3

What is the most accurate "you all" translation?

There are two "yous". Singular and plural you. The latter is sometimes called "you all", "y'all", or "youse guys" in American English. What is the most accurate Spanish rendition of plural you?

I tried three online translators:

  • Translate.com gives me "you all" (untranslated => it throws up its hands, apparently)
  • Google Translate gives me "todos ustedes"
  • Bing Translator gives me "todos"

In other words, how does one differentiate in Spanish between a singular and plural you?

  • You (Paco) gave me a black eye
  • You (Paco, Rubén, and Raúl) gave me a black eye

2 Answers 2

6

In Spanish from Spain, there is the informal plural you vosotros, and the formal plural you ustedes.

Latinamerican Spanish, as far as I can tell, lost the informal one, leaving only ustedes.

Spain-spanish informal would say:

¿Iréis vosotros al cine esta noche? Will you all (informal) go to the movies tonight?

Spain-spanish formal, Latinamerican formal/informal:

¿Irán ustedes al cine esta noche?

In both cases the pronoun can be omitted as it can be derived from the verb.

As for your friend Paco and the others...

You (Paco) gave me a black eye
--> Me dejaste el ojo morado

You (Paco, Ruben, and Raul) gave me a black eye:
--> Me dejasteis el ojo morado (informal Spain)
--> Me dejaron el ojo morado (all the others)

2
  • vos también existe en español ¬¬
    – Helmut
    Commented Jun 10, 2014 at 18:58
  • Correcto, pero en España y Latinoamérica su significado en términos de formalidad son totalmente opuestos. Es España está por arriba de usted, mientras que en latinoamérica es bien informal. Como español nunca tratarías a tu padre de vos. Commented Jun 14, 2014 at 14:08
3

According to StudySpanish

When referring to "you-all," there are two choices in Spanish:

ustedes / you-all formal

vosotros / you-all familiar

Once again, the difference lies in the degree of formality conveyed by the speaker. However, the vosotros form is used primarily in Spain. Throughout Latin America, "ustedes" is generally used in both formal and informal situations to refer to "you-all."

Speaking to a group of children (in Spain): vosotros

Speaking to a group of children (in Latin America): ustedes

Speaking to a group of strangers (in Spain): ustedes

Speaking to a group of strangers (in Latin America): ustedes

About your examples You (Paco) gave me a black eye and You (Paco, Ruben, and Raul) gave me a black eye, we would distinghish:

Singular subject ? Then use tú/usted:

Tú me dejaste el ojo morado / Usted me dejó el ojo morado.

Plural subject? Then use vosotros/ustedes:

Vosotros me dejasteis el ojo morado / Ustedes me dejaron el ojo morado.

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.