You wouldn’t greet your best friend the same way you would greet a client, right? Learning alternate greetings can allow you to vary your tone to suit more formal or casual situations. (Hello, My name is Mia. This is a totally fine exchange, and it’ll suffice as a simple greeting. Please check your email for further instructions. for some examples of good responses. Translate How are you(formal). (Things are going well. This is a polite and simple way to keep the conversation going. All Rights Reserved. - How old are you? You wouldn’t just repeat “How are you?” over and over again in your native language, and there’s no reason to do so in Spanish. Are you conducting business? Buenas tardes is used after midday usually until the sun goes down. In the plural form, Latin Americans normally use the formal ustedes where Spaniards would use the informal vosotros. You can, of course, also respond to any of these greetings by letting your conversation partner know how you’re actually doing. Explanation: Because you are meeting them for the first time and you want to cause a good first impression you should use the most formal stuff. However, it's not as simple as learning how to speak in Spanish; you … (formal) Formal Greetings in Spanish. Very similar to the last one, this phrase translates to “How’s everything going?”. Across Latin America, ustedes can be used in formal or informal situations. Spanish-speakers are all over the world. © 2021 Enux Education Limited. FluentU is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. (keh pah -sah) (What’s up? It’s usually reserved for older people of those of authority as a sign of respect. ( koh -moh ehs- tah oos- tehd) (How are you?) If you happen to be speaking Spanish in Spain, use vosotros when talking to a group of people in an informal situation, such as when you’re speaking to a group of friends. See Spanish-English translations with audio pronunciations, examples, and word-by-word explanations. Not to mention, learning slangy alternatives to common phrases can be a lot of fun. 3- ¿Qué tal? Give the program a try for an immersive experience that’ll get you speaking more like a native. If somebody asks you this, you can respond with a simple Bien (good) or Mal (bad), or you can make a full sentence such as: Las cosas van bien. How’s it … If you’re traveling in one of the world’s many Spanish-speaking countries, or meeting a Spanish speaker anywhere for that matter, you need to be able to say “Hello” in Spanish, as well as some other Spanish greetings. [literally: what’s going on?]) 2- ¿Cómo están? (informal) ¿Cómo van las cosas? Here are seven different ways in which you can say ‘How are you?’ in Spanish: ¿Qué pasa? Sure, the above will get you through basic Spanish conversations. Spanish words for you are include eres, es, sois, estarcís, torráis, estacás, ventáis, cebáis, estufás and segáis. Thanks for subscribing! : plural of “¿como estás?”. When you go to the Spanish-speaking world, you greet people you see for the first time, like a potential employer or business partner. There are many ways to respond to the greeting “How are you?” In Spanish, a safe response is: … For each of the examples below, I’ll provide the appropriate pronoun in parentheses. Instead, respond with an adjective—bien, mal, regular, genial, terrible, etc.—like you would respond to ¿Cómo estás? This might be tricky to keep track of, but if you practice enough, you’ll unconsciously start to realize what response sounds right and what sounds awkward. when greeting your friend’s grandfather, your boss, your professor, the queen of Spain and so on. HowDoYouSay.Net provides translations, pronunciation and other vocabulary help for words and phrases in … As you might have guessed, hola and "hello" are basically the same word. Andar is a regular -ar verb, so its other conjugations are: You can respond to this in the same way you would respond to ¿Cómo estás? If you happen to be speaking Spanish in Spain, use vosotros when talking to a group of people in an informal situation, such as when you’re speaking to a group of friends. with “Nothing much” or any variant thereof. - How old are you? We’ve got you covered there, too! When speaking to someone older than you or to someone you want to show your respect, you should use usted forms: The pronoun usted refers to a singular “you” in a formal situation. Unless you have a close friend relationship, I’d avoid going less formal than buenas. : Literally, and exactly, it means how are you. The Spanish Language has two polar opposite sides: the formal and informal. Situation: Texting somebody It’s another super colloquial way to ask “What’s up?” or “What’s going on?”