English

Cheatsheet: Forms of Address: tú, usted, vosotros, ustedes

Pronouns

Forms of Address: tú, usted, vosotros, ustedes

PointRuleExampleEnglish
túone person you know well: friends, family, children¿Tienes hambre?Are you hungry?
ustedone person, formally: strangers, older people, customers¿Tiene usted hora?Do you have the time?
ustedesany group: friends or strangersChicos, ¿tienen hambre?Guys, are you hungry?
vosotrosa group you know wellChicos, ¿tenéis hambre?Guys, are you hungry?
ustedesa group, formally¿Qué desean, señores?What would you like?
A2Possessiveusted and ustedes take su for “your”¿Es su maleta, señor?Is this your suitcase, sir?
A2Objectusted takes lo, la and le, like él and ellaSeñora, la llamo mañana.Madam, I'll call you tomorrow.
A2vosreplaces tú in Argentina, Uruguay and Central America¿Vos tenés tiempo?Do you have time?
Trapusted takes the verb form of él, never of tú¿Usted es de aquí?Are you from here?

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