cuánto falta
/kwanto falta/from spelling rules
In Spanish, "how much further" is expressed as cuánto falta.
The phrase cuánto falta is used to inquire about the remaining distance or the remaining time before reaching a destination.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, the phrase translates to "how much is lacking" or "how much is missing".
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, you might hear ¿Cuánto falta para llegar? to ask how much further. In Spain, two common variations are ¿Cuánto queda para llegar? and ¿Cuánta distancia queda?
How does it change in a sentence?
The word falta is the third-person singular form of the verb faltar, which means "to be lacking" or "to be missing". A common way to expand this into a full sentence is by adding para llegar, which means "to arrive", resulting in ¿Cuánto falta para llegar?
Did you know?
- The word falta is a distant relative of the English word 'fault'. Both come from the Latin verb fallere, which means 'to deceive' or 'to fail'.
- In a sports context, the word falta is used to describe a 'foul' in soccer or basketball. This uses the same root meaning of something being missing or wrong in the play.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, asking ¿Cuánto falta? during a long trip is often met with a vague answer like Ya casi llegamos, meaning 'we are almost there', even if the destination is still far.
Examples in context
- Perdone, ¿cuánto falta para llegar a la estación de tren?Excuse me, how much further to the train station?
- Disculpe, ¿cuánto queda todavía para llegar al museo?Excuse me, how much further is it to the museum?
- Señor, ¿cuánto hay hasta allí?Sir, how much further is it?
- Oye, ¿cuánto falta todavía para llegar a la playa?Hey, how much further is it to the beach?
- Amigo, ¿cuánto queda para llegar al parque?Buddy, how much further is it to the park?
- ¿Cuánto falta para llegar?How much further to arrive?
- ¿Cuánto falta para que termine la película?How much longer until the movie ends?
- Dime cuánto falta para el examen.Tell me how much longer until the exam.
Example conversation
Mateo and Lucía are hiking up a mountain trail.
- Mateo¿Cuánto falta para la cima?How much further to the summit?
- LucíaFalta poco, ya casi estamos.Not much longer, we are almost there.
- MateoMe canso mucho, Lucía.I am getting very tired, Lucía.
- LucíaÁnimo, Mateo, solo unos pasos más.Cheer up, Mateo, just a few more steps.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cuánto, falta, CC BY-SA 4.0.