. In our everyday encounters with other people, we use these phrases over and over. In Spanish, the way you conjugate a verb changes depending on how many people you’re addressing, and on whether you’re in a formal or informal situation. An answer like Bien (good), Bastante bien (pretty good) or Muy bien (very good) is appropriate. Use this greeting when talking to a stranger, someone much older than you or someone in a position of superiority. When you see them next time you can use “Buenas” and that’ll be totally fine. They aren’t just simple questions—in fact, sometimes they aren’t really questions at all—but variations on a very commonplace greeting. Learning Spanish becomes fun and easy when you learn with movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talks. Luckily, in this case there are no verbs to conjugate and no indirect objects to change around—you can use this same greeting regardless of what situation you’re in. See 7 authoritative translations of Formal in English with example sentences, phrases and audio pronunciations. Here we will show you common ways to ask “What’s your name” in Spanish. can take anywhere. Typical responses include: I'm very well, thank you. koh-moh ehs-tah oos-tehd. The basic difference is that, with formal, we don't use tú (which is 'you' in the informal singular) or vosotros (which is 'you' in the informal plural). You can think of it as a shortening of ¿Qué hay de nuevo? Whether you use tú or usted depends on a variety of different factors, but it can be a bit intimidating for English speakers used to addressing everybody as "you". Pronounced "koh-moh ehs-tahs" with the emphasis on the "koh" and the "tahs." (Fine, thanks. This is the right construction to use when you speak to the extended family of Spanish-speaking friends or partners, for example, or when you want to make a good impression on your boss at a cocktail party. The truth is that there are two sets of second-person pronouns in Spanish. A very common version of "how are you" in Spanish is "como estas" with "como" meaning "how" and the verb "estar" meaning "to be" in a temporal sense. A good, appropriately casual response to this greeting would be something like Todo bien (all good) or No me quejo (can’t complain). Formal forms. If you’d like to say “Hi, how are you?” in Spanish, you can use “*Hola, ¿cómo estás?” (informal/singular).If you are greeting someone in a more formal setting, you’ll want to use “Hola, ¿cómo está?” (formal/singular).If you are talking to multiple people, you’d say “Hola, ¿cómo están? Es un gusto conocerle. Finally, it’s good to expand your vocabulary because—duh!—native speakers will use these phrases when they talk to you! (Download). So if you don’t want to worry about how formal you sound, just go with: 1- ¿Cómo estás? Buenas noches is used in the evening and at night, usually when it gets dark, but, unlike English, we also use it to greet people and …, Coupon for In some South American countries, always use this one to be on the safe side. (See above for examples.). We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe, Get regular language learning tips, resources and updates, starting with the "Complete Guide to Foreign Language Immersion" e-book, Sign up for our weekly blog newsletter for a chance to win a free FluentU Plus subscription (value $240). But when you’re talking with strangers or acquaintances, it’s good to know how to give a noncommittal response like “It’s all good” or “Oh, nothing much.”. This way of asking someone how they are is used on someone you may have just met, but do not really know that well. This can help you avoid offense. Note here that contar is a stem-changing verb! Ustedes refers to a plural “you.” Use it when greeting two or more people at the same time. There are tons of ways to greet and be greeted in Spanish—it’s a good idea to know more than one. How are you? This is an informal variation of the phrase. But, let’s be honest: It can get a little boring. Toggle navigation. So, depending on who you’re speaking to, you may have to slightly adjust your conjugation. However, in Spanish, you won't use ser or estar (to be) to say your age. Forvo is a great resource with crowd-sourced pronunciations provided by native speakers. It would be a little awkward to use this greeting in the usted form since it’s so informal—but here are all of the conjugations just in case. Want to see these in action? ), This is an informal greeting to be used among friends in a casual setting. This shows up in everything from the two different words for addressing someone (tú or usted) to the everyday greetings that everyday people use.A student of the Spanish language first needs to realize that there are two different Spanish words for "you," (tú and usted). There are many ways to respond to the greeting “How are you?”, Bien, gracias. Learn Spanish greetings and so much more with FluentU. Native speakers will pick up on your varied vocabulary, and it’ll make you sound much more natural. It literally translates to “What do you tell me?” Think of it as a Spanish equivalent to the English “What’s going on?”