Short answers that sound natural
Much of a conversation is reacting: greeting someone you have not seen for ages, saying yes, warning, dodging a question. These formulas do it in two or three words.
| situation | say |
|---|---|
| you meet an old friend | ¡Cuánto tiempo! |
| someone asks how you are | Vamos tirando. / Voy tirando. |
| someone says something kind | Lo mismo digo. |
| someone asks a favour | ¡Cómo no! |
| you do not want to promise | Ya veremos. |
| you warn someone | ¡Ojo! |
Meeting and greeting
| Long time no see! How are you? | ¡Cuánto tiempo! ¿Cómo estás? |
Ir tirando is to get by: not great, not terrible. The verb ir changes with the person.
| With this salary we get by, but we don't save anything. | Con este sueldo vamos tirando, pero no ahorramos nada. |
Hombre
Hombre at the start of a reply is not a man. It is an interjection of surprise or emphasis, and people in Spain say it to women too.
| Hey! Isn't that man your teacher? | ¡Hombre! ¿Ese hombre no es tu profesor? |
The first hombre shows surprise; the second one is that man.
| Come on, of course I'll help you, we're friends. | Hombre, claro que te ayudo, que somos amigos. |
Yes, maybe, careful
¡Cómo no! is a warm of course. Ya veremos keeps the door open, and it often hints at probably not.
| Will you buy me a motorbike? — We'll see. | ¿Me comprarás una moto? — Ya veremos. |
¡Ojo! can stand alone, or take que + the reason or con + the danger.
| Watch out, the dog bites! | ¡Ojo, que el perro muerde! |
En fin usually closes a topic: anyway, oh well.
| We've missed the train. Oh well, we'll catch the next one. | Hemos perdido el tren. En fin, cogeremos el siguiente. |
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