Breakdown of ¿Quién es el tipo ese que habla con tu hermana?
ser
to be
con
with / just by (+ -ing)
la hermana
the sister
hablar
to speak
quién
who
tu
your (singular)
que
that (relative pronoun, conjunction)
ese
that (m.sg., also esa, esos, esas, eso)
el tipo
the guy
Questions & Answers about ¿Quién es el tipo ese que habla con tu hermana?
Why is the demonstrative ese placed after the noun in el tipo ese instead of before it (ese tipo)?
Placing a demonstrative like ese after the noun adds a dismissive, pejorative, or highly colloquial tone. The speaker is saying 'that guy' with a hint of annoyance or distance. Notice that when you put the demonstrative after the noun, you must use a definite article like el before the noun.
The English translation says 'talking', so why does the Spanish use que habla instead of the gerund hablando?
In English, we often use an '-ing' verb to describe a noun, like 'that guy talking'. In Spanish, gerunds like hablando are mainly used for actions currently in progress, usually paired with verbs like estar. To describe a noun doing an action, Spanish strongly prefers a relative clause with que, literally meaning 'that guy who talks' or 'who is talking'.
Is tipo a slang word in this sentence?
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