¿Por qué no los dos?
/poɾ ˈke ˈno los ˈdos/word by word
The English phrase "why not both" is translated into Spanish as ¿Por qué no los dos?
This phrase is used to suggest that there is no need to choose between two options because both can be selected.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase ¿Por qué no los dos? literally translates to "Why not the two?"
Which one should you use?
While ¿Por qué no los dos? is the standard form, you can add "Y" to the beginning to say "and why not both?" (¿Y por qué no los dos?), which is used in informal conversations.
How does it change in a sentence?
Use ¿Por qué no las dos? instead of 'los dos' if the two options being discussed are feminine nouns. The feminine form ¿Por qué no ambas? is used when referring to two feminine options.
How do you pronounce it?
/poɾ ˈke ˈno los ˈdos/
Did you know?
- The word dos shares a common ancestor with the English word 'two' and the Ancient Greek word δύο, as both stem from the Proto-Indo-European root *dwóh₁.
Examples in context
- ¿Por qué no los dos?Why not both?This example shows the use of ¿Por qué no los dos?Tatoeba #11216001 by DJ_Saidez, translation #2440024 by CM
- Si te gustan los colores, ¿por qué no los dos?If you like the colors, why not both?
Example conversation
Alejandro and Sofía are deciding on a dessert.
- Alejandro¿Quieres el helado de chocolate o el de vainilla?Do you want the chocolate ice cream or the vanilla one?
- SofíaNo sé, es difícil elegir.I don't know, it is hard to choose.
- Alejandro¿Por qué no los dos?Why not both?
- Sofía¡Es una excelente idea, Alejandro!That is an excellent idea, Alejandro!
