qué tal

6 synonyms for qué tal, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.

Phrase — A Spanish greeting meaning 'how are you?' or 'how's it going?'

Synonyms

Rare, literary or technical

Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.

how are you how's it going what's up how was how about what about

Synonyms by Meaning

1. phrase

A Spanish greeting meaning 'how are you?' or 'how's it going?'

“Qué tal — how was the flight?”

how are you how's it going what's up

2. phrase

Used before a noun to ask how something was or what someone thinks of it: 'how about…?' or 'how was…?'

“Qué tal la película — worth watching?”

how was how about what about

How to use qué tal

The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.

qué tal estás qué tal todo hola, qué tal

Informal to neutral — safer with a stranger than qué pasa, but still not formal. Written ¿qué tal? in full Spanish punctuation.

Etymology

Spanish qué 'what' plus tal 'such, so', literally something like 'what such?'

Full origin of qué tal →

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between qué tal and cómo estás?

Cómo estás is a direct question about your state of health or mood and expects a real answer. Qué tal is looser and more like 'how's things?' — it can greet a person or ask about a thing, as in qué tal el hotel?

How do you answer qué tal?

Bien, gracias ('fine, thanks'), todo bien ('all good') or muy bien, ¿y tú? ('very well, and you?'). Returning the question is expected.

Nearby words

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