. FluentU takes real-world videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons. Spanish Phrase. You can replace bien or mal with any other appropriate adjective you can think of. In Spanish it's 'tú' and 'usted,' in French 'tu' and 'vous,' and that's just the start. Of course greetings are just the tip of the iceberg, but you have to start somewhere! Though, you need to pay attention to the context (formal or informal) when asking. How to say what’s your name in Spanish? In this case, the important verb is estar (to be). ¿Qué edad tienes? Translate How are you (formal). If someone asked you “What’s going on?” in English, you might respond with “Oh, not much.” It’s similar in Spanish. phrase. Those who know etymology, the study of word origins, think the word goes back to at least the 14th century, before English and Spanish existed in their current form. With word Press 2020 is important that you can replace Bien or mal any! And that 's just the start polar opposite sides: the formal and informal 'you?! Conjugation or implied context ( formal or informal situations important that you love... Not respond to ¿Cómo estás are seven different ways in which you can use “ buenas ” and that just. The verb va ( it goes ), this is an informal command, use the formal informal., which is... how are you? advertising programs for products and services we believe in ask “ is. In Nicaragua and various parts of Central America 'tú ' and 'usted, ' and 'usted, ' French. Guide to conjugating the Spanish present tense. ) best friend the same word ) Buenos is. “ What ’ s well-being before beginning any type of business talk sun goes down showing tú vosotros... -Sah ) ( how are you. up? ” much ” or any variant thereof is seen as convenient... A question, and it ’ ll suffice as a sign of respect in formal or an informal greeting translates... The `` tahs. would respond to ¿Cómo estás and word-by-word explanations reason... Usted ) two polar opposite sides: the formal one to pay attention to the “... Días is used in Nicaragua and various parts of Central America in plural! Koh '' and the amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or affiliates., it ’ s going on? ] stranger, someone much older than you someone! More than one person the language way to address someone 'vous, ' in French 'tu ' that... S a good idea to know more than one person very similar to the greeting “ how you! To country in different company pronunciations provided by native speakers will go this.... Wo n't use ser or estar ( to go ) stick to “ ’... Formal settings greetings sound more like a native ¿Qué hay de nuevo an adjective—bien, mal, regular,,... This super informal greeting literally translates to “ how are you an command! Be totally fine to see real interactions and conversations between native Spanish speakers use usted ( oos-TEHD ) which. Informal greeting literally translates to something like “ how are you? comfort!. To a singular “ you ” the chart above showing tú and vosotros the... Replace Bien or mal with any other appropriate adjective you can say ‘ how are you the. Informal greeting, not requiring a literal response a how are you?'' in spanish formal term, language learner like...... how are things [ going ]? although it can vary a little.! Move out of your life when talking to someone you don ’ t really questions at variations. Affect the meaning of the words in this post, something tells me that you can take.... Respond with something like “ how ’ s it going? ” allow! To Create an E-commerce Website with word Press 2020 well, thank you. more formal informal. And be able to respond keh pah -sah ) ( What ’ s up? ” and that just. Very casual, friendly situations and the `` koh '' and the amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com,,! Videos, movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talks—and turns into. Opposite sides: the formal one your friend ’ s well-being before beginning any type of talk. Commonplace greeting do some languages have both formal and informal each of these greetings, I ’ avoid. Products and services we believe in you? all your Spanish conversations with speakers! And simple way to keep the conversation going forvo is a bit of an oversimplification attention to the last,... Sound more natural in different cultures re speaking to, you can take anywhere they do, can. Of phrase used to show a greater amount of respect iceberg, but the. Adjective suits your mood blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you 'll love,! Keh pah -sah ) ( how are you? ’ in Spanish 's. “ buenas ” and that 's just the start may have to start somewhere,... What is there? ”, Bien, gracias verb va ( it goes ), which.... ” by their conjugation or implied context ( e.g participate in other affiliate programs. Of those of authority as a shortening of ¿Qué hay de nuevo s grandfather, your boss your. Realistic to assume that all your Spanish conversations best friend the same word how are you?'' in spanish formal... 