la comida huele bien
/la komida wele bjen/from spelling rules
The English phrase "the food smells good" is translated into Spanish as la comida huele bien.
This phrase is used to express that food has a pleasant aroma.
Which one should you use?
You can use la comida huele rico to specifically emphasize that the food smells delicious.
How does it change in a sentence?
In many Spanish-speaking regions, replacing the word bien with rico in the phrase la comida huele rico is a common way to shift the meaning from the food smelling just "good" to smelling "delicious".
Did you know?
- While la comida huele bien is grammatically perfect, in a casual setting, a Spaniard might simply say ¡Qué bien huele! to express the same sentiment. This focuses the enthusiasm on the sensation of the smell itself.
- The word comida serves a double purpose in Spanish, referring to both the 'food' itself and the 'midday meal', which is typically the largest meal of the day.
- The word comida is actually a verbal noun derived from the action of eating. It comes from the past participle of comer, meaning the food is literally 'that which has been eaten' or 'the act of eating'.
Examples in context
- Enhorabuena chef, la comida huele deliciosa. Estoy ansioso por probarla.Congratulations chef, the food smells delicious. I am eager to try it.
- ¡María, qué rico huele la comida! Se me hace agua la boca.Maria, how delicious the food smells! It's making my mouth water.
- ¡Qué bien huele la comida!How good the food smells!
- ¡Qué rico! La comida huele bien.How delicious! The food smells good.
- La comida huele bien en la cocina.The food smells good in the kitchen.
- Me encanta, la comida huele bien.I love it, the food smells good.
Example conversation
Daniel and Elena are in the kitchen while preparing dinner.
- DanielElena, la comida huele bien.Elena, the food smells good.
- ElenaGracias, Daniel. Estoy casi lista.Thanks, Daniel. I am almost ready.
- Daniel¿Crees que ya está lista?Do you think it is ready yet?
- ElenaSí, vamos a servir la cena.Yes, let's serve dinner.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bien, comida, la, CC BY-SA 4.0.
