Simple Questions to Ask in Spanish

The questions

Open any question to see why it works.

1. 1

   ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?)

   The reply is almost always a set phrase: bien, muy bien, or más o menos, so you can recognize it before you can parse a full sentence. Switch to ¿Cómo está? with anyone much older than you or anyone serving you, since tú with a stranger can land as overly familiar.

2. 2

   ¿Cómo te llamas? (What's your name?)

   Literally it asks what someone calls themselves, and the answer usually comes back as Me llamo plus a name, which gives you the pattern to copy for your own. Learners often reach for ¿Cómo es tu nombre? instead, which is understood but sounds translated.

3. 3

   ¿De dónde eres? (Where are you from?)

   Many people answer with a state or region rather than a country, so have ¿De qué parte? ready for a follow-up. If the place name means nothing to you, saying so is better than nodding, and most people will happily show you on a map.

4. 4

   ¿Hablas inglés? (Do you speak English?)

   Worth knowing, but asking it in the first minute usually ends your Spanish practice for the whole conversation. Note that un poco often means almost none, so a yes is not a guarantee you can fall back on English later.

5. 5

   ¿Qué hora es? (What time is it?)

   The asking is easy; hearing the answer is the hard part, because it arrives as son las plus a number, sometimes with y media or y cuarto attached. If numbers still trip you up, follow with ¿Puedes repetir más despacio?

6. 6

   ¿Dónde está el baño? (Where is the bathroom?)

   Answers come as short directions plus a gesture, so listen for a la derecha, a la izquierda, and al fondo rather than trying to catch every word. In parts of Spain you will hear servicio or aseo instead of baño.

7. 7

   ¿Cuánto cuesta? (How much does it cost?)

   This asks about one item; for several things use ¿Cuánto cuestan? or just ¿Cuánto es? at the register. Prices get said fast and often without the currency word, so repeating the number back is the safest way to confirm.

8. 8

   ¿Puedes ayudarme? (Can you help me?)

   Opening with this gives the other person room to say they are busy instead of feeling cornered by a stranger's problem. With shop staff or anyone you do not know, ¿Me puede ayudar? is the safer register.

9. 9

   ¿Te gusta la comida aquí? (Do you like the food here?)

   Most people answer by naming a specific dish, which hands you a new word you can reuse for the rest of the trip. A flat sí means they did not understand you as an invitation to talk, so follow with ¿Qué plato te gusta más?

10. 10

    ¿Cuál es tu comida favorita? (What's your favorite food?)

    Answers tend to be a home dish rather than anything on a restaurant menu, and that usually opens onto who cooks it and how. It is also one of the few questions where a one-word answer still gives you something to ask about.

11. 11

    ¿Te gusta la música? (Do you like music?)

    Nearly everyone says yes, so the value is entirely in the follow-up: ask which artist, then ask them to play it. If they name a genre you have never heard of, that is the most useful moment in the exchange.

12. 12

    ¿Qué opinas del clima? (What do you think about the weather?)

    A safe filler question that also drills opinar, a verb you will use constantly once you move past basics. It falls flat in places where the weather barely changes, so save it for somewhere with real seasons or an unusual day.

13. 13

    ¿Has estado aquí antes? (Have you been here before?)

    This quickly sorts out whether you are talking to a local, a regular, or another visitor, which changes what else is worth asking. It also gets you practicing the present perfect, which shows up in casual speech far more than textbooks suggest.

14. 14

    ¿Cuánto tiempo llevas aquí? (How long have you been here?)

    Using llevar for duration is one of the constructions that does not map from English, so hearing it in reply teaches you the pattern. Expect a bare number plus años, meses, or semanas rather than a full sentence.

15. 15

    ¿Conoces algún lugar bueno para comer? (Do you know a good place to eat?)

    Note that places take conocer, not saber, and getting this right is one of the clearest signs you have studied. Answers arrive as a name plus rough directions, so have a map open before you ask.

16. 16

    ¿En qué trabajas? (What do you do for work?)

    Clearer than the common ¿Qué haces?, which can be heard as what are you doing right now. Job titles often come back as untranslated local terms, so asking what the day looks like gets you further than asking for the title again.

17. 17

    ¿Tienes familia aquí? (Do you have family here?)

    The answer usually reveals whether someone grew up in the area or moved for work, which is the single most useful thing to know about a new acquaintance. Keep in mind familia often covers cousins, aunts, and grandparents, not just a household.

18. 18

    ¿Qué te gusta hacer en tu tiempo libre? (What do you like to do in your free time?)

    Longer than anything above it, so try it once the conversation is already going rather than cold. Replies come as strings of infinitives such as leer, salir, and cocinar, which makes it good listening practice.

19. 19

    ¿Qué planes tienes para el fin de semana? (What are your plans for the weekend?)

    This is the question most likely to produce an actual invitation, so decide in advance whether you want one. You will probably be asked the same thing back, so have one sentence about your own weekend ready.

20. 20

    ¿Te gusta viajar? (Do you like to travel?)

    Answers usually turn into a list of places, which is your opening to practice the past tense with fui a. If someone has not travelled much, the question can read as a brag about your own trip, so let them steer.