6 Ways to Say “You”
In Spanish, there are a bunch of ways to say you, depending on the context and place. Let’s check them out:
We use in all the Spanish-speaking countries:
Tú – Informal singular form.
Usted – Formal singular form, used to show respect or politeness.
Ustedes – Plural form used to address a group of people (it’s for everybody in Latin America, and generally formal in Spain).
Regional uses:
Vos – Informal singular form used in some parts of Latin America. However, everybody understands tú in these places, and people even use tú in some contexts.
Vosotros – Informal plural form used generally in Spain when addressing two or more men, or when there’s at least one man in the group. It’s not used in Latin American countries.
Vosotras – Informal plural form used in Spain when addressing a group of women.
TIP! Sadly, Spanish is a very sexist language. So, when we use plural pronouns, we must use the masculine form when there is at least one man, even if there are 99 women and just one man!
This site is mainly in neutral Spanish, so I have tried to avoid regional uses. Let’s see once again all these pronouns in a chart. Gael, a voice from Spain, will read them aloud for you:
| Pronoun | Number and Formality | Where It’s Used |
|---|---|---|
| Tú | Singular, informal | Most Spanish-speaking countries |
| Vos | Singular, informal | Some Latin American regions |
| Usted | Singular, formal | Every Spanish-speaking country |
| Ustedes | Plural, formal | Spain |
| Ustedes | Plural, FORMAL/informal | Latin America |
| Vosotros | Plural, informal (masculine) | Spain |
| Vosotras | Plural, informal (feminine) | Spain |
And now let’s play!
