¿Cuántos años tienes?
The English phrase "what age are you?" is translated into Spanish as ¿Cuántos años tienes?
Spanish uses different phrases to ask about age depending on the context. ¿Cuántos años tienes? and ¿Qué edad tienes? are both informal ways to ask how old someone is. If you want to ask how old someone is turning, emphasizing an upcoming birthday, you can use ¿Cuántos años cumples?
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase ¿Cuántos años tienes? literally translates to "How many years do you have?" rather than "What age are you?"
How does it change in a sentence?
The default form ¿Cuántos años tienes? uses the informal "tú" conjugation and is used with peers, children or people you know well. Use the form ¿Cuántos años tiene usted? when speaking to someone in a formal context or to someone much older than you.
Did you know?
- While English speakers 'are' an age, Spanish speakers 'have' years. This logic extends to saying Tengo hambre for 'I am hungry', which literally means 'I have hunger'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, asking ¿Cuántos años tienes? to a woman you are dating or meeting for the first time can be considered more intrusive than in the US or UK.
- In some regions, people use the expression está en la flor de la vida to describe someone at their prime age, regardless of the specific number of years they 'have'.
Examples in context
- Tengo veinte años.I am twenty years old.
- Si no te importa, ¿cuántos años tienes?If you don't mind, how old are you?
- No sé tu edad, ¿cuántos años tienes?I don't know your age, how old are you?
Example conversation
Two people are meeting at a language exchange event.
- MaríaHola, soy María. ¿Cuántos años tienes?Hello, I am María. How old are you?
- DanielHola María, soy Daniel y tengo veinticinco años.Hello María, I am Daniel and I am twenty-five years old.
- María¡Qué bien! Yo tengo veintiséis años.That's great! I am twenty-six years old.
- DanielSomos casi de la misma edad.We are almost the same age.
