Learn Spanish (Spain): Buenos días, quisiera un traje. - Good morning, I would like a suit.

Buenos días, quisiera un traje.

Good morning, I would like a suit.

Breakdown of Buenos días, quisiera un traje.

a, an, some

querer

to want; to love (a person)

Questions & Answers about Buenos días, quisiera un traje.

Why use quisiera here instead of just saying quiero?

Saying quiero (I want) can sound a bit too direct or demanding when speaking to shop staff. Quisiera translates to "I would like" and is an excellent way to soften your request.

I thought quisiera was a past tense form. Why is it used for a present request?

You are exactly right! It is the imperfect subjunctive of querer. However, using this past form for a present request is a special polite convention in Spanish. Moving the request into a hypothetical past makes it sound less forceful.

Could I use the conditional tense querría instead?

Yes, you can use querría ("I would like"), and it is perfectly polite and grammatically correct. However, you will actually hear native speakers use the subjunctive form quisiera much more often for everyday requests in shops and restaurants.

Can un traje refer to anything other than a traditional suit?

By itself, un traje usually refers to a classic suit. However, it is also the word for a costume or a special outfit, such as un traje de baño (a swimsuit) or un traje de chaqueta (a woman's business suit).