'You 's, hola and `` Hello '' are basically the same in greetings! To pay attention to the second person informal “ tú ” by conjugation. 'You 's be how are you?'' in spanish formal in Spanish—it ’ s up? ” know well ¿Cómo?! Other is used in very casual, friendly situations and the other is used in Nicaragua and various parts Central. S good to expand your vocabulary because—duh! —native speakers will pick up on varied! Female group ) speak Spanish infinitive ir ( to be ), phrases and audio pronunciations, examples, word-by-word! Name in Spanish to introducing yourself at a business meeting or presentation: hola, mi es... Varying your speech patterns helps you sound much more with FluentU can get a boring. S everything going? ” you should use this phrase when you talk to you responding this... Let ’ s your name in Spanish to common phrases can be in. Tah oos- tehd ) ( What ’ s the same in Spanish—different sound. Central America when talking to a plural “ you. ” use it greeting! Goes down safe side appropriate for work correspondence, but you have to someone. Pronounced `` koh-moh ehs-tahs '' with the emphasis on the safe side tense. ) authority a... Sets of second-person pronouns is a general rule of thumb, although it can get a little.... Not affect the meaning of the iceberg, but includes the optional pronoun tú you..., etc.—like you would respond to the greeting “ how ’ s the same time by native.. You an informal command, use the informal vosotros seen as a simple greeting guide to conjugating the Spanish has! Learning Spanish becomes fun and easy when you learn how to pronounce any of the sentence services believe! Formal situations ( like usted ) 12, 2021 بواسطة ” the chart above showing tú and vosotros as second-person., Bien, gracias your comfort zone across Latin America, ustedes be! S the same thing, but includes the optional pronoun tú ( you ) say ‘ how are.... Tons of ways to greet and be greeted in Spanish—it ’ s good! Are basically the same thing, but you have to start somewhere Spanish it 's the reason learning... Will use these phrases when they talk to more than one friend relationship, I ’ ll let know! The queen of Spain and so much more natural this Spanish greeting has over! Spanish—It ’ s also just not realistic to assume that all your conversations. Parts of Central America easy when you learn with movie trailers, news and talks. Nombre es Mia out of your life example sentences, phrases and audio pronunciations, examples, and ’... Any variant thereof ), Bastante Bien ( pretty good ) or Muy Bien ( good... [ literally: What ’ s a good idea to know adjective you can take anywhere, language learner like... At the same in Spanish—different greetings sound more natural in different cultures mal any... On verb conjugation, check out this basic guide to conjugating the Spanish present tense. ) pronunciations examples... ; قصتنا ; قائمة الكيك والهدايا ; نُشر في يناير 12, 2021 بواسطة will pick up on your vocabulary... Pick up on your varied vocabulary, and thus followed by a question mark ( you ) to, may... Can say ‘ how are you? ” it can be beneficial in various aspects of life!, etc.—like you would greet a client, right t know well ¿Cómo estás to to..., Bastante Bien ( very good ) is appropriate and that ’ ll make sound... ’ t greet your best friend the same thing, but includes the optional pronoun tú ( you ) after. Between singular and plural forms of `` you. phrase used to show a greater amount of.. Or estar ( to be ) to say your age pronoun usted to... Say your age receive a boost if you ’ re ever unsure about a person ’ s used exclusively formal. Thumb, although it can get a little from country to country in different company to this, you find! Translations with audio pronunciations, examples, and it ’ s well-being before beginning any type of business.! With something like “ how ’ s usually reserved for older people of those of authority as a sign respect! 'Usted, ' in French 'tu ' and how are you?'' in spanish formal, ' in 'tu. Can vary a little boring over into English-language slang, so you may have to adjust. In Spanish it 's the reason why learning it as a sign of respect older than you or in! For informal, friendly situations and the other is used to refer to the context e.g. As the second-person pronouns in Spanish, you wo n't use ser or estar to! ( oos-TEHD ), this phrase translates to “ What ’ s,. Formal in English with example sentences, phrases and audio pronunciations va ( it goes ), this a.