buen juego
/bwen xweɡo/from spelling rules
The phrase "nice game" in Spanish is buen juego.
Buen juego is used to express sportsmanship and praise the quality of a match after it has ended.
Which one should you use?
While buen juego refers to the quality of the match itself, buen partido is more commonly used in many Spanish-speaking regions to refer to a sports match (like soccer or tennis).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, ¡Buen partido, güey! is a common way to compliment someone's game.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word buen is the shortened form of bueno used before a masculine singular noun.
Did you know?
- While buen juego praises the quality of the match, calling someone a buen partido in a romantic context means they are a 'good catch' or a desirable partner.
- The word juego shares a distant ancestor with the English word 'joke'. Both come from the Latin 'jocus', which originally meant something playful or a form of amusement.
- In Spanish, the word juego can refer to a sports match, a set of matching objects like a 'set' of dishes, or the act of gambling.
Examples in context
- ¡Qué buen juego tuvimos hoy!What a nice game we had today!
Example conversation
María and Javier just finished a tennis match.
- MaríaBuen juego, Javier.Nice game, Javier.
- JavierGracias, María. Tú jugaste muy bien.Thanks, María. You played very well.
- MaríaFue un partido muy emocionante.It was a very exciting match.
- JavierSí, estuvo genial.Yes, it was great.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries buen, juego, CC BY-SA 4.0.
