habla más despacio
/abla mas despaθjo/from spelling rules
In Spanish, 'speak more slowly' is said as habla más despacio.
This phrase is a request for someone to reduce the speed of their speech to make it easier to understand.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of habla (speak), más (more) and despacio (slowly).
Which one should you use?
While más lento can be used, más despacio is the more natural and common way to ask someone to reduce their speaking speed in Spanish.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some Latin American countries, más lento or más pausado can be used to mean more slowly.
How does it change in a sentence?
To make the request more polite and formal when addressing a stranger or someone in authority, use the form hable más despacio instead of habla más despacio. If you are addressing more than one person, you should use the plural form hablen más despacio.
Did you know?
- The word despacio is actually a contraction of the words 'de' and 'espacio', literally meaning 'of space'.
- If you ask someone to speak más lento, you might accidentally sound like you are asking them to slow down their physical movement rather than their speech.
- While despacio refers to speed, the word espacio can refer to both physical room in a house and the vastness of outer space.
Examples in context
- Habla más despacio.Speak more slowly.This sentence shows the basic request to speak more slowly.Tatoeba #1058256 by Shishir, translation #30391 by CM
- ¡Habla más despacio!Speak more slowly!This sentence shows the request to speak more slowly with more emphasis.Tatoeba #4525458 by cueyayotl, translation #1807055 by pne
- Podrías hablar más despacio, por favor. No quiero perderme los detalles de tu historia.Could you speak more slowly, please. I don't want to miss the details of your story.
- Por favor, habla más despacio para que te entienda.Please, speak more slowly so that I can understand you.
Example conversation
María is practicing her Spanish with Alejandro.
- MaríaNo entiendo, habla más despacio.I don't understand, speak more slowly.
- AlejandroLo siento, voy a repetir todo.I'm sorry, I will repeat everything.
- MaríaGracias, ahora te entiendo mejor.Thank you, now I understand you better.
- AlejandroDe nada, María.You're welcome, María.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries despacio, habla, más, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
