Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA |
|---|---|
| qué | /ˈke/ |
| cuál | /ˈkwal/ |
In Spanish, qué is used as an interrogative pronoun. You can use the common phrase ¿Qué pasa? to mean "What's happening?" or "What's up?" in many regions. To ask how someone is doing or how they have been, you can use the informal greeting ¿Qué tal? or the Latin American expression ¿Qué onda?, which is equivalent to "What's up?"
Which one should you use?
There is a distinction between qué and cuál. Use qué when you are asking for a definition or an explanation. Use cuál when you are asking someone to choose from a group or to identify one specific item among many.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
While repeating ¿Qué? is a common way to say "What?" when you did not hear someone in casual speech, it can be perceived as blunt or rude in formal settings.
Is it said differently in some regions?
The expression ¿Qué onda? is an informal way to say "What's up?" or "What's happening?" used particularly in Mexico and Latin America.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The interrogative pronoun qué must always carry an accent mark on the e to distinguish it from the relative pronoun que, which means "that" or "which".
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈke/
Did you know?
- While qué is the standard for 'what', in some rural or archaic dialects of Spanish, the word mande is used as a polite way to say 'What?' or 'Pardon?'
- The expression ¿Qué onda? uses the word 'onda', which literally means 'wave', to ask what is happening.
- The Spanish word qué descends from the Latin word quid, which is also the root of the English expression 'quid pro quo'.
Examples in context
- ¿Y a mí qué?So what?This sentence shows how to use qué in a defiant or rhetorical way.Tatoeba #2008103 by Shishir, translation #1340 by Sbgodin
- Sé de qué va.I know what it's about.This sentence demonstrates qué used to describe the subject of a topic.Tatoeba #5645606 by arh, translation #5636517 by CK
- ¿Qué vas a ser?What are you going to be?This sentence shows qué used to ask about a future profession or state.Tatoeba #1225847 by wallebot, translation #16262 by AlanF_US
- 6065 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Javier and Lucía are at a cafe.
- Javier¿Qué quieres pedir, Lucía?What do you want to order, Lucía?
- LucíaNo sé qué elegir.I don't know what to choose.
- Javier¿Qué te parece el café?What do you think about the coffee?
- Lucía¡Qué rico está!It is so delicious!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “what” translations and entries qué, cuál, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cuál, qué, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
