mesa para cuatro
/mesa paɾa kwatɾo/from spelling rules
The English phrase "table for four" is translated into Spanish as mesa para cuatro.
This phrase is used to request a restaurant table that can accommodate four people. When arriving at a restaurant, it is common to use the indefinite article una before the phrase to say una mesa para cuatro (a table for four).
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of mesa (table), para (for) and cuatro (four).
How does it change in a sentence?
You can add the word personas after cuatro to be more explicit, resulting in mesa para cuatro personas (table for four people), though this is not strictly necessary.
How do you pronounce it?
/mesa paɾa kwatɾo/
Did you know?
- While mesa means 'table', it is also the word used in Spanish to describe a flat-topped mountain, known in English as a mesa.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the physical mesa is the heart of social life, and the concept of 'sobremesa' describes the tradition of staying at the table to talk long after the meal has ended.
- The word mesa shares an ancient ancestor with the English word 'measure', as both stem from the Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to mete out' or 'to allot'.
Examples in context
- Quiero reservar una mesa para cuatro a las seis.I'd like to reserve a table for four at six.This sentence shows how to use mesa para cuatro to express a desire to reserve a table at a specific time.Tatoeba #3562406 by ficion, translation #72437 by CK
- He reservado una mesa para cuatro personas.I have booked a table for four.This sentence uses mesa para cuatro to state that a table has already been booked.Tatoeba #436664 by lukaszpp, translation #436663 by lukaszpp
- Buenos días, una mesa para cuatro, por favor.Good morning, a table for four, please.
- Buenas tardes, ¿tiene una mesa para cuatro?Good afternoon, do you have a table for four?
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Alejandro and Sofía arrive at a restaurant.
- AlejandroBuenas noches, necesitamos una mesa para cuatro.Good evening, we need a table for four.
- SofíaHola, ¿tienen alguna reserva?Hello, do you have a reservation?
- AlejandroNo, no tenemos reserva.No, we don't have a reservation.
- SofíaMuy bien, acompáñenme por favor.Very well, follow me please.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cuatro, mesa, para, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
