¿cómo está él?
The English phrase "how is he" is translated into Spanish as ¿cómo está él?
¿cómo está él? is a question used to ask about a male person's current health or general well-being. In many conversational contexts, native speakers will often drop the pronoun él and simply say ¿Cómo está? to mean "How is he?" or "How are you?" depending on the context.
Which one should you use?
Use ¿Cómo está él? to ask about health or well-being, but use ¿Cómo es él? if you want to ask about his personality or physical characteristics.
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb está is the third-person singular form of estar, which is used for temporary states like health or mood. The pronoun él is used to specify the subject "he" and is often omitted if the context is already clear.
What mistakes should you avoid?
When writing, do not confuse él (he) with el (the). Always include the accent mark when referring to the person.
Did you know?
- When asking about someone's well-being, it is a common social custom to provide a positive response even if the person is not actually feeling well. The question often functions more as a polite greeting than a medical inquiry.
- The pronoun él traces its roots back to the Latin word ille, which originally meant 'that one' or 'that man' to point someone out at a distance.
- If you point at a man and ask ¿Cómo está?, adding the word él can sound unnaturally repetitive or overly aggressive to a native speaker.
Examples in context
- ¿Cómo está él?How is he?This sentence is useful for practicing the phrase ¿cómo está él?Tatoeba #9446111 by ignacio, translation #9446098 by Nylez
- Disculpe, ¿cómo está el señor Martínez?Excuse me, how is Mr. Martínez?
- Hola, Juan ¿cómo está él después de la operación?Hi, Juan, how is he after the surgery?
- Oye, ¿cómo le va a Pedro con su nuevo trabajo?Hey, how is Pedro doing with his new job?
Example conversation
Lucía calls Mateo to ask about his brother's health.
- MateoHola Lucía, ¿cómo estás?Hello Lucía, how are you?
- LucíaBien, pero ¿cómo está él?Fine, but how is he?
- MateoÉl está mucho mejor, gracias.He is much better, thanks.
- LucíaMe alegra mucho escuchar eso.I am very happy to hear that.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cómo, él, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
