#1  
Old August 02, 2009, 05:58 PM
laepelba's Avatar
laepelba laepelba is offline
Diamond
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Suburbs of Washington, DC (Northern Virginia)
Posts: 4,683
Native Language: American English (Northeastern US)
laepelba is on a distinguished road
Question ¿Qué tal?

I have always been told that ¿Qué tal? means "how are you?" Well, I guess that it is the same sense as "how are you?", but I don't believe that's an accurate translation.

The first part of my question, then, is what exactly does ¿Qué tal? mean? I mean, que means generally "what", and tal means generally "thus" or "such". I don't necessarily get "how are you?" from that. I guess that I'm asking how the sense of the meaning works.

The second part of my question is about the other uses of "¿Qué tal?". I heard something in a podcast recently that you can use it as a more generic beginning of a question to find out how something is. The person talking about it said that it eliminates the need for verb tense. For example, I could say "¿Qué tal tu madre?" for "How is your mother?" and "¿Qué tal la fiesta?" for "How was the party?" (that happened last night). Right??

What other uses for this nifty little phrase exist?
__________________
- Lou Ann, de Washington, DC, USA
Específicamente quiero recibir ayuda con el español de latinoamerica. ¡Muchísimas gracias!
Reply With Quote
   
Get rid of these ads by registering for a free Tomísimo account.
  #2  
Old August 02, 2009, 06:39 PM
Rusty's Avatar
Rusty Rusty is offline
Señor Speedy
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: USA
Posts: 11,299
Native Language: American English
Rusty has a spectacular aura aboutRusty has a spectacular aura about
The interrogative qué is sometimes translated as how, as is the exclamation.

The expression qué tal is used as you've stated. As such, it can have several translations. Idiomatic expressions usually don't make any sense if translated word-for-word (transliterated). You just have to understand how the idiom is used.

Eliminating the need for the tense is only half of the equation. There's no verb at all AND tense has to be deduced from context.
For example, without any context to go on, "¿qué tal la fiesta?" could mean a past event, a present event, or a future event. In English, any of these translations would work:
Did you like the party?
How was the party?
How's the party going?
What's the party like?
How are the plans for the party going?
What kind of party will it be?
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old August 02, 2009, 06:43 PM
laepelba's Avatar
laepelba laepelba is offline
Diamond
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Suburbs of Washington, DC (Northern Virginia)
Posts: 4,683
Native Language: American English (Northeastern US)
laepelba is on a distinguished road
OH!!!!!!!! Thanks, Rusty!! That is totally wonderful. I love generally applicable phrases like that. Word.
__________________
- Lou Ann, de Washington, DC, USA
Específicamente quiero recibir ayuda con el español de latinoamerica. ¡Muchísimas gracias!
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old August 02, 2009, 06:50 PM
EmpanadaRica's Avatar
EmpanadaRica EmpanadaRica is offline
Sapphire
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Holland
Posts: 1,067
Native Language: Dutch
EmpanadaRica is on a distinguished road
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rusty View Post
The interrogative qué is sometimes translated as how, as is the exclamation.

The expression qué tal is used as you've stated. As such, it can have several translations. Idiomatic expressions usually don't make any sense if translated word-for-word (transliterated). You just have to understand how the idiom is used.

Eliminating the need for the tense is only half of the equation. There's no verb at all AND tense has to be deduced from context.
For example, without any context to go on, "¿qué tal la fiesta?" could mean a past event, a present event, or a future event. In English, any of these translations would work:
Did you like the party?
How was the party?
How's the party going?
What's the party like?
How are the plans for the party going?
What kind of party will it be?


Thanx a lot Laepelba for asking, because I was wondering about this myself the other day, as I have come across this expression in these different meanings and more or less deduced that hence it would be applicable in these different cases (as in : supposition).

It' s a deceptively simple phrase but it's really so versatile in its use!

¡Gracias por explicarlo Rusty!


Quote:
Originally Posted by laepelba View Post
Word.
¡ Palabra!

Last edited by EmpanadaRica; August 02, 2009 at 06:52 PM.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old August 03, 2009, 06:38 AM
laepelba's Avatar
laepelba laepelba is offline
Diamond
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Suburbs of Washington, DC (Northern Virginia)
Posts: 4,683
Native Language: American English (Northeastern US)
laepelba is on a distinguished road
I'm really loving the whole concept of using ¿Qué tal? all over the place!
__________________
- Lou Ann, de Washington, DC, USA
Específicamente quiero recibir ayuda con el español de latinoamerica. ¡Muchísimas gracias!
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old August 03, 2009, 06:13 PM
EmpanadaRica's Avatar
EmpanadaRica EmpanadaRica is offline
Sapphire
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Holland
Posts: 1,067
Native Language: Dutch
EmpanadaRica is on a distinguished road
Quote:
Originally Posted by laepelba View Post
I'm really loving the whole concept of using ¿Qué tal? all over the place!
Haha.. yes indeed!! It offers so many possibilities..

By the way, how do you say ' None of your business' or ' What's it to you' or ' Mind your own business' in Spanish?
In case there is a '¿qué tal?' question that is preferably not answered..
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old August 03, 2009, 07:02 PM
AngelicaDeAlquezar's Avatar
AngelicaDeAlquezar AngelicaDeAlquezar is offline
Obsidiana
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Mexico City
Posts: 9,038
Native Language: Mexican Spanish
AngelicaDeAlquezar is on a distinguished road
Impolite ways:
No es asunto tuyo. (None of your business)
"A ti qué" or "Qué te importa". (What's it to you)


More polite answer (and preferable):
Prefiero no contestar/responder. (I'd rather not answer)
__________________
Ain't it wonderful to be alive when the Rock'n'Roll plays...
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old August 03, 2009, 08:01 PM
EmpanadaRica's Avatar
EmpanadaRica EmpanadaRica is offline
Sapphire
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Holland
Posts: 1,067
Native Language: Dutch
EmpanadaRica is on a distinguished road
Haha ¡no te preocupes! No tuvo la intención de verdaderamente usar las palabras/maneras descortéses
Es sólo que tenía curiosidad

¡Gracias!
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old August 03, 2009, 08:23 PM
AngelicaDeAlquezar's Avatar
AngelicaDeAlquezar AngelicaDeAlquezar is offline
Obsidiana
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Mexico City
Posts: 9,038
Native Language: Mexican Spanish
AngelicaDeAlquezar is on a distinguished road
Ya sabrás cuándo usarlas... sólo quise resaltar que hay que tener cuidado.
__________________
Ain't it wonderful to be alive when the Rock'n'Roll plays...
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old August 03, 2009, 08:42 PM
EmpanadaRica's Avatar
EmpanadaRica EmpanadaRica is offline
Sapphire
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Holland
Posts: 1,067
Native Language: Dutch
EmpanadaRica is on a distinguished road
¡Qué sí, verdad por supuesto! ¡Gracias es muy amable de ti advertirme!

¡¡ Tendré cuidado utilizarlas!!
Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
que tal

 

Link to this thread
URL: 
HTML Link: 
BB Code: 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Site Rules

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
¿Qué tal la comida? literacola General Chat 45 February 07, 2009 06:43 PM
Hola, ¿qué tal? Sancho Panther Culture 5 January 29, 2009 09:43 PM
Qué tal literacola Idioms & Sayings 2 January 28, 2009 07:00 PM
¡Hola! ¿Qué tal? DeterminadoAprender Introductions 29 October 01, 2008 09:40 PM
¡Que tal! m00nd0gg Introductions 2 February 26, 2008 05:41 PM


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 03:03 AM.

Forum powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.

X