How to Say “Hey Girl, What’s Up?” in Spanish

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hola chica, ¿qué tal?
/ˈola ˈt͡ʃika ˈke ˈtal/word by word
The English phrase "hey girl, what's up?" is translated into Spanish as hola chica, ¿qué tal?
This phrase is used as an informal greeting to say hello and ask a female friend how she is doing. Other ways to achieve a similar effect include using ¿Qué onda, chica? to initiate a conversation in a cool, informal way or ¿Cómo estás, chica? as a straightforward and friendly greeting. You can also use ¡Ey, guapa, ¿qué tal? to playfully catch a girl's attention by using the word for attractive.

Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?

The phrase hola chica, ¿qué tal? is highly informal and should only be used with friends or people of a similar age or social standing. Similarly, ¿Qué onda, chica? and ¡Ey, guapa, ¿qué tal? are informal options, while ¿Cómo estás, chica? is a friendly, informal way to greet someone.

Is it said differently in some regions?

The variation ¿Qué onda, chica? is a cool and informal way to start a conversation that is commonly used in Latin American countries such as Mexico and Argentina.

How does it change in a sentence?

While the noun chica is gender-specific to a female, the expression ¿qué tal? is grammatically invariable and does not change based on whether you are speaking to a man or a woman.

How do you pronounce it?

/ˈola ˈtʃika ˈke ˈtal/

When do people say it?

When someone greets you this way, a common response is bien, ¿y tú? (good and you?).

Did you know?

  • In many Spanish-speaking countries, a greeting like hola chica is physically accompanied by a single kiss on the cheek or two, depending on the region.
  • The phrase ¿Qué onda? uses the word for 'wave' to ask 'what's up', a slang metaphor used heavily in Mexico.
  • The word hola may have originated from a command used to stop someone or hail a ferryman, rather than a friendly greeting.

Examples in context

  • ¡Hola chica, ¿qué tal?
    Hey girl, how's it going?

Example conversation

Two friends meet at a cafe.

  1. Mateo

    Hola chica, ¿qué tal?
    Hey girl, what's up?
  2. María

    Todo bien, Mateo. ¿Y tú?
    Everything is good, Mateo. And you?
  3. Mateo

    Muy bien, gracias por preguntar.
    Very well, thanks for asking.
  4. María

    Qué bueno. ¡Entremos ya!
    That's great. Let's go in now!

Sources

  • IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (hola, chica, qué, tal) and can differ in connected speech.
  • Word origins: Wiktionary entries hola, qué, tal, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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Evelyn Harriet
Evelyn HarrietHelp make this guide better. Spot a mistake, know another way to say it, or have an example from real life? Share it below.
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