¿de qué están hablando?
The English phrase "what are y'all talking about?" is translated into Spanish as ¿de qué están hablando?
This question is used to ask a group of people about the subject of their current conversation. You can add the pronoun ustedes to the end of the phrase, ¿de qué están hablando ustedes?, to explicitly clarify that you are addressing a group.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the preposition de (about/of), the interrogative qué (what) and the verb phrase están hablando (are talking).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Spain, the second-person plural form ¿de qué habláis? is used to translate "y'all" instead of the Latin American están hablando.
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the response to ¿de qué están hablando? may be the phrase nada, meaning 'nothing', even if the group was discussing something important.
- In some Caribbean dialects, the s in están may be dropped or aspirated, making the phrase sound more like ¿de qué etán hablando? in fast, casual speech.
- The word están comes from the Latin 'stare', which means 'to stand'. This reveals that the verb for 'are' in this phrase is etymologically rooted in the concept of standing or being in a certain place.
Examples in context
- No entiendo, ¿de qué están hablando?I don't understand, what are y'all talking about?
- No los escucho, ¿de qué están hablando?I can't hear you, what are y'all talking about?
- Parece un secreto, ¿de qué están hablando?It seems like a secret, what are y'all talking about?
Example conversation
Sofía joins Alejandro and his friends in the living room.
- SofíaHola, ¿de qué están hablando?Hi, what are y'all talking about?
- AlejandroEstamos planeando un viaje, Sofía.We are planning a trip, Sofía.
- Sofía¿Un viaje? ¡Qué emocionante!A trip? How exciting!
- AlejandroSí, queremos ir a la playa.Yes, we want to go to the beach.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, qué, CC BY-SA 4.0.
