against
- along
- around
- at
- away
- before
- behind
- between
- by
- down
- during
- for
- from
- in
- into
- of
- off
- on
- out
- over(ly)
- through
- to
- under
- until / till
- up
- with
- without
- almost
- also
- always
- and
- as
- because
- but
- enough
- even
- (n)ever
- here
- how
- however
- if
- just
- like
- maybe
- more
- most(ly)
- not
- now
- often
- once
- only
- (n)or
- own
- since
- so
- sometime(s)
- somewhere / nowhere / anywhere / everywhere
- soon
- still
- than
- then
- there
- though
- today
- together
- too
- very
- when
- where
- while
- why
- yet
If you have more words to add to this list or you see some words you feel should not be on the list, please post your suggestions as a comment.