El chico responde: «De nada».

In Spanish, nouns usually need an article more often than in English. El chico means the boy.

You can sometimes leave out the article in other contexts, but in a normal sentence like this, el chico sounds natural and complete. Just chico responde would sound unusual here.

Chico is a masculine noun meaning boy. That is why it uses the masculine singular article el.

• el chico = the boy
• la chica = the girl

The article and the noun have to match in gender and number.

Responde is the third-person singular present tense of responder (to reply / to answer).

So it can mean:

• he replies
• she replies
• it replies
• sometimes you reply in the formal usted form, depending on context

Here, because the subject is el chico, it means the boy replies.

Spanish often uses the present tense for narration, especially in examples, dialogues, captions, or storytelling. So El chico responde is a very natural way to introduce what the boy says.

Depending on context, Spanish could also use a past tense, for example:

• El chico respondió = the boy replied

But in a simple dialogue line or example sentence, the present is very common.

De nada is the standard response to gracias. It is the equivalent of you’re welcome.

It is used in both formal and informal situations and is one of the most common polite replies in Spanish.

Other possible replies include:

• No hay de qué
• No es nada
• A ti
• Un placer / Ha sido un placer in more formal situations

But De nada is the safest and most common one for learners.

That is just how the fixed expression works in Spanish. Word-for-word, de nada looks like of nothing, but you should learn it as a whole phrase meaning you’re welcome.

Many everyday expressions do not translate literally between languages, so it is better to treat De nada as one complete unit.

The colon introduces the exact words the boy says.

So:

• El chico responde: = The boy replies:
• «De nada» = the actual reply

This works similarly to English when you write something like:

• The boy replies: You’re welcome.

« » are called angle quotes or guillemets. They are traditional quotation marks in Spanish typography.

So in Spanish, it is very normal to see:

• «De nada»

You may also see:

• "De nada"

especially in modern publishing, online writing, or depending on style guides. Both can appear, but « » are especially associated with standard Spanish punctuation.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• responde ≈ reh-SPON-deh

More roughly in IPA for Spain: /resˈponde/

A few points:

• the r in responde is a soft tapped r
• the e and o are pure vowel sounds, not diphthongs
• the stress is on -pon-

A simple guide is:

• De nada ≈ deh NAH-dah

In IPA for Spain: /de ˈnaða/

A few Spain-specific notes:

• d in nada is often softer between vowels, almost like the th in this
• the stress is on na-

So in careful pronunciation, nada can sound a bit like NA-tha to English ears, though not exactly.

Yes, Spanish often drops subject pronouns, and sometimes even the full subject if it is already clear from context.

So both are possible:

• El chico responde: «De nada».
• Responde: «De nada».

The version with el chico is clearer because it explicitly tells you who is speaking. It is useful when introducing a scene, a story, or an example sentence.

Often, yes. Both can mean to answer / to reply.

For example:

• El chico responde.
• El chico contesta.

Both are possible in many contexts.

Very generally:

• responder can sound a little broader and can be used for replying or responding
• contestar is also very common for answering, especially a question, phone call, or remark

In this sentence, responde sounds completely natural.