No estoy bien
/no estoi bjen/from spelling rules
To say "I am not good" in Spanish, use No estoy bien.
No estoy bien is the standard way to express that you are feeling physically unwell or are experiencing emotional distress.
How does it change in a sentence?
This phrase uses the verb estar rather than ser because it describes a temporary state of health or emotion rather than a permanent characteristic.
Did you know?
- While 'not good' in English can mean 'unskilled', saying No estoy bien in Spanish will never be used to say you are bad at a task. To express lack of skill, you would use 'no soy bueno'.
- When you say No estoy bien, you are often implicitly inviting a conversation. In many Spanish-speaking cultures, this phrase acts as a social cue that may prompt someone to ask ¿Qué te pasa?, which literally asks 'What is happening to you?'
- The word bien has a surprising connection to the English word 'bonus'. Both words can be traced back to the Proto-Italic root *dwenos, which expressed the idea of something being good or beneficial.
Examples in context
- No soy bueno/a en matemáticas.I am not good at mathematics.
- No soy bueno/a en el deporte.I am not good at sport.
- No soy bueno/a en la cocina.I am not good at cooking.
- No se me da bien bailar.I am not good at dancing.
- No se me da bien hablar en público.I am not good at speaking in public.
- No tengo destreza en los deportes de agua.I do not have skill in water sports.
- No tengo destreza en los juegos de estrategia.I do not have skill in strategy games.
- No se me da bien el fútbol.I am not good at soccer.
- Soy malo/a en las matemáticas.I am bad at mathematics.
- Soy malo/a en los videojuegos.I am bad at video games.
- No estoy bien hoy.I am not well today.
- Lo siento, no estoy bien.I am sorry, I am not feeling well.
- No estoy bien emocionalmente.I am not doing well emotionally.
Example conversation
Lucía looks sad while talking to Mateo.
- LucíaHola Mateo, no estoy bien.Hello Mateo, I am not good.
- Mateo¿Qué pasó, Lucía?What happened, Lucía?
- LucíaMe siento muy triste hoy.I feel very sad today.
- MateoLo lamento mucho, aquí estoy contigo.I am very sorry, I am here with you.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bien, no, CC BY-SA 4.0.
