¿todo bien?
/ˈtodo ˈbjen/word by word
The Spanish phrase for "is everything okay?" is ¿todo bien?
¿todo bien? is a question used to check if someone is doing well or if a situation is going as planned. In certain contexts, it can also function as a casual greeting similar to "How's it going?" to check on a person's well-being.
Which one should you use?
While ¿todo bien? is common for checking on someone, you might use other variations depending on the context: ¿Todo bien por ahí? means "Is everything good over there?" and is used informally, whereas ¿Está todo en orden? means "Is everything in order?" and is used in formal situations.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
¿todo bien? is an informal, everyday expression. For a formal alternative, use ¿Está todo en orden?
How does it change in a sentence?
¿todo bien? is a shortened, elliptical form of the full grammatical sentence ¿Todo está bien?
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈtodo ˈbjen/
When do people say it?
A common and natural way to respond to this question is to simply repeat the words in a statement: Todo bien.
Did you know?
- Depending on the tone, todo bien can be used as a polite way to tell someone to stop bothering you or to back off without being overtly rude.
- While ¿todo bien? is used throughout the Spanish-speaking world, in some Caribbean countries it is frequently used as a way to say 'goodbye' or to close a conversation.
- The word bien shares a distant ancestor with the English word 'bonus', both tracing back to the idea of being 'good'.
Examples in context
- Oye, ¿todo bien por ahí?Hey, is everything good over there?
- ¿Cómo estás? ¿Todo va bien?How are you? Is everything going well?
- Te veo muy callado, ¿todo bien?You seem very quiet, is everything okay?
- No escuché la noticia, ¿todo bien?I didn't hear the news, is everything okay?
Example conversation
Sofía sees Mateo looking worried at a cafe.
- SofíaMateo, te veo preocupado, ¿todo bien?Mateo, you look worried, is everything okay?
- MateoSí, Sofía, solo estoy cansado.Yes, Sofía, I'm just tired.
- SofíaMenos mal, pensé que algo pasaba.Thank goodness, I thought something was happening.
- MateoNo, no te preocupes por mí.No, don't worry about me.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (todo, bien) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bien, todo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
