está bien
/esta bjen/from spelling rules
In Spanish, 'that's good' is translated as está bien.
The phrase está bien is frequently used to express agreement or to signal that a situation is acceptable, similar to saying 'that's fine' or 'it's okay' in English.
Which one should you use?
While está bien means 'that is fine', 'acceptable' or 'okay', you should use es bueno if you want to describe the inherent quality or character of something (meaning 'it is good'). For more enthusiasm, you can use está de maravilla to express that something is wonderful or is going very well, as está bien can feel somewhat neutral.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, you might hear Chido to mean 'Cool'. In Spain, you might hear Está de lujo to mean 'It's great'.
Did you know?
- In some Spanish-speaking regions, responding to a suggestion with only está bien can be perceived as a polite way of saying 'I'll do it, but I am not happy about it'.
- The word bien is a linguistic relative of the Latin 'bonus', which is the ancestor of many English words like 'bonanza' or 'bonus' that imply something good or a windfall.
- Depending on the speaker's tone, está bien can be used sarcastically to mean 'fine, whatever', which can lead to social misunderstandings.
Examples in context
- Eso está bien.That's good.This sentence shows how to use the form está bien.Tatoeba #6682503 by arh, translation #2123563 by CK
- Tus resultados en el proyecto fueron excelentes. Es bueno ver tu esfuerzo.Your results on the project were excellent. It's good to see your effort.
- Vamos a la fiesta esta noche. ¿Está bien?Let's go to the party tonight. Is that good?
- Probé la nueva pizza del lugar. ¡Está buenísima!I tried the new pizza from that place. It's really good!
- ¡Qué bueno que pudiste venir a la reunión!It's great that you were able to come to the meeting!
- Ganamos el torneo de fútbol. ¡Genial!We won the soccer tournament. That's great!
- No te preocupes, está bien así.Don't worry, that's good like that.
Example conversation
Daniel and Elena are discussing the schedule for a meeting.
- Daniel¿Podemos vernos a las cinco?Can we meet at five?
- ElenaSí, para mí está bien.Yes, that's good for me.
- DanielPerfecto, te veo allí.Perfect, I'll see you there.
- ElenaMuy bien, hasta luego.Very well, see you later.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bien, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
