pero qué
/peɾo ke/from spelling rules
In Spanish, "what the" is expressed as pero qué.
The phrase pero qué is used to express astonishment, disbelief, annoyance or shock. It is almost always followed by a subject or a verb to express disbelief, annoyance or shock. If you use it as a standalone exclamation of pure shock without a following clause, it is often punctuated with multiple exclamation marks, such as ¡Pero qué…!!
Meaning: expression of astonishment (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of pero (but) and qué (what). Together, they are used to add emphasis to an exclamation or question.
How does it change in a sentence?
In this idiomatic usage, pero functions as an intensifier rather than a conjunction meaning "but".
How do you pronounce it?
/peɾo ke/
Did you know?
- The word qué shares its ancient roots with the English word 'what', as both descend from the Proto-Indo-European root '*kʷid'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, an expression of shock like pero qué is often accompanied by a sharp intake of breath or a slight toss of the head.
- In many Spanish-speaking regions, saying ¡Pero qué…! with a trailing ellipsis can signal a dramatic pause used to build suspense or mock someone's behavior.
Examples in context
- ¿Pero qué le ha pasado a tu móvil?What the heck happened to your phone?This sentence uses pero qué to ask about something that happened to a phone.Tatoeba #13463403 by Seael, translation #13463411 by frpzzd
- ¿Pero qué carajo estás mirando?What the hell are you looking at?This sentence uses pero qué to express annoyance at someone looking at you.Tatoeba #1649209 by alexmarcelo, translation #1640062 by Spamster
- ¿Qué diablos está pasando aquí?What the heck is happening here?
- ¡¿Qué demonios estás haciendo?!What the hell are you doing?!
- ¡No puedo creer qué rayos pasó anoche!I can't believe what the hell happened last night!
- ¡¿Qué chingados está pasando aquí?!What the hell is going on here?!
- ¡¿Qué carajo estás diciendo?!What the hell are you saying?!
Example conversation
Javier walks into the room wearing a ridiculous costume.
- Elena¡Pero qué haces con ese disfraz!What the, what are you doing in that costume!
- JavierEs para la fiesta de esta noche.It's for the party tonight.
- Elena¿En serio vas a salir así?Are you seriously going out like that?
- JavierSí, ¡estoy muy cómodo!Yes, I am very comfortable!
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pero, qué, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
