ustedes
Latin America
In Latin American Spanish "you all" is ustedes. It works for friends, family and strangers, and takes the same verb endings as ellos.
Say ustedes son for "you all are" and ustedes tienen for "you all have". You can add todos for emphasis, as in ustedes todos.
Meaning: second person plural (pronoun)
Which one should you use?
Spain has a second form, vosotros, for informal groups. Latin America does not use it, so ustedes is both formal and casual.
Did you know?
- Using ustedes with friends is the normal rule across the Americas, and vosotros is mostly limited to Spain.
Examples in context
- Ustedes son mis mejores amigos.You all are my best friends.
- ¿Ustedes quieren café?Do you all want coffee?
- Ustedes dos pueden pasar.You two can come in.
Example conversation
A Teacher greets a Student and the class on the first day of school in Bogotá.
- TeacherBuenos días a todos. ¿Ustedes ya tienen sus libros?Good morning, everyone. Do you all have your books?
- StudentSí, profesora.Yes, teacher.
- TeacherPerfecto, abran la página uno.Perfect, open page one.
