Forms of Address: tú, usted, vosotros, ustedes
A1–A2Pronouns 4 min
Spanish has a familiar “you”, tú, and a formal one, usted, each with its plural. Usted and ustedes take the verb forms of él and ellos: ¿Cómo está usted? ¿Cómo están ustedes?
No information at the current level. This view starts at A1: choose A1 or a higher level.
No information at the current level. This view starts at A1: choose A1 or a higher level.
CheatsheetA1–A2
| Point | Rule | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| tú | one person you know well: friends, family, children | ¿Tienes hambre? | Are you hungry? |
| usted | one person, formally: strangers, older people, customers | ¿Tiene usted hora? | Do you have the time? |
| ustedes | any group: friends or strangers | Chicos, ¿tienen hambre? | Guys, are you hungry? |
| vosotros | a group you know well | Chicos, ¿tenéis hambre? | Guys, are you hungry? |
| ustedes | a group, formally | ¿Qué desean, señores? | What would you like? |
| A2Possessive | usted and ustedes take su for “your” | ¿Es su maleta, señor? | Is this your suitcase, sir? |
| A2Object | usted takes lo, la and le, like él and ella | Señora, la llamo mañana. | Madam, I'll call you tomorrow. |
| A2vos | replaces tú in Argentina, Uruguay and Central America | ¿Vos tenés tiempo? | Do you have time? |
| Trap | usted takes the verb form of él, never of tú | ¿Usted es de aquí? | Are you from here? |
OverviewA1
- Spanish has a familiar “you” and a formal one, in the singular and in the plural.
- The other subject pronouns: Subject Pronouns.
Form: the four formsA1–A2
| Form | hablar | ser |
|---|---|---|
| tú | hablas | eres |
| usted | habla | es |
| vosotros / vosotras | habláis | sois |
| ustedes | hablan | son |
- usted and ustedes take the verb forms of él and ellos: ¿Usted es de aquí? / ¿Ustedes son de aquí? — Are you from here? / Are you all from here?
- A2In writing, usted and ustedes are often shortened to Ud. and Uds..
Use: who gets which formA1–A2
| Use | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| tú: friends, family, children, people your age | ¿Cómo estás, Marta? | How are you, Marta? |
| usted: strangers, older people, customers, officials | ¿Cómo está, señora? | How are you, madam? |
| ustedes: any group, friends or strangers | ¿Cómo están, chicos? | How are you, guys? |
| vosotros: a group of friends or family | ¿Cómo estáis, chicos? | How are you, guys? |
| ustedes: a group of strangers, formally | ¿Qué desean, señores? | What would you like? |
- Spain: In Spain, tú is common with strangers of your own age, in shops and at work.
- A2Latin America: In Colombia and Costa Rica, usted is common even among family and friends.
- A2Latin America: In Argentina, Uruguay and Central America, vos replaces tú, with its own present forms: ¿Vos tenés tiempo? / Vos sos de acá. — Do you have time? / You're from here.
- A2The verb tutear means to address someone as tú: ¿Nos tuteamos? — Shall we use tú?
Usted with other wordsA2
| Point | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| Possessive: su, sus | ¿Es su maleta, señor? | Is this your suitcase, sir? |
| Direct object: lo, la | Señora, la llamo mañana. | Madam, I'll call you tomorrow. |
| Indirect object: le | Señor, ¿le traigo la cuenta? | Sir, shall I bring you the bill? |
| Plural: su, les | Señores, les traigo la carta. | I'll bring you the menu. |
| After a preposition | Esto es para usted. | This is for you. |
| vosotros: vuestro, os | Chicos, os llamo mañana. | Guys, I'll call you tomorrow. |
- su means “your” for usted, and also “his”, “her” and “their”: the context tells which.
Typical errorsA1–A2
| ✗ | ✓ | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| ¿Usted eres de aquí? | ¿Usted es de aquí? | usted takes the verb form of él |
| A2¿Usted tiene tu pasaporte? | ¿Usted tiene su pasaporte? | usted takes su |
| A2Señora, te llamo mañana. | Señora, la llamo mañana. | usted takes lo or la, like él and ella |