muy buen trabajo
/mui bwen tɾabaxo/from spelling rules
The English phrase 'very good job' is translated into Spanish as muy buen trabajo.
muy buen trabajo is used to praise someone for completing a task with a high level of quality.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of muy (very), buen (good) and trabajo (work/job).
Which one should you use?
Removing muy from the phrase changes it from 'very good job' to the standard 'good job' (buen trabajo). Often, Spanish speakers will drop both the muy and the article to simply say ¡Buen trabajo! as an exclamation of praise.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some Latin American countries, you may hear the emphatic version Buenísimo trabajo.
How does it change in a sentence?
If you choose to use the synonym labor instead of trabajo, you must change the adjective to the feminine form buena to match the gender, resulting in muy buena labor.
Did you know?
- The word trabajo has a surprising connection to the number three. It stems from the Latin word for a 'three-fold' instrument, which was used for heavy labor.
- In Spain, a person who does a muy buen trabajo might be called un crack, a slang term borrowed from sports to describe someone who is a master of their craft.
- While muy buen trabajo is grammatically correct, in many Spanish-speaking workplaces, saying buen trabajo to a subordinate can sometimes be perceived as condescending or overly paternalistic.
Examples in context
- Hiciste un muy buen trabajo.You did a very good job.This sentence shows how to use muy buen trabajo to say someone did a very good job.Tatoeba #4244664 by marcelostockle, translation #3356376 by CK
- Has hecho un muy buen trabajo.You have done a very good job.This sentence shows how to use muy buen trabajo with the present perfect tense.Tatoeba #504449 by Shishir, translation #268347 by CC
- No has hecho un muy buen trabajo.You haven't done a very good job.This sentence shows the negative form of the phrase using muy buen trabajo.Tatoeba #7028990 by Schuager, translation #5479679 by CK
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel is praising María for her presentation at work.
- DanielMaría, terminaste la presentación. ¡Muy buen trabajo!María, you finished the presentation. Very good job!
- MaríaGracias, Daniel. Me costó mucho tiempo.Thank you, Daniel. It took me a long time.
- DanielSe nota que fue un muy buen trabajo.It shows that it was a very good job.
- MaríaAprecio mucho tus palabras.I really appreciate your words.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries buen, muy, trabajo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
