¿qué demonios?
/ˈke deˈmonjos/word by word
The Spanish phrase for "what in the world" is ¿qué demonios?
Meaning: Translations (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, the phrase translates to "what demons?"
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
you may use the slightly milder and more informal alternative ¿qué rayos?, which literally means "what rays/bolts?"
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈke deˈmonjos/
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking countries, you might hear ¿qué narices? instead of ¿qué demonios?, which literally translates to 'what noses?'
- While ¿qué demonios? is widely understood, a person in Spain might more commonly use ¿qué cojones? in very informal, vulgar contexts to mean the same thing.
- The word qué is an inherited descendant of the Latin word quid, which also gave English the phrase 'quid pro quo'.
Examples in context
- ¡¿Qué demonios está pasando aquí?!What in the world is going on here?!
- ¡¿Qué diablos estás haciendo con mi teléfono?!What in the world are you doing with my phone?!
- ¡¿Qué rayos estás diciendo?!What in the world are you saying?!
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (qué, demonios) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries qué, CC BY-SA 4.0.
