¿me lo prestas?
In Spanish, the phrase 'can i have it?' is translated as ¿me lo prestas?
This phrase is used to request to borrow something from someone for a short period of time.
Which one should you use?
There is a distinction between borrowing and keeping an item. While ¿me lo prestas? implies you intend to return the item, ¿me lo das? implies you are asking for permanent ownership.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, the phrase ¿Me lo das? is used for casual requests and means 'Can you give it to me?'
Did you know?
- In some Spanish-speaking regions, if you ask ¿me lo prestas? and the owner replies está prestado, they are not agreeing to lend it to you. Instead, they are telling you the item is already being borrowed by someone else.
- If you are asking to borrow something from a stranger or an elder, you should switch the verb to the formal ¿me lo presta? to avoid sounding disrespectful.
- The masculine pronoun lo stems from the Latin 'illum', which originally meant 'that one' rather than simply 'it'.
Examples in context
- ¿Me lo podría dar, por favor?Could you give it to me, please?
- ¿Me lo puedes dar, por favor?Can you give it to me, please?
- ¿Me lo das?Can you give it to me?
- Es un libro muy bueno, ¿me lo prestas?It is a very good book, can you lend it to me?
Example conversation
Mateo wants to borrow a pen from Lucía in class.
- MateoLucía, ¿me lo prestas?Lucía, can I borrow it?
- Lucía¿De qué hablas, Mateo?What are you talking about, Mateo?
- MateoHablo del bolígrafo azul.I'm talking about the blue pen.
- LucíaSí, claro, tómalo.Yes, of course, take it.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries lo, me, CC BY-SA 4.0.
