pedir comida para llevar
/pediɾ komida paɾa ʝebaɾ/from spelling rules
To say "take food to go" in Spanish, you use pedir comida para llevar.
This phrase is used when you want to order food from a restaurant to be eaten somewhere else. When you are already at a restaurant and ordering, you can simply say para llevar to indicate that you want your order to go.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase para llevar literally means "to carry" or "for carrying".
Which one should you use?
The opposite of para llevar (to go) is para comer aquí, which means "to eat here".
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, you can use the shortened phrase Para llevar, por favor to express that you want your food to go.
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun comida (food) can be placed before para llevar to create the noun phrase comida para llevar (food to go). Additionally, if the context of ordering is already clear, you can omit the word comida and simply say pedir para llevar.
Did you know?
- In Spain, the phrase para llevar is used not only for food but also for any item you purchase in a shop that you intend to transport yourself.
- The word comida is not just a noun for 'food', but is the past participle of the verb comer meaning 'to eat'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, it is common to ask ¿Lo quiere para llevar o para consumir aquí?, using the verb consumir instead of comer to sound more formal.
Examples in context
- Quiero pedir comida para llevar.I want to order food to go.
- Es más rápido pedir comida para llevar.It is faster to order food to go.
- ¿Podemos pedir comida para llevar hoy?Can we order food to go today?
Example conversation
Javier and Lucía are deciding what to eat for dinner.
- JavierTengo mucha hambre, ¿qué quieres cenar?I am very hungry, what do you want for dinner?
- LucíaNo quiero cocinar, prefiero pedir comida para llevar.I don't want to cook, I prefer to order food to go.
- JavierMe parece bien, ¿pedimos pizza?That sounds good to me, shall we order pizza?
- LucíaSí, Lucía quiere pizza también.Yes, Lucía wants pizza too.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries comida, llevar, para, pedir, CC BY-SA 4.0.
