qué bien
/ke bjen/from spelling rules
The English phrase "good it" is translated into Spanish as qué bien.
qué bien is an expression used to show pleasure or satisfaction when hearing good news.
How does it change in a sentence?
In spoken Spanish, this phrase is almost always used as an exclamatory interjection, often accompanied by exclamation marks.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly say qué bueno when they mean qué bien. While qué bueno can be used for things that are "good", qué bien is the more natural idiomatic response to hearing good news.
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking regions, if you say qué bien with a falling intonation instead of an enthusiastic one, it can be used sarcastically to mean 'great, just what I needed'.
- The word bien descends from the Latin bene, which is the same root used in English words like 'benefit' and 'benevolent'.
- In certain Latin American dialects, you might hear people replace qué bien with qué chévere or qué padre to express the same sentiment.
Examples in context
- Excelente labor.Excellent work.
- Estupendo trabajo.Fantastic work.
- ¡Buenísimo!Awesome!
- Genial.Great.
- Lo hiciste muy bien.You did it very well.
- ¡Eres un crack!You are amazing!
- ¡Guau! Lo bordaste.Wow! You nailed it.
- ¡Qué bien lo hiciste!You did it so well!
- ¡Qué bien!That's great!
- ¡Qué bien que hayas venido!How good it is that you came!
- ¡Qué bien que te guste!How great that you like it!
Example conversation
Elena and Javier are talking about Javier's new job.
- Elena¿Cómo va tu nuevo trabajo?How is your new job going?
- JavierMuy bien, me encanta.Very well, I love it.
- Elena¡Qué bien, Javier!That's great, Javier!
- JavierGracias, Elena.Thanks, Elena.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
