ustedes son estúpidos
/ustedes son estupidos/from spelling rules
The English phrase "you guys are stupid" is translated into Spanish as ustedes son estúpidos.
This phrase is used to tell a group of people that they lack intelligence.
Which one should you use?
In Spain, the standard informal way to address a group of people is vosotros sois estúpidos, while ustedes son estúpidos is used in Latin America or serves as a formal address in Spain.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Argentina and Uruguay, the slang word boludos is used to refer to someone as stupid or foolish.
How does it change in a sentence?
If the group being addressed consists entirely of females, the adjective changes from the masculine estúpidos to the feminine estúpidas.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use the singular adjective estúpido with the plural subject ustedes, but the adjective must agree in number with the subject.
Did you know?
- The word ustedes is a contraction of the older Spanish phrase 'vuestedes', which evolved from a combination of 'vuestra merced' meaning 'your mercy'.
- In parts of the Southern Cone, such as Argentina, using the word boludo can actually be a term of endearment between friends, even though its literal meaning refers to someone who is foolish.
- The adjective estúpido shares a linguistic cousin with the English word 'stupid', both tracing back to the Latin 'stupere', which means 'to be stunned' or 'to be struck motionless'.
Examples in context
- Ustedes son tontos.You guys are foolish.
- Ustedes están bien burros.You guys are really dumb.
- Ustedes son re boludos.You guys are really stupid.
- Ustedes son estúpidos si creen eso.You guys are stupid if you believe that.
- No me digan eso, ustedes son estúpidos.Don't tell me that, you guys are stupid.
- ¡Ustedes son estúpidos por perder el mapa!You guys are stupid for losing the map!
Example conversation
Two friends are arguing about a bad decision their classmates made.
- LucíaMira lo que hicieron, ustedes son estúpidos.Look what they did, you guys are stupid.
- AlejandroNo hables así de ellos, Lucía.Don't talk about them like that, Lucía.
- LucíaEs la verdad, Alejandro.It is the truth, Alejandro.
- AlejandroSolo cometieron un error.They just made a mistake.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
