qué pasa nena
/ke pasa nena/from spelling rules
The English phrase "wassup baby girl" is translated into Spanish as qué pasa nena.
This phrase is an informal greeting used to ask a young woman or a romantic partner how she is doing. Other similar informal greetings include ¡Qué tal, guapa! (What's up, gorgeous!) and ¡Ey, chula! (Hey, cutie!).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
qué pasa nena is highly informal. It should only be used with people you know well or in a romantic context.
How do you pronounce it?
/ke pasa nena/
Did you know?
- The word pasa in this greeting comes from the same Latin root as the word for 'raisin', which refers to a 'spread grape'.
- Depending on the region, a person might replace nena with mami or mamita to achieve a similar romantic or flirtatious effect.
- Depending on the tone, qué pasa can shift from a friendly 'wassup' to a confrontational 'what is your problem' or 'what do you want'.
Examples in context
- ¡Hola, nena! ¿Qué tal todo?Hi, baby girl! How's everything going?
- ¿Qué pasa nena, cómo vas?Wassup baby girl, how are you doing?
- Hola, ¿qué pasa nena?Hi, wassup baby girl?
- ¡Qué pasa nena! ¿Todo bien?Wassup baby girl! Everything good?
Example conversation
Daniel greets Elena when she arrives at a party.
- Elena¡Hola Daniel!Hi Daniel!
- DanielQué pasa nena, te ves muy bien.Wassup baby girl, you look great.
- ElenaGracias, tú también te ves guapo.Thanks, you look handsome too.
- DanielVamos a entrar juntos.Let's go inside together.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries nena, pasa, qué, CC BY-SA 4.0.
