¿me da por favor?
The English phrase "can I please have" can be translated into Spanish as ¿me da por favor?
This phrase is a polite way to ask someone to give you something, such as when ordering food or drinks.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "Will you give me, please?" rather than "Can I have?"
Which one should you use?
While ¿me da por favor? is used to show respect to staff in shops or restaurants, ¿me das por favor? is for friends or peers.
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase ¿me da por favor?, the verb da is the third-person singular conjugation of dar (to give), which is used here with the formal usted to be polite.
Did you know?
- In some Latin American countries, people may use me regala instead of me da when ordering coffee or a snack to sound even more endearing and polite.
- While ¿me da…? is standard, in some regions of Spain, people use ponme (literally 'put me') when ordering a drink at a bar, such as ponme una cerveza.
- In a restaurant, using me da is polite, but if you want to sound more like a local in Spain, you might hear me echas, which literally means 'throw me'.
Examples in context
- ¿Podría darme un vaso de agua, por favor?Can I please have a glass of water?
- ¿Podría usted darme un programa para la conferencia, por favor?Can I please have a program for the conference?
- ¿Me puedes dar un bolígrafo, por favor?Can I please have a pen?
- ¿Me podrías dar un vaso de jugo, por favor?Can I please have a glass of juice?
