¿qué estás haciendo?
The English phrase "what are you making" is translated into Spanish as ¿qué estás haciendo?
This phrase is used to ask someone about the activity they are currently engaged in. While English speakers might specify "making" when referring to the production of an object, Spanish uses the verb hacer to cover both "doing" and "making" in this context.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase ¿qué estás haciendo? literally translates to "what are you doing?" in English.
Which one should you use?
If you specifically want to ask about an artistic or creative project, you can use ¿Qué estás creando?, which means "What are you creating?"
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking countries, ¿qué haces? is often used as a casual greeting similar to 'what is up?' rather than a literal question about a current activity.
- The word qué is a direct descendant of the Latin word quid, which became so famous in Roman law that it later gave English the term 'quid pro quo'.
- The verb hacer is used in the common idiom hacer tiempo, which means to kill time or pass the time, rather than physically creating time.
Example conversation
Mateo walks into the living room and sees Lucía working.
- MateoHola Lucía, ¿qué estás haciendo?Hi Lucía, what are you doing?
- LucíaEstoy organizando mis fotos viejas.I am organizing my old photos.
- MateoSe ve muy interesante.It looks very interesting.
- LucíaSí, me gusta recordar el pasado.Yes, I like remembering the past.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries qué, CC BY-SA 4.0